Fr. Marko Vrgoč , member of the Province of St. Jerome in Croatia and of the Convent of St. Francis in Odra (Zagreb) died in his convent on March 19, 2023 after a long and serious illness at the age of 75, in the 56th year of religious life and 47th year of priestly service.
He was born on March 3, 1949 in Kuzmin into a large Catholic family to father Stjepan and mother Ana, nee Matovinović. After primary school in his native village and in Županja, he was admitted to the minor seminary in the Convent of St. Michael in Zadar in 1964. He took his final exams at the archdiocesan classical high school in Zadar in 1969. He took his first religious vows on August 3, 1967 in Krk and the solemn vows on December 8, 1974 in the convent of St. Francis Xavier in Zagreb. After studying philosophy and theology in Zagreb, he was ordained a priest in the Zagreb Cathedral on June 27, 1976.
After his priestly ordination he remained in the convent of St. Francis Xavier in Zagreb (1976 – 1978). He was a local minister and parish priest in Kotari near Samobor (1978 ‒ 1980), chaplain in Kloštar Podravski (1980 ‒ 1982) and missionary for Croatian emigrants in Germany in Duisburg (1982 ‒ 1989) and Lüdenscheid (1989 ‒ 1993). Returning to Croatia, he was parish priest in Kloštar Podravski (1993 ‒ 1999), local minister in Glavotok (from July to December 1999), parish vicar in Belišće (1999 ‒ 2001), local minister and parish priest in Martinšćica (2001 – 2005), parish priest of the Parish of St. Francis of Assisi in Rijeka (2005 – 2007), again parish vicar in Belišće (2007 – 2009), then again local minister in Glavotok (2009 – 2015) and again local minister and parish priest in Kotari (2015 – 2017). In September 2017, he began the service of the parish vicar in Belišće, but in December he came to Zagreb, to the convent in Odra, for recovery and medical treatment. Since 2021, he remained in Odra as a member of that convent.
The funeral was celebrated on March 22 in the central cemetery of the city of Zagreb by Mijo Gorski, auxiliary bishop of Zagreb, with the assistance of the Provincial Minister Ivo Martinović and the vicar of the Odra convent, P. Petar Bašić. At the funeral, together with thirty friars of the Province, were present the brothers and sisters of Fr. Marko, including the religious Sister Elizabeth and Sister Ivanka, diocesan priests, nuns of the Congregation of the Sisters of Mercy of the Holy Cross of Đakovo and Zagreb, employees of the House of St. Francis – a home for the elderly and infirm in Odra, many faithful and collaborators from the parishes and places where Fr. Marko ministered, as well as many friends and acquaintances.
In his eulogy, the Provincial Minister presented the salient characteristics of Fr. Marko. He was a simple, humble and diligent man, friar and priest. He was often available to travel to homes and places where unexpected circumstances arose. He was sincere, open, hospitable and had a sense of humor and for this he was loved by the friars of the Province, the priests and the faithful. Also in his eulogy, the Provincial Minister said, among other things: “Your quiet life speaks of your spiritual maturity, the greatness of your spirit and your love for God and your trust in God.”
In his condolence letter, Ivica Petanjak, bishop of Krk, wrote among other things: “Although Fr. Marko held many positions of responsibility, he did not stay in any one place for long, so the words of Jesus can be applied to him: ‘We are useless servants!’ We did what we had to do!’ (Luke 17, 10).”
The funeral mass in the church of St. Francis Xavier in Zagreb was presided over by the Provincial Minister Fr. Ivo Martinović. The vicar of the convent in Odra, Fr. Petar Bašić, the former provincial ministers Fr. Petar Grubišić, Fr. Antun Badurina and Fr. Niko Barun and other friars of the Province concelebrated.