(1932-2020)
At the end of a long and
distinguished priestly service in the Salesian Society, Fr. Dominique Britschu
passed into eternity on February 27 at the age of 87. He would have been 88 in three more days. He had suffered a brain hematoma earlier in
the month.
Fr. Britschu was a professed
Salesian for 65 years and a priest for almost 55 years. His service had two important phases, one
focused on the worldwide Congregation at the Generalate as a secretary and regional
councilor, the other dedicated to priestly ministry in the Salesian parishes in
Montreal. He served in the Canada Vice
Province/U.S. East Province from 1996 to July 21, 2018. Most recently, he had served in Messina,
Sicily, as confessor at the Salesian school of theology.
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| Fr. Britschu in 2009 (by Fr. Richard Authier) |
Dominique Britschu was born in
Strasbourg, France, on March 1, 1932, to Georges Joseph and Marie Angélique
Britschu. He was baptized five days
later at Clinique Ste. Anne in Strasbourg.
Dominique earned both a degree
in classical literature in 1951 and his Bachelor’s in philosophy in 1952 at the
Lycee Fustel de Coulanges in Strasbourg, after which he entered the Salesians
at St.-Dizier, France, in 1952. He made
his novitiate at Dormans, France, in 1953-1954, and professed vows on September
4, 1954, at Dormans as a member of the Paris (North France) Province.
After a year of practical
training as teacher and assistant at Coat-an-Doc’h, France, he did further
studies at the Scolasticat Salésien in Andrésy, France (1955-1956). He then completed his practical training as
teacher and assistant at St.-Dizier (1957-1959). He was called to military service in
1961-1963, apparently interrupting his theological studies, which he completed
at the Université Catholique in Lyons, coming out with a Master’s in theology
in 1966, a year after his ordination on May 1, 1965, in Lyons.
Fr. Dominique was called
immediately into the service of the Congregation at Salesian General HQ in Rome
as a translator and secretary to the general councilor for the Northern Europe
Region. Besides his native tongues of
French and German (Strasbourg being a border city), he was fluent in Italian
and able to read Spanish and English. He
filled those two responsibilities for five years, 1966-1971, before the Rector
Major, Fr. Louis Ricceri, appointed him secretary general of the Congregation. He held that office for 13 years, until the
22d General Chapter elected him regional councilor for the North European provinces
and French-speaking Africa. He served
two terms as councilor (1984-1996).
Bishop Luc Van Looy, SDB, was on
the Salesian general council for many years before Pope John Paul made him
bishop of Ghent, Belgium. He writes of
Fr. Britschu: “I worked with him for 18 years in the
generalate. He was first and foremost a friend, who could lift you up in his
dialogue to a higher level. I have always treasured his friendship and also the
way he was able to switch after being a secretary general. A great Salesian has left us. I am particularly happy to have known such a
bright confrere.”
And so in 1996 he began what
might be considered a new career as a parish priest in Montreal: assistant pastor at Maria Ausiliatrice
(1996-1997), pastor of St. Dominique Savio (1997-2005), and assistant pastor at
St. Joseph (2005-2010), including a term as director of the community
(2006-2009). In 2010 he moved into the
Salesian residence of Montreal, remaining a treasured member of the community
until he “retired” to the Sicily Province in 2018 at the suggestion of the
vicar general, Fr. Francesco Cereda; he became the confessor of the community
of the students of theology at Messina.
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