Catapulted to nationwide notoriety, in the early 1900s he was a point of reference for heated debates on religion and politics; today he is considered a representative of intransigent religious fundamentalism.

He was one of very few nationally recognizable personalities of the Spanish Church who openly and systematically supported the Carlist cause, though he remained sympathetic also towards the Integrist breed of Traditionalism.

It is established that his father, Cayetano Roca Subirachs (1828-1918),[1] was a native of Vich; he formed part of the local bourgeoisie and in the mid-19th century either owned or otherwise operated a corset factory, manufacture or workshop.

[12] Back on the Canary Islands he assumed teaching at the Las Palmas seminary, first as catedrático of Hermenéutica y Oratoria Sagrada[13] but over the years having classes also in Latin, philosophy, Hebrew and dogmatics.

[53] His sermons, passionate and militant, were “a skillful mixture of dogmatic theology and modern apologetics in the refutation of errors of our times”; a few of them were later gathered and published in separate booklets.

Some later commentators appreciated Roca's popularization of great apologists but they note also that because of “the fire of his blunt and passionate word”, in his case “orator surpassed theoretician”.

[54] Especially after 1910 Roca used to speak also at secular venues, usually marked by right-wing militancy; some were half-scientific sessions commemorating personalities like Jaime Balmes[55] and Marcelino Menendez Pelayo[56] or Traditionalism-flavored, openly political conferences.

It turned out to be a more lasting enterprise, with youth supplement Los Jueves de la Revista added in 1885; as director, Roca[63] managed the publication until 1888.

[65] In the 1900s he vigorously took part in conferences known as Asamblea Nacional de Buena Prensa[66] and until the early 1910s remained active in their Sevillan outpost, inspecting Catholic papers in terms of their orthodoxy.

[68] They usually dwelled on religion and politics; the author used to offer his – routinely highly critical – diagnosis of Spanish public life, and advanced his own suggestions for the future.

(1912) also gained sort of notoriety, namely when the Vatican voiced its skepticism as to the political intransigence advanced; moderate Catholics were quick to stigmatize them as “doctrinas condenadas por Su Santidad”.

In his view the only appropriate orthodoxy was Catholicism, which for centuries shaped the Spanish self and contributed to greatness of the nation; Catholic principles should serve as guidelines organizing both state and society.

[81] They were guilty of accepting an erroneous understanding of lesser evil, which in fact paved the way for revolution;[82] similarly, he blamed for “malmenorismo” also some sections of the religious hierarchy.

It was his pamphlet against the primate, who called for Catholics to “remain faithful and trust in the [liberal] government”, that caused heated nationwide debate, especially since Roca quoted papal authority.

[84] He tried to orient them towards rejection of malmenorismo, which in practical terms would have stood for adopting an anti-regime posture; having failed, he then denounced the congresses as doomed[85] and based on false principles.

[89] As Vich was “a city known as a centre of clerical Carlism and Integrism”[90] Roca got his zeal reinforced during the seminary years; involved in Carlist conspiracy in the early 1870s, he was then forced to move to the Canary Islands.

[108] In 1920 Roca helped to re-format[109] a Catholic daily El Correo de Andalucia and employed Domingo Tejera as its manager, paving his future path as a Traditionalist editor.

[111] In 1930 and along other Carlists, Roca interacted with cardenal Segura, perplexed about his statements which appeared to endorse Alfonsism;[112] the same year he assisted in a grand rally of Andalusian Integrists.

[115] In the early 1930s he was hailed as the great pundit of the cause[116] and indeed in 1934 the claimant Alfonso Carlos nominated him the second member of Consejo de Cultura Tradicionalista;[117] as such, in 1935 he published at least one piece in the Carlist intellectual review Tradición.

[121] The issue was formally brought before the Vatican; the pronouncement of the Extraordinary Congregation for Ecclesiastic Affairs, which somewhat ambiguously sided with Sancha,[122] was welcomed with relief in governmental circles;[123] also the regent Maria Christina spoke out.

[130] In the 1990s the Canarian Carlists attempted to revive his memory; they set up Círculo Tradicionalista Roca y Ponsa in Las Palmas,[131] launched a project on Catholic counter-revolutionary thought on the islands[132] and operated a dedicated web page.

[139] He might also be noted as author of primitive, run-of-the-mill, anti-Darwinian tirades,[140] failed contender in early discussions on Spanish political Catholicism,[141] or a sample of ultramontanism.

A podcast series Milenio 3, focused on paranormal activity, suggested that a house in Villanueva de Ariscal, Roca's home during his Seville tenure, was haunted; the authors floated gossip speculations about his private life.