Catholic Church in Uruguay explained

The Catholic Church in Uruguay is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the pope.

Overview

In 2014, Catholics made up a minority of the population at 38%, second to the unaffiliated group, which came in at 41%.^[1]

There are 9 dioceses and the archdiocese of Montevideo; the ordinaries gather in the Episcopal Conference of Uruguay. The current archbishop is Daniel Sturla, who was appointed on 11 February 2014.^[2]

The patron saint of Uruguay is Our Lady of the Thirty-Three, venerated at the Cathedral Basilica of Florida.^[3]

History

Evangelization of Uruguay followed Spanish settlement in 1624. Montevideo became a diocese in 1878, after being erected as a Vicarate in 1830. Missionaries followed the reduction pattern of gathering Indians into communities, training them in agriculture, husbandry, and other arts, while forming them in the Faith.

The constitution of 1830 made Catholicism the religion of the state and subsidized missions to Indians. In 1878, Montevideo was elevated to Diocese and, in 1897, to Archdiocese.

The constitution of 1917 enacted separation of Church and state.^[4]

Two Eastern Catholic churches are also present in Uruguay, the Armenian Catholic Church^[5] and the Maronite Church.^[6]

Careers

Uruguay is a country where religious calling is low. Every year, some young people engage in religious careers. In 2013, there were 34 students at the Archdiocesan Seminary in Montevideo.^[7]

Saints

So far, there is one Uruguayan saint and one blessed, but several beatification process are open:^[8]

• Saint Francesca Rubatto
• Blessed Jacinto Vera
• Servant of God Rubén Isidro Alonso
• Servant of God Walter Chango
• Servant of God Salvador García Pintos
• Blessed Consuelo Aguiar-Mella y Díaz
• Blessed Dolores Aguiar-Mella y Díaz

Institutes of Consecrated life

Several religious orders are present in Uruguay.^[9] Some of them arrived in colonial times (although their presence was intermittent during the first centuries):

• Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, since 1624^{[10] [11]}
• Order of Preachers, since 1660^[12]
• Society of Jesus, 1680–1757, 1842-1859 and since 1872^[13]

After Uruguay was established as an independent country, several other religious orders established their own missions in Uruguay:

• Conventual Franciscans^[14]
• Betharram Fathers, since 1856^[15]
• Salesians of Don Bosco, since 1877^[16]
• Sisters of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, since 1885^[17]
• Sisters of Christian Charity, since 1885^[18]
• Pallottine Fathers, since 1886^[19]
• Brothers of the Holy Family of Belley, since 1889^[20]
• Congregation of the Mission, since 1892^[21]
• Capuchin Sisters of Mother Rubatto, since 1892^[22]
• Claretians, since 1896^[23]
• Oblates of St. Francis de Sales, since 1896^[24]
• Discalced Carmelites, since 1912^[25]
• Dominican Sisters of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin, since 1913^[26]
• Sons of Divine Providence,^[27] since 1921^[28]
• Maronite Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary, since 1924^[29]
• Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, since 1929.^[30]
• Augustinians, since 1932^[31]
• Marist Brothers,^[32] since 1934^[33]
• Brothers of the Sacred Heart, since 1935^[34]
• Dehonians, since 1940^[35]
• Passionists, since 1940^[36]
• Brothers of Christian Instruction, since 1951^[37]
• Religious of Jesus and Mary, since 1952^[38]
• Christian Brothers, since 1955^[39]
• Opus Dei, since 1956^[40]
• Sisters Hospitaller of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, since 1961^[41]
• Scalabrinians, since 1970^[42]
• Missionaries of Charity, since 1991^[43]
• Visitandines
• Brothers of Mercy of Our Lady of Perpetual Help^[44]
• Poor Servants of Divine Providence
• Salesian Sisters of Don Bosco

Notable Uruguayan Catholic religious leaders

• Dámaso Antonio Larrañaga (1771–1848), naturalist and first Apostolic Vicar of Uruguay
• Juan Francisco Larrobla (1775–1842), theologian and patriot, writer of the Declaration of the Independence
• José Benito Monterroso (1780–1838), secretary of the national hero José Artigas
• José Benito Lamas (1787–1857), patriot and lecturer
• Manuel Barreiro (1787–1838), patriot and constituent
• Lorenzo Antonio Fernández (1792–1852), constituent and rector of the University
• Servant of God Jacinto Vera (1813–1881), first Bishop of Montevideo
• Blessed Francisca Rubatto (1844–1905), founder of the Capuchin Sisters of Mother Rubatto
• Mariano Soler (1846–1908), first Archbishop of Montevideo
• Antonio Barbieri, OFM Cap (1892–1979), first Uruguayan cardinal
• Juan Luis Segundo, SJ (1925–1996), liberation theologian
• Servant of God Rubén Isidro Alonso, SDB (1929-1992), streetwise priest
• Daniel Sturla, SDB (born 1959), second Uruguayan cardinal and current archbishop of Montevideo
• Gonzalo Aemilius (born 1978), principal of the Liceo Jubilar^[45]

See also

• Religion in Uruguay
• Episcopal Conference of Uruguay
• List of Catholic dioceses in Uruguay
• List of Uruguayan Catholic priests

