Cristóbal de Torres

Cristóbal de Torres y Motones, OP (27 December 1573 – 8 July 1654) was a Spanish-born prelate of the Catholic Church in New Spain. A member of the Dominican Order, in 1635 he was appointed archbishop of the Archdiocese of Santafé en Nueva Granada (now the Archdiocese of Bogotá). There, he was one of the first bishops in New Spain to admit indigenous people to communion, and he later founded Del Rosario University in Bogotá.

Biography

Early life and education Cristóbal de Torres y Motones was born in Burgos, Spain, on 27 December 1573. His father, Juan de Torres, was a nobleman and a notary, and his mother, Águeda de Motones, was of Flemish descent. He began admitting them upon his arrival in 1636, regarding the denial of the Eucharist to Indians a "pernicious abuse." To improve health conditions amongst Indians, Torres established for them a pharmacy. In 1654, he was principle consecrator of Alfonso de la Peña y Montenegro, Bishop of Quito.

Founding Del Rosario University Statue of Cristóbal de Torres on the campus of Del Rosario University. As early as 1637 and throughout his term as archbishop, Torres wished to create an institution of higher learning to address the absence of scholars and doctors in New Granada. In 1647, Torres requested the approval of King Philip IV to found a college in Bogotá modeled after the University of Salamanca in Salamanca. Funds for the college's endowment were provided by Torres from his personal assets. There were faculties of theology, philosophy, law, medicine, but the faculty of medicine did not begin accepting students until 1753. The college accepted students from the upper classes, including seminarians as well as lay Spaniards. The inclusion of lay students and Torres' refusal to give the college to the Dominican Order created great enmity between him and the Order, to the point that the Dominicans took legal action against him and the college. The lawsuit lasted until after Torres' death and was settled by the Spanish king against the Dominican Order, thus maintaining the college's autonomy and tradition of educating lay students.

Torres died in Bogotá on 8 July 1654, at the age of 80. Because of his devotion the Mary and the rosary, Torres was given the title 'Restorer of the Rosary. His legacy lives on at Del Rosario University, where he is commemorated through a prominent statue on campus, as well as several plaques and plaster coats of arms on campus buildings. In addition, he left behind several written works, many of which are archived at the university he founded.

Episcopal lineage Cardinal Guillaume d'Estouteville, OSB Pope Sixtus IV (1471) Pope Julius II (1481) Cardinal Raffaele Riario (1504) Pope Leo X (1513) Cardinal Alessandro Farnese (1519) Cardinal Francesco Pisani (1527) Cardinal Alfonso Gesualdo (1564) Pope Clement VIII (1592) Cardinal Pietro Aldobrandini (1604) Bishop Juan Bravo Lagunas, OSA (1616) Archbishop Bernardino de Almansa Carrión (1629) Bishop Luis Córdoba Ronquillo, O.SS.T (1631) Archbishop Cristóbal de Torres, OP (1635)