Horst Herrmann (theologian)

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Horst Herrmann (born August 1, 1940 in Schruns ; † September 19, 2017 in southern Germany ) was a former priest of the Roman Catholic Church , German canon lawyer and church critic , sociologist and writer . He became known since the 1970s through numerous critical discussions with the Roman Catholic official church.

Life

Horst Herrmann grew up in Tuttlingen, Württemberg . During his twelve years in boarding school and as an altar boy, his fascination for Catholicism was promoted, and his earliest career aspiration was " cardinal ". Herrmann studied Catholic theology and law at the universities in Tübingen and Munich and was ordained a priest in Stuttgart-Bad Cannstatt in 1964 . In Bonn he received his doctorate in 1967. theol., after which he stayed in the Vatican for two years . After returning to Bonn in 1970, he received his habilitation .

Chair for Catholic Canon Law

From 1970 Herrmann held a chair for Catholic canon law at the Westphalian Wilhelms University in Münster . From there there were repeated tensions between him and the church superiors:

  • In 1972 Herrmann drew criticism from the church authorities with the suggestion to introduce a “ mandate tax ” instead of the church tax and to leave it to the individual whether he wanted to pass it on to the church, the state or a special fund for specific tasks.
  • He then criticized the Catholic doctrine of marriage, the authoritarian Roman Catholic teaching post and the close relationship between state and church in several books. One of these books is known to have been published by Herrmann without the ecclesiastical permission to print.
  • According to information from the Spiegel , Herrmann criticized the church's double standards in his lectures with statements such as “Some clerics advise priests who want to marry to keep their friends secret and to remain silent.” And “A priest who confesses to sin against the sixth commandment seduced, can be removed from office according to church law. However, a priest who incites a confessor to embezzle is not threatened with church punishment. "

In 1975, the bishop of Münster, Heinrich Tenhumberg , withdrew his church license to teach because of his displeasure with Herrmann's criticism of the church ; this was the first case of this kind in the Federal Republic of Germany. Tenhumberg declared Herrmann the “most dangerous theologian in Germany”, who should not be allowed “to endanger the young students even for an hour longer”. Numerous intellectuals such as Heinrich Böll , Günter Wallraff and Martin Walser expressed public solidarity with Herrmann.

As a result of the withdrawal of his teaching permit, Herrmann was no longer able to train Catholic theologians, but he could continue to teach as a professor at the faculty. Tenhumberg also tried to take action against this by demanding that Johannes Rau , at that time Minister of Science of North Rhine-Westphalia , Herrmann be dismissed and "a replacement corresponding to the teaching needs". The bishop invoked Article 12 of the Prussian Concordat of 1929, according to which he had the right to “report” a theology professor to the ministry if, in the bishop's opinion, he “came too close to Catholic teaching”.

The civil rights association Humanist Union attributed “greatest weight” to Tenhumberg's approach because, to the knowledge of this association, for the first time in the history of the Federal Republic of Germany, contractual clauses of the Concordats with the Holy See were to be used “unconstitutionally”, namely against the freedom of science guaranteed in Article 5 of the Basic Law .

In fact, the church leaders had no legal means to remove Herrmann from the faculty. The Prussian Concordat was only later given the addition that professors had to leave the faculty in the event of complaints. Herrmann calls this change initiated by the state government "Lex Herrmann".

In 1977 Herrmann was subjected to a teaching objection procedure that he himself had applied for , with which he wanted to have the right to freedom of research and teaching confirmed. In this procedure he was only partially successful: A commission of the German Bishops' Conference chaired by the then Cardinal of Mainz Hermann Volk found exonerating that in Herrmann's publications “a direct contradiction to a defined dogma could not be proven”. But he was accused of “falsifying” the church's teachings on the infallible magisterium of the church, the indissolubility of marriage and the continued existence of Jesus Christ in the church.

In 1981 Herrmann resigned from the church. He stressed that his original belief "that nothing could improve people like the Church" had been severely disappointed. Over the years he has noticed "that nothing is so unsuitable for the betterment of humanity as the Church". Instead of being a reservoir for human development and liberation, the church is terrorizing its members "with self-imposed constraints and barriers that have already destroyed many people".

In the same year Herrmann married, which represented a violation of the priestly duty of celibacy and led to automatic excommunication according to the then applicable church laws (can. 2388 §1 CIC / 17 ) . His wife became a 24-year-old pedagogy and romance student.

Chair of Sociology

In the year he left the church, Herrmann asked the Ministry of Science of North Rhine-Westphalia to be transferred to a non-theological faculty. According to his representations, he was given a wide choice, whereupon he decided on the department of social sciences . He stayed at the University of Münster and was there from 1981 professor for "Institutional Studies with special consideration of the history, law and sociology of religious institutions". Herrmann stayed at the Institute of Sociology until his retirement in 2005.

