Justo de Santa María de Oro
Encyclopedia
Justo de Santa María de Oro y Albarracín (3 March 1772–19 October 1836) was an Argentine
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

 statesman and bishop. He was an influential representative in the Congress of Tucumán
Congress of Tucumán
The Congress of Tucumán was the representative assembly, initially meeting in Tucumán, that declared the independence of the United Provinces of South America on July 9, 1816, from the Spanish Empire....

, which on 9 July 1816, declared the Independence of Argentina
Argentine Declaration of Independence
What today is commonly referred as the Independence of Argentina was declared on July 9, 1816 by the Congress of Tucumán. In reality, the congressmen that were assembled in Tucumán declared the independence of the United Provinces of South America, which is still today one of the legal names of the...

.

Santa María de Oro was born in San Juan
San Juan, Argentina
San Juan is the capital city of the Argentine province of San Juan in the Cuyo region, located in the Tulúm Valley, west of the San Juan River, at above mean sea level, with a population of around 112,000 as per the ....

. His father was Juan Miguel de Oro Bustamante y Cossio, and his mother Elena de Albarracín y Ladrón de Guevara. He was educated at the Convent of Santo Domingo, then went to Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

 to enter the Convent of Santo Domingo of Santiago. He gained his doctorate at the Royal University of San Felipe
Universidad de Chile (university)
The University of Chile is the largest and oldest institution of higher education in Chile and one of the oldest in the Americas. Founded in 1842 as the replacement and continuation of the former colonial Royal University of San Felipe , the university is often called Casa de Bello in honor of...

, and by the age of 20 was already teaching theology. At 21 he was ordained by Bishop Sobrino y Minayo.
In 1814 he crossed the Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...

 with many Chilean patriots and met General José de San Martín
José de San Martín
José Francisco de San Martín, known simply as Don José de San Martín , was an Argentine general and the prime leader of the southern part of South America's successful struggle for independence from Spain.Born in Yapeyú, Corrientes , he left his mother country at the...

; they became friends and collaborators. He helped to found and equip the Army of the Andes
Army of the Andes
The Army of the Andes was a military force created by the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata and mustered by general José de San Martín in his campaign to free Chile from the Spanish Empire...

.

In 1815, Santa María de Oro was elected by San Juan to the Congress of Tucumán
Congress of Tucumán
The Congress of Tucumán was the representative assembly, initially meeting in Tucumán, that declared the independence of the United Provinces of South America on July 9, 1816, from the Spanish Empire....

 and served in 1816 for the declaration. He was firmly in favour of a republic and opposed those who wanted a constitutional monarchy
Constitutional monarchy
Constitutional monarchy is a form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state within the parameters of a constitution, whether it be a written, uncodified or blended constitution...

, also believing that the people should decide.

Santa María de Oro returned to San Juan and then to Chile where he was appointed Provincial superior
Provincial superior
A Provincial Superior is a major superior of a religious order acting under the order's Superior General and exercising a general supervision over all the members of that order in a territorial division of the order called a province--similar to but not to be confused with an ecclesiastical...

 of his order. In 1828 he was appointed by the Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...

 as Apostolic Vicar in San Juan, part of the diocese
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...

 of Córdoba
Córdoba, Argentina
Córdoba is a city located near the geographical center of Argentina, in the foothills of the Sierras Chicas on the Suquía River, about northwest of Buenos Aires. It is the capital of Córdoba Province. Córdoba is the second-largest city in Argentina after the federal capital Buenos Aires, with...

. In 1830 he became Bishop of Taumaco and in 1834 the first Bishop of the newly-created Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Juan de Cuyo
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Juan de Cuyo
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Juan de Cuyo is in Argentina and is a metropolitan diocese, responsible for the suffragan Dioceses of La Rioja and San Luis. It was elevated to a diocese on 19 September 1834 and to an archdiocese on 20 April 1934.-Ordinaries:*Justo Santa María de Oro y...

.

Santa María de Oro was a second cousin to Domingo Sarmiento, President of Argentina between 1868 and 1874.

External links

Memories of Friar Justo by Domingo Sarmiento
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