Major Seminary of Bogotá

The Theological Seminary of Bogotá, commonly known as the Major Seminary of Bogotá (Spanish: Seminario Conciliar de Bogotá; Seminario Mayor de Bogotá) is a Roman Catholic major seminary located in Bogotá, Colombia, and serving both the Archdiocese of Bogotá and the Diocese of Facatativá. With history dating back to 1581, it is the oldest seminary in the Americas, and today is the largest and most prominent seminaries in Colombia, with dozens of alumni having been appointed bishops, archbishops, and cardinals. In addition to religious leaders, two Colombian presidents have been associated with the seminary. José Manuel Marroquín, the 27th President of Colombia, studied there in the 1840s, and Miguel Abadía Méndez, who was president in the 1920s, taught Latin at the seminary in the early 20th century.

History

Early seminaries

In 1581, the Seminary of Bogotá, then called the Seminary of St. Louis (Spanish: Seminario de San Luis) opened in Bogotá, the first Catholic seminary in the Americas. It closed in 1586, but Bartolomé Lobo Guerrero, Archbishop of Santafé en Nueva Granada (the original name for the Archdiocese of Bogotá), reopened it in 1605 under a new name, the Seminary of St. Bartholomew the Apostle (Spanish: Seminario de San Bartolomé Apóstol). Guerrero placed the seminary in the care of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and introduced the instruction of indigenous languages to prepare the future priests for pastoral care of natives. But in 1767, King Charles III of Spain expelled the Jesuits from the Spanish Empire in an effort to gain control of the wealth held by their missions. After that, diocesan priests staffed the seminary. The seminary was weakened by the loss of the Jesuits and in 1771 was absorbed into another former Jesuit seminary.

In 1794 Archbishop Baltazar Jaime Martinez de Compañón reestablished the seminary, staffed by diocesan priests. In 1797, the archbishop died and the seminary closed as a result. In the years that followed, the struggle for Colombian independence would render it impossible to reopen the seminary at that time.

Ordinand's College and merger

In the years after Colombian independence, the need for a seminary in Bogotá became feasible. Fernando Caycedo y Flórez, the archbishop at the time, proposed to the new national government the reestablishment of the "Ordinands' College." The Congress of Colombia approved the establishment in 1823, assigning it a location, budget, and internal regulations. The seminary's curriculum was subject to government approval, which caused conflicts with the government. This time, it was renamed the Ordinands' College of St. Joseph (Spanish: Colegio de Ordenandos de San José). The seminary operated independently until 1838, when the government merged it with the National College of St. Bartholomew (Spanish: Colegio Nacional de San Bartolomé).

Independent seminary

Archbishop Manuel José Mosquera y Arboleda, who had been appointed only three years before the merger, began campaigning for the Bogotá seminary to be reestablished as an independent institution. He efforts succeeded on 21 April 1840, when Congress passed a decree separating the Theological Seminary of Bogotá from the National College of St. Bartholomew. The new seminary, unlike its predecessor, had its own private property, donated by Archbishop Mosquera, and was governed by the archdiocese, not the government. However, the government did reserve the right to require approval for the appointment of the seminary rector. The new statutes for the reestablishment of the seminary, containing 13 chapters and 227 articles, date from 24 August 1840, and the seminary resumed work on 4 October of that year. In 1845, Archbishop Mosquera decided to divide the separate the minor seminary program from the major seminary, entrusting the former to the Jesuits and leaving the latter in the hands of diocesan clergy. However, in 1850 Colombian President José Hilario López expelled the Jesuits as part of his anti-clerical campaign, making it necessary to reunify the two seminaries.

Campus

In 1943, Archbishop Ismael Perdomo Borrero commenced the construction of the new building of the Major Seminary of Bogotá, designed by architect José Maria Montoya Valenzuela. The building, a four-story red brick Romanesque edifice, was completed in 1946 in the Chico neighborhood of Bogotá, in the eastern hills of the city. The land on which the seminary was built was donated by Enrique Pérez Hoyos and Mercedes Sierra de Pérez.