Herrmann describes the time at this chair particularly based on the establishment of four subject areas:

  • In paternology , Herrmann dealt with forms, structures and institutions and human socialization in patriarchal societies. His book Vaterliebe, which was written in this field . I only want your best , he described in retrospect in 2008 as “his most important book”, for him it was “the central book on patriarchy, fatherly love, patriarchal religion.” This line of research should contribute to future generations from “subtly knotted patriarchal bonds " to free.
  • Under the working term infantism (lat. Infans = child) Herrmann dealt with the position of children in a patriarchal society. In this society, children are "mostly degraded to give meaning to their parents' lives, to satisfy parental needs, to convey confirmation to the parents". Herrmann attributed the function of infantist movements to “working through these conditions and developments in a philosophical and sociological manner and to counter them politically”. Infantism is just as important a means of resistance in patriarchal society as feminism .
  • As synontology (Greek syneimi = to be together, to be in wedlock or out of wedlock) Herrmann described his “doctrine of partnership ”, which deals with the general causes and laws, relationships, structures, developments in human couple relationships and life plans. Herrmann established this research direction as an alternative to a "traditional family sociology" that he criticized , in order to, in contrast to that, examine particularly "new social and individual developments in partnership". Because more fundamental than research on the family is the reflection on their basis, "the partnership based on love", so that the investigation of marriage and family must be preceded by the investigation of the partnership as such.
  • In trochology (Greek trochos = torture) Herrmann dealt with torture mentalities and torture methods . As a goal he formulated "on the one hand the unvarnished representation of the actual torture processes which still reach into the present day, on the other hand the creation of publicity as the most effective method to prevent future torture processes".

After retirement

Even after his retirement, Herrmann appeared in the media as a church critic, both as a talk show guest and as an interview partner and guest author of newspapers and online media. He criticized Popes Benedict and Francis several times and denied them the will and ability to resolve a reform deadlock in the Vatican and to modernize the Catholic Church. He repeatedly criticized the homophobia of the popes and cardinals, especially in connection with church interference in political votes in European countries to open marriage . The way the church deals with human sexuality is still “deeply inhumane”.

Herrmann also denounced that the church ignores the suffering of animals , which contradicts the fact that animals are also "creatures of God".

Herrmann continued to be emphatically positive about a belief in God. In his 2015 book Deliver God From Believers! A declaration of love to God he advocated replacing a negatively charged image of God in the Church with one that is characterized by universal love and friendship. The philosopher Hubertus Mynarek praised this work as “probably the most comprehensive and systematic hymn to God as a friend, as he has collected, analyzed, and in some cases even discovered for the first time all aspects, nuances, and facets of this friendship like no other”.

Others

On the recommendation of Heinrich Böll and Walter Jens, Horst Herrmann was a member of the PEN Center Germany from 1977 . He was also the editor of the “Library of lateral thinking” published by Goldmann Verlag in Munich .

Herrmann wrote two detective novels, the plot of which is set in the Vatican. According to Herrmann, the publisher wanted this to happen under the pseudonym Peter Simon .

With his wife, who married in 1981, Herrmann had two sons. Horst Herrmann died in September 2017 at the age of 77 while working at his desk.

Awards

The Mächler Foundation awarded Herrmann the Robert Mächler Prize in Zurich in 2005 for critical education and humanitarian commitment. According to the laudation by the philosopher Michael Schmidt-Salomon, Horst Herrmann is "one of the most important contemporary representatives of the Enlightenment".

Fonts (selection)

