Josef Vrana (17 October 1905, in Stříbrnice – 30 November 1987, in

Olomouc Olomouc (; ) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 103,000 inhabitants, making it the Statutory city (Czech Republic), sixth largest city in the country. It is the administrative centre of the Olomouc Region. Located on the Morava (rive ...

) was the administrator of the archbishopric of Olomouc, as well as titular bishop of Octabia.The diocese of Octaba
at www.gcatholic.org

Life

After the death of the interned archbishop of Olomouc, Josef Karel Matocha In 1961, the

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

n authorities refused to accept a new bishop candidate (

František Vaňák František () is a masculine Czech and Slovak given name. It is a cognate of Francis, Francisco, François and Franz. It can be also surname (feminine: Františková). Notable people with the name include: Given name Arts *Frank Daniel (Franti� ...

) proposed by the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

. Finally, Josef Vrana was appointed an administrator on 19 February 1973. The position of Vrana was controversially discussed. In order to avoid worse controversy, the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Geography * Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome, Italy * Vatican Hill, in Rome, namesake of Vatican City * Ager Vaticanus, an alluvial plain in Rome * Vatican, an unincorporated community in the ...

accepted his appointment and appointed him at the same time to the

titular bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of Octabia. Nevertheless, the

Church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

had no confidence in him, and avoided mentioning him as a "bishop of Olomouc," as the state authorities have demanded. In the episcopal conference of which he was a member, Vrana was supposed to push through the state's requirements and expectations. Nevertheless, he has also endeavored to fulfill his duties as a bishop. Neither his bishop's colleague nor the faithful who saw him as a traitor trusted him. On the part of the state authorities he was awarded an award, but at the same time he was also mistrusted, For example, his office and his telephone calls were monitored. Vrana was buried in the Fürstenbergkapelle of

Saint Wenceslas Cathedral Saint Wenceslas Cathedral () is a gothic cathedral at Wenceslas Square in Olomouc, in the Czech Republic, founded in 1107. The square was named after Saint Wenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia on the thousandth anniversary of his death in 935. The cath ...

, where an epitaph records him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vrana, Josef 1905 births 1987 deaths Roman Catholic archbishops of Olomouc Roman Catholic archbishops in Czechoslovakia Roman Catholic bishops in Czechoslovakia People from Přerov District Communist Party of Czechoslovakia members