Atenógenes Silva y Álvarez Tostado (22 August 1848 – 26 February 1911) was a Mexican clergyman,

Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

Colima Colima, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Colima, is among the 31 states that make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It shares its name with its capital and main city, Colima. Colima is a small state of western Mexico on the cen ...

(1892–1900), and

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Morelia Morelia (; from 1545 to 1828 known as Valladolid; Otomi language, Otomi: ) is a city and municipal seat of the municipalities of Mexico, municipality of Morelia in the north-central part of the state of Michoacán in central Mexico. It is both th ...

(1900–1911).

Biography

He was the son of Joaquín Silva (of Portuguese origin) and Ignacia Álvarez Tostado (born in

Tlajomulco de Zúñiga Tlajomulco de Zúñiga is the municipal seat and third most populous city in the municipality of the same name, located in the state of Jalisco in central-western Mexico. It forms part of the Guadalajara metropolitan area, lying to the southeast o ...

). He was ordained a priest on 30 November 1871 in the Parish of the Sanctuary of Guadalajara. He obtained a doctorate in

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 ...

from the Pontifical Academy of Guadalajara. At twenty-five years of age, he was a priest in the Diocese of Ciudad Guzmán, where he founded an observatory. In 1880 he was appointed parish priest of the same diocese. In 1883, he was a prebendary in the Cathedral of Guadalajara, during his canonry he founded welfare homes and some other religious institutions. He was a professor at his

alma mater Alma mater (; : almae matres) is an allegorical Latin phrase meaning "nourishing mother". It personifies a school that a person has attended or graduated from. The term is related to ''alumnus'', literally meaning 'nursling', which describes a sc ...

. In that

archdiocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associated ...

, he founded the hospital of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Sacred Heart and the Poor, also known as Hospital of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. On 11 July 1892,

Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...

Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII (; born Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2March 181020July 1903) was head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 until his death in July 1903. He had the fourth-longest reign of any pope, behind those of Peter the A ...

named him Bishop of Colima; on 9 October of the same year he was consecrated by the hands of Archbishop Pedro Loza y Pardavé. On August 21, 1900 he was named Archbishop of Morelia; in this archdiocese he founded schools which he provided with libraries and laboratories. For his work he was known as the "Father of the Poor". He was decorated with the great cross of the

Order of Isabella the Catholic The Royal Order of Isabella the Catholic (; Abbreviation, Abbr.: OYC) is a knighthood and one of the three preeminent Order of merit, orders of merit bestowed by the Kingdom of Spain, alongside the Order of Charles III (established in 1771) and ...

. On 1 January 1900, he was elected a corresponding member of the Mexican Academy of Language. He died at the age of 62, on 26 February 1911, in Morelia.

References

External links

Guisa y Azevedo, Jesú
Centenarios. Humanistas Mexicanos. Atenógenes Silva y Álvarez Tostado
{{DEFAULTSORT:Silva y Alvarez Tostado, Atenogenes 1848 births 1911 deaths People from Guadalajara, Jalisco Bishops in Mexico 19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Mexico 20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Mexico Roman Catholic archbishops of Morelia