José Ribeiro da Fonseca

Friar Minor; b. at Evora, 3 Dec., 1690; d. at Porto, 16 June, 1752. He was received into the Franciscan Order in the convent of Ara Coeli at Rome, 8 Dec., 1712. As minister general of the order, he was untiring in his efforts to restore discipline in places where it had become lax; and displayed in this regard singular prudence, tact, and executive ability. In 1740 he founded the large library in the old convent of Ara Coeli, and under his direction and patronage, the "Annales Minorum" of Wadding were published at Rome in seventeen volumes, between the years 1731 and 1741. Fonseca several times declined the episcopal dignity, but finally accepted (1741) the See of Oporto, to which he was nominated by John V of Portugal.

About this page

APA citation. Donovan, S. (1909). José Ribeiro da Fonseca. In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06125b.htm

MLA citation. Donovan, Stephen. "José Ribeiro da Fonseca." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06125b.htm>.

Transcription. This article was transcribed for New Advent by Gerald M. Knight.

Ecclesiastical approbation. Nihil Obstat. September 1, 1909. Remy Lafort, Censor. Imprimatur. +John M. Farley, Archbishop of New York.

Contact information. The editor of New Advent is Kevin Knight. My email address is feedback732 at newadvent.org. (To help fight spam, this address might change occasionally.) Regrettably, I can't reply to every letter, but I greatly appreciate your feedback — especially notifications about typographical errors and inappropriate ads.