  • The position of illegitimate children under canon law . Gruner, Amsterdam 1971.
  • The priestly service IV. Canon law aspects of today's problem . Herder (QD 49), Freiburg im Breisgau 1972.
  • Marriage and law. Attempt a critical presentation . Herder (QD 58), Freiburg im Breisgau 1972.
  • Small dictionary of canon law. For study and practice . Herder, Freiburg im Breisgau 1972.
  • An immoral relationship. Comments by a person concerned on the state and church situation in the Federal Republic of Germany . Patmos, Düsseldorf 1974, ISBN 3-491-77476-4
  • The seven deadly sins of the church. With an afterword by Heinrich Böll. Bertelsmann, Munich 1976.
  • Savonarola. The heretic of San Marco . Bertelsmann, Munich 1977.
  • Heretic in Germany . Kiepenheuer & Witsch, Cologne 1978; New edition 2017, ISBN 978-3-462-40001-4 .
  • Martin Luther. A biography . Bertelsmann, Munich 1983.
    • 3rd edition as: Martin Luther. Heretic and reformer, monk and husband . Orbis, Munich 1999, ISBN 3-572-10044-5 .
    • 4th edition as: Martin Luther. A biography . Aufbau-Taschenbuch-Verlag, Berlin, 2003, ISBN 3-7466-1933-5 .
  • Fatherly love. I just want your best . Rowohlt, Reinbek 1989.
  • The fear of men of women . Specifically, Hamburg 1989.
  • The church and our money. Data - facts - background . Rasch and Röhring, Hamburg 1990.
  • with Karlheinz Deschner : The Anti-Catechism. 200 reasons against the churches and for the world . Rasch and Röhring, Hamburg 1991; completely revised new edition: Tectum, Marburg 2015, ISBN 978-3-8288-3546-7 .
  • Church princes. Between shepherd's word and shepherd's hour . Rasch and Röhring, Hamburg 1992.
  • Resignation from the church - yes or no? Arguments for the undecided . Rasch and Röhring, Hamburg 1992.
  • The Caritas legend. How the Churches Market Charity . Rasch and Röhring, Hamburg 1993.
  • Passion of cruelty. 2000 years of torture in the name of God. Bertelsmann, Munich 1994.
  • What I think . Goldmann, Munich 1994.
  • John Paul II taken at his word. A critical answer to the Pope . Goldmann, Munich 1995.
  • Thomas Müntzer today. Attempt on someone who has been repressed . Klemm and Oelschläger, Ulm 1995, ISBN 3-9802739-7-0 .
  • Sex and Torture in the Church. 2000 years of torture in the name of God . Bertelsmann Gütersloh ¹1994 ISBN 978-3-8094-4157-1 , various other editions 1998 (SA), 2005, 2009, 2012 (ebook), 2019
  • Love relationships - life plans. A sociology of partnership . Telos, Münster 2001, ISBN 3-933060-03-6 .
  • Desire what one despises. Men are afraid of women . Telos, Münster 2003, ISBN 3-933060-09-5 .
  • Church, clergy, capital. Background to a German alliance . Lit, Münster 2003, ISBN 3-8258-6862-1 .
  • Lexicon of the most curious relics. From the breath of Jesus to the tooth of Muhammad . Rütten & Loening, Berlin 2003, ISBN 3-352-00644-X .
  • The Holy Fathers. Popes and their children . Structure TB, Berlin 2004, ISBN 3-7466-8110-3 .
  • The torture. An encyclopedia of horror . Eichborn, Frankfurt 2004, ISBN 3-8218-3951-1 .
  • Nero. A biography . Structure TB, Berlin 2005, ISBN 3-7466-1777-4 .
  • John Paul II. True man and true Pope . Structure TB, Berlin 2005, ISBN 3-351-02605-6 .
  • Benedict XVI. The new Pope from Germany . Structure TB, Berlin 2005, ISBN 3-7466-2210-7 .
  • Agnosticism. Free thinking for dummies . Wiley-VCH, Weinheim 2008, ISBN 978-3-527-70426-2 .
  • with Winfried Göpfert : General education for dummies . Wiley-VCH, Weinheim 2010, ISBN 978-3-527-70512-2 .
  • Philosophy of Enlightenment for Dummies . Wiley-VCH, Weinheim 2012, ISBN 978-3-527-70705-8 .
  • Deliver God from the believers! A declaration of love to God. Tectum, Marburg 2015, ISBN 978-3-8288-3638-9 .
  • Martin Luther. From monk to man. Tectum, Marburg 2017. ISBN 978-3-8288-3850-5 .

Under the pseudonym "Peter Simon" have appeared:

  • The Pope, Prophecy, and the Raccoon's Nest. Novel. Rütten & Loening, Berlin 1996.
  • All hell breaks loose in the Vatican. Novel. Rütten & Loening, Berlin 1998.

literature

  • Peter Rath (ed.): The bull from Münster or would Jesus receive a teaching ban today? The Herrmann-Tenhumberg case . With a foreword by Heinrich Böll. Munich-Hamburg 1976
  • Roland Seim (Ed.): My milieu didn't master me. Festschrift Horst Herrmann. Telos, Münster 2005, ISBN 3-933060-19-2
  • Yvonne Boenke (Ed.): Better a kink in the biography than one in the backbone. Festschrift for the 70th birthday of Horst Herrmann, Münster 2010, ISBN 978-3-933060-31-0

