Archbishop Ricardo Ezzati, SDB, Named Cardinal

Abp. Ricardo Ezzati, SDB,
Named Cardinal

(ANS - Vatican City) – Just after leading the faithful in praying the Angelus on January 12, Pope Francis announced the names of 19 new cardinals. One is a Salesian, Archbishop Ricardo Ezzati Andrello of Santiago, Chile.

Archbishop Ezzati was born at Campiglia dei Berici (Vicenza), Italy, on January 7, 1942, and entered the Salesian novitiate in Quilpué-Valparaiso, Chile, in 1960. After studying philosophy at the Catholic University of Valparaiso and theology at the Salesian Pontifical University in Rome, he made his perpetual profession on December 30, 1966, and was ordained on March 18, 1970.

After ordination he obtained a licentiate in religious studies at the Institut de Pastorale Catechetique in Strasburg, France, and the qualification of teacher of religion and philosophy at the Catholic University of Valparaiso.

Fr. Ezzati was coordinator of youth ministry in the Salesian school in Valdivia; director of the community in Concepcion; member of the provincial council of Chile; director of the studentate of philosophy and of the theologate in Santiago; and provincial of the Chilean Province.

He also taught in the School of Theology in the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile and was vice president of the Conference of Religious in Chile. He took part in the Salesian general chapters in 1984 and 1990. In 1991 he was appointed an official of the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life of the Holy See.

Appointed bishop of Valdivia on June 28, 1996, he was ordained bishop the following September 8. On July 10, 2001, Bishop Ezzati was appointed titular bishop of La Imperial and auxiliary bishop of Santiago, and on December 27, 2006, he was promoted to archbishop of Concepcion. In January 2004 he was awarded the Jesus Maestro Prize by the Interamerican Confederation for Catholic Education for his contributions to education.

In 2007 Abp. Ezzati became president of the Commission for Education and Culture of the Latin American Episcopal Council (CELAM), and in December 2009 he was named Person of the Year by the Chilean magazine El Sur. On November 19, 2010, Abp. Ezzati was elected president of the Episcopal Conference of Chile. He became archbishop of Santiago on January 17, 2011.