Historical and biographical review of some of the main figures of the Province of Saint Nicholas of Tolentine of the Order of Augustinian Recollects from its foundation to the present day.
The COVID-19 pandemic claimed his life in Valladolid on 10 October 2020. Fr. Jesús Diez was a leading figure of what could be termed, perhaps pretentiously, the School of Marcilla.
This term refers to the group of professors, adorned with degrees from Rome and elsewhere, dedicated to the theological education of young professed religious, as well as to publications, conferences, and other activities related to the ongoing formation of the religious community.
Fr. Diez served as a professor at the theologate of Marcilla for nearly forty years: from 1964 to 1990 and again from 1991 to 2005. During this extended period, he was essential in renewal courses and in preparatory courses for the profession of solemn vows. He also played an active role in revising the Constitutions in 1983 and in developing the Formation Plans for friars in 1986 and for nuns in 1988.
After 1988, his collaboration with the Augustinian Recollect Nuns intensified. Initially, he focused on studying the writings of Saint Alonso de Orozco, the pioneer of the female branch of the Augustinian Recollection and founder of the Monastery of Santa Isabel in Madrid. In addition to his other works, he compiled an extensive anthology of Saint Alonso’s writings in 1991. The Spanish Augustinian Federation entrusted him with translating Saint Alonso’s Latin sermons on the Blessed Virgin.
However, Fr. Diez’s most significant contribution to the history and spirituality of the Augustinian Recollection is his study of the life and works of the founder of the Augustinian Recollect contemplative nuns, Mother Mariana de San José (1568-1638). In 2007, he authored the Positio supporting her canonization process. In 2014, her Complete Works were published in the Biblioteca de Autores Cristianos series, marking the definitive edition. On 19 December 2017, Pope Francis acknowledged the “heroic virtues” of Mother Mariana, declaring her Venerable, thus advancing her towards sainthood.
For two decades, Fr. Diez also dedicated himself to compiling, studying, and publishing all available documentation on the monasteries founded by Mother Mariana.
In 2012, he relocated from Marcilla to Valladolid, transferring his archives but continuing his research. At the time of his passing, he had just completed the translation of Saint Alonso de Orozco’s works and an article on the monasteries established by the Venerable Mariana.
