The one who was bishop of Girona between 2002 and 2008, Carles Soler Perdigó, died this morning at the age of 91 at the Bisbe Sivilla priestly residence in Girona, where he resided. The funeral mass will be celebrated this Tuesday at 11 a.m. in the Cathedral of Girona, where his funeral chapel will be installed.
Carles Soler Perdigó (Barcelona, ??1932) was appointed bishop of Girona on October 30, 2001 and took possession of the diocese in December of that same year, replacing Jaume Camprodon, who was bishop between 1973 and 2001.
Until his appointment, Soler had served since 1991 as auxiliary bishop of the Archbishopric of Barcelona, ??where among other positions he was vicar general and responsible for the episcopal demarcation of Vallès. He was also named titular bishop of Anglona, ??the historic diocese of northern Sardinia.
After seven years at the head of the diocese, on July 16, 2008, the Pope accepted his resignation upon reaching the age of 75 and appointed Francesc Pardo as the new bishop of the diocese. Pardo died a year and a half ago and since then, the Girona headquarters has remained vacant.
His place is taken by the diocesan administrator, Lluís Suñer who, in a letter addressed to the diocesans, has highlighted “the generous and selfless service” of Bishop Carles Soler during his seven years of ministry.
“He strove to provide our bishopric with spiritual, pastoral and material infrastructure according to the needs of those years,” recalls Suñer. “For many he was a spiritual father who accompanied us in different stages of our lives (…) he helped us face everyday problems with serenity, patience and great hope,” underlines the diocesan administrator.
Since his episcopal retirement, and until a few months ago, the bishop emeritus of Girona collaborated periodically with the parishes of the archpriest of Banyoles. The funeral mass will be celebrated this Tuesday at 11 a.m. in the Girona Cathedral. That same day, the funeral chapel will be installed, open between 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.
Of his seven years as bishop of Girona, the creation of the priestly residences of Banyoles and Olot and the decree that established the diocesan plan for grouping parishes stands out in 2003. Under his years as prelate of Girona, he also inaugurated the Casa Carles diocesan bookstore, moved the judicial vicarage to Casa Carles and began restoring the church of Sant Feliu in Girona.
