Major Seminary of Bogotá
| Seminario Mayor de Bogotá | |
 |
|
| Latin: Seminarium Bogotense | |
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Former names
|
Seminary of St. Louis (1581-1586) |
|---|---|
| Motto | Initium Sapientiae Timor Domini |
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Motto in English
|
The beginning of wisdom is the fear of God |
| Established | 1581 |
| Affiliation | Roman Catholic |
| Rector | Rev. Leonardo Cárdenas Téllez |
|
Academic staff
|
7 |
| Undergraduates | ~200 |
| Location | Bogotá, Colombia |
| Language | Spanish |
| Dioceses served |
Archdiocese of Bogotá Diocese of Facatativá |
| Website | www.seminariobogota.org |
The Major Seminary of Bogotá, officially the Theological Seminary of Bogotá (Spanish: Seminario Mayor de Bogotá; Seminario Conciliar 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 one of the largest and most prominent seminaries in Colombia, with dozens of alumni having been appointed bishops, archbishops, and cardinals.
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.
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