Leo Joseph Suenens
Leo Jozef Suenens | |
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Cardinal Archbishop Emeritus of Mechelen-Brussels Primate Emeritus of Belgium | |
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Church | Catholic Church |
Archdiocese | Mechelen-Brussels |
See | Mechelen-Brussels |
Appointed | 24 November 1961 |
Term ended | 4 October 1979 |
Predecessor | Jozef-Ernest van Roey |
Successor | Godfried Danneels |
Other post(s) | Cardinal-Priest of San Pietro in Vincoli(1962-96) |
Orders | |
Ordination | 4 September 1927 byJozef-Ernest van Roey |
Consecration | 16 December 1945 by Jozef-Ernest van Roey |
Created cardinal | 19 March 1962 byPope John XXIII |
Rank | Cardinal-Priest |
Personal details | |
Born | Leo Jozef Suenens 16 July 1904 |
Died | 6 May 1996 Brussels,Kingdom of Belgium | (aged 91)
Parents | Jean-Baptiste Suenens Jeanne Janssens |
Previous post(s) | Titular Bishop of Isinda(1945-61) Auxiliary Bishop of Mechelen(1945-61) President of the Belgian Episcopal Conference(1961-79) Military Vicar of Belgium(1962-79) |
Alma mater | Pontifical Gregorian University |
Motto | In Spiritu Sancto |
Coat of arms | ![]() |
Leo Jozef Suenens(/ˈsuːnɛns/SOO-nens) (16 July 1904 – 6 May 1996) was aBelgianprelateof the Catholic Church. He served asArchbishop of Mechelen-Brusselsfrom 1961 to 1979, and was elevated to thecardinalatein 1962.
Suenens was a leading voice at theSecond Vatican Counciladvocating for reform in the Church.
Biography
[edit]Early life and education
[edit]Leo Suenens was born atIxelles,the only child of Jean-Baptiste and Jeanne (née Janssens) Suenens. He wasbaptisedby his uncle, who was apriest.Losing his father (who had owned a restaurant)[1]at age four, Leo lived with his mother in therectoryof his priest-uncle from 1911 to 1912. Wealthy relatives wanted him to study economics and manage their fortune, but he chose the priesthood. He studied at Saint Mary's Institute inSchaerbeekand then entered thePontifical Gregorian Universityin Rome in 1920. From the Gregorian he obtained a doctorate intheologyand in philosophy (1927), and a master's degree incanon law(1929). Suenens had taken as his mentor CardinalDésiré-Joseph Mercier,who had also sent him to Rome.
Priesthood
[edit]Ordainedto the priesthood on 4 September 1927 by CardinalJozef-Ernest van Roey,Suenens initially served as a professor at Saint Mary's Institute and then taughtmoral philosophyandpedagogyat theMinor Seminaryof Mechelen from 1930 to 1940. He worked as a chaplain to the 9thartilleryregiment of theBelgian ArmyinSouthern Francefor three months, and in August 1940 he became vice-rectorof the famedCatholic University of Louvain.When the Louvain's rector was arrested byNazi forcesin 1943, Suenens took over asactingrector, where he sometimes circumvented and sometimes openly defied the directives of the Nazi occupiers.[2][3]He was deeply influenced by theLegion of Maryand for many years worked closely withVeronica O'Brien.[4]
Episcopal career
[edit]
Ordination history of Leo-Joseph Suenens | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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Styles of Leo Jozef Suenens | |
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Reference style | His Eminence |
Spoken style | Your Eminence |
Informal style | Cardinal |
See | Mechelen-Brussels |
On 12 November 1945, he was appointed byPope Pius XIIasAuxiliary BishopofMechelenandTitular BishopofIsinda.Suenens received hisepiscopal consecrationon the following 16 December from Cardinal van Roey, with Bishops Étienne Joseph Carton de Wiart and Jan van Cauwenbergh serving asco-consecrators.He was namedArchbishop of Mechelenon 24 November 1961; theprimatialBelgianseewas renamed Mechelen-Brussels on 8 December of the same year. Suenens was createdCardinal PriestofS. Pietro in VincolibyPope John XXIIIin theconsistoryof 19 March 1962.[2]
Suenens was one of thecardinal electorswho participated in the1963 papal conclavewhich selectedPope Paul VI.
He alsovotedin theconclavesofAugustandOctober 1978,and finally resigned from his post in Mechelen-Brussels on 4 October 1979 after seventeen years of service.
