The initiative arises coinciding with the anniversary of Lolo's beatification, celebrated on June 12, 2010. The journalist from Linares, who lived from 1920 to 1999, is considered a Christian reference point in the field of journalism and social communication. His beatification was based on the miraculous healing of a two-year-old child.
Despite suffering from a progressive paralysis that confined him to a wheelchair at 22 and left him blind in his last nine years, Lolo maintained a deep faith and great activity as a journalist and writer. He published nine books and hundreds of articles, initially typing them and later writing by hand, until he began recording his texts on a tape recorder. His prose has been compared to that of mystics, and he received several awards.
The Bishop of Jaén, Sebastián Chico Martínez, highlighted in the decree establishing the commission that Blessed Lolo represents "a luminous example of lay sanctity lived in the exercise of journalism and social communication." He emphasized that his life, marked by faith, love for the Church, and dedication to truth, continues to inspire media professionals.
The commission, chaired by the Vicar General of the Diocese, José Antonio Sánchez Ortiz, will aim to promote studies, gather institutional and professional support, and establish relationships to achieve the official proclamation. It will include prominent figures such as the cause's postulator, Rafael Higueras Álamo, and representatives from journalistic associations.
The Church of Jaén thus reaffirms its commitment to the legacy of Manuel Lozano Garrido, whose life demonstrates that journalism can be a vocation of service to truth and the common good.
