Arnold Haumann

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Arnold Haumann (born October 22, 1923 in Berghofen ; † February 26, 2008 ibid.) Was a German Protestant pastor and peace activist .

Life

Haumann was the third child in the family of an elementary school teacher and his wife and grew up in the working class district of a district of Dortmund. The precarious economic situation after the First World War , unemployment and the policy of Brüning's emergency ordinances aroused his interest in social and political questions. His pastor Bernhard Klinzing (1907-1941) belonged to the Confessing Church (BK) and opened the way for him to a biblically oriented Christianity . On his recommendation, he read Hitler's " Mein Kampf ". On the high school diploma in 1942 by Haumann was expressly noted critically: "He was anxious to form their own opinion." Then he was drafted into the Wehrmacht . He joined a horse troop and later became an officer . On the Eastern Front he made the acquaintance of other officers who were critical of the Third Reich . This was followed by dangerous courier services, from which he learned about the extent of the Nazi war of extermination . Haumann was seriously wounded in 1944. In the military hospital and later in American captivity , he prepared for a later degree in theology . This decision was decisively influenced - in addition to the influence of Pastor Klinzing - by the examination of Hitler's work 'Mein Kampf'. Haumann wanted to do his part to ensure that such a catastrophe never happens again in Germany. After initial difficulties, he began his studies in Bethel in autumn 1945 . From there he moved to Heidelberg . In 1948 he received a World Council of Churches scholarship to study in the USA . However, because he had criticized the circumstances of the Nuremberg war crimes trial , in which the victors spoke right about the vanquished, this stay came about after long efforts in autumn 1948.

Haumann studied in St. Louis . He toured the country, reported on the situation in post-war Germany and also did a research stay in Washington .

After 1945 he was looking for a political home. The Stuttgart declaration of guilt of 1945 was a key document for its political and theological existence. He got in touch with the CDU Konrad Adenauers early on and got to know him personally. In addition to studying theology, which he continued in Münster , Haumann became a member of the referendum committee , an extra-parliamentary movement that called for a peace treaty and generally fought against rearmament, which was banned in the early 1950s due to communist infiltration.

Haumann became a member of the International Union of Reconciliation and was managing director of the All-German People's Party for several years .

Between 1949 and 1960, preliminary proceedings were conducted against him because of his threat to the state. Reinhard Scheerer points to an encounter Haumann had with the Minister for All-German Issues Jakob Kaiser and his State Secretary Thedieck , about which Haumann wrote:

“This encounter with Thedieck will be a big surprise. When we talked to Thedieck and probably his most important colleague - a GDR refugee, by the way - about the anti-communist slander that was brought against us, the Secretary of State made a very malicious remark. He says: 'Gentlemen, you don't have to believe that we are convinced that you are being controlled communistically. But we are against your activities and demonstrations, and what means is more effective than portraying you in public as being subverted or controlled by communists. ' I have to say, this is the most frank, but at the same time most infamous statement I have ever heard on the subject. "

- Arnold Haumann :

Later he took part in the organization of a "German Youth Congress". In 1950 he took part in the German Youth Meeting in East Berlin . There he met Erich Honecker, then FDJ chairman, and the GDR CDU officials Gerald Götting and Otto Nuschke . After his return, he was heavily accused of being a communist . These accusations accompanied his whole further political existence. This included police persecutions, house searches and indictments, with Haumann's years of trials always ending positively. In addition to his work in the German Youth Congress, from 1951 he also worked in the " Emergency Community for Peace in Europe " founded by Gustav Heinemann , which was a predecessor organization of the All-German People's Party (GVP), which was founded in 1952. When the GVP failed because of the 5% clause in 1953 , Haumann declared himself ready to become federal secretary of this party and to organize future election campaigns for it. For low wages and under difficult conditions, he tried to make the GVP an active organization in the social environment. Still, the party was unsuccessful. In 1957 the board decided to join forces with the SPD . The majority of the GVP party members wanted to switch to the SPD. Haumann also conducted part of the unification negotiations. Achieving the strongest possible position in the SPD for the GVP was his main goal. After the talks with Herbert Wehner , it became clear that the Social Democrats were partly adopting the CDU line of rearmament and integration with the West. It was clear to Arnold Haumann that he could not go this way. Haumann's principle was that his church, which has to proclaim the good news , should not come into the situation again to make a declaration of guilt. Only a policy that draws lessons from the past was acceptable to Haumann. This principle had led him into politics and even determined his decision to study theology.

Haumann decided to finish his theology studies. After a vicariate in Essen, he worked as a parish pastor in Rüttenscheid in 1963 , where he took over the third pastor's position in Essen. After three years, in 1966, he became a vocational school priest in Essen. Together with Nikolaus Koch he founded the “ Association Haus Bommern eV ”, a “research center for basic questions of peace”. He also continues his criticism of the politics of the United States . He was of the opinion that “ capitalism was a central disruptive factor in peace”, since it repeatedly provoked proxy wars such as the Gulf War .

He welcomed the turning point and peaceful revolution in the GDR , but this approval was overshadowed by the disappointment that fundamental opportunities for social reforms had been wasted with German reunification . Retired since 1984, also took part in various discussion forums. B. deal with the responsibility of scientists for the future of the world. He also played theater as a layman , but also made himself available as a contemporary witness in schools.

publication

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ https://waz.trauer.de/trauerbeispiel/arnold-haumann
  2. ↑ Reinhard Scheerer: Ex oriente pax. A History of the Christian Peace Conference. Volume I 1958–1960 , 2019, p. 149
  3. ^ Norbert Friedrich: Arnold Haumann - a politically committed theologian between World War I and the fall of the Berlin Wall
  4. ↑ The history of Ev. Parish of Essen-Rüttenscheid
  5. ↑ 1960-1970 - The Great Changes (2)
personal data
SURNAME Haumann, Arnold
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German Protestant pastor and peace activist
DATE OF BIRTH October 22, 1923
PLACE OF BIRTH Berghofen
DATE OF DEATH February 26, 2008
Place of death Dortmund