Six new canons take possession in the Cathedral of Seville

The Metropolitan Chapter of the Cathedral of Seville has had six new canons since the morning of this Saturday, November 7. They are Francisco de los Reyes Rodríguez López, Miguel Ángel Núñez Aguilera, Antonio Jesús Rodríguez Báez, Andrés Ybarra Satrústegui, Enrique Barrera Delgado and Gumersindo Melo González, as detailed by the Archdiocese of Seville. Their backgrounds include service in parishes of the Archdiocese and responsibilities in priestly formation and pastoral care. In the same session, three canons who were already part of the Chapter have taken possession of new dignities: Isacio Siguero Muñoz, royal chaplain, as archpriest; José Luis García de la Mata Calvo, archivist and librarian, as maestrescuela; and Luis Rueda Gómez, prefect of Liturgy, as treasurer.

The ceremony was presided over by the Archbishop of Seville, Monsignor José Ángel Saiz Meneses, and was attended by the auxiliary bishop, Monsignor Teodoro León, and by the dean of the Cathedral, Francisco José Ortiz. Numerous faithful close to the new canons attended, along with the community of the Diocesan Seminary and representatives of various pastoral areas of the local Church. The ceremony began with the reception of the archbishop at the Puerta de los Palos by the Chapter. From there, Monsignor Saiz Meneses and the capitulars made their way to the choir, constituted for the occasion as a chapter room, while the new canons waited in the Sacristy of the Cálices. After the invocation to the Holy Spirit, the chapter secretary read the list of attendees and the names of the priests summoned. The archbishop authorized the start of the procedure with the words "Damos comisión y procédase a la toma de posesión". The new capitulars took their seats in the choir stalls and received the written testimony of their taking possession. They then swore to comply with the statutes, the practices of the Cathedral and the obligations proper to their canonry. The archbishop described the moment as "an event of special significance in the life of our Archdiocese" and recalled that that of the canon is, above all, "an ecclesial, priestly and liturgical mission". He asked the new members to be "men of prayer, exemplary priests and faithful servants of the Church" and held up as an example the blessed José Torres Padilla, canon of the Cathedral of Seville. The ceremony concluded with a tradition of medieval origin: the new capitulars threw coins to the faithful as a sign of their "quiet and peaceful possession" and of the Church's generosity toward the community.