Bangalore: On Monday, 24 February 2020, at 6.00 pm Archbishop Peter Machado celebrated the Requiem Mass for the soul of Late Fr Renard C., the French Missionary who had served the Archdiocese for 5 decades. The Archdiocese was deeply saddened to hear the news of the demise of Rev. Fr. C. Renard, MEP, on 25th January, at the age of 93 years due to the ailments related to old age.
The Prelate decreed all the priests of the Archdiocese to offer 3 Masses for the repose of the soul of Fr. Renard. The Prelate admired the selfless service of this great missionary and said, “his entire priestly ministry was dedicated to the poor and marginalized of the rural parishes of the Archdiocese. He opted to go the place where nobody wanted.”
Msgr S Jayanathan broke the word and spoke about his excellent knowledge in Kannada language. Msgr said, “He was proficient in Kannada and was on the Kannada Translation Committee. Whenever he went to any Taluka or District Offices, he used to converse with the staff only in Kannada, and many of them had raised their eyebrows admiring his fluency in Kannada.”
Fr Joseph Francis recalled his beautiful memories with Late Fr Renard and said, “He used to travel on a bicycle from St Francis Xavier’s Cathedral to Harobale village which is almost 85 kms.” The people pf Adigondanahalli, Mariapura, Tumkur, Kanakapura, Kunigal, Ramnagar, Chikkakammanahalli, Solur and Somanhalli have witnessed the pastoral services of the French Missionary.
Fr Renard was ordained a Priest on 01.06.1952 at MEP House, Paris. The young priest, Fr. Renard, opted to work as a Missionary in Bangalore, India. He left France in March 1953 and arrived in Bangalore on 7th April, 1953 to work in Bangalore. On arrival, he was sent to Settihalli to learn Kannada, and he remained there for a year. After his retirement, he left Bangalore in 2004 and remained at the MEP Retirement Home at Montbeton, France, till his death on 25th January, 2020.
The Archdiocese has benefited much from the services of Fr Renard Christan MEP. May His Soul Rest In Peace.
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Deacon Naveen Kumar
Asst. Secretary to Archbishop
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