Jan de Groef
Jan de Groef MAfr (born January 7, 1948 in Beigem , Flemish Brabant , Belgium ) is Bishop of Bethlehem in South Africa .
Life
Jan de Groef joined the religious order of the Society of Missionaries of Africa (White Fathers) and studied Catholic theology in London . He made his profession on January 13, 1979, and was ordained a priest on July 7, 1979 in Beigem near Grimbergen .
He first worked as a missionary in Malawi . From 1981 to 1989 he was Order Superior in Phuthaditjhaba and Bohlokong in the South African diocese of Bethlehem and pastor in Bethlehem ( Province of Free State ). From 1990 to 1994 he was involved in missionary education in Belgium. In 1995 he learned the Bantu language isiZulu in Mtubatuba , KwaZulu-Natal Province . Then he was pastor in Siyabuswa in the Archdiocese of Pretoria .
After completing his postgraduate studies in spirituality in Paris and Le Châtelard , from 1999 he taught missionaries in Bobo-Dioulasso in the West African state of Burkina Faso . In 2003 he was again appointed pastor in the Siyabuswa parish in the Archdiocese of Pretoria. From 2006 he held management positions in Cedara in KwaZulu-Natal.
Pope Benedict XVI appointed him Bishop of the Diocese of Bethlehem on December 31, 2008 ; he succeeds Hubert Bucher , whose resignation Benedict XVI. accepted on the same day. On March 28, 2009, Jabulani Adatus Nxumalo , Archbishop of Bloemfontein , ordained him bishop with the assistance of James Patrick Green , Apostolic Nuncio of South Africa, and his predecessor Hubert Bucher.
Individual evidence
Web links
- Entry about Jan de Groef on catholic-hierarchy.org (English)
- Biography of Jan de Groef (French / English)
predecessor | Office | successor |
---|---|---|
Hubert Bucher |
Bishop of Bethlehem since 2009 |
... |
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Groef, Jan de |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Groef, Jan de MAfr |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Belgian chaplain, Bishop of Bethlehem in South Africa |
DATE OF BIRTH | January 7, 1948 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Beigem , Flemish Brabant, Belgium |