© 2023-2026 • D. Sebastião Leite de Vasconcellos • Todos os direitos reservados.
Missa Brevis (1570)
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (c. 1525-1594)
Biographical note
Sebastião Leite de Vasconcellos was born in Porto, in the parish of Sé, on May 3, 1852, the first Monday of the month of Mary, the fourth child of António Leite de Vasconcellos and Margarida do Carmo e Cruz. He received the sacrament of Baptism in Porto Cathedral on May 14th of the same year. After attending the Real Colégio dos Meninos Órfãos de Nossa Senhora da Graça, in Porto, and the Colégio de Campolide, in Lisbon, he was admitted, at the age of sixteen, to the Episcopal Seminary of his diocese of origin, where he attended, as an external student, the theological triennium, which he completed with distinction. He received his priestly ordination from the hands of the future Cardinal Américo Ferreira dos Santos Silva in Porto Cathedral on November 15, 1874 and celebrated his first Mass in the Church of Santo Ildefonso on December 8 of the same year.
From the outset, he held numerous positions of responsibility in the Diocese of Porto, particularly in the Ecclesiastical Chamber, as well as in the Third Order of St. Francis, of which he was a Commissioner. He taught Religion at the Colégio Francês do Porto and gave private lessons in Portuguese, French and Italian.
His great specialty was his unconditional willingness to talk about God and bring sacramental comfort to the neediest souls, and he was a regular presence at the Cadeia da Relação do Porto. Inspired by the salutary example of St. John Bosco, with whom he had contact, in 1880 he founded the Oficina de São José do Porto, which was set up on October 4, 1883, the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, in Trás da Sé street, later transferred to Alexandre Herculano street. His benevolent initiative spread throughout the country, earning the admiration and support of the widest sectors of society. He also helped to set up the Associação das Escolas de Jesus, Maria, José, a century-old institution in his city.
On August 1, 1907, when he had already regenerated around seven hundred young people in his workshop, he was elected Bishop of Beja, succeeding Bishop António de Sousa Monteiro. He was ordained bishop by Bishop António José de Sousa Barroso in the Cathedral of Porto on 2 February 1908, and was solemnly admitted to the Diocese of Beja on 11 March. The little more than two years he spent in Beja were impetuous and divided between the reorganization of the Seminário de São Sisenando, the creation of benevolent initiatives to support the most needy, constant visits to the parishes of his ecclesiastical circumscription and the fierce fight against the subversive ideas that were spreading. With the establishment of the republic and after a reckless smear campaign, much of which was due to the removal of the dissolute Ançã brothers from the positions they held in the Diocese of Beja, he was forced into exile, first settling in Seville, then in Lourdes and, at the request of St. Pius X, in Rome, where he continued to welcome many Portuguese pilgrims and offer his prayers for the Portugal he never forgot.
He was made Assistant at the Pontifical Throne, Roman Count and Archbishop of Damietta, by the will of Pope Benedict XV, and, during the pontificate of Pius XI, he was Pontifical Legate to South America. He contributed greatly to the beatification of the Holy Constable, St. Nuno de Santa Maria, to whom he was devoted. Faithful to the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and dedicated to venerating the Blessed Virgin Mary, he turned his life into an offering pleasing to the Father.
Bishop Sebastião Leite de Vasconcellos died a pious death in Rome, at the Pontifical Latin American College, in the early hours of January 29, 1923, having lived for seven decades, almost half a century in the priesthood and twelve years in exile. His mortal remains were transferred to Porto, with solemn funeral services held in the Cathedral, and rest in the Prado do Repouso Cemetery. He was an intrepid Apostle of Goodness wherever he went and left an indelible mark on those he met. The generous self-giving of this good and faithful servant makes us sing like the psalmist: «Lord, how magnificent are your works and how profound your designs!» (Ps 92:6).