Rectors

• Rev. Dr. Indalecio Barreto Martínez (1868–1871)
• Mgr. Bernardo Herrera Restrepo (1871–1885)
• Rev. Dr. Joaquín Gómez Otero (1885–1895)
• Rev. Manuel Maria Camargo (1895–1912)
• Rev. Jose Eusebio Diaz (1913–1919)
• Rev. Emilio Valenzuela (1920–1935)
• Rev. Jose Manuel Diaz (1935–1950)
• Rev. Jesús Martínez Vargas (1951–1952)
• Rev. Alfredo Rubio Díaz (1953)
• Rev. Carlos Ortega Bermúdez (1953–1960)
• Rev. Alfredo Morin, PSS (1961–1966)
• Rev. Gerardo Yelle, PSS (1967)
• Rev. Rodrigo Arango Velásquez, PSS (1967–1974)
• Rev. Alfredo Botero Maya, PSS (1975–1980)
• Rev. Gabriel Romero Franco (1980–1986)

Notable alumni

The Seminary of Bogotá has produced dozens of alumni who have gone on to become bishops, archbishops, and cardinals. They are listed below:

• Hernán Alvarado Solano, titular bishop and Vicar Apostolic of Guapi 2001–2011
• Jorge Ardila Serrano, Bishop of Girardot 1988–2001
• Emilio Brigard Ortiz, titular archbishop and Auxiliary Bishop of Bogotá 1944–1986
• José Gabriel Calderón, Auxiliary Bishop of Bogotá 1958–1962 and Bishop of Cartago 1962–1995
• Daniel Caro Borda, Auxiliary Bishop of Bogotá 2000–2003 and Bishop of Soacha 2003–2016
• Luis Concha Córdoba, Cardinal-Archbishop of Bogotá 1959–1972
• Pablo Correa León, Auxiliary Bishop of Bogotá 1957–1959 and Bishop of Cúcuta 1959–1970
• Héctor Cubillos Peña, Auxiliary Bishop of Bucaramanga 2002–2004 and Bishop of Zipaquirá 2004–present
• Mario E. Dorsonville, Auxiliary Bishop of Washington, DC
• José Daniel Falla Robles, Auxiliary Bishop of Cali 2009–2016 and Bishop of Soacha 2016–present
• Fernando Sabogal Viana, Auxiliary Bishop of Bogotá 1996–2013
• Joaquín García Ordoñez, Coadjutor Bishop of Santa Rosa de Osos 1969–1971 and Bishop of Santa Rosa de Osos 1971–1995
• Ciro Gómez Serrano, Bishop of Girardot 1961–1972, Coadjutor Bishop of Socorro y San Gil 1972–1975 and Bishop of Zipaquirá 1975–1980
• Héctor Gutiérrez Pabón, Auxiliary Bishop of Cali 1987–1998, Bishop of Chiquinquirá 1998–2003 and Bishop of Engativá 2003–2015

Notable faculty

Cardinal Luis Concha Córdoba, served as a prefect of studies, professor of Sacred Scripture and moral theology, and spiritual director at the seminary during the 1910s and 1920s

• Cardinal Marc Ouellet, PSS, was a professor of philosophy at the seminary 1970–1971
• Archbishop Bernardo Herrera Restrepo, Rector 1871–1885
• Archbishop Oscar Urbina Ortega, Rector 1986–1994
• Bishop Indalecio Barreto Martínez, Rector 1868–1871
• Bishop Emilio de Brigard Ortiz, taught in the early 20th-century
• Bishop Jesús Martínez Vargas, Rector 1951–1952
• Bishop Alfredo Rubio Díaz, Rector 1953
• Bishop Rodrigo Arango Velásquez, PSS, Rector 1967–1974
• Bishop Gabriel Romero Franco, Rector 1980–1986
• Bishop Mario E. Dorsonville, was a professor of pastoral counseling and catechesis at the seminary 1995–1996
• Bishop Héctor Cubillos Peña, Rector 1994–1996
• Rev. Diego Jaramillo, Eudist priest and major figure of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal in Colombia, was a professor at the seminary during the 1960s
• Miguel Abadía Méndez, President of Colombia 1926–1930, was a Latin professor at the seminary during the early 20th century

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