Alfonso López Trujillo (8 November 1935 – 19 April 2008) was a Colombian

Cardinal Bishop A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. C ...

of the Roman Catholic Church and president of the

Pontifical Council for the Family The Pontifical Council for the Family was a pontifical council of the Curia of the Roman Catholic Church from 1981 to 2016. It was established by Pope John Paul II on 9 May 1981 with his motu proprio ''Familia a Deo Instituta'', replacing the Com ...

Biography

Youth

Born in

Villahermosa Villahermosa ( , ; "Beautiful Town") is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of Tabasco, and serves as the municipal seat (governing county) of the state. Located in Southeast Mexico, Villahermosa is an important city because of its ...

, Tolima, López Trujillo moved to

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

as a young boy and attended the

National University of Colombia The National University of Colombia () is a national public research university in Colombia, with general campuses in Bogotá, Medellín, Manizales and Palmira, and satellite campuses in Leticia, San Andrés, Arauca, Tumaco, and La Paz, ...

before he entered the

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

in order to become a priest. Trujillo completed his studies in Rome, earning a doctorate in philosophy from the

Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum) The Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (PUST), also known as the ''Angelicum'' or ''Collegio Angelico'' (in honor of its patron, the ''Doctor Angelicus'' Thomas Aquinas), is a pontifical university located in the historic center of R ...

and completing studies in

sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, society, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...

and

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

Ordination

He was ordained as a priest on 13 November 1960 and, after studying in Rome for an additional two years, returned to Bogotá where he taught philosophy at the local seminary for four years. In 1968, he organized the new pastoral department of the Archdiocese of Bogotá, and from 1970 to 1972, he was Vicar General of the archdiocese. In early 1971,

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...

appointed him titular archbishop of Boseta and Auxiliary of Bogotá.

CELAM

In 1972, López Trujillo was elected general secretary of the

Latin American Episcopal Conference The Latin American and Caribbean Episcopal Council (; ), better known as CELAM, is a council of the Catholic bishops in Latin America, created in 1955 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is based in Bogotá, Colombia. Early history From July 25 to A ...

, a post he held until 1984. Well known for his dislike and distrust of the radical social agenda espoused by many Latin American priests and bishops, in this capacity he led the opposition to liberation theology and succeeded in watering down or reversing many of the reforms made in that forum.

Andrew Sullivan Andrew Michael Sullivan (born 10 August 1963) is a British-American political commentator. Sullivan is a former editor of ''The New Republic'', and the author or editor of six books. He started a political blog, ''The Daily Dish'', in 2000, and ...

, an American pro-LGBT activist, writing in the ''

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

'' magazine, has claimed that he would go with paramilitaries into rural areas and slums, and tell them which priests were involved with social work or believed in liberation theology, which often caused the paramilitaries to murder those priests or force them into hiding or exile One of his major accomplishments during that period was to organize the third general conference of Latin American Bishops in 1979, in which

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

participated. That same year, he became Archbishop of Medellín.

Cardinal in Rome

Archbishop López Trujillo was named

Cardinal-Priest A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. ...

of '' Santa Prisca'' by John Paul II in the consistory of 2 February 1983, becoming the youngest cardinal until 1991. He was promoted to the order of

s on 17 November 2001. In 1990, López Trujillo was named president of the

. He assumed the office in 1991.

Positions

As president of the Pontifical Council for the Family, López Trujillo was a highly influential proponent of conservative values, particularly on sexual matters and liberation theology. He advocated

abstinence Abstinence is the practice of self-enforced restraint from indulging in bodily activities that are widely experienced as giving pleasure. Most frequently, the term refers to sexual abstinence, but it can also mean abstinence from alcohol (drug), ...

as an effective solution in the

prevention of HIV/AIDS HIV prevention refers to practices that aim to prevent the spread of the HIV/AIDS, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). HIV prevention practices may be undertaken by individuals to protect Self care, their own health and the health of those in thei ...

. He reaffirmed the Church's teaching that the use of

condom A condom is a sheath-shaped Barrier contraception, barrier device used during sexual intercourse to reduce the probability of pregnancy or a Sexually transmitted disease, sexually transmitted infection (STI). There are both external condo ...

s is

immoral Immorality is the violation of moral laws, norms or standards. It refers to an agent doing or thinking something they know or believe to be wrong. Immorality is normally applied to people or actions, or in a broader sense, it can be applied to gr ...

, and sought to discourage condom use among Catholics and in Catholic-run health facilities by stating that they are ineffective in preventing the transmission of HIV– a claim that was opposed by some scientists and by the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a list of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Gen ...

