The emblematic priest and journalist Josep Bigordà dies at the age of 97
It hosted the founding of CCOO in the parish of Sant Medir and the sit-in of immigrants in the church of Pi
BarcelonaAfter a full life marked by religiosity and social and Catalan nationalist activism, the emblematic progressive priest Josep Bigordà has died in Barcelona at the age of 97. His funeral is today, Thursday, at 11:00 a.m. in the parish of Sant Medir, where he became a leading figure in the anti-Franco movement and a proponent of a more open and accessible church, a spirit he would later replicate at the church of Santa Maria del Pi, in the heart of the Gothic Quarter. Born in 1927 in Ullastrell, Josep Bigordà i Montmany was ordained a priest in 1952 during the Eucharistic Congress of Barcelona, a landmark event that internationally legitimized the Franco regime, which, paradoxically, he would later contribute so much to combating from the margins of the Church. Possessing a solid intellectual background, he had earned degrees in theology and canon law from Comillas Pontifical University. She always had a knack for communication, with a natural ease and love for words and writing, skills that led her to journalism. For many years she wrote for the religion pages ofThe Catalan PostThe historic conservative Carlist newspaper that shifted towards progressive positions in the 1960s.
He began his pastoral work in Rubí and Cornellà de Llobregat, where he encountered the realities of immigration and precarious living conditions, and where he quickly demonstrated his open and socially conscious nature. The arrival of the Second Vatican Council coincided with his joining the parish of Sant Medir, another working-class neighborhood, where he met Father Josep M. Vidal Aunós. There, in 1968, they witnessed the creation of the Workers' Commissions of Catalonia (CCOO) trade union. In fact, Sant Medir was one of the flagship parishes for the political and social anti-Franco movement. He also established the Amadeu Oller Catalan poetry prize, in homage to the first priest of Sant Medir, and brought great vitality and openness to the parish community.
His media presence—he was also a professor at the CIC journalism school—his connection with the people, his practice of an anti-dogmatic and socially conscious Christianity, and his progressive Catalan nationalism made him, for decades, one of the most followed and beloved priests in the country. He was a role model, as was seen once again with the sit-in of immigrants he took in at the Pi in January 2001, when for 47 days he sheltered a thousand people threatened with deportation. Three years earlier, in 1998, the Barcelona City Council had awarded him the Medal of Honor for his civic service and contributions to the city.
"For those of us who had the privilege of knowing and working with him for years, Father Bigordà is one of those people who allow you to keep your faith in humanity alive. Thanks to his faith, he has embodied the best values of the human person throughout his life," said politician Toni.
