It is with great sadness that we have learned of the passing of professor emiritus Rogier van Rossum. Van Rossum passed on January 6, 2025 at the age of 89, in Breda. He has meant a great deal to our faculty. In 1964 he finished his doctoral degree in Nijmegen, graduating cum laude with a thesis on folk religiosity. After which he was active as a missiologist in a number of countries on behalf of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary.
Between 1977 and 2000, he worked as teacher, dean and rector in Heerlen at the Hogeschool and later University for Theology and Pastoral Work. When this institution joined forces with the Faculty of Theology at Radboud University Van Rossum returned to Nijmegen to become professor in Missiology.
Colleagues remember Van Rossum as someone who loved sharing his knowledge with a broader audience, in conversations with students but also on radio and television. Even after his retirement Van Rossum stayed close to the faculty, for example in his role as rector of an international community of theology students associated with the Nijmegen Graduate School of Theology
Our thoughts are with his relatives, former colleagues and students.