Don Francisco Cerro Chaves
Archbishop of Toledo
Primate of Spain
Don was born on October 18, 1957 in Malpartida de Cáceres (Cáceres). He was ordained a priest in Toledo on July 12, 1981. He studied high school and philosophy at the Cáceres Seminary, completing his Theological Studies at the San Ildefonso Seminary in Toledo. He was ordained a priest in Toledo on July 12, 1981. After his priestly ordination, he held various ministries in the city of Toledo: parochial vicar of the parish of San Nicolás de Bari, diocesan counselor for youth ministry, collaborator of the parish of Santa Teresa and director of the Diocesan House of Spiritual Exercises "El Buen Pastor".
At the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, he obtained a Licentiate and a Doctorate in Spiritual Theology (1997), with the thesis: "The experience of God in Blessed Fray María Rafael Arnáiz Barón (1911-1938). Theological-spiritual study of his life and writings." He is a doctoral candidate in Theology of Consecrated Life at the Pontifical University of Salamanca.
He is the author of more than 120 publications, written in a language accessible to all and aimed, above all, at the spiritual formation of the young and also of the elderly. Some of his books have been translated into several languages (French, Italian, Portuguese).
He is a member of the Priestly Fraternity of the Heart of Christ and founder of the Cor Iesu Secular Institute. Since 1989 he worked pastorally in Valladolid. There he was chaplain of the National Shrine of the Great Promise and director of the Center for Formation and Spirituality of the Heart of Jesus, diocesan director of the Apostleship of Prayer, member of the Diocesan Presbyteral Council; diocesan delegate for youth ministry and professor of Spiritual Theology at the Augustinian Theological Study.
The Holy Father named him Bishop of Coria-Cáceres on June 21, 2007. He received episcopal ordination and took possession of the diocese on September 2, 2007.
He is president of the National Committee of the Permanent Diaconate, in the Spanish Episcopal Conference, and a member of the Episcopal Commission for Missions and Cooperation between the Churches and of the Episcopal Commission for the Clergy since 2017. He has been a member of the Episcopal Commissions for Consecrated Life (2007-2017) and the Secular Apostolate (2008-2011).
On December 27, 2019, the appointment of him by Holy Father Francisco as Archbishop of the Metropolitan See of Toledo, Primacy of Spain, was made public. Since that day he has been Archbishop-elect of this Archdiocese and Apostolic Administrator of Coria-Cáceres. He has been sworn in as Archbishop of the Archdiocese on February 29, 2020.