Marcel Lefebvre Rank
About Marcel Lefebvre
Marcel Lefebvre is a Catholic archbishop who was defrocked in 1988 for ordaining new bishops without the approval of the Pope.
Family and Background
Brought up by Catholic parents, Rene and Gabrielle Lefebvre, Lefebvre was ordained a priest in 1929 after attending the Sacred Heart College in Tourcoing, France.
Career
He enrolled in the French Seminary in Rome and was ordained priest; shortly after, he completed his theology doctorate and began pastoral work in the diocese of Lille.
His older brother, a Holy Ghost Fathers missionary, persuaded him to join him in Gabon, Africa.
Pope Pius XII appointed this missionary as bishop of Senegal at the age of 42. From 1962 to 1968, he served as Superior General of the Holy Ghost Fathers.
On November 1, 1970, he established the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) in Econe, Switzerland.
He celebrated a "forbidden Mass" in Lille, France (1976), in front of 10,000 Catholics and 400 journalists, an event that gave him international recognition.
Excommunication from the Church
He was again in the news in 1988 when he consecrated four bishops without the permission of Pope John Paul II. As a result, Lefebvre and all the bishops that he consecrated were excommunicated from the Church.
Death
Archbishop Lefebvre died on March 25, 1991, after leading the SSPX for more than two decades. He was laid to rest in a crypt beneath the Econe seminary. The words of the apostle St. Paul are inscribed on his tomb: "Tradidi quod et accepi" (I have transmitted what I have received) (I Cor. 15:3).
Marcel Lefebvre Rank
F.A.Q. about Marcel Lefebvre
When is his birthday?
Marcel Lefebvre's birthday is on November 29, 1905.
In how many days is his birthday?
Marcel's birthday is in 247 days
How old was Marcel when he died?
He was 85 years old.
When did he die?
He died in March 25, 1991.
How old would he be today?
Marcel Lefebvre would be 118 years old if he was alive today.
Where was Marcel from?
He was born in Tourcoing, France.