José Hipólito Salas y Toro (August 13, 1812 – July 20, 1883) was a Chilean Catholic priest and theologian. He served as bishop of Concepción between 1854 and 1883.

Biography

He was born in

Olivar Olivar is a commune in Chile, located in the O'Higgins Region, 10 km south of Rancagua, and administered by the municipality of Olivar. The main economic activities range from agriculture and food production, especially apples for exportatio ...

, and studied in the Instituto Nacional General José Miguel Carrera in Santiago. Salas was ordained a priest on 22 November 1835. He was professor of the now-extinct Faculty of Theology of the University of Chile. Salas was candidate for deputy representing Rancagua and Maipo in the parliamentary elections of Chile of 1843, in which finally were elected José Santiago Melo Mendoza and Luis García Huidobro Aldunate. In 1848 he wrote the essay ''Memoria sobre el servicio personal de los indígenas y su abolición'' about ''

encomienda The ''encomienda'' () was a Spanish labour system that rewarded conquerors with the labour of conquered non-Christian peoples. The labourers, in theory, were provided with benefits by the conquerors for whom they laboured, including military ...

'' and other subjects. In October 1854 he was appointed bishop of the then Diocese of Conception, and in next year he ordered the reopening of the Seminar of Concepción. He also managed the construction of the Cathedral of Conception in 1867, that replaced the old church destroyed by the

1835 Concepción earthquake The 1835 Concepción earthquake occurred near the neighboring cities of Concepción and Talcahuano in Chile on 20 February at 11:30 local time (15:30 UTC) and has an estimated magnitude of about 8.5 . The earthquake triggered a tsunami which c ...

. He participated of the

First Vatican Council The First Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the First Vatican Council or Vatican I was convoked by Pope Pius IX on 29 June 1868, after a period of planning and preparation that began on 6 December 1864. This, the twentieth ecu ...

(1869–70) convoked by

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...

, as part of the Chilean group led by monsignor

Rafael Valentín Valdivieso Rafael Valentín Valdivieso Zañartu (November 2, 1804 – June 8, 1878) was a Chilean priest and lawyer, who worked as Archbishop of Santiago de Chile between 1848 and 1878. Biography Valdivieso was born on November 2, 1804. His parents were ...

. In Vatican he was invited to join the College of Cardinals, however he refused the offer and returned to Chile. He died in 1883, and his remains lie in the General Cemetery of Concepción.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Salas, Jose Hipolito 1812 births 1883 deaths Academic staff of the University of Chile Chilean theologians 19th-century Roman Catholic theologians People from Cachapoal Province Chilean political writers Roman Catholic bishops of Concepción