Second Vatican Council
[edit]When Pope John XXIII called theworld's bishopsto Rome for theSecond Vatican Council(1962–1965), he found in Suenens a man who shared his views on the need forrenewalin the Church. When the first session fell into organizational chaos under the weight of its documents, it was Suenens who, at the invitation of the Pope, rescued it from deadlock and essentially set the agenda for the entire Council.
Paul VImade him one of the four moderators of the council, along with CardinalsGregorio Pietro Agagianian,Julius Döpfner,andGiacomo Lercaro.Suenens was also believed to be a decisive force behind the Conciliar documentsLumen gentiumandGaudium et spes.
Death
[edit]Suenens died fromthrombosisin Brussels at age 91,[5]and was buried atSt. Rumbold's Cathedral. At the time of his death he was one of the four living Cardinals elevated by Pope John XXIII.
After his death, Belgian police drilled into his tomb and that of Cardinal Jozef-Ernest Van Roey, searching for documents connected to thesex abuse scandal,which had supposedly been buried with the cardinals.[6]
Views
[edit]Dialogue with the modern world
[edit]Dialogue with other Christian denominationsas well as withother religions,the proper role of thelaity,modernization ofreligious life forwomen,[7]collegiality,[8][9]religious liberty,collaboration and corresponsibility in the Church were among the causes he advocated at the council.
Pope John Paul IIhimself later attested that "Cardinal Suenens had played a decisive part in the Council".[10]
He was described by his successor,Godfried Danneels,as “an excellent weather-forecaster who know from which direction the wind was blowing in the Church, and an experienced strategist who realized that he could not change the wind’s direction but he could set the sails to suit it."[11]
Relations with the Curia
[edit]In May 1969, an interview he gave to theFrench CatholicmagazineInformations Catholiques Internationalesin which he offered a critique of theRoman Curia.[1]Eugène-Gabriel-Gervais-Laurent Tisserantsubsequently demanded a retraction, but Suenens refused and declared that Tisserant's reaction as unacceptable and unfounded.[1]In 1979, Suenens remarked about it, "There are times when loyalty demands more than keeping in step with an old piece of music. As far as I am concerned loyalty is a different kind of love. And this demands that we accept responsibility for the whole and serve the Church with as much courage and candor as possible."[11]
Ecumenism
[edit]Committed to ecumenism, he andArchbishop Michael Ramseyof Canterburywere close friends.[12]
Marriage
[edit]During the council's debates on marriage, Suenens accused the Church of holdingprocreationabove conjugal love;[13]Pope Paul was greatly distressed by this and the Cardinal later denied "that he had questioned the authentic Church teaching on marriage".[14]
Humanae Vitae
[edit]According toTime Magazine,Suenens counseled the Pope against the releasing of his Encyclical LetterHumanae Vitae.[15]
Orthodoxy and heterodoxy
[edit]Suenens once remarked, "If you don't believe in theHoly SpiritorResurrectionorlife after death,you should leave the Church. "[1]
Charismatic Renewal
[edit]He endorsed theCatholic Charismatic Renewal;[16][17]his episcopalmottowasIn Spiritu Sancto( "In the Holy Spirit" ).
Trivia
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- During his studies at Rome, Suenens resided at theBelgian Pontifical Collegeand also served as college librarian.
- The Cardinal also served as National President of theLegion of MaryandPax Christi,national liaison forCatholic Actionin Belgium,[18]and later President of theBelgian Episcopal Conference.[19]
- In 1976, he received theTempleton Prize for Progress in ReligionfromPrince Philipat Buckingham Palace.[20]
- During the August 1978 conclave, Suenens thankedPope John Paul Ifor accepting his election.[21]
Published works
[edit]His written works that have appeared in English include:[22][23]
- Theology of the Apostolate,Mercier Press, Cork, 1953.
- Edel Quinn,Fallon Ltd, Dublin, 1953.
- The Right View of Moral Re-armament,Burns and Oates, London, 1953.
- The Gospel to Every Creature,Burns and Oates, London, 1956.
- Mary Mother of God,Burns and Oates, London, 1957.
- Love and Control,Burns and Oates, London, 1961.
- The Nun in the World,Burns and Oates, London, 1962.
- Christian Life Day by Day,Burns and Oates, London, 1963.
- The Church in Dialogue,Fides Publishers, Notre Dame, Indiana, 1965.
- Co-Responsibility in the Church,Burns and Oates, London, 1968.
- The Future of the Christian Church,withMichael Ramsey,SCM Press, London, 1970.
- A New Pentecost?,Darton, Longman and Todd, London, 1975.
