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Manuel Gonçalves Cerejeira, GCC,
GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...
, GCIH
(29 November 1888, Lousado,
Vila Nova de Famalicão Vila Nova de Famalicão (), also known as Famalicão, is a Portuguese town in the Braga District and the sub-region of Ave (intermunicipal community), Vale do Ave. The population of ''Vila Nova'' was created in 1205 with the charter given by the K ...
,
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
– 1 August 1977, Benfica,
Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...
, Portugal) was a Portuguese
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 ...
who served as Patriarch of Lisbon from 1929 to 1971. He was the last surviving cardinal elevated 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 his cardinalate of forty-eight years was the longest since the fifty-eight-year cardinalate of Henry Benedict Stuart, Cardinal-Duke of York which lasted from 1747 to 1805. He took part in three conclaves: in 1939, 1958 and 1963. Although there were seven other cardinals elevated by Pius XI who participated in the 1963 conclave, Cerejeira was the longest-serving living cardinal from the death of Jozef-Ernest van Roey on 6 August 1961 until his own death almost exactly sixteen years later.


Family

Cerejeira was the eldest of three sons and four daughters of Avelino Gonçalves Cerejeira (1857 – 1927), a
merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...
from Lugar da Serra, and his wife, Joaquina Gonçalves Rebelo (1864 – 1918). His mother had resided at the ''Parish of Lousado'' since her childhood and became a ''country woman'' (i.e., a
peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasan ...
woman) upon marriage. Manuel's younger brothers were Júlio (b. 1901), a
medical doctor A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the study, diagnosis, prognosis ...
, Joaquim, a
lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
, and António, a
university A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...
employee. One of his younger sisters was a
nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...
and one was called Carolina.''Fotobiografias do Século XX'', Photobiography of Cardinal Cerejeira, Círculo de Leitores


Early life

He was educated at 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
Braga Braga (; ) is a cities of Portugal, city and a Municipalities of Portugal, municipality, capital of the northwestern Portugal, Portuguese Braga (district), district of Braga and of the historical and cultural Minho Province. Braga Municipality ...
from a young age and became a
priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...
in 1911. Following his ordination, he became a faculty member of the
University of Coimbra The University of Coimbra (UC; , ) is a Public university, public research university in Coimbra, Portugal. First established in Lisbon in 1290, it went through a number of relocations until moving permanently to Coimbra in 1537. The university ...
, during which time he became a respected and revered intellectual and religious figure. He also met
António de Oliveira Salazar António de Oliveira Salazar (28 April 1889 – 27 July 1970) was a Portuguese statesman, academic, and economist who served as Portugal's President of the Council of Ministers of Portugal, President of the Council of Ministers from 1932 to 1 ...
and the two later became leading figures in the '' Centro Académico de Democracia Cristã'' (Academic Centre for Christian Democracy), which supported 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 ...
's social doctrine.


Career

In 1928, Cerejeira became a bishop and was elevated to the patriarchate of
Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...
the following year, at the age of forty-one. He replaced António Mendes Belo, who had experienced two very different periods during his twenty-year cardinalate: a time of anti-church hostility in the first years of the Portuguese republic and a more church-friendly climate following the military coup of 1926. Cerejeira was appointed cardinal on 16 December 1929, a month after his appointment as patriarch. At the time of his elevation, he became the youngest member of the
College of Cardinals The College of Cardinals (), also called the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. there are cardinals, of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Appointed by the pope, ...
. The closest approach was made by António Ribeiro, his successor as Patriarch of Lisbon, who was made a cardinal in 1973, three months before his forty-fifth birthday. During his extraordinarily long career as Portugal's leading Catholic churchman, Cerejeira often became associated with the authoritarian right-wing Estado Novo. This was the result of his friendship with Prime Minister
António de Oliveira Salazar António de Oliveira Salazar (28 April 1889 – 27 July 1970) was a Portuguese statesman, academic, and economist who served as Portugal's President of the Council of Ministers of Portugal, President of the Council of Ministers from 1932 to 1 ...
, who had been a university colleague of his at
Coimbra Coimbra (, also , , or ), officially the City of Coimbra (), is a city and a concelho, municipality in Portugal. The population of the municipality at the 2021 census was 140,796, in an area of . The fourth-largest agglomerated urban area in Po ...
, and his endorsement of many of the Estado Novo's policies. He signed the Concordat of 1940 between Portugal and 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 ...
. However, although he was considered a conservative, he accepted the Vatican Council II reforms more readily than Salazar. He was criticized for not being more vocal on his support of the Bishop of Porto, António Ferreira Gomes, who was forced to a 10 years exile after having written a critical letter to the Portuguese dictator. On January 1, 1971, he lost the right to participate in a conclave, having already reached age 80.


Honours

* Grand-Cross of the Order of Christ,
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
(March 5, 1932) * Grand-Cross of the Order of Saint James of the Sword,
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
(May 14, 1936) * Grand-Cross of the
Order of Prince Henry The Order of Prince Henry () is a Portuguese order of knighthood created on 2 June 1960, to commemorate the quincentenary of the death of the Portuguese ''infante'' Prince Henry the Navigator, one of the main initiators of the Age of Discovery. M ...
,
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
(December 27, 1960)


Notes and references


Bibliography

* ollection, on centenary of birth of Cerejaira {{DEFAULTSORT:Cerejeira, Manuel Goncalves Cardinals created by Pope Pius XI Participants in the Second Vatican Council 20th-century Portuguese cardinals 1888 births 1977 deaths People from Vila Nova de Famalicão Archbishops of Lisbon