HONG KONG (SE): Father Bonifacio Garcia Solis of the Order of Preaches [Dominicans, OP], died in Oviedo, Spain, on October 23. He was 76.
Born on 19 June 1945 in Santibáñez de Murias-Aller, Asturias, he entered the novitiate in 1962 at the Convent of Santo Domingo, Ocaña, in the province of Toledo, in 1962 and made his first profession there on 15 August 1963.
He studied Philosophy in the Convent of San Pedro Mártir, Madrid, from 1963 to 1967; and Theology in the Convent of Santo Tomás, Ávila, from 1967 to 1968, and the Convent of San Pedro Mártir, Madrid, from 1968 to 1971. He was ordained to the priesthood on 27 June 1971 at the Convent of San Pedro Mártir
Between 1976 and 1993, Father Solis served in various teaching, administrative and pastoral capacities in the Philippines, including at the University of Santo Tomas [UST] in Manila and the UST Convent, and later was regional prior of the Vicariate of Our Lady of Rosario in the Philippines. Arriving in Hong Kong in 1993, he was socius of the Prior Provincial and superior of the House of San José, in Kowloon.
On 5 August 1997 he was elected the 110th prior provincial of the Province of Our Lady of Rosary, serving three consecutive terms [1997 to 2009]; he was subsequently Master of Novices from 2009 to 2013, at St. Albert’s Priory, Stubbs Road then syndic of the provincial from 2013 to 2017.
Father Solis was elected prior provincial for a fourth time on 4 August 2017, serving until the summer of 2021 when he passed the baton to Father Ruben Martinez.
In 1997, the province faced a pivotal moment in history, seeking and discerning its role in the Church and within the order amid the emerging realities in the world. Father Solis, along with those chosen to be part of the leadership team, began the process of re-founding the province, on one hand reclaiming the missionary vocation and, on the other hand, strengthening and diversifying the Dominican presence in the “places of mission.”
Father Solis believed that the priority was the recruitment of vocations and their adequate formation was key to this process.
Father Solis became the first provincial since World War II to make a canonical visit to China and had the privilege of receiving the vows of the first Chinese vocations and establishing two foundations in China
The three characteristics that stand out from his first three terms are the influx of non-Spanish vocations to the erstwhile “European” province, the restoration of the China mission and the presence in Singapore, as well as the incorporation of the Venezuelan brothers into the province.
Although the restoration of the ministry in China was started earlier, during the time of the leadership of Father Pedro Luis Gonzalez, it was at the beginning of the new millennium that the efforts began bearing fruit. In 2004, Father Solis became the first provincial since World War II to make a canonical visit to China and had the privilege of receiving the vows of the first Chinese vocations and establishing two foundations in China.
The order’s presence in Venezuela and Myanmar was incorporated into the Our Lady of Rosary Province and Father Solis re-established novitiates and formation houses in many parts of the province, including Singapore and China.
Seeing the need for a more cohesive formation centre, he re-established the novitiate in Hong Kong for all Asian vocations, and set up the International Student House in Macau, making the Hong Kong-Macau region the lifeblood and heart of the province. The emerging missions imbued the province with a renewed sense of vision and mission.
Completing his term as provincial, he was appointed the Master of Novices in Hong Kong and it was then that the novitiate was officially transferred to Rosaryhill, Stubbs Road. During the second term of Father Gonzalez, he was named provincial syndic, serving with the same zeal and dedication as always.
“Surely the achievements of Father. Solis had left a mark in our long history. But most importantly his brotherly love for each of us, his generosity and his willingness to be of help to anyone who seek his counsel and his prayers will surely be missed,” wrote Father Hyacinth He, the socius to the provincial, on October 10.
“Though his legacy may not be repeated, he had raised the measure of a leader and animator for this province laden with history yet vibrant with new apostolic projects, of a province faced with ageing but also a province with promising and young vocations,” Father He wrote.
“May his zeal and his religious fervour, no-nonsense wisdom and prudence inspire us to serve God and the Church in this same spirit; and may he intercede for the province which he so loved,” he added.
A funeral for Father Solis will be celebrated be on October 25 at the Convent of Santo Domingo in Oviedo at 11.00am. His remains will be brought to the Convent of Santo Tomas in Ávila where there will be another Mass after which he will be buried in the cemetery there.
In Hong Kong, a memorial Mass is scheduled to be celebrated by John Cardinal Tong Hon, the apostolic administrator of the diocese, at 6.30pm on November 3 at the Rosaryhill School Chapel on Stubbs Road.
May he rest in peace.
School bus service will be provided: 5.30pm from Shuk Kuk St. [Java Rd. Market bus stop] and Morrison Hill Rd, 80-82 Valley Centre, 5.35pm from Southorn Centre, Family Planning Association [MTR Exit B], 5.40pm from Taikoo Shing Rd. [HSBC ATM] and 5.45pm from the General Post Office.
