Carlos Osoro

Carlos Osoro Sierra (; born 16 May 1945) is a Spanish prelate of the Catholic Church who was Archbishop of Madrid from 2014 to 2023. He has been a bishop since 1997 and a cardinal since 2016.

Life Osoro was born in Castañeda in northern Spain on 16 May 1945. He studied at the Escuela Normal and taught for a year in Santander. He then entered the seminary for adult vocations in Salamanca, earning licentiates in theology and philosophy at the Pontifical University of Salamanca. He later obtained a licentiate in Exact Sciences from the Complutense University of Madrid and another in pedagogy from the University of Salamanca. He was ordained a priest on 29 July 1973 Osoro was appointed Archbishop of Oviedo on 7 January 2002 and he was installed there on 23 February. Within the Spanish Episcopal Conference he was president of the Commission for the Clergy from 1999 to 2005. and he was installed there on 18 April. Osoro Sierra is considered to be an orthodox prelate known for his pastoral sensitivities. He participated in the synod on the family in October 2015 as one of three delegates elected by the Spanish Episcopal Conference and Pope Francis included him among the members of the Ordinary Council of the General Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops he named in November.

Pope Francis announced that he would elevate Osoro Sierra to the rank of cardinal on 19 November 2016, where he was made Cardinal-Priest of Santa Maria in Trastevere. Francis made him a member of the Congregation for Catholic Education on 23 December 2017.

Pope Francis has referred to Osoro Sierra as "Don Carlos the pilgrim", alluding to the cardinal's frequent walks around his archdiocese during which he mingles with the people to get to know them better. He has made religious vocations one of his chief priorities and in Valencia the number of seminarians grew from 51 in 2012 to 61 in 2013 due to his efforts. Upon his arrival in Madrid, he planned to launch a diocesan plan for evangelisation to reach out to those cut off from the Church and to renew vigour in the Christian faith. He invites adolescents to join him at the start of each month for a vigil in which to dialogue with them to understand their needs and concerns, and he often celebrates Mass in prisons. Osoro welcomed Müller to a discussion of the book on 3 May at the Universidad Francisco de Vitoria, a Roman Catholic university in Madrid.

Pope Francis named him a member of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches on 6 August 2019 and of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America on 10 March 2021.

Pope Francis accepted his resignation as archbishop of Madrid on 12 June 2023. He was the oldest cardinal elector in the 2025 papal conclave.