Benedict Groeschel

Benedict Groeschel (2009)

Benedict Joseph Groeschel CFR (born July 23, 1933 in Jersey City , New Jersey - † October 3, 2014 in Totowa , New Jersey) was an American religious priest , psychologist , exercise master , author and television presenter .

Life

Born as Peitre Woodward Groeschel , he entered the Capuchin novitiate in 1951 . The following year he took the temporary vows and took the religious name Benedict Joseph (after Benoît Joseph Labre ). After taking perpetual vows in 1954 and the necessary philosophical and theological studies, he was ordained a priest in 1959 . He initially worked as a chaplain for the Children's Village , an institution for emotionally disturbed children in Dobbs Ferry .

In 1964 he received a Masters in Counseling from Iona College . In 1971 he received his PhD in psychology from Columbia University .

From 1965 he worked at St. Joseph's Seminary in New York and also taught at Fordham University , Iona College and Maryknoll Seminary . Until his death he taught as a professor of pastoral psychology at St. Joseph's Seminary .

In 1967 he founded St. Francis House in Brooklyn for young men, of which he was chairman and executive director until his death.

At the request of Terence Cardinal Cooke , Archbishop of New York , Groeschel founded the Trinity Retreat in Larchmont in 1974 as a retreat house and for the spiritual accompaniment of clergy. He was associated director of this house until the end. He also directed the New York Archdiocese's Secretariat for Spiritual Development .

In 1984, the Archbishop of New York, John Joseph Cardinal O'Connor, appointed him promoter of the canonization process for Cardinal Cooke, who died in 1983.

In 1985, he and Christopher Bell founded Good Counsel Homes for homeless pregnant women and children. Other social institutions in which Father Groeschel was involved are the Padre Pio Shelter , the St. Anthony Residence and the St. Francis Youth Center as well as the St. Benedict Joseph Medical Center in Honduras .

In 1987, Father Groeschel and seven other Capuchins left their religious order and founded the Franciscans of Renewal (CFR).

In September 1998 he led the protests in front of the Off-Broadway Theater in New York City against the production of Terrence McNally's play Corpus Christi .

In 2000, he began teaching stress, psychology, and beliefs as an adjunct professor at the Institute of Psychological Sciences in Arlington County . He also taught at Ave Maria University in Naples and was a member of the American Psychological Association .

In 2002, in his book "From Scandal to Hope", he criticized the newspapers The Boston Globe , The New York Times and San Francisco Chronicle for reporting on sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church in a prejudicial and blanket judgment, anti-Catholic Wise reported.

"Seldom in the history of journalism have I seen such virulent attacks on any institution that is supposed to receive fair treatment in the press."

On January 11, 2004, he was hit by a car and seriously injured in Orlando and suffered a serious heart attack a few days later due to trauma. While recovering from the injuries, he collaborated with John Bishop on the book There Are No Accidents: In All Things Trust in God .

On October 24, 2004, he started his first live broadcast on Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN). The weekly program Sunday Night Live with Father Benedict Groeschel offered a mixture of interviews, answering viewer questions and discussing spiritual and social issues related to the Catholic faith. In late 2004, he also resumed normal preaching and exercise activities.

In April 2005, he criticized the anti-Catholic reporting of many US media against the new Pope Benedict XVI. because they distorted or misrepresented his biography during World War II.

Father Groeschel wrote more than 30 books and recorded more than 100 audio and video series. In some Catholic magazines he published monthly columns and a weekly meditation on the homepage of the Oratory of Divine Love

In 2012, Groeschel said in an interview with the National Catholic Register on the subject of sexual abuse of young people by Catholic priests :

“Suppose you have a man having a nervous breakdown, and a youngster comes after him. A lot of the cases, the youngster - 14, 16, 18 - is the seducer. "

“Let's say a man has a nervous breakdown and a teenager approaches him. In a large number of cases, the young person - 14, 16, 18 - is the seducer. "

He later made the following apology:

"I apologize for my comments. I did not intend to blame the victim. A priest (or anyone else) who abuses a minor is always wrong and is always responsible. My mind and my way of expressing myself are not as clear as they used to be. I have spent my life trying to help others the best that I could. I deeply regret any harm I have caused to anyone. I apologize for my comments. I didn't mean to charge the victims. A priest (like anyone else) who molests a minor is always wrong and always responsible. My mind and expression were not as clear as they used to be. I've spent my life helping others as best I can. I deeply regret having hurt others. "

The Franciscans of Renewal also apologized for his remarks and emphasized that these did not correspond to his character and were due to both the infirmity that Groeschel had suffered from since the accident in 2004 and a recent heart attack. Health, memory, and cognitive skills had failed him for several months.

