Giuseppe Girotti
Father Giuseppe Girotti OP (born July 19, 1905 in Alba , Piedmont , Italy ; † April 1, 1945 in Dachau concentration camp ) was an Italian religious and priest, professor, exegete and, since October 9, 1944, a prisoner in Dachau concentration camp. The Israeli Yad Vashem Memorial honored him as Righteous Among the Nations .
Life
Girotti comes from a modest background. When he was thirteen, he attended the Chieri seminary . He studied at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome and at the École biblique in Jerusalem. He was ordained a priest on August 3, 1930.
Girotti taught in Turin at the theological seminary of Santa Maria delle Rose and at the Consolata Missionaries College. After the German occupation and the establishment of the Italian Social Republic on September 8, 1943, Girotti built up a network to help the persecuted Jews. He provided them with safe hiding places as well as false identity papers.
On August 29, 1944, he was arrested for his anti-fascist activities after being betrayed by an informant. He was imprisoned in Turin , Milan ( San Vittore prison ) and Bolzano until he was transferred to the Dachau concentration camp. According to another imprisoned priest, Angelo Dalmasso, he was very generous with other prisoners and very popular for his openness. Girotti died on April 1, 1945 in the infirmary in the Dachau concentration camp . A companion wrote on his bunk: This is where San Giuseppe Girotti slept .
Awards
On February 14, 1995 he was posthumously awarded the Righteous Among the Nations medal in recognition of the State of Israel .
In his honor, a tree was planted in Yad Vashem in Jerusalem on the avenue of the righteous .
beatification
The beatification process began in 1988. The beatification decree was signed by Pope Francis on March 27, 2013 . The beatification took place on April 26, 2014 in the cathedral of Alba .
literature
- Massimo Rossi (ed.), Beato Giuseppe Girotti. Un domenico martire. Testimone della fede nell'inferno di Dachau , Chieri, Frati Dominicani, 2013 (37 pages).
swell
- Un domenicano nell'inferno di Dachau, Italian
- Giuseppe Girotti on the website of Yad Vashem (English)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Girotti, Giuseppe |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Italian pastor and Righteous Among the Nations |
| DATE OF BIRTH | July 19, 1905 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Alba (Piedmont) |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 1, 1945 |
| Place of death | Dachau concentration camp |