. In 2003, Cardinal Trujillo stated in a BBC documentary that the "scientific community accepts" that the HIV virus can pass through condoms. This claim was refuted by the World Health Organisation as "scientifically incorrect" in a formal statement, reflecting their position that condoms provide effective protection against HIV transmission. The Cardinal later provided additional context for his comment in a statement. He attributed his assertion that the virus can pass through microscopic pores in latex to two papers by Catholic authors (Jacques Suaudeau an
J.P. M Lelkens
, citing studies which "hypothesize that ... the process of

vulcanization Vulcanization (British English: vulcanisation) is a range of processes for hardening rubbers. The term originally referred exclusively to the treatment of natural rubber with sulfur, which remains the most common practice. It has also grown to ...

could contribute to the irregularity of the latex surface and the presence of microscopic pores." The Cardinal's statement did not repeat his previously implied claim of

scientific consensus Scientific consensus is the generally held judgment, position, and opinion of the majority or the supermajority of scientists in a particular field of study at any particular time. Consensus is achieved through scholarly communication at confer ...

on conclusions from those studies. He was also a strong opponent of

gay marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 billion people (20% ...

, abortion (a stance that won him much praise and support from groups such as the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children) and embryological research, warning Catholics involved in the creation of

embryo An embryo ( ) is the initial stage of development for a multicellular organism. In organisms that reproduce sexually, embryonic development is the part of the life cycle that begins just after fertilization of the female egg cell by the male sp ...

s as part of IVF treatment for infertility that they would be excommunicated.

2005 conclave

López Trujillo participated in the

2005 Papal conclave A papal conclave was held on 18 and 19 April 2005 to elect a new pope to succeed John Paul II, who had died on 2 April 2005. Of the 117 eligible cardinal electors, all but two attended. On the fourth ballot, the conclave elected Cardinal Josep ...

, which elected

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

. López Trujillo was one of the cardinals considered ''

papabile ( , , ; plural: ; ) is an unofficial Italian term coined by Vaticanologists and used internationally in many languages to describe a Catholic man—in practice, always a cardinal—who is thought of as a likely or possible candidate to be ...

'' at the 2005 conclave. Upon the death of the pope, all major

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Geography * Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome, Italy * Vatican Hill, in Rome, namesake of Vatican City * Ager Vaticanus, an alluvial plain in Rome * Vatican, an unincorporated community in the ...

officials automatically lost their positions during the

sede vacante In the Catholic Church, ''sede vacante'' is the state during which a diocese or archdiocese is without a prelate installed in office, with the prelate's office being the cathedral. The term is used frequently in reference to a papal interre ...

. Like the others, López Trujillo was reappointed to his previous office by Pope Benedict XVI on 21 April 2005.

Allegations of homosexual promiscuity

An article (republished from ''

The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are often names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * The Telegraph (Adelaide), ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaid ...

'', UK) in ''

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuous ...

'' stated, referring to

Frédéric Martel Frédéric Martel (born 28 October 1967) is a French writer, researcher and journalist. His most famous books are ''The Pink and the Black, Homosexuals in France since 1968'' (1996), ''Mainstream'' (2010) and '' In the Closet of the Vatican'' (2 ...

's book '' In the Closet of the Vatican'', "According to the book, a leading figure in this hidden world was Alfonso López Trujillo, a Colombian cardinal who in public was stridently anti-gay and pro-family but in private slept with male prostitutes." A further article in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' reviewing Martel's book suggests Trujillo "prowled the ranks of seminarians and young priests for men to seduce" and "routinely hired male prostitutes, sometimes beating them up after sex".

Death

Following a four-week hospitalization, Cardinal López Trujillo died on 19 April 2008 in Rome, aged 72, due to a

respiratory infection Respiratory tract infections (RTIs) are infectious diseases involving the lower or upper respiratory tract. An infection of this type usually is further classified as an upper respiratory tract infection (URI or URTI) or a lower respiratory tra ...

. His funeral

Mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

was held on 23 April 2008 in

St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican (), or simply St. Peter's Basilica (; ), is a church of the Italian High Renaissance located in Vatican City, an independent microstate enclaved within the city of Rome, Italy. It was initiall ...

. Cardinal

Angelo Sodano Angelo Raffaele Sodano (23 November 1927 – 27 May 2022) was an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as the Dean of the College of Cardinals from 2005 to 2019 and previously as the Cardinal Secretary of State from 1991 to 2006; S ...

was principal celebrant of the Mass, and

delivered the homily and performed the final absolution.

References

External links

*
Biography at The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church
web site

"On the Regulation of Birth", available on the Vatican's website

by Cardinal Trujillo, available on the Vatican's website * Obituary
Cardinal Alfonso López Trujillo: Hardline Colombian Roman Catholic leader opposed to condoms and abortion
* Obituary
Anti-abortion cardinal Lopez Trujillo dies
* Obituary

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lopez Trujillo, Alfonso 1935 births 2008 deaths Colombian cardinals Cardinal-bishops of Frascati 20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Colombia 21st-century Roman Catholic titular archbishops Clergy from Bogotá Pontifical Council for the Family Cardinals created by Pope John Paul II Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas alumni Major Seminary of Bogotá alumni Anti-communist terrorism Catholicism and far-right politics Roman Catholic bishops of Bogotá Roman Catholic archbishops of Medellín Roman Catholic bishops of Medellín