Oswald Gracias (born 24 December 1944) is an Indian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He was appointed

Latin Church , native_name_lang = la , image = San Giovanni in Laterano - Rome.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , alt = Façade of the Archbasilica of St. John in Lateran , caption = Archbasilica of Saint Joh ...

Archbishop of Bombay The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bombay is a particular church celebrating the Latin Rite of worship, centred in the Bombay (Mumbai) city of the northern Konkan division of Maharashtra, India. The archdiocese has been a Metropolitan see sin ...

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the soverei ...

on 14 October 2006 and was raised to the cardinalate in 2007. In 2008, he became vice-president of the

Conference of Catholic Bishops of India The Conference of Catholic Bishops of India or CCBI, is the national episcopal conference of the bishops of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church in India, functioning in accordance with canon 447. There are 132 Latin Catholic dioceses in the ...

; and in 2010, he was elected president. He was also elected secretary general and then president of the

Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences The Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC) is an association of episcopal conferences of Catholic Church in South, Southeast, East and Central Asia. The federation fosters solidarity and joint responsibility for the welfare of the Church a ...

from 2010 to 2019. On 13 April 2013, he was appointed to the eight-member Council of Cardinals, informally the

Council of Cardinal Advisers The Council of Cardinals (called C9 due to the fact it contained 9 cardinal members for some time), also known as the Council of Cardinal Advisers, is a group of cardinals of the Catholic Church appointed by Pope Francis to serve as his adviser ...

, established by Pope Francis to help with governing the Catholic Church and reforming its central administration. He was mentioned as a possible candidate to succeed Pope Benedict XVI in 2013.

Biography

Early life and ordination

Gracias was born in

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...

(modern-day Mumbai) to Jervis and Aduzinda Gracias (a native of Orlim, Goa). He recognises himself as a Goan Catholic. He completed his school studies at St. Michael's School in Mahim and joined college at the Jesuit

St. Xavier's College, Mumbai St. Xavier's College is a private, Catholic, autonomous higher education institution run by the Bombay Province of the Society of Jesus in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It was founded by the Jesuits on January 2, 1869. The college is aff ...

. After a year, he entered 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 St. Pius X in Bombay, where he studied philosophy and

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

. Gracias was

ordained 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 ...

to the priesthood by

Valerian Gracias Valerian Gracias (23 October 1900 – 11 September 1978) was an Indian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Bombay from 1950 until his death and was elevated to the rank of cardinal in 1953 by Pope Pius XII. Biogr ...

(no relation) on 20 December 1970. From 1971 to 1976, he served as Chancellor and

secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a ...

to Bishop

Joseph Rodericks Joseph Robert Rodericks (7 June 1927 – 14 July 2010) was the Catholic bishop of the Diocese of Jamshedpur, India. Biography Ordained to the priesthood on 24 March 1958 for the Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , i ...

, SJ, of Jamshedpur.

Diocesan work

Gracias attended the

Pontifical Urbaniana University The Pontifical Urban University, also called the ''Urbaniana'' after its names in both Latin and Italian,; it, Pontificia Università Urbaniana. is a pontifical university under the authority of the Congregation for the Evangelization of People ...

from 1976 to 1982; he obtained a doctorate in canon law, a diploma in

jurisprudence Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning a ...

. Upon his return to Bombay, he was named chancellor, judge of the metropolitan tribunal, and judicial vicar. From 1982, he was the chancellor of the Archdiocese of Mumbai, and from 1988 he was the judicial vicar for the archdiocese. In 1991, Gracias was made archdiocesan

consultor A consultor is one who gives counsel, i.e., a counselor. In the Catholic Church, it is a specific title for various advisory positions: *in the Roman Curia, a consultor is a specially appointed expert who may be called upon for advice desired by ...

. He also taught as a visiting professor in the seminaries of Bombay, Poona, and

Bangalore Bangalore (), List of renamed places in India, officially Bengaluru (), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan area, metropolitan population of a ...

. He was also president of the Canon Law Society of

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Bishop and Archbishop

On 28 June 1997, Gracias was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Bombay and

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox ...

of Bladia by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

. He received his

episcopal consecration 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 ...

on the following 16 September from Archbishop

Ivan Dias Ivan Cornelius Dias (14 April 1936 – 19 June 2017) was an Indian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He was Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples from 2006 to 2011, Archbishop of Bombay from 1996 to 2006, and befo ...

, with Bishops Ferdinand Fonseca and Bosco Penha serving as co-consecrators. Pope John Paul named Gracias Archbishop of Agra on 7 September 2000.

appointed him

on 14 October 2006. He has served as secretary of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI), which comprises several rites, and as president of the

, the organization of the Latin Church.

Cardinal

On 17 October 2007,

announced that he would elevate Gracias and twenty-two other

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 'pre ...

s to the

College of Cardinals The College of Cardinals, or more formally the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. its current membership is , of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Cardinals are app ...

. At the

consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church * Consistor ...

