Cardinal Alexandre do Nascimento, Metropolitan Archbishop Emeritus of Luanda, Angola, died on Saturday, September 28. The first Angolan to be created cardinal, he was 99 years old: since August 8, 2022 — following the death of Cardinal Jozef Tomko — he was the oldest member of the College of Cardinals. Born on 1is May 1925 in Melanje, in the northern region of Portuguese West Africa, the current Republic of Angola, he had been ordained priest on December 20, 1952. Appointed bishop of Melange by Paul vi on August 10, 1975, he received episcopal ordination the following August 31. On February 3, 1977, he was promoted to first archbishop of Lubango by Pope Montini. It had been created and published cardinal By Jean-Paul ii of the title of San Marco in Agro Laurentino during the consistory of February 2, 1983. The same year, he became president of Caritas Internationalis, a position held until 1991. On February 16, 1986, Pope Wojtyła transferred him to the headquarters Luanda Metropolitan. Between 1990 and 1997, he was president of the Episcopal Conference of Angola and Sao Tome and Principe. On January 23, 2001, he resigned from the pastoral charge of the Archdiocese of Luanda. On June 5, 2015, at the age of 90, he was welcomed into the Order of Preachers. Having learned of the news of the death, Pope Francis sent to Mgr Filomeno do Nascimento Vieira Dias, Archbishop of Luanda, the telegram which we publish below:
Having learned with pain the news of the death of my venerated brother Cardinal Alexandre do Nascimento, I express to you, Your Excellency, as well as to the auxiliary bishops, the clergy, the religious community and all the faithful of this archdiocese, as To the loved ones and people who mourn in Angola the disappearance of such an illustrious Pastor, the communion of my prayer, so that no one misses the comfort of the resurrection. I remember the care given by the beloved Alexander to his flock, in turbulent and difficult times, having been for all the expression of the merciful face of Jesus, the Good Samaritan of humanity. Faith in Christ and the hope of eternal life made him a courageous and free man, capable of directing his steps in favor of the common good, also collaborating with the Holy See in his zeal for the poorest and the needy, guiding the paths of Caritas Internationalis. For all that the Lord has accomplished for him and through him, I give thanks to God, imploring that he envelops his faithful servant with the light of his mercy and opens to him the doors of life in fullness, while I give with all my heart my blessing to those who will attend the funeral.
François
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