Georg Sporschill

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Georg Sporschill (2008)

Georg Sporschill SJ (born July 26, 1946 in Feldkirch , Vorarlberg ) is an Austrian Jesuit and social chaplain.

Life

Georg Sporschill was born in Feldkirch as the fifth of nine siblings. The father traveled a lot as a civil engineer, and the mother took care of the upbringing of the nine children.

After graduating from high school in Feldkirch, Georg Sporschill studied theology, education and psychology at the universities of Innsbruck and Paris . He then worked as assistant to Ernst Tewes , Episcopal Vicar for the Munich region in the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising , then as a consultant for adult education in the office of the Vorarlberg state government . In 1976 he entered the Jesuit order at the age of 30 and was ordained priest two years later in Vienna .

Instead of adult education, youth and social work was now on his program. As a young chaplain in the parish of Vienna-Lainz , which is connected to Cardinal König Haus , he founded and accompanied many youth groups. During this time he also headed the editorial department of the magazine Entschluss . From 1980 onwards, he was committed to discharged drug addicts and homeless youths in Vienna. He lived with them under one roof. Father Georg Sporschill built youth and homeless houses for Caritas, he sent the "Canisibus" with soup for the people on the street to the train stations and founded the Viennese inner city bar "Inigo", which gives the long-term unemployed work and self-confidence.

On behalf of the Jesuit Order, Father Sporschill SJ went to Bucharest to help Romanian street children there. Together with Ruth Zenkert, he founded the Concordia association for this purpose , bringing children off the streets and out of the canals of Bucharest. Children's houses, social centers, training workshops, music schools and social housing communities were founded. This resulted in the life's work of Father Sporschill SJ, which has saved thousands of children for more than 20 years. Many of these children now lead an independent life with a family and a future. Many young adults are still in contact with Father Sporschill SJ. Social works were created in the Republic of Moldova and Bulgaria: soup kitchens for thousands of old people, social centers and a home for abandoned children in Europe's poor house.

“We go where the need is greatest.” This word from St. Ignatius brought Father Sporschill SJ to Roma families in the five Transylvanian villages near Sibiu . In 2012, together with Ruth Zenkert, he founded the Elijah association to help Roma families who live there in unimaginable poverty. Like the prophet Elijah , Father Sporschill SJ and Ruth Zenkert stand up for the poor. They want to satisfy hunger, bring the children to life, help poor and outcast people to get their rights. Through the music they win the hearts of the children. Music schools have been set up, social centers offer space for learning, workshops create jobs. The whole commitment of Father Sporschill SJ now applies to the new social work Elijah.

Father Georg Sporschill SJ is the founder of a Bible school, the Bimail, a biblical word for our time, appears weekly.

Awards

Publications

  • (Ed.), With Gilbert Niggl (collaboration): How to pray today. A workbook for adult education. (= Information and Education Series), Stuttgart 1973, ISBN 3-460-20021-9 .
  • (Cooperation), Rupert Feneberg (introduction), Marianne Fichten (contribution), Fritz Fischer (contribution): Happy children? Community seminar on raising children. (= Models and materials for adult education in the community, volume 2) Freiburg i. Br. 1973, ISBN 3-419-53861-8 .
  • (Ed.), Rupert Feneberg (cooperation): As confession today. Concrete steps to a new, meaningful practice. Freiburg im Breisgau, Basel, Vienna 1974, 3rd edition 1974, 4th edition 1976, 5th edition 1977, ISBN 3-451-17071-X .
  • with Wolfgang Feneberg: Religious youth work. Workbook for group leaders. Freiburg im Breisgau, Basel, Vienna 1983, ISBN 3-451-19666-2 .
  • (Ed.), Karl Rahner (Author): Confessions. Looking back on 80 years , Vienna, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-7008-0258-7 .
  • (Ed.), Karl Rahner (Author): Karl Rahner - Horizons of Religiosity. Small essays. (= Edition Entschluss, Volume 2), Vienna, Munich 1984, ISBN 978-3-7008-0276-1 .
  • (Ed.): The burnt bush. Change of life and new experience of God (= Edition Decision, Volume 2), Vienna, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-7008-0275-7 .
  • Look, hear, smell, taste, touch. The contemplation of hell in the retreat , in: Entschluss, year 39, 1984, issue 2, pages 30–33.
  • (Ed.), The Path of Paul. Apostle of the Gentiles (= Edition Entschluss, Volume 3), Vienna, Munich 1985, ISBN 3-7008-0291-9 .
  • (Ed.), Rupert Feneberg (collaboration), Karl Rahner (contribution), As confess today , 6th edition, new edition, Freiburg im Breisgau, Basel, Vienna 1986, ISBN 3-451-20828-8 .
  • (Ed.) Do you understand my problem? Father Georg Sporschill answers young people (= publications of the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Preventive and Rehabilitation Psychology in Adolescence, Vienna), Freiburg im Breisgau, Basel, Vienna 1988, ISBN 3-451-21095-9 .
  • The second mile. A life with children of hope , Vienna 2006, ISBN 3-8000-7211-4 and ISBN 978-3-8000-7211-8 .
  • with Wolfgang Feneberg (author), Peter Mitterbauer (foreword), Nora Schoeller (photographs): Like the eagle, youth is renewed for you. Paths to Spiritual Training. Vienna 2006, ISBN 978-3-8000-7275-0 .
  • with Wolfgang Feneberg: You lead me out into the distance. Paths to Spiritual Training. Ueberreuter, Vienna 2008, ISBN 978-3-8000-7362-7 .
  • with Carlo Maria Martini , Jerusalem Night Talks. About the risk of faith , Freiburg im Breisgau, Herder 2008, ISBN 978-3-451-05979-7 .
  • with Carlo Maria Martini (author), Kató Eszter (translation): A hit kockázata. Èjszakai beszélgetések Jeruzsálemben , Budapest 2009, (Jerusalem Night Talks <hungar.>), ISBN 978-963-662-182-7 .
  • (Ed.), Gudrun Biffl (author): Child poverty and exclusion in Europe - example Austria and the Danube region. (= Institute for the Danube Region and Central Europe (IDM) (Ed.), Der Donauraum, Volume 2), Vienna 2010.
  • Plain text before death. On the death of Archbishop Carlo Maria Martini . In: Christ & Welt, issue 37, 2012.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Father Georg Sporschill ( memento from September 4, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) on the Klosterneuburg Monastery website, accessed on November 15, 2010
  2. ^ History of Concordia
  3. Our work - Elijah. In: www.elijah.ro. Retrieved December 8, 2019 .
  4. Bimail «Opinion« DiePresse.com. In: DiePresse.com. Retrieved May 18, 2016 .
  5. ^ Józef Niewiadomski : Father Georg Sporschill SJ - honorary doctor of our university. University of Innsbruck, May 30, 2005
  6. Friedensrose: Prize for St. Georgener, in: Bezirksrundschau Perg, No. 24, 13./14. June 2013, page 12
  7. https://www.vaticannews.va/de/welt/news/2019-08/oesterreich-ehrendoktorat-fuer-pater-sporschill.html
  8. ↑ Plain text before death. Christ & Welt, issue 37, 2012