José María Gil Tamayo (born 5 June 1957) is a Spanish

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. He has been serving as

archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Granada Granada (,, DIN 31635, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the fo ...

since his installation on 1 February 2023. He previously served as

coadjutor archbishop The term coadjutor (or coadiutor, literally "co-assister" in Latin) is a title qualifier indicating that the holder shares the office with another person, with powers equal to the other in all but formal order of precedence. These include: * Coadj ...

of that archdiocese and as

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Ávila Ávila (, , ) is a city of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the Province of Ávila. It lies on the right bank of the Adaja river. Located more than 1,130 m abov ...

. Gil became a priest in 1980 and was named bishop in 2018; after his ordination, he did pastoral work in rural villages and delivered lectures in Latin America and the Caribbean. He had many technological-related roles due to his degree in information science.

Early life

José María Gil Tamayo was born on 5 June 1957 in the municipality of

Zalamea de la Serena Zalamea de la Serena is a municipality in the province of Badajoz, Extremadura, Spain. According to the 2014 census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given popul ...

Badajoz Badajoz (; formerly written ''Badajos'' in English) is the capital of the Province of Badajoz in the autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain. It is situated close to the Portuguese border, on the left bank of the river Guadiana. The population ...

Extremadura Extremadura (; ext, Estremaúra; pt, Estremadura; Fala: ''Extremaúra'') is an autonomous community of Spain. Its capital city is Mérida, and its largest city is Badajoz. Located in the central-western part of the Iberian Peninsula, it ...

. He studied at the

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

of the Archdiocese of Mérida–Badajoz. He earned a licenciate degree in

ecclesiology In Christian theology, ecclesiology is the study of the Church, the origins of Christianity, its relationship to Jesus, its role in salvation, its polity, its discipline, its eschatology, and its leadership. In its early history, one of the ...

and

information science Information science (also known as information studies) is an academic field which is primarily concerned with analysis, collection, Categorization, classification, manipulation, storage, information retrieval, retrieval, movement, dissemin ...

from the

University of Navarra , image = UNAV.svg , latin_name = Universitas Studiorum Navarrensis , established = 17 October 1952 , type = Private, Roman Catholic , chancellor = Fernando Ocáriz Braña , president = María Iraburu Eliz ...

Priesthood

Gil's

sacerdotal ordination Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform vario ...

was on 7 September 1980; he was incardinated in the Archdiocese of Mérida–Badajoz by Antonio Montero Moreno. For nine years, he dedicated himself to pastoral work in rural villages, serving as a parish priest, vicar, and religion teacher. In one of these villages, he initiated collaboration with local radio stations to share religious teachings for those who couldn't attend mass. He started his

ministry Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

as a clergyman within the Archdiocese of Mérida–Badajoz. In 1992, he assumed the role of directing Medios de Comunicación y de la Oficina de Información for his diocese. He held the position of

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western can ...

of the same diocese. Gil has been a

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

in communication technologies at

Pontifical University of Salamanca The Pontifical University of Salamanca (in Spanish: ''Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca'') is a private Roman Catholic university based in Salamanca, Spain. History This Pontifical University has its origins in the unique University of Sa ...

. Internationally, he has delivered lectures in

El Salvador El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

and

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

. From 2001 to 2011, he was member of the Comité Episcopal Europeo de Medios de Comunicación. He collaborated to the Red Informática de la Iglesia en América Latina and provided pastoral communication services to the Episcopal Conference of

and

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

. In 2006, he became member for the Comité internacional preparatorio del Congreso Mundial de TV Católicas and also took charge of the event's press direction. Gil was the

spokesperson A spokesperson, spokesman, or spokeswoman, is someone engaged or elected to speak on behalf of others. Duties and function In the present media-sensitive world, many organizations are increasingly likely to employ professionals who have receiv ...

of the Spanish language in the XIII Synod of Bishops in the Catholic Church in 2018. Furthermore, he was the deputy of the Spanish language of the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...

during the

resignation of Pope Benedict XVI The resignation of Pope Benedict XVI took effect on 28 February 2013 at 20:00 CET, following his announcement of it on 11 February. It made him the first pope to relinquish the office since Gregory XII was forced to resign in 1415 to end the Wes ...

(February-March 2013). In the Roman Curia, Gil was the consultant of the

Pontifical Council for Social Communications The Pontifical Council for Social Communications ( la, Pontificium Consilium de Communicationibus Socialibus) was a dicastery of the Roman Curia that was suppressed in March 2016 and merged into the Secretariat for Communications (now "Dicaste ...

from 2006 to 2016. During 13 years (1998-2011), the archbishop of Granada was the director of the Director of the Media Commission Secretariat of the

Spanish Episcopal Conference The Spanish Episcopal Conference ( es, Conferencia Episcopal Española, ca, Conferència Episcopal Espanyola) is an administrative institution composed of all the bishops of the dioceses of Spain and Andorra, in communion with the Roman Pontiff a ...

