Cardinal Ignacio Velasco, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church in Venezuela, died on July 7. Cause of death was not released. He was 74.
Velasco was ordained in 1955 when he was 25 years old. He spent many years working in the Amazon jungle before rising through the ranks of the church. He was elected titular Bishop of Utimmira and appointed Apostolic Vicar of Puerto Ayacucho in 1989, then raised to the archbishopric of Caracas in 1995.
Velasco was best known for his combustible relationship with President Hugo Chávez. When he was appointed cardinal in 2001, Velasco told Chávez to improve relations with the Catholic Church, which is the predominant religion in Venezuela. Chávez once called the church a "tumor."
Velasco gave his blessing to last year's two-day coup d'etat, but when it ended, he urged Venezuelans to reconcile with the president. Then three months ago, Velasco had a change of heart. This time he said that Chávez was leading Venezuela toward communism, a charge the president angrily denied.
Posted on July 8, 2003 10:59 PM