SWITZERLAND, org. On the night of October 15th, Swiss Father, Ernst Fuchs, departed to heaven. On October 18th, Schoenstatt’s founding day, the same day that the worldwide Movement stopped on its pilgrimage to the Jubilee of the Covenant of Love, and the day on which the Year of the Missionary Current began, he entered as a pilgrim into the sheepfold of the Good Shepherd to remain there forever.
Upon his death, Father Edwin Germann wrote:
It was only yesterday that he said he was ready (to die) and today he was able to fall asleep for eternity.
Father Josef Ernst Fuchs was born in Bern, Switzerland, matriculated from high school in Einsiedlen and on 17th December 1967 was ordained as priest of the Secular Institute of Schoenstatt Fathers in Münster, Germany.
After five years as a curate/ assistant priest in the parishes of Oberengstringen & Gerliswil in Switzerland he has initial appointed as Spiritual Director and later Prefect of the Language College of STAVIA in Estavayer-le-lac.
On completion of his doctorate in Moral Theology he lectured for two years back in Münster.
He then moved to the Swiss canton of Wallis and there at the college in Brig taught religion, philosophy and maths. For a time he also helped out as co-responsible person in the priests’ seminary of the diocese of Sitten in Givisiez/Fribourg.
The following years saw him appointed to a number of parishes that of Ried-Mörel (1988-1094), Susten (1995-2000) and once again at Ried-Mörel (2001-2010). During this time he took charge of the youth and the core group of leaders of the Schoenstatt movement in the canton of Wallis.
Reaching his 75th Birthday he was happy to have less responsibilties and took up a position in the parish of Buchrain-Perlen.
However an undetected medical condition soon became apparent so that he was obliged to retire to the region of his fond memories; he moved to Fribourg and in the final weeks of his life to Tafers.
Father Josef Ernst Fuchs remained a seeker the whole of his life and took a continual active interest in Church and society of today. His guiding principle in all this was the application of practical and hands-on response to Divine Providence.
From now on he has entered as pilgrim into the ultimate sheepfold of the Good Shepherd to remain there forever.
At the beginning, it was humanly seen as something simple and incomprehensible
In 2008, Father Ernst Fuchs was the main celebrant during a Covenant of Love celebration in Schoenstatt. A few day before, the 150th Anniversary of the Apparitions in Lourdes had been celebrated, and Father Fuchs, who was an experienced guide of pilgrims to Lourdes, united the source of graces that erupted in Lourdes with the source of grace of the Original Shrine. In the beginning, the event was seen as almost ridiculous, incomprehensible, simple and nothing spectacular. Bernadette Soubirous and Father Kentenich were both human protagonists, who had to give a leap of fatih. In this sense, Father Fuchs invited all the participants to prepare interiorly at the most outstanding point of the day: the pilgrimage to the Original Shrine, the source of grace on this road, taking everyone who we love, everyone who would have liked to be present and everyone, we would have liked to be present.
Translation: Celina M. Garza, San Antonio, TX, USA
