Antonio Cañizares Llovera (; born 15 October 1945) is a
Spanish Catholic cardinal who served as
Archbishop of Valencia from 2014 to 2022. He was prefect of the
Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments from 2008 to 2014,
Archbishop of Toledo and
Primate of Spain from 2002 to 2008, and
Archbishop of Granada from 1996 to 2002. He was made a
cardinal
Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to
* Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds
**''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae
***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...
in 2006.
Early life
Antonio Cañizares was born in
Utiel, and studied at the
minor and
major seminaries in
Valencia
Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...
and at the
Pontifical University of Salamanca, from where he obtained his
doctorate in theology, specializing in
catechesis. He was
ordained
Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...
to the
priesthood by Archbishop José García Lahiguera on 21 June 1970, and then served as assistant
pastor
A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...
and delegate for catechesis in the
Archdiocese of Valencia.
Following his transfer to the
Archdiocese of Madrid, Cañizares taught
catechetical theology
Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...
at the
University of Salamanca and fundamental theology at the Conciliar Seminary of Madrid. He later became the
director and a professor of the Institute of Religious Science and Catechesis in
Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
, and sat on several commissions and secretariats of the Spanish
Episcopal Conference as well. From 1985 to 1992, Cañizares served as director of the Secretariat of the Episcopal Commission for the Doctrine of the Faith. He also founded and was the first president of ''Asociación Española de Catequistas'', and was Director of the review ''Teología y Catequesis''.
Episcopal career
On 6 March 1992, Cañizares was appointed
Bishop of Ávila by
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 ...
. He received his
episcopal consecration on the following 25 April from Archbishop Mario Tagliaferri, with Cardinals
Ángel Suquía Goicoechea and
Marcelo González Martín serving as
co-consecrators, in the
Cathedral of Ávila. Cañizares Llovera later became a member of the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in the
Roman Curia on 10 November 1996, and was named
Archbishop of Granada on 10 December of that same year. In addition to his duties in
Granada, he was
Apostolic Administrator
An apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...
of
Cartagena from January to October 1998, and was elected President of the Episcopal Commission of Education and Catechesis in 1999.
Cañizares Llovera was promoted to
Archbishop of Toledo and
Primate
Primates is an order (biology), order of mammals, which is further divided into the Strepsirrhini, strepsirrhines, which include lemurs, galagos, and Lorisidae, lorisids; and the Haplorhini, haplorhines, which include Tarsiiformes, tarsiers a ...
of
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
on 24 October 2002 by
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 ...
. He was elected
vice-president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference as well.
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 ...
created him
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
San Pancrazio in the
consistory of 24 March 2006. He was awarded an
honorary doctorate by the
Universidad CEU Cardenal Herrera on that same date.
Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments
On 9 December 2008, Pope Benedict appointed him Prefect of the
Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.
On 4 March 2010, he was appointed a member of the
Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses. He is also a member of the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and the
Congregation for Bishops as well as the
Pontifical Commission ''Ecclesia Dei''. On 5 March he was appointed a member of the
Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples
The Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples (CEP; ) was a congregation (Roman Curia), congregation of the Roman Curia of the Catholic Church in Rome, responsible for Catholic missions, missionary work and related activities. It is also kn ...
.
Cañizares was elected to ''medalla nº 16'' of the
Real Academia de la Historia on 1 December 2006 and he took up his seat on 24 February 2008. Cañizares is sometimes known by his nickname of "Little
Ratzinger,"
[Zenit]
The "Little Ratzinger" on His Upcoming Duty
1 March 2006 referring to the similar beliefs and opinions between him and Benedict XVI, born Joseph Ratzinger, who himself was aware of and "very amused by this expression."
In 2013 it was reported that the Congregation is preparing a booklet to help priests celebrate the Mass properly and the faithful to participate better. Cardinal Canizares Llovera confirmed this at an address at the Spanish Embassy to the Holy See on "Catholic Liturgy since Vatican II: Continuity and Evolution." "We are preparing it; it will help to celebrate well and to participate well. During his talk the cardinal reiterated the importance Vatican II gave to the liturgy, "whose renewal must be understood in continuity with the Tradition of the Church and not as a break or discontinuity." A break either because of innovations that do not respect continuity or because of an immobility that freezes everything at Pius XII, he said.
He was one of the
cardinal electors who participated in the
2013 papal conclave that selected
Pope Francis
Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...
.
Archbishop of Valencia
On 28 August 2014,
Pope Francis
Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...
appointed Cañizares
Archbishop of Valencia. He was installed on 4 October.
Pope Francis accepted his resignation as archbishop of Valencia on 10 October 2022.
Views
On receiving Holy Communion
In an interview in December 2008 Cañizares Llovera discussed the best way to receive the Eucharist: "What does it mean to receive communion in the mouth? What does it mean to kneel before the Most Holy Sacrament? What does it mean to kneel during the consecration at Mass? It means adoration, it means recognizing the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist; it means respect and an attitude of faith of a man who prostrates before God because he knows that everything comes from Him, and we feel speechless, dumbfounded, before the wondrousness, his goodness, and his mercy. That is why it is not the same to place the hand, and to receive communion in any fashion, than doing it in a respectful way; it is not the same to receive communion kneeling or standing up, because all these signs indicate a profound meaning."
In August 2010, he said that, due to the impact of earlier cultural impact and formation in children who learn at an earlier age, who are faced with mature issues earlier, and who are enormously influenced by modern morality, ethical systems, and the mass communications media, it might be preferable to start preparations for receiving the Sacraments of Penance and the Eucharist at an earlier age, which could also lead to lowering the age of reception for those sacraments (which is now about 7 or 8, the
age of reason, where young children begin to be held responsible for their actions and belief systems).
On ''Summorum Pontificum'' and Tridentine Mass
In regard to the
motu proprio ''
Summorum Pontificum'', Cañizares Llovera said that "
heintention of the Pope has not only been to satisfy the followers of Monsignor Lefevbre, nor to confine himself to respond to the just wishes of the faithful who feel attached...to the liturgical heritage represented by the Roman Rite, but also, and in a special way, to open the liturgical richness of the Church to all the faithful, thus making possible the discovery of the treasures of the liturgical patrimony of the Church to those who still do not know it... even if there were not a single 'traditionalist' whom to satisfy, this 'discovery' would have been enough to justify the provisions of the Pope."
Abortion and child abuse
Speaking in the context of an abortion debate prompted by a Spanish government proposal, he said
child abuse on the part of Catholic priests "cannot be compared with the millions of lives that have been destroyed by abortion. It has legally destroyed 40 million human lives."
Health
Cardinal Cañizares would be one of two eligible Cardinal electors who would not attend the
2025 papal conclave to elect a successor to
Pope Francis
Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...
, for health reasons.
References
External links
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Catholic-Hierarchy
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Canizares Llovera, Antonio
1945 births
Living people
People from Requena-Utiel
21st-century Spanish cardinals
20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Spain
21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Spain
Archbishops of Toledo
Roman Catholic primates
Pontifical University of Salamanca alumni
Members of the Congregation for Bishops
Members of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith
Members of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments
Members of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples
Members of the Real Academia de la Historia
Cardinals created by Pope Benedict XVI
Archbishops of Granada