Bonaventura Duda (14 January 1924 – 3 August 2017) was a Croatian

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

biblical scholar Biblical studies is the academic application of a set of diverse disciplines to the study of the Bible (the Old Testament and New Testament).''Introduction to Biblical Studies, Second Edition'' by Steve Moyise (Oct 27, 2004) pages 11–12 Fo ...

, and a corresponding member of the

Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts The Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts ( la, Academia Scientiarum et Artium Croatica, hr, Hrvatska akademija znanosti i umjetnosti, abbrev. HAZU) is the national academy of Croatia. HAZU was founded under patronage of the Croatian bishop Jo ...

Early life and education

Roko Duda was born in the

Free State of Fiume The Free State of Fiume () was an independent free state that existed between 1920 and 1924. Its territory of comprised the city of Fiume (today Rijeka, Croatia) and rural areas to its north, with a corridor to its west connecting it to the K ...

(now

Rijeka Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Primor ...

, Croatia) and spent his childhood in the village of

Kras ''KRAS'' (Kirsten rat sarcoma virus) is a gene that provides instructions for making a protein called K-Ras, a part of the RAS/MAPK pathway. The protein relays signals from outside the cell to the cell's nucleus. These signals instruct the cell ...

on the island of

Krk Krk (; it, Veglia; ruo, Krk; dlm, label= Vegliot Dalmatian, Vikla; la, Curicta; grc-gre, Κύρικον, Kyrikon) is a Croatian island in the northern Adriatic Sea, located near Rijeka in the Bay of Kvarner and part of Primorje-Gorski Kota ...

where he attended elementary school from 1929 to 1933. After finishing additional two years of civic school in Sušak in 1935, Duda attended Franciscan high school in

Varaždin ) , image_photo = , image_skyline = , image_flag = Flag of Varaždin.svg , flag_size = , image_seal = , seal_size = , image_shield = Grb_Grad ...

from which he graduated in 1944. He joined the Franciscan Order on 14 August 1941. He studied theology at the Catholic Theological Faculty of the University in Zagreb from 1944 to 1950. During this period, Duda became a musician, playing together with the former organist of the Franciscan church in Zagreb, Fra Kamila Kolba. Duda was ordained to the priesthood on 15 January 1950. In December 1952, he achieved degree of licentiate in theology. From fall 1954 to June 1957 he studied in Rome, first at the

Pontifical University Antonianum The Antonianum, also known as the Pontifical University of Saint Anthony ( la, Pontificia Universitas Antonianum, it, Pontificia Università Antonianum), and as Pontifical Athenaeum Antonianum, is a Franciscan pontifical university in Rome named ...

(1954–1955), where he received his doctorate in theology, and then at the

Pontifical Biblical Institute The Pontifical Biblical Institute (also known as Biblicum) is a research and postgraduate teaching institution specialised in biblical and ancient Near Eastern studies. It is an institution of the Holy See entrusted to the Society of Jesus. His ...

(1955–57), where he received biblical licentiate.

Professional work

Duda was known as one of the greatest biblical translators and promoters of the spirit of the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st Catholic ecumenical councils, ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions) ...

. He, together with franciscan Zorislav Lajos, started publication of religious newspapers ''Glas s Koncila'' that in 1963 become ''

Glas Koncila ''Glas Koncila'' is a Croatian, Roman Catholic, weekly newspaper published in Zagreb and distributed throughout the country, as well as among Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatian diaspora. Publishing history The newspaper (whose title ...

''. Duda and

Jure Kaštelan Juraj "Jure" Kaštelan (18 December 1919 – 24 February 1990) was a Croatian poet and writer. Education and career Juraj "Jure" Kaštelan was born on 18 December 1919 in Zakučac in Dalmatia. He attended primary school in Split and then matricu ...

were founders and chief editors of the translation of the Bible into Croatian that was published by ''Stvarnost'' in 1968. He and Jerko Fućak translated the New Testament into Croatian and prepared new Lectionary in 1969. Duda participated in the founding of the publishing house ''Kršćanska sadašnjost'' and ''Teološko društvo Kršćanska sadašnjost'' in 1968. From 1964 to 1969 he was professor and head of the Department of the Scriptures of the New Testament at the Catholic Theological Faculty of the University of Zagreb. He was elected several times a vice dean and from 1982 to 1986, dean of Faculty. He retired on 1 October 1993, and was elected

Professor Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

on 9 November 2001.

Death

Bonaventura Duda died on 3 August 2017, aged 93, in Varaždin.

Awards

Duda received science research award ''Annales Pilar'' from the Institute of Social Sciences Ivo Pilar for year 2004. He won many other national and international awards, including

Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice ''Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice'' ("For Church and Pope" in Latin) is a decoration of the Holy See. It is currently conferred for distinguished service to the Catholic Church by lay people and clergy. History The medal was established by Leo XIII o ...

Order of Danica Hrvatska The Order of Danica Hrvatska ( hr, Red Danice hrvatske; lit. "Order of the Croatian Morning Star") is the fourteenth most important medal given by the Republic of Croatia. The order was founded on 1 April 1995. The medal is awarded for different p ...

, and the Charter of the City of Zagreb. From 2010 until his death, Duda was a corresponding member of the

in the Department of Social Sciences.

Main works

*The Seed is the Word of God ''(Sjeme je Riječ Božja)'' (1987) *The Sower is the Son of Man ''(Sijač je Sin Čovječji)'' (1989) *In the Noble Heart ''(U plemenitu srcu)'' (1990) *Church Council's Themes ''(Koncilske teme)'' (1995) *In the Light of the Word of God ''(U svjetlu Božje riječi)'' (2000)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Duda, Bonaventura 1924 births 2017 deaths Writers from Rijeka 20th-century venerated Christians Friars Minor Croatian Friars Minor Academic staff of the University of Zagreb