Francisco Robles Ortega

His Eminence José Francisco Robles Ortega
Cardinal, Archbishop of Guadalajara President of the Mexican Episcopal Conference
Province	Guadalajara
See	Guadalajara
Appointed	7 December 2011
Installed	7 February 2012
Predecessor	Juan Sandoval Íñiguez
Other posts	Cardinal-Priest of Santa Maria della Presentazione
Orders
Ordination	20 July 1976 by José Maclovio Vásquez Silos
Consecration	5 June 1991 by Alfredo Torres Romero
Created Cardinal	24 November 2007 by Pope Benedict XVI
Rank	Cardinal-Priest
Personal details
Birth name	José Francisco Robles Ortega
Born	(1949-03-02) 2 March 1949 Mascota, Mexico
Nationality	Mexican
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Previous post	Auxiliary Bishop of Toluca (1991–1996) Titular Bishop of Bossa (1991–1996) Bishop of Toluca (1996–2003) Archbishop of Monterrey (2003–2011)
Motto	in simplicitate fidei
Coat of arms	José Francisco Robles Ortega's coat of arms

Francisco Robles Ortega (born 2 March 1949) is a Mexican Cardinal of the Catholic Church, having been elevated to the cardinalate in 2007. He currently serves as Archbishop of Guadalajara. Cardinal Robles had previously served as archbishop of Monterrey from 2003 to 2011. He is also, as of November 2012, the incoming president-elect of the Roman Catholic Mexican Episcopal (Bishops') Conference, to replace the outgoing president, Archbishop Carlos Aguiar Retes, who is the Metropolitan Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Tlalnepantla.

Biography

Early life and ordination

Francisco Robles Ortega was born in Mascota, as the third of the sixteen children of Francisco Robles Arreola (b. 1917) and Teresa Ortega de Robles (b. 1927). He studied humanities at the minor seminary in Autlán, philosophy at the seminary in Guadalajara, and theology at the seminary in Zamora.

Robles was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop José Vásquez Silos on 20 July 1976, and then studied at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome until 1979, obtaining his licentiate in theology. Upon his return to Mexico, he served as vicar general of Autlán and taught philosophy and theology at its seminary. He was made diocesan administrator of Autlán following the death of Bishop Vásquez Silos in July 1990

Bishop

On 30 April 1991, Robles was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Toluca and Titular Bishop of Bossa by Pope John Paul II. He received his episcopal consecration on the following 5 June from Bishop Alfredo Torres Romero, with Bishops José Hernández González and Javier Lozano Barragán serving as co-consecrators, in the Cathedral of Toluca.

Robles was later named diocesan administrator of Toluca following the death of Bishop Torres Romero on 15 October 1995. He finally became Bishop of Toluca on 15 June 1996, and was installed on 15 July of that same year. On 25 January 2003, he was advanced to Archbishop of Monterrey.

Cardinal

Styles of Francisco Robles Ortega
200px
Reference style	His Eminence
Spoken style	Your Eminence
Informal style	Cardinal
See	Guadalajara

Pope Benedict XVI created him Cardinal-Priest of Santa Maria della Presentazione in the consistory of 24 November 2007, he took possession of the titular church on 25 October 2008 [2]. Cardinal Robles Ortega will be eligible to participate in any future papal conclaves until he reaches the age of eighty on 2 March 2029 unless he dies before.

On 5 January 2011 he was appointed among the first members of the newly created Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelisation.

On 7 December 2011 Cardinal Robles was appointed to replace the retiring Juan Sandoval Íñiguez who had reached the age limit. As a result, the see of Monterrey fell vacant. On 24 November 2012 he was appointed a member of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications.

He was appointed as a member of the Congregation for Bishops on 16 December 2013 for a five year renewable term.

He was one of the cardinal electors who participated in the 2013 papal conclave that selected Pope Francis.

Views

Drug politics

The archbishop of Monterrey has called on the country's political parties and organizations to take action to avoid infiltration in their ranks by drug traders.

Secularism in education

Cardinal Robles said "we are against the change proposed by the decree to reform Article 3" of the Constitution because it seeks to encourage secularism in private educational institutions, eliminating the subject of religion, which trains young people in moral values.

Poverty and humility

In naming archbishop Francisco Robles of Monterrey as one of 23 new Roman Catholic cardinals, analysts say the Vatican chose a clergyman who advocates for the poor and beseeches the faithful to embrace humility.

Family policy

Cardinal Robles has said that the family is “an institution that is natural, that is the basis of society”, and he warned those who oppose a new law that would protect it not to attempt to “supplant such an important institution as the family.”

External links

• Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church
• Catholic-Hierarchy
• Catholic-pages

Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Alfredo Torres Romero	Bishop of Toluca 1996–2003	Succeeded by Francisco Chavolla Ramos
Preceded by Adolfo Suárez Rivera	Archbishop of Monterrey 2003–2011	Succeeded by Rogelio Cabrera López
Preceded by Juan Sandoval Íñiguez	Archbishop of Guadalajara 7 December 2011 – present	Incumbent