External links

• • Episcopal Conference of Uruguay

Notes and References

1. Latinobarometro, Opinion Publica Latinoamericana, Enero 2018.
2. Web site: Catholic Church in Uruguay. Catholic Hierarchy. 11 February 2014.
3. Web site: Sanctuary to the Virgin of the Thirty-Three. 16 July 2013. .
4. https://countrystudies.us/uruguay/43.htm#:~:text=Under%20the%20influence%20of%20the,have%20religious%20holidays%20legally%20renamed. US Library of Congress
5. https://www.byzcath.org/index.php/resources/directories/find-a-parish-mainmenu-112/13-uruguay Byzantine Catholic Church of America website
6. Web site: Our Lady of Lebanon . Archdiocese of Montevideo . 30 March 2013 .
7. Web site: Wedding with God . 4 August 2013 . . es.
8. http://icm.org.uy/camino-de-santidad/ Servants of God in Uruguay
9. Web site: Institutes of consecrated life in Montevideo . 30 March 2013 . es.
10. http://www.monografias.com/trabajos6/frau/frau.shtml History of the Franciscans in Uruguay
11. http://www.franciscanoscap.org.ar/sitio/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=72&Itemid=57 Province of the Friars Minor Capuchin in the River Plate
12. http://cidalc.op.org/cidalc/uruguay.pdf.pdf Dominicans in Uruguay
13. http://www.seminario.edu.uy/nuevaweb/index.php/la-institucion/historia History of the Society of Jesus in Uruguay
14. http://menoresconventuales.blogspot.com/ Río de la Plata Province of the Conventual Franciscans
15. Web site: The Basque Fathers . 1 May 2013. es.
16. http://www.colegiopio.edu.uy/institucional/historia.aspx Salesians in Uruguay
17. Web site: Sisters of Adoration in Uruguay . 2013-05-13 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304043300/http://www.colegioadora.com/perfil.html . 2016-03-04 . dead .
18. http://www.inmaculadaconcepcion.edu.uy/html/hermanasdelacc.html Sisters of Christian Charity in Uruguay
19. http://www.pallotti.edu.uy/libro.html Pallottine Fathers in Uruguay
20. Web site: Brothers of the Holy Family in Montevideo . 13 May 2013 . 8 July 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130708101114/http://www.safa.edu.uy/historia.php . dead .
21. http://www.mmilagrosa.org/?q=content/historia History of the Vicentians
22. http://www.colegiosanjose.edu.uy/pg_historia.php Mother Rubatto in Uruguay
23. http://www.claretianos.org.ar/identidad/docs/Vida_de_los_CMFF.pdf Claretians in Uruguay
24. https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/oblates-st-francis-de-sales#:~:text=Because%20of%20political%20unrest%20and,to%20Rio%20Grande%20do%20Sul. Encyclopedia.com website
25. http://www.ocduruguay.org/ Carmelites in Uruguay
26. http://www.clarajackson.edu.uy/quienes/carisma.aspx Dominican Sisters in Uruguay
27. http://www.donorione.org/dettaglioPaese.asp Don Orione in Uruguay
28. https://www.vatican.va/news_services/liturgy/saints/ns_lit_doc_20040516_orione_sp.html Don Orione in the world
29. Web site: 27 April 2013 . Maronite Church in Uruguay . es.
30. http://www.omiuy.com Oblates in Uruguay
31. http://www.santarita.edu.uy/santa-rita/santa-rita-institucional-agustinos-en-uruguay Augustinians in Uruguay
32. Web site: Marist Brothers in Uruguay . 2013-05-13 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160303235418/http://www.maristas.edu.uy/sitio/index.php?IDcolegios=3&mid=articulos&id=13&IDarticulos=21 . 2016-03-03 . dead .
33. https://archive.today/20130805022332/http://www.fms.it/000.php?p=19 Marist Brothers in the world
34. http://www.sagradocorazon.edu.uy/colegio/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4&Itemid=23 Brothers of the Sacred Heart in Montevideo
35. http://www.chasque.net/umbrales/presencia%20dehoniana%20en%20uru.htm Dehonians in Uruguay
36. http://www.reachingu.org/paginas/santagema.html Passionists in Uruguay
37. http://www.lamennais.edu.uy/El_Colegio/Menesianos_en_Uruguay./76/ De la Mennais Brothers in Uruguay
38. http://www.jesusmaria.edu.uy/institucional/historia.htm Religious of Jesus and Mary in Uruguay
39. http://stellamaris.edu.uy/ContentAction.do?action=loadContent&contId=1003 Christian Brothers in Montevideo
40. http://www.opusdei.org.uy/art.php?p=24296 Opus Dei in Uruguay
41. http://www.hospitalariasargentina.org/Objects/Pagina.asp?ID=4 Province of the Sisters Hospitaller
42. http://www.daresrecibir.org.uy/organizaciones-beneficas?id=73 Scalabrinians in Montevideo
43. http://www.lr21.com.uy/sociedad/47230-misioneras-de-la-orden-de-la-madre-teresa-atenderan-a-infectados-de-vih Missionaries of Charity in Uruguay
44. http://www.misericordistas.edu.uy/hnos.php Brothers of Our Lady of Mercy in Uruguay
45. Web site: Aemilius reencounters Pope Francis. 2013-03-18. El Observador. es. 2013-05-01. https://web.archive.org/web/20130529200631/http://www.elobservador.com.uy/noticia/246110/el-reencuentro-entre-aemilius-y-el-papa-jorge-soy-gonzalo-estoy-aca-/. 2013-05-29. dead.