Alvaro del Portillo
|
|
Alvaro del Portillo, or Alvaro del Portillo y Diez de Sollano, (1914 - 1994), was a Spanish engineer and Roman Catholic bishop. He served as the prelate of Opus Dei between 1975 and 1994. He was born on March 11, 1914, in Madrid, Spain. He studied civil engineering and after obtaining his doctorate at the University of Madrid taught at its School of Engineering. He briefly worked with the Bureau of Highways and Bridges in the provinces of Júcar, Duero and Ebro. In 1935, he joined Opus Dei and was subsequently ordained to the presbyterate on June 25, 1944. He continued his studies to obtain two additional doctorates: Philosophy and Letters; and Canon Law. He then dedicated himself exclusively to the ministry and government of Opus Dei as its Secretary General. During the pontificate of Pope Píus XII, he collaborated in several Dicasteries of the Holy See. In 1963, he was named by Pope John XXIII as a consultant on the Pontifical Commission for the revision of the Code of Canon Law. Pope Paul VI named him consultant on several post Conciliar commissions. In 1975, he was chosen general president of the Opus Dei and successor of Msgr. Escrivá de Balaguer, and in 1982, the Holy See appointed him as the first prelate of Opus Dei. He has written extensively about pastoral and ecclesiological matters that examine among others, the role of the lay faithful in the Church, the human side of priestly formation, the dynamics and functionality of pastoral structures. As Prelate, he also served as Grand Chancellor of the University of Piura in Peru. Shortly after his 80th birthday, he returned to Rome on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. He died shortly thereafter on March 23, 1994. On December 6, 2002, Msgr. Javier Echevarria Rodriguez ordered an investigation into the cause for canonization of Msgr. del Portillo.
Source
- Spanish biography of Msgr. del Portillo (http://www.biografiasyvidas.com/biografia/p/portillo.htm)