Eduard Paul Benedict Frese

Eduard Paul Benedict Frese (born November 19 ^July / December 1,  1872 ^greg. In Nigula (Lääne-Nigula) , Estonia Governorate , Russian Empire ; † May 27, 1919 in Riga , Latvia ) was a German-Baltic clergyman. He is considered an evangelical confessor and is recorded on the Riga martyr's stone.

The dates in this article apply to the period prior to February 1st ^jul , unless otherwise noted ^. / February 14,  1918 ^greg. according to the Julian calendar.

Life

Eduard Paul Benedict Frese lost his father at an early age, which was a great burden for him. He sought consolation in music and support in his faith. Frese attended St. Petersburg's St. Anna School. He studied theology at the University of Tartu from 1892 to 1897 and history and linguistics from 1897 to 1898 . During his student days, his faith protected him from temptation. On September 13th ^Jul. / September 25,  1898 ^greg. he was ordained. From 1898 to 1902 he was the parish vicariate of the Estonian Consistorial District of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Russia. In the years 1902-1919 he was pastor in Vaivara near Narva . With that he served one of the largest communities in the country and gained some fame. He was uncomplicated and humane towards everyone. He was happy at work and optimistic even after disappointments. In particular, he took care of the school children.

In the period following the Russian Revolution in 1905 , in August 1906, he held a Sunday service in the St. Peter's Chapel in his parish. Some young people, probably members of the factory youth in Narva, with red bows and blouses were present. They did not get up when the Bible text was read out. At the imperial prayer they shouted: “We have and do not need an emperor”. One of them, probably the leader, sang the Marseillaise . The congregation did not sing along, but became restless and pushed for the exit, but found the door barricaded from the outside. Frese stayed where he was, called for calm, and asked the congregation to remain seated. Four of the young people were seized by parishioners, and another, who threatened to shoot, was in front of the church. The parishioners cracked down on the young people and wrested the gun from the gun. When the revolutionaries fled, a person from the community shot them with this weapon. The service was completed and the planned churchyard celebration was held afterwards. The church leaders arrived a short time later.

During the First World War, the Russian military confiscated Freses pastorate; he had to look for another apartment and was taken in on an estate. The relocation made his job difficult. He now had to travel long distances in the large community, which had a negative effect on his health.

In the autumn of 1918, Frese fled from the Bolsheviks because of concern for his family , as did many other people from eastern Estonia via Tartu to Riga under difficult conditions. He wanted to continue the trip, but was too exhausted and had to stay in Riga with his family. There he worked as a teacher. The family led a difficult refugee existence here. The uprooting and hunger weighed heavily on her. Almost all of Riga's pastors were arrested by the Bolsheviks when they took control of Riga. So Frese took over the funerals as best he could and comforted the relatives. The Bolsheviks learned of his presence in Riga and looked for him.

On April 9, 1919, Frese was arrested and imprisoned by the Bolsheviks. He was sentenced to six weeks in severe detention conditions. No news from him could get out. A typhus epidemic spread in the central prison . (See also the article on Marion von Klot .) Frese became infected.

On May 22nd, the Baltic State Armed Forces captured Riga and Frese was liberated. When Eduard Paul Benedict Frese returned to his family, he was still plagued by his illness, of which he died peacefully only five days after his liberation after a short period of suffering.

He was buried in the St. Gertrud cemetery.

family

His father Theodor Alexander Benedict Frese was, like his father Theodor Benedict Frese , pastor of the St. Nicholas congregation in Nigula; his uncle Christian Wilhelm Benedict Frese was pastor of the parish of the Holy Spirit in Tallinn . His son-in-law Richard Wilhelm Reinhold Graubner was a German teacher and later also embarked on a spiritual career in Germany .

literature

• Oskar Schabert : Baltic Martyrs Book . Furche-Verlag, Berlin 1926, p. 174f. ( Digitized version , the report is based on the records of his wife Eduard Paul Benedict Freses)
• Harald Schultze and Andreas Kurschat (editors): "Your end looks at ..." - Protestant martyrs of the 20th century. Evangelische Verlagsanstalt, Leipzig 2006, ISBN 978-3-374-02370-7 , Part II, Section Russian Empire / Baltic States , p. 529.

Portrait photo

• Portrait photo of Eduard Paul Benedict Freses (top, second picture from right)

Individual evidence

1. ^ Estonia. About the desecration of the church in the Düna newspaper , no. 193, August 24th ^July. / 6th September  1906 ^greg. , online at Frese | issueType: P
2. ^ The Pastors of the Consistorial District of Estonia 1885-1919. Böhlau Verlag Cologne Vienna
3. ↑ Church Chronicle. in Ev.-Luth. Church paper for the German parishes of Latvia , No. 18, April 28, 1939, online at Frese Eduard Frese | issueType: P
4. ^ Obituary Pastor Eduard Frese †. in the Rigaschen Zeitung , No. 13, June 8, 1919, online at Frese | issueType: P