Gabriel Calvo Zarraute

Gabriel Calvo Zarraute (born 1981) is a Spanish Catholic priest, writer, teacher, and researcher. He serves in rural parishes in the Toledo region and teaches theology in various religious institutes. He has written many books and articles about philosophy, church history, theology, and natural law, and he is known for his traditionalist views and critical perspective on modern developments within the Catholic Church.

 Early life and education 
Gabriel Calvo Zarraute was born in 1981. He studied to become a teacher and then entered the seminary in Toledo. He earned several degrees: in ecclesiastical studies, fundamental theology, church history, canon law, and philosophy. His theses covered topics like Thomistic theology, letters of Cardinal Gomá during the 1930s, and the philosophy of law in the Dominican priest Victorino Rodríguez. In 2008, he was ordained a priest.

 Pastoral, teaching, and research work 
After becoming a priest, Gabriel Calvo Zarraute served as a parish priest in rural areas of Toledo from 2008 to 2014. He then became a parish priest in Getafe near Madrid until 2018 before returning to rural Toledo. He also taught theology at the Diocesan Center of Theology in Getafe and the Religious Sciences Institute in Talavera de la Reina until around 2023. Since that time, he has focused on doctoral research in church history at the Universidad San Dámaso in Madrid. He also teaches in other institutes and gives conferences on topics such as Christian political philosophy and historical theology.

 Writing, media, and public presence 
Zarraute has published several books, including Dos maestros y un camino (2016), Verdades y mitos de la Iglesia Católica (2019), De la crisis de fe a la descomposición de España (2021), and De Roma a Berlín (2022). These books explore themes like the crisis of faith in Spain, church traditions, and the influence of Protestant ideas on Catholicism. He writes regularly in digital media—especially on InfoVaticana—and maintains a blog called "Criterio." He appears as a commentator on channels like Teatro Crítico, El Toro TV, Alto y Claro TV, Rincón de Historia TV, Matices, and participates in the online discussion group La Sacristía de la Vendée. His analyses often focus on church doctrine, societal issues, and criticisms of post‑Vatican II trends and secularization.

 Views and controversies 
As a traditionalist thinker, Gabriel Calvo Zarraute often critiques modern attitudes within the Church. In De la crisis de fe, he argues that modern society and even the church hierarchy have abandoned traditional values, causing a spiritual decline. His later work De Roma a Berlín claims that elements within the Church have adopted Protestant moral views at the expense of Catholic tradition. In early 2024, he and colleagues in La Sacristía de la Vendée sparked controversy when one member said he prayed for Pope Francis "to go to heaven soon," leading to public criticism and apologies. Zarraute also argued that Pope Francis has undermined canon law by acting beyond legal norms.

Category:Men
Category:1981 births
Category:Roman Catholic priests