Catholic Vancouver January 02, 2020
Well-known priests both served Marriage Tribunal
By The B.C. Catholic
This article was updated Jan. 7 to add details about prayers for Father Burghardt.
Two notable priests in the Archdiocese of Vancouver passed away on the same day, Dec. 29, the Feast of the Holy Family.
Ninety-two-year-old Msgr. Pedro Lopez-Gallo was a former secretary for Cardinal Eugene Tisserant during the Second Vatican Council and a longtime pastor of St. Pius X Parish in North Vancouver. He was also a weekly columnist for The B.C. Catholic newspaper and a judicial vicar for the archdiocese’s Marriage Tribunal.
Father Benno Burghardt served in the archdiocese for 37 years, including as pastor of Holy Family Parish, assistant pastor of Sts. Peter and Paul Parish, and judge for the Marriage Tribunal. He was 86.
As pastor of Holy Family, then a German national parish, Father Burghardt offered Mass in German, continuing to do so after he retired in 2008 and Holy Family became a traditional Latin Mass parish.
In a 2009 column in The B.C. Catholic, Msgr. Lopez-Gallo wrote about Father Burghardt , calling him a “sound and wise” judge of the Marriage Tribunal, where he helped translate cases that came from Germany.
The Pontifical Funeral Mass for Msgr. Lopez-Gallo will be celebrated Wednesday, Jan. 8, at 10 a.m. at Holy Rosary Cathedral. A reception will follow at Rosary Hall. (The parish is reserving buses from the church to the cathedral for the convenience of elderly St. Pius X parishioners who might have difficulty getting to the funeral Mass. Seats must be reserved by calling the parish.)
On Tuesday, Jan. 7, two Masses will be offered at St. Pius X Church for the convenience of parishioners unable to attend Wednesday’s funeral Mass. The first Mass is at 10:30 a.m. for students at parish schools. The second is in the evening after 6 p.m. vespers for the deceased. The Mass will be at 6:30 p.m., with a light reception afterward.
A prayer vigil for Father Burghardt will take place Friday, Jan. 10, at 7 p.m. at Holy Family with viewing afterward. Father Burghardt’s funeral Mass will be at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 11, at Holy Rosary Cathedral.