Julián Garcés, O.P. (''Ordo Praedicatorum'', "Dominican Order") was a

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Dominican priest born in Munébrega in the

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. Made Bishop in the Diocese of Yucatán in 1519 and subsequently first acting bishop of

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in the Diocese of Tlaxcala from 1525, he occupied his episcopal post between October 13, 1525, and his death, December 7, 1542.

Biography

Garcés took the vows in the convent of the Orden de Santo Domingo in

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. Ortín, Félix Latassa Y, Miguel Gómez Uriel, Joaquín Gil Berges, Victorio Pina Y Ferrer, Antonio Hernández Y Fajarnés, and Sala Valdés Mario De La. Bibliotecas Antigua Y Nueva De Escritores Aragoneses. Zaragoza: Impr. De C. Ariño, 1884. Pp. 584-585. Google Books. Web. 14 Mar. 2016. .(PDF available) (Spanish) He studied at the

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and the

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, then taught theology in the convent of Zaragoza, where he received his master's degree. He then studied

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, and

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in Paris. He was the royal chaplain of

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, V of the

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and head of the Dominican Order in

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. He was named bishop of the new diocese of Yucatán, in New Spain, the 1519 royal provision reading, "We present you (Rev. Father Julián Garcés) to the Bishopric of Yucatán and Santa María de los Remedios", having been recommended by Carlos's ecclesiastical advisers. However, with new information about the new territory's geography, in 1525,

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named him

bishop of Tlaxcala 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 ...

, writing, "We grant you and the bishops who shall succeed you, that you call yourselves not bishops of Santa María (de los Remedios or of

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) but 'Tenuxtitlan' and of other lands to be mentioned.""Tlaxcala." Catholic Encyclopedia. Catholic Online. Web. 14 Mar. 2016. Garcés chose the city of

Tlaxcala Tlaxcala (; , ; from nah, Tlaxcallān ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tlaxcala ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tlaxcala), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 60 municipaliti ...

as his

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. Despite his old age, he did not hesitate in setting out for the West Indies, taking possession of his episcopal see two years later. In his time in the tlaxcalan bishopric, he stood out for his care taken in the protection of the natives, as well as the erection of temples and welfare services. The fruit of these endeavors was the construction of a hospital on the 'Camino de Veracruz' and of the

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

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, the name that his diocese would later adopt. Garcés is one of the Aragonese who participated in the early missionary and colonial action of the

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in New Spain, taking an active part in the controversy concerning the natives, the result of which was a letter to Pope Paul III in defense of the "Indios". He died in his see of a malarial fever at the age of 89."Garcés, Fray Julián." Gran Enciclopedia Aragonesa. Web. 14 Mar. 2016. (Spanish)

Work

''Epístola ad SS. Dom. Nost. Paulum III Pontificem Maximum in Gratiam Indorum. Ilustratio omnium operum Divi Augustini, Notis marginalibus a se ipso factis''. ''Ilustratio omnium operum Divi Augustini, Notis marginalibus á se ipso factis'' Papers concerning the establishment of the Church in Puebla de los Angeles, with reports of that City and its Diocese. A collection of sermons

References

External links and additional sources

Biografía del obispo Garcés
* (for Chronology of Bishops) Wikipedia:SPS, * (for Chronology of Bishops) Wikipedia:SPS, * (for Chronology of Bishops) Wikipedia:SPS, * (for Chronology of Bishops) Wikipedia:SPS, {{DEFAULTSORT:Garces, Julian Spanish Dominicans 16th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Mexico Spanish Roman Catholic bishops in North America People from the Kingdom of Aragon 1452 births 1542 deaths University of Salamanca alumni