Alexandre José Maria dos Santos

Alexandre José Maria dos Santos (born 18 March 1924) is a Roman Catholic Mozambican cardinal. He was the first native cardinal of Mozambique.

His Eminence

Alexandre José Maria dos Santos

O.F.M.
Archbishop Emeritus of Maputo
ChurchRoman Catholic Church
ArchdioceseMaputo
SeeMaputo
Appointed18 September 1976[1]
Retired22 February 2003
PredecessorCustódio Alvim Pereira
SuccessorFrancisco Chimoio
Other postsCardinal-Priest of San Frumenzio ai Prati Fiscali (1988-)
Orders
Ordination25 June 1953
by Manuel Gonçalves Cerejeira
Consecration9 March 1975
by Agnelo Rossi
Created cardinal28 June 1988
by Pope John Paul II
RankCardinal-Priest
Personal details
Birth nameAlexandre José Maria dos Santos
Born (1924-03-18) 18 March 1924
Zavala, Mozambique
Previous postArchbishop of Laurençco Marques (1974-76)[2]
MottoServir e não ser servido ("To serve, not to be served")
Coat of arms

Ecclesiastical career

He was born in Zavala, Mozambique. He studied in Nyasaland and Lisbon before being ordained a Roman Catholic priest in 1953, becoming the first black Mozambican to receive the distinction.[3] In 1973 he became the first African to run a seminary in Mozambique.[4] He was archbishop of Maputo, between 1975 and 2003. On 26 June 1988 he was created a cardinal by Pope John Paul II, and given the titular church of San Frumenzio ai Prati Fiscali.[5] He was instrumental in the peace process surrounding the end of the Mozambican Civil War.[3]. He did not participate in the conclaves of 2005 and 2013, because he was over the age limit by then.

References
  1. As the Archbishop of Maputo after it was renamed.
  2. The Archdiocese became the Maputo archdiocese but it held as a different position.
  3. Darch, Colin (2018). Historical Dictionary of Mozambique. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 352. ISBN 978-1-5381-1135-2. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  4. Morier-Genoud, Éric (2019). Catholicism and the Making of Politics in Central Mozambique, 1940-1986. Boydell & Brewer. p. 89. ISBN 978-1-58046-941-8. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  5. Cardinal Title S. Frumenzio ai Prati Fiscali GCatholic.org
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