Leopoldo Ruiz y Flóres (13 November 1865 – 12 December 1941) was a

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

prelate of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

who served as Archbishop of Morelia from 1911 until his death in 1941. He was previously

Bishop of Léon The Diocese of Quimper (–Cornouaille) and Léon (Latin: ''Dioecesis Corisopitensis (–Cornubiensis) et Leonensis''; French: ''Diocèse de Quimper (–Cornouaille) et Léon'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Cathol ...

from 1900 to 1907 and Archbishop of Linares o Nueva León from 1907 to 1911. During the Church-state negotiations following the

Cristero War The Cristero War (), also known as the Cristero Rebellion or , was a widespread struggle in central and western Mexico from 3 August 1926 to 21 June 1929 in response to the implementation of secularism, secularist and anti-clericalism, anticler ...

, he represented the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

as its Apostolic Delegate to Mexico. He was sent into exile in 1932 in reprisal for a sharp critique of the Mexican government by

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI (; born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, ; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939) was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 until his death in February 1939. He was also the first sovereign of the Vatican City State u ...

and returned in 1938.

Biography

Leopoldo Ruiz y Flóres was born on 13 November 1865 in

Amealco de Bonfil Amealco is a town in the Mexican state of Querétaro. Its name is thought to mean ''place of springs'' in Nahuatl. It is the seat of Amealco de Bonfil Municipality, and is located southeast of Santiago de Querétaro. Its elevation is above sea ...

, Mexico. He was ordained a priest on 17 March 1888. On 12 November 1900,

Pope 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 Ap ...

appointed him

. He received his episcopal consecration on 27 December 1900. On 14 September 1907,

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 ...

named him Archbishop of Linares o Nueva León. On 27 November 1911,

Pope Pius X Pope Pius X (; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing Modernism in the Catholic Church, modern ...

named him Archbishop of Michoacán. (The name of that archdiocese changed to the Archdiocese of Morelia on 22 November 1924.) He was appointed Apostolic Delegate to Mexico on 10 October 1929 by

. The

, a rebellion against the government's suppression of the Catholic Church, was ending, but years of conflict about its resolution followed. In his new role, Ruiz led the Mexican bishops into alignment with Pope Pius, who opposed the rebellion but struggled with the government's ongoing anti-clericalism. Ruiz represented the Church in difficult negotiations with the government while contending with instructions and pronouncements from Rome. The situation worsened when Pope Pius issued an encyclical, ''

Acerba animi ''Acerba animi'' (Latin, "Of harsh souls"; also called ''On the Persecution of the Church in Mexico'') is an encyclical of Pope Pius XI promulgated on 29 September 1932, to denounce the continued Persecution of Christians in Mexico, persecution ...

'', on 29 September 1932 that denounced the government for reneging on earlier agreements. Ruiz had always been a moderate in tone and posture, but as the Vatican's representative became the target of the government's response. On 3 October 1932, the Chamber of Deputies voted him into exile. He based himself nearby in

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

, Texas. Under pressure from Rome he resigned as Apostolic Delegate and then returned to Mexico in 1938. He was still Archbishop of Morelia when he died on 12 December 1941 at the age of 76.

Notes

References

External links

Catholic Hierarchy: Archbishop Leopoldo Ruiz y Flóres
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruiz y Flóres, Leopoldo 1865 births 1941 deaths People from Amealco de Bonfil Apostolic nuncios to Mexico Roman Catholic archbishops of Morelia