- Your God?,Seabury Press, New York, 1978.
- The Charismatic Renewal,The Word of Life, Notre Dame, Indiana, 1974.
- Ecumenism and Charismatic Renewal,Darton, Longman and Todd, London, 1978.
- Charismatic Renewal and Social Action,withHélder Câmara,Darton, Longman and Todd, London, 1980.
- Renewal and Powers of Darkness,Darton, Longman and Todd, London, 1983.
- Nature and Grace: A Vital Unity,Darton, Longman and Todd, London, 1983.
- Resting in the Spirit,Veritas, Dublin, 1989.
- Memories and Hopes,Veritas, Dublin, 1992.
- The Hidden Hand of God,Veritas, Dublin 1994.
- The Christian at the Dawn of a New Era,Fiat Publications, Mechelen, 1997.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^abcd"Roman Catholics: The Cardinal as Critic".TIME. 1 August 1969. Archived fromthe originalon 14 December 2008.Retrieved21 July2014.
- ^abSteinfels, Peter. "Leo Joseph Cardinal Suenens, A Vatican II Leader, Dies at 91",The New York Times,7 May 1996
- ^Hamilton, Elizabeth (1975).Cardinal Suenens: A Portrait.London: Hodder and Stoughton. pp. 64–65.
- ^Jan Grootaers, "Suenens, Joseph-Léon, dit Léon-Joseph", inNouvelle Biographie Nationale,vol. 6(Brussels, 2001), 329-334.
- ^"Leo Jozef Cardinal Suenens: 1904-1996".Archived fromthe originalon 28 September 2007.Retrieved13 April2007.
- ^"Police 'Sex Abuse Cover Up' Raid on Belgian Cardinals' Tombs Slammed by Vatican".MedIndia. 7 June 2010.Retrieved21 June2015.
- ^"The Vatican Council: A Mind of Its Own".TIME. 20 November 1964. Archived fromthe originalon 8 March 2008.Retrieved21 July2014.
- ^"Roman Catholics: Council on the Move".TIME. 8 November 1963. Archived fromthe originalon 24 May 2011.Retrieved21 July2014.
- ^"Roman Catholics: The Prelates Speak Out".TIME. 24 October 1969. Archived fromthe originalon 24 May 2011.Retrieved21 July2014.
- ^[1]Archived14 December 2006 at theWayback Machine
- ^ab"Leon Joseph Cardinal Suenens".Cardinal Suenens Center,Johns Hopkins University.Retrieved18 March2023.
- ^"Compass Vol. 14 #3, Schaper and Catoir Articles".Gvanv.com. Archived fromthe originalon 17 January 2016.Retrieved21 July2014.
- ^"Roman Catholics: No More Galileos".TIME. 6 November 1964. Archived fromthe originalon 30 September 2007.Retrieved21 July2014.
- ^"Archived copy".Archived fromthe originalon 9 April 2007.Retrieved14 April2007.
{{cite web}}
:CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^"Religion: Birth Control: Pronouncement Withdrawn".TIME. 21 June 1968. Archived fromthe originalon 30 September 2007.Retrieved21 July2014.
- ^"Religion: The Pentecostal Tide".TIME. 18 June 1973. Archived fromthe originalon 30 September 2007.Retrieved21 July2014.
- ^"What is the Nature of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal?".Ccr.org.uk. 19 September 2003. Archived fromthe originalon 4 October 2012.Retrieved21 July2014.
- ^"Leo Jozef Cardinal Suenens – 1904-1996".ICCRS Newsletter.1996. Archived fromthe originalon 28 September 2007.
- ^"The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church – Biographies – S".Fiu.edu.Retrieved21 July2014.
- ^Ponticello, Abby (27 January 2023)."A Compassionate Voice in Catholic Discourse".Templeton Prize.Retrieved18 March2023.
- ^"Religion: How Pope John Paul I Won".TIME. 11 September 1978. Archived fromthe originalon 15 April 2008.Retrieved21 July2014.
- ^Elizabeth Hamilton,Cardinal Suenens: A Portrait,Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1975, p. 274.
- ^Cardinal SuenensfromWorldCat,retrieved 18 March 2023
External links
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- 1904 births
- 1996 deaths
- Participants in the Second Vatican Council
- Belgian cardinals
- Roman Catholic archbishops of Mechelen-Brussels
- Templeton Prize laureates
- Cardinals created by Pope John XXIII
- Deaths from thrombosis
- Belgian military chaplains
- World War II chaplains
- Belgian Army chaplains
- Bishops appointed by Pope Pius XII