Fonts

• Listening at Prayer, 1984, ISBN 978-0-8091-2582-1 .
• The courage to be chaste. 1985, ISBN 978-0-8091-2705-4 .
• Stumbling blocks or stepping stones. 1987, ISBN 978-0-8091-2896-9 .
• The Reform of Renewal. 1990, ISBN 978-0-89870-286-6 .
• Still Small Voice: A Practical Guide on Reported Revelations. 1993, ISBN 978-0-89870-436-5 .
• Arise From Darkness: What to Do When Life Doesn't Make Sense. 1995, ISBN 978-0-89870-525-6 .
• From Scandal to Hope. 2002, ISBN 978-1-931709-69-9 .
• The Cross at Ground Zero. 2002, ISBN 978-1-931709-30-9 .
• Rosary: ​​The Chain of Hope. 2003, ISBN 978-0-89870-983-4 .
• There Are No Accidents: In All Things Trust in God. 2004, ISBN 978-1-59276-120-3 .
• Praying To Our Lord Jesus Christ: Prayers and Meditations Through the Centuries, 2004, ISBN 978-1-58617-041-7 .
• Why Do We Believe? 2005, ISBN 978-1-59276-049-7 .
• A Drama of Reform. 2005, ISBN 978-1-58617-114-8 .
• The Virtue Driven Life. 2006, ISBN 978-1-59276-265-1 .
• Question and Answers About Your Journey to God. 2007, ISBN 978-1-59276-333-7 .
• The Tears of God. 2008, ISBN 978-1-58617-289-3 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Father Benedict Groeschel Dies at 81
2. ^ The St. Francis House
3. ↑ Trinity Retreat ( Memento of March 3, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
4. ^ Terence Cardinal Cooke Association ( Memento from January 28, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
5. ↑ Good Counsel Homes ( Memento June 18, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
6. ^ Fr. Groeschel's Work of Charity ( Memento from January 18, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
7. ^ St. Benedict Joseph Medical Center
8. ^ Franciscan Friars of the Renewal
9. ↑ "Fr. Benedict Groeschel, “Ignatius Insight
10. ^ Anger at Play on Gay Christ. ( Memento of June 5, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) In: New York Daily News , September 23, 1998.
11. ↑ Fr. Benedict Groeschel Teaches IPS Students about Stress, Psychology and Faith ( Memento from February 27, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
12. ↑ "Straddling Liberalism and Conservatism," New York Times, March 25, 2007
13. ^ "Father Groeschel's Words", ZENIT of August 17, 2004 ( Memento of June 7, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
14. ↑ EWTN Sunday Night Prime Time Line-Up
15. ^ "New York Catholic Leaders Celebrate the Election of Benedict," New York Sun, April 20, 2005
16. ^ Fr. Groeschel's Weekly Meditations ( Memento of May 8, 2004 in the Internet Archive )
17. ↑ Sharon Otterman: Priest Puts Blame on Some Victims of Sexual Abuse . In: The New York Times , August 30, 2012. Retrieved August 31, 2012. 
18. ↑ For Immediate Release: August 30, 2012
19. ↑ David Gibson: Benedict Groeschel, Franciscan Friar, Apologizes For Controversial Sex Abuse Remarks . In: Huffington Post , September 1, 2012. 

Web links

• Sunday Night Live TV Program on EWTN (English)
• Biography ( Memento from December 15, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) on franiscanfiars.com (English)
• A Circle of Faith Grows in Unexpected Ways. In: New York Times. December 23, 2007