Bishop of Chimbote
Ángel Ernesto Zapata Bances, O.C.D., was born on August 3, 1959, in Lima. He entered the Order of Discalced Carmelites in 1979 and made his solemn profession in 1986. He pursued his philosophical studies at the Pontifical and Civil Faculty of Theology in Lima, and obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Theology and a Licentiate in Spirituality from the Pontifical Theological Faculty *Teresianum* in Rome. He was ordained a priest on March 22, 1987. He has held the following positions: formator and vocation promoter at the San Juan de la Cruz Seminary (1986–1993); formator at his Order's International Theological College in Rome (1994–1997); parochial vicar of San Juan de la Cruz (1997–1999) and Superior and formator of postulants in Arequipa (1997–1999); Director of the Conference of Religious of Peru (CONFER) (1999–2002); parochial vicar of San José in Lima (1999–2003); Regional Vicar of the Discalced Carmelites in Peru (1999–2005); Superior and master of postulants (2005–2007); parish priest of Santiago Apóstol in Lima (2005–2008) and Superior of the Carmelite community (2007–2008); Regional Vicar (2008–2010) and Commissioner for the Discalced Carmelite Nuns of Peru (2010–2016). Since 2017, he has served as Superior of the Carmelite community, and since 2018, as parish priest of San José in the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Lima.