José Cardoso Sobrinho (born 30 June 1933, in
Caruaru) is the Archbishop Emeritus of the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Olinda e Recife
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Olinda and Recife ( la, Archidioecesis Olindensis et Recifensis) is a Latin metropolitan archdiocese in northeast Brazil's Pernambuco state.
Special churches
* Its cathedral archiepiscopal see is a World Herit ...
in the
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
ian state of
Pernambuco
Pernambuco () is a state of Brazil, located in the Northeast region of the country. With an estimated population of 9.6 million people as of 2020, making it seventh-most populous state of Brazil and with around 98,148 km², being the 19 ...
.
He joined the
Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
The Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel was founded in 1608 by Pope Paul V at the request of King Henry IV of France.
History
According to the official version recorded in the bull of Pope Paul V setting up the Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, ...
in 1957 and was appointed bishop of
Paracatu in 1979. Sobrinho is the successor of
Hélder Câmara
Hélder Pessoa Câmara (7 February 1909 – 27 August 1999) was a Brazilian Catholic archbishop. A self-identified socialist
Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characteriz ...
and had been tasked with undoing the influence of
liberation theology
Liberation theology is a Christian theological approach emphasizing the liberation of the oppressed. In certain contexts, it engages socio-economic analyses, with "social concern for the poor and political liberation for oppressed peoples". In ...
in that region of Brazil.
2009 statement of excommunication
In March 2009, after an abortion on a nine-year-old girl raped by her stepfather and pregnant with twins had been performed due to rape exception of Brazil’s abortion laws, Sobrinho stated that
automatic excommunication
Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to end or at least regulate the communion of a member of a congregation with other members of the religious institution who are in normal communion with each other. The purpose ...
had been incurred by the girl's mother and the medical team. Regarding his statement, he said:
President
Lula da Silva and Health Minister
José Gomes Temporão
José Gomes Temporão (born 20 October 1951) is a Brazilian public health physician and politician, formerly of the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party, who later joined the Brazilian Socialist Party. He was Brazilian Minister of Health from 2007 ...
decried his statement. The
National Conference of Bishops of Brazil
The National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (Portuguese: Conferência Nacional dos Bispos do Brasil, CNBB) brings together the Catholic Bishops of Brazil, as the Code of Canon Law, "jointly exercise certain pastoral functions on behalf of the fait ...
disowned it, saying that the mother was certainly not excommunicated and there was insufficient evidence to show that any member of the medical team was. The statement was also criticized in the Vatican newspaper ''
L'Osservatore Romano
''L'Osservatore Romano'' (, 'The Roman Observer') is the daily newspaper of Vatican City State which reports on the activities of the Holy See and events taking place in the Catholic Church and the world. It is owned by the Holy See but is not a ...
'' by the President of the
Pontifical Academy for Life
The Pontifical Academy for Life or Pontificia Accademia per la Vita is a Pontifical Academy of the Roman Catholic Church dedicated to promoting the Church's consistent life ethic. It also does related research on bioethics and Catholic moral the ...
, Cardinal
Rino Fisichella
Salvatore Fisichella (born 25 August 1951), commonly known as Rino Fisichella, is an Italian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church with the rank of archbishop. He is the current Pro-prefect for the Section of New Evangelization of the Dicastery ...
. One of the doctors concerned said the controversy had drawn needed attention to Brazil's restrictive abortion laws.
Retirement
Sobrinho's resignation was accepted when he reached the canonical age limit upon turning 75 in 2008. His successor is , previously
Bishop of Sobral
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sobrinho, Jose Cardoso
1933 births
2009 in Brazil
21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Brazil
Carmelite bishops
Living people
People from Caruaru
20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Brazil
Roman Catholic archbishops of Olinda e Recife
People from Paracatu, Minas Gerais