St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a church built in the Renaissance style located in Vatican City, the papal e ...

on 24 November 2007, he was created

Cardinal-Priest A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

of San Paolo della Croce a Corviale. On 20 February 2008 Cardinal Gracias was elected 1st vice president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI) of which had earlier served as secretary general. Pope Benedict named him a member of the

Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts The Dicastery for Legislative Texts, formerly named Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, is a dicastery of the Roman Curia. It is distinct from the highest tribunal or court in the Church, which is the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Sig ...

on 6 May 2008 and of the

Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments it, Dicastero per il Culto Divino e la Disciplina dei Sacramenti , type = Dicastery , seal = Coat of arms Holy See.svg , seal_size = 100px , seal_caption = Coat of arms of the Holy See , logo = , p ...

on 6 July 2010, On 18 September 2008 in Washington, D.C., Gracias underwent surgery for a rare form of cancer. He recovered completely. Gracias was elected secretary general of the

(FABC) by the presidents of its 19 constituent bishops conferences representing 28 Asian countries. He led the organization from 2010 to 2019. On 29 December 2011 he was appointed a member of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications. On 12 June 2012 Cardinal Gracias was appointed a member of the

Congregation for Catholic Education , type = Congregation , seal = Coat of arms Holy See.svg , seal_size = 100px , seal_caption = Coat of arms of the Holy See , logo = , picture =Via della Conciliazione din Roma1.jpg , picture_caption = Palazzo delle Congregazioni in Piazza ...

. On 18 September 2012, Gracias was appointed by

to serve as a synod father for the October 2012 Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the New Evangelization. Both in Agra and Mumbai Gracias endorsed teaching the discipline of yoga in Catholic schools. In 2012 he wrote: "Through the prescribed postures and exercises one improves one's all round sense of well being and is able to enter into oneself so as to commune better with God." He was mentioned as a possible candidate for election to the papacy in the 2013 conclave. He was one of the cardinal electors who participated in that conclave, which elected

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. ...

. On 13 April 2013 he was appointed to the

, a group established by

to advise him and to study a plan for revising the Apostolic Constitution on the Roman Curia. Gracias was elected to a two-year term as president of the CBCI on 9 February 2018. On 6 December 2019, the

Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: * Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administr ...

notified Gracias that Pope Francis wants Gracias to remain Archbishop. Gracias had submitted his resignation as required in anticipation of his 75th birthday. On 17 February 2020, Gracias was elected to a second two-year term as president of the CBCI. On 15 October 2020, Pope Francis renewed Gracias's term on the Council of Cardinal Advisers.

Views and theology

''Humanae Vitae''

Gracias delivered an address to priests in 2018 to commemorate Pope Paul VI's

papal encyclical An encyclical was originally a circular letter sent to all the churches of a particular area in the ancient Roman Church. At that time, the word could be used for a letter sent out by any bishop. The word comes from the Late Latin (originally fro ...

'' Humanae Vitae''. In his address, Gracias affirmed that the Church "stands unwavering and firm in her decision to embrace and uphold life as well as embrace, nurture, defend and uplift the gift of life, every life". The cardinal referred to the encyclical as "a great gift to the Church" because it was able to set out how the Church views marriage and family life, however, the cardinal noted that the encyclical was also a reminder about the need to "invest more in marriage preparation, prepare couples for marriage and enrich the marriages of those already married".

Married clergy

Cardinal Gracias has suggested that the pathway to married priests is still an open possibility; during the 2019 Synod of Bishops the cardinal suggested in his intervention that following present canon law could present possibilities for married men to be ordained to the priesthood, mentioning that special dispensations could be granted.

Abortion

In February 2020, Gracias stated that "human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception", pointing out that "the Church has been unwavering in its protection of the sanctity of human life, from conception until natural death". In his address given to the 32nd plenary session of the Indian Episcopal Conference in Bangalore, Gracias condemned India's new abortion bill that would extend the period to end a pregnancy to 24 weeks, declaring that "bishops have the responsibility to spread Christ's message about the dignity of all human life".

Euthanasia

In March 2011, Gracias expressed his relief at the Supreme Court's decision to reject the plea for the

mercy killing Euthanasia (from el, εὐθανασία 'good death': εὖ, ''eu'' 'well, good' + θάνατος, ''thanatos'' 'death') is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering. Different countries have different eutha ...

of a nurse who was in a semi-comatose condition for over three decades. In remarks given to the Catholic News Service, the cardinal expressed his relief that the court rejected the plea, stating that "allowing one to die amounts to actively supporting taking away one's life".

Gallery

Incensing the Blessed Sacrament.jpg , Gracias at St. Peter's Church, Bandra – incensing the Blessed Sacrament during Benediction Oswald Gracias at Villianur shrine 01.jpg, Benediction sermon at Villianur Shrine,

Puducherry Puducherry or Pondicherry may refer to: * Puducherry (union territory), a union territory of India ** Pondicherry, capital of the union territory of Puducherry ** Puducherry district, a district of the union territory of Puducherry ** Puducherry t ...

Oswald Gracias at Villianur shrine 02.jpg,

Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, also called Benediction with the Blessed Sacrament or the Rite of Eucharistic Exposition and Benediction, is a devotional ceremony, celebrated especially in the Roman Catholic Church, but also in some other C ...

Oswald Gracias at Villianur shrine 03.jpg, Blessing of the new gate

Arms

Notes

References

External links

* *
Bio-data of Archbishop Oswald Gracias of Bombay Named Cardinal on Oct 17, 2007
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gracias, Oswald 1944 births 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in India 21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in India Living people Goan Catholics Pontifical Urban University alumni Indian cardinals Christian clergy from Mumbai Cardinals created by Pope Benedict XVI Members of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments Members of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications Members of the Congregation for Catholic Education Roman Catholic archbishops of Agra Indian Roman Catholic archbishops