“He was an intellectually alert man” – kath.ch
Laurent Duffner was from Alsace but had lived in Switzerland for a long time. The religious and priest died on Saturday at the age of 98. One of his friends says about him: “He never went to Rome and he was very proud of it.”
Just a few months ago – on April 20, 2022 – Laurent Duffner celebrated his 70th anniversary as a priest. This was reported by the western Swiss news portal cath.ch on Sunday. Duffner was born in Ribeauvillé in Alsace in 1924. In 1952 he was ordained a priest. He belonged to the order of the Marianists. Although incardinated in the diocese of Lausanne, Geneva and Freiburg, he remained connected to his homeland, the report says.
Always searching theologically
The French-speaking Swiss journalist Bernard Litzler met Duffner in Lausanne. “He was an intellectually alert man,” the journalist recalls. Duffner has always remained a theological seeker, interested in church history and the question of offices, Litzler tells cath.ch. The priest and religious read a great deal, which can be seen in his library. “He had imagined his spiritual youth and adopted the open spirit of the Second Vatican Council.”
distance from hierarchy
Michael Steck, a member of the Sant’Egidio community in Lausanne, was a friend of Duffner’s. The deceased loved the church very much, but at the same time was very critical of the institutions and the church hierarchy, says Steck to cath.ch. “He never went to Rome and he was proud of it.”
Laurent Duffner died on Saturday January 14, a few years short of his 99th birthday. (cath.ch/adaptation: bal)
© Catholic Media Center, 01/15/2023
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