Afonso Mendes
| Afonso Mendes | |
|---|---|
| Born |
18 June 1579 Santo Aleixo, Kingdom of Portugal |
| Died |
21 June 1659 (aged 80) Goa, Portuguese India |
| Nationality | Portuguese |
| Occupation | Jesuit theologian |
| Known for | Patriarch of Ethiopia |
Father Afonso Mendes (18 June 1579 – 21 June 1659), was a Portuguese Jesuit theologian, and Patriarch of Ethiopia from 1622 to 1634. While E.A. Wallis Budge has expressed the commonly accepted opinion of this man, as being "rigid, uncompromising, narrow-minded, and intolerant.", there are some who disagree with it. The writings of Mendes include Expeditionis Aethiopicae, which describes the customs and conditions of Ethiopia.
Mendes was born in Santo Aleixo. He entered the Society of Jesus, where he was ordained priest, he received his doctorate in theology at the University of Coimbra, where he subsequently taught at the College of Arts. In response to the favor Emperor Susenyos of Ethiopia showed towards Catholicism, Mendes was appointed Patriarch of Ethiopia by Pope Urban VIII, and left for Ethiopia in March 1623.
The journey to Ethiopia was long and difficult. Mendes' party reached Portuguese Mozambique that September, where they were delayed by winter weather, and only reached Goa on 28 May 1624. After making further preparations in Goa, the Patriarch sailed for Beilul by way of Diu (where he was joined by Jerónimo Lobo), and arrived at Beilul on 2 May 1625. This port on the Red Sea was controlled by the king of the Afars, who was a vassal to the Emperor of Ethiopia; the primary port of entrance to Ethiopia, Massawa, was at the time controlled by the Ottoman Empire, which was hostile to both Ethiopian and European interests. The party crossed the desert into the Ethiopian highlands, and reached Fremona, the base of Catholic missionary efforts, on 21 June 1625, over two years after Mendes had left Lisbon.
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