See also

Web links

Wikiquote: Horst Herrmann  - Quotes

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Church critic and author Horst Herrmann dies , WeltN24 , September 30, 2017, accessed on September 30, 2017.
  2. ↑ Horst Herrmann: My most important book . ( hpd.de [accessed on August 24, 2017]).
  3. ↑ CHURCH: Shots against canons DER SPIEGEL 46/1972. Retrieved August 24, 2017 .
  4. ↑ Laudatory speech for the awarding of the Mächler Prize ( Memento of the original from January 7, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.horstherrmann.com
  5. ↑ Rome can breathe easy - DER SPIEGEL 41/1979. Retrieved August 24, 2017 .
  6. ↑ Humanist Union. Civil rights organization: Humanist Union: Publications: processes: Online articles: Online articles Detail. Retrieved September 13, 2017 .
  7. ↑ Horst Herrmann: My most important book . ( hpd.de [accessed on September 13, 2017]).
  8. ↑ PROFESSIONAL INFORMATION: Horst Herrmann, Hans Peter Bull - DER SPIEGEL 53/1977. Retrieved August 24, 2017 .
  9. ↑ "We don't really care about the church", interview in Spiegel, October 5, 1981 , accessed on July 9, 2019
  10. ^ Wilhelm Rees : § 107. The individual offenses. In: Joseph Listl , Heribert Schmitz (ed.): Handbook of Catholic Church Law. 2nd, completely revised edition. Pustet, Regensburg 1999, pp. 1138–1149 (here: p. 1147).
  11. ↑ Horst Herrmann - DER SPIEGEL 41/1981. Retrieved August 24, 2017 .
  12. ↑ Horst Herrmann: My most important book . ( hpd.de [accessed on August 24, 2017]).
  13. ↑ “We don't really care about the church” - DER SPIEGEL 41/1981. Retrieved August 24, 2017 .
  14. ↑ Super User: Paternology. Accessed September 4, 2017 (German).
  15. ↑ Horst Herrmann: My most important book . ( hpd.de [accessed September 4, 2017]).
  16. ↑ Super User: Infantism. Accessed September 4, 2017 (German).
  17. ↑ Super User: Synontology. Accessed September 4, 2017 (German).
  18. ↑ Super User: Trochology. Accessed September 4, 2017 (German).
  19. ↑ Irene Helmes: Something We Don't Understand . In: sueddeutsche.de . May 19, 2010, ISSN  0174-4917 ( sueddeutsche.de [accessed September 7, 2017]).
  20. ↑ volksfreund.de: "A very bizarre field": Church critic and book author Horst Herrmann on the fascination of relics. Retrieved September 7, 2017 .
  21. ↑ Horst Herrmann | hpd. Retrieved September 7, 2017 .
  22. ^ Horst Herrmann: Benedict resignation: A new Pope will not change anything . In: The time . February 12, 2013, ISSN  0044-2070 ( zeit.de [accessed September 7, 2017]).
  23. ^ Sermons in the window and deeds . ( hpd.de [accessed on September 7, 2017]).
  24. ↑ The homophobic Pope . ( hpd.de [accessed on September 7, 2017]).
  25. ↑ About gays, lesbians and cardinals . ( hpd.de [accessed on September 7, 2017]).
  26. ↑ The Irish yes a "defeat for mankind"? ( hpd.de [accessed on September 7, 2017]).
  27. ↑ Ireland votes decisively against its chief shepherds . ( hpd.de [accessed on September 7, 2017]).
  28. ↑ My sex, my god . ( hpd.de [accessed on September 7, 2017]).
  29. ↑ A first success in terms of "chick shredding" . ( hpd.de [accessed on September 7, 2017]).
  30. ↑ Chick shredding . ( hpd.de [accessed on September 7, 2017]).
  31. ↑ A declaration of love to God . ( hpd.de [accessed on September 11, 2017]).
  32. ↑ Super User: Person. Retrieved August 24, 2017 .
  33. ↑ volksfreund.de: "A very bizarre field": Church critic and book author Horst Herrmann on the fascination of relics. Retrieved September 7, 2017 .
  34. ↑ Horst Herrmann: My most important book . ( hpd.de [accessed on August 24, 2017]).
  35. ↑ DeutschlandRadio Berlin - In conversation - In conversation with Horst Herrmann. Retrieved September 7, 2017 .
  36. ^ Süddeutsche de GmbH, Munich Germany: Church critic and book author Horst Herrmann has died. Süddeutsche Zeitung , September 30, 2017, accessed on August 7, 2020 .
  37. ↑ Michael Schmidt-Salomon: "Better a kink in the biography than in the backbone ...". Accessed on September 8, 2017 .
personal data
SURNAME Herrmann, Horst
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Simon, Peter (pseudonym)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German canon lawyer, church critic, sociologist and author
DATE OF BIRTH August 1, 1940
PLACE OF BIRTH Schruns , Austria
DATE OF DEATH 19th September 2017
Place of death Southern Germany