Fernando Rielo

Fernando Rielo was born on 28 August 1923 in Madrid to Enrique Rielo and his wife, Pilar Pardal.[2] He was keenly interested in drawing during his childhood years. When he was an adolescent, the Spanish Civil War broke out. Rielo once stood before a firing squad during the war, on the day of his First Holy Communion. The leader of the squad asked him to renounce his faith, but Rielo refused. However, the leader finally decided not to order his men to shoot Rielo.[3] Rielo reportedly had a religious experience on August 28, 1939 at the age of sixteen Rielo, while participating in a youth camp in the Sierra de Guadarrama,

After the war, he finished his studies at the Royal Institute of St. Isidore in Madrid.[4] Rielo was interested in reading philosophical works, including Immanuel Kant's Critique of Pure Reason. He developed a keen interest in art, reading the Argentine cultural journal, Billiken. His father encouraged him to read several oriental classics too. During these years, he studied for the Spanish Civil Service examination and performed well in it, securing a high grade. He then found employment as an administrator and went to Granada for work.

Rielo wanted to study further and wanted to apply to the Central University of Madrid (now the University of Madrid). He intended to study philosophy and Letters and become a professor at the university. However, he went to a church and met a Redemptorist priest.

At the age of twenty, he entered the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer at the seminary of Nava del Rey, where he completed his philosophical and theological studies. During his priestly studies, he liked to encourage his fellow students in preparation for their future missions. He began a movement called Motus Christi (the Movement of Christ) to revive their spiritual life. It was characterized by a spirituality marked by "filial consciousness" in relation to God the Father.

When he completed his religious studies, several coinciding events occurred due to which he could not receive priestly ordination. Rielo shared his work on the Christus movement with the General Superior, a Belgian who was pleased with the movement. However, the General would not remain alive for long and succumbed to cancer of the pancreas. Rielo made his public profession during this period.

Rielo then consulted a highly respected professor about his situation. He told Rielo, after three days of prayer, to leave the congregation. Rielo left the Congregation in 1957.

After leaving the Redemptorists, Rielo took a civil service position at Tenerife, in the Canary Islands. After two years and much pain and hard work, Rielo founded the Idente Missionaries. On 29 June 1959, the official statutes were presented to Domingo Pérez Cáceres, the diocese bishop.

In 1982 he established The Fernando Rielo Foundation, an international cultural entity for the promotion of culture and the arts. The foundation awards the Fernando Rielo World Prize for Mystical Poetry.[5]

Rielo moved to New York City in 1988 for medical treatment.

He was a corresponding member of the North American Academy of the Spanish Language. In 1996 the University of the Philippines created the Fernando Rielo Chair of Spanish Literature and Thought,[6] to promote Hispanic culture. In 2013 the Fernando Rielo Chair was created at the Pontifical University of Salamanca.

• The Fernando Rielo Foundation
• Idente Youth