. He has also directed the Information Service of the

Catholic Church in Spain , native_name_lang = , image = Sevilla Cathedral - Southeast.jpg , imagewidth = 300px , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Saint Mary of the See in Seville , abbreviation = , type ...

. He has been secretary general of the Spanish Episcopal Conference from 2013-2018.

Bishophood

Bishop

On 6 of November 2018 he was named as

of the

Diocese of Ávila In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, pro ...

, replacing . He received his

consecration Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

on 15 December 2018 by

Ricardo Blázquez Ricardo Blázquez Pérez (; born 13 April 1942) is a Spanish prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He was Archbishop of Valladolid from 2010 to 2022. He had been a bishop since 1988 and was made a cardinal in 2015, when he was described as "a ...

on the

Ávila Cathedral The Cathedral of the Saviour ( es, Catedral de Cristo Salvador) is a Catholic church in Ávila in the south of Old Castile, Spain. It was built in the late Romanesque and Gothic architectural traditions. It was planned as a cathedral-fortress, ...

. As a bishop, Gil is president of the foundation

Las Edades del Hombre Las Edades del Hombre is a religious foundation that was created to promote the sacred art of Castilla y León (Spain). The initiative was an idea of José Jiménez Lozano José Jiménez Lozano (13 May 1930 – 9 March 2020) was a Spanish write ...

and the of the

Catholic University of Ávila Saint Teresa of Jesus Catholic University (), commonly known as the Catholic University of Ávila (UCAV), is a private, Catholic university, located in Ávila, Castile and León, Spain. It is named after Saint Teresa of Ávila. The current re ...

. He has served as a member of the Comisión Episcopal de Medios de Comunicación Social within the Spanish Episcopal Conference from 2019 to 2020. Additionally, he has been a member of the Comisión Ejecutiva since 2020. Moreover, as of 2022, he holds the position of president of the Consejo de Estudios y Proyectos. In 2021, the bishop asked the government of Spain to declare the area of

Navalacruz Navalacruz is a municipality located in the province of Ávila, Castile and León, Spain. According to the 2006 census (INE INE, Ine or ine may refer to: Institutions * Institut für Nukleare Entsorgung, a German nuclear research center * Ins ...

disaster zone A disaster area is a region or a locale that has been heavily damaged by either natural, technological or social hazards. Disaster areas affect the population living in the community by dramatic increase in expense, loss of energy, food and serv ...

following a fire in the region. During the

Covid-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Tamayo criticized the government for only providing emergency funding to public schools, not to

private schools An independent school is independent in its finances and governance. Also known as private schools, non-governmental, privately funded, or non-state schools, they are not administered by local, state or national governments. In British Eng ...

(including Catholic schools), calling this discriminatory. Tamayo was hospitalized in May 2020 for having Covid-19. Like other bishops, Gil selected a

motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...

and a ecclesiastical coat of arms. His chosen motto, "Non ministrari sed ministrare", is meant to reflect the words of

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

to his disciples, signifying that he was named to serve, not to be served.

Archbishop

On 16 July 2022 he was named

Archdiocese of Granada The archdiocese of Granada ( la, archidioecesis Granatensis) is an ecclesiastical province of the Catholic Church in Spain.

. The position of coadjutor, rarely employed in the Spanish clergy, was utilized to ensure a "peaceful transition" of responsibilities. On 1 February 2023, after the resignation of , he was named by

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

of Granada. The Holy See tasked Gil to provide an

internal audit Internal auditing is an independent, objective assurance and consulting activity designed to add value and improve an organization's operations. It helps an organization accomplish its objectives by bringing a systematic, disciplined approach to ...

on the economic situation of the bishopric, as well as a revitalization of the clergy of Granada. In August 2023, Tamayo attended the inauguration of a new statue of the first Archbishop of Mérida-Granada, Antonio Montero, and blessed the sculpture. In 2024, Tamayo hosted a

Chrism Mass The Chrism Mass is a religious service held in Roman Catholicism, Lutheranism, and Anglicanism. The Chrism Mass is one of the most solemn and important liturgies of the Christian liturgical calendar. The ancient Christian Apostolic Tradition ...

for the persecuted clergy of Nicaragua, where he announced that the Archdiocese of Granada would welcome Nicaraguan clergy in need.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gil Tamayo, José María 1957 births Living people People from Badajoz Bishops appointed by Pope Francis University of Navarra alumni 21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Spain