Jorge Enrique Jiménez CarvajalC.J.M. (born 29 March 1942) is a Colombian prelate of the Catholic Church who was archbishop of Cartagena in from 2008 to 2021. He was bishop of Zipaquirá from 1992 to 1994 and archbishop coadjutor of Cartagena from 2004 to 2005.
Pope Francis made Jiménez a cardinal on 27 August 2022.
Biography
Jorge Enrique Jiménez Carvajal was born on 29 March 1942 in Bucaramanga, Colombia. He began his preparation for the priesthood at the minor seminary in Floridablanca.[1] He studied philosophy at the Pontifical Xavierian University in Bogotá and theology at the Major Seminary of the Congregation of Jesus and Mary (Eudists) in Bogotá. On 17 May 1964, he took his solemn vows as a member of the Congregation. He was ordained a priest in Bucaramanga on 17 June 1967[2] by Bishop Héctor Rueda Hernández.[1]
He obtained a licentiate in philosophy from the Pontifical Xavierian University. He was a professor at the Major Seminary of Santa Rosa de Osos, formator of the Eudist Seminary of Valmaría in Bogotá, head of the charitable section of the Eudist Community of "Elmin de Dios" in Bogotá, director of studies at the Institute Theological-Pastoral of CELAM in Medellín, provincial superior of his Congregation in Colombia and, from 1989 to 1991, secretary of the Latin American Confederation of Religious.[2]
In 2001, he was named by Pope John Paul to participate in the tenth ordinary assembly of the Synod of Bishops,[5] and again in 2009 for the special synod on Africa.[6] On 13 December 2001, as head of CELAM, he participated in a meeting convened by Pope John Paul to discuss the problem of pastoral care in the Holy Land.[7]
In November 2002, Jiménez along with a priest was kidnapped by anti-government rebels while traveling north of Bogotá.[8] They were rescued after four days by a special unit of the Colombian army.[9]
On 6 February 2004, he was named coadjutor archbishop of Cartagena,[2] where he succeeded as archbishop when Pope Benedict XVI accepted the resignation of Archbishop Carlos José Ruiseco Vieira on 24 October 2005.[10] He was installed in Cartagena on 4 November.[1]
On 29 May 2022, Pope Francis announced he would make Jiménez a cardinal.[12] He had a private audience with the pope on 20 August.[13] On 27 August 2022, Pope Francis made him a cardinal priest, assigning him the title of Santa Dorotea.[14]