Johann Baptist Berger

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Johann Baptist Berger

Johann Baptist Berger (also Jean Baptiste Berger ) (born December 19, 1806 in Koblenz , † January 6, 1888 in Boppard ) was a Catholic priest and poet with the pseudonym Gedeon von der Heide .

Life

Johann Baptist Berger was born on December 19, 1806 in a house on Confirmation Street in Koblenz as the son of the textile merchant Johann Peter Berger and his wife Clara Elisabeth Abitabile. His older sister was called Clara Berger (1798–1882). Berger was baptized on December 20, 1806 in the Koblenz parish church of St. Kastor . After graduating from high school, which he passed at the Jesuit high school in Koblenz, he studied theology and philosophy at the College of Propaganda Fide in Rome from 1825 to 1830 . Then he entered the seminary in Trierand was ordained a priest on March 6, 1830 in the Basilica of St. Kastor in Koblenz. In 1830 he worked as a chaplain in Vallendar . But already on November 5, 1830, the Trier bishop Joseph Ludwig Aloys von Hommer appointed him chaplain in the parish of St. Severus in Boppard and on May 14, 1833 as pastor of this parish. On June 25, 1861 he became a definitor and on June 25, 1870 he was elected dean of the St. Goar deanery. Berger died on January 6, 1888. He was buried on January 9th in the Buchenau cemetery.

Work as a pastor in Boppard

Choir window in St. Severus with an inscription for Berger's 50th anniversary as a priest

He initiated various projects in Boppard. In the years 1841-1844 he had the parish church of St. Severus renovated in order to save it from impending deterioration. From 1849 he had the Kreuzberg chapel and the 14 stations of the cross restored. In addition, the Sisters of Mercy of St. Karl Borromeo moved to Boppard, who have since worked there in the hospital (today's Health Center for the Holy Spirit ) and in other social institutions. In 1863 he founded an orphanage , the tradition of which is today's Catholic parish center St. Michael .

In the Kulturkampf , Berger and the then mayor Syrée, who until 1870 had often worked together for the good of Boppard, became opponents. In 1874 the then district administrator withdrew from Berger the "local school inspection for the Catholic pupils of the parish of Boppard" through the influence of Syrée. In 1875 Berger was informed that he was no longer allowed to give religious instruction. In the same year a "Law on Old Catholic Property Rights" was passed. This regulated that the Old Catholics were entitled to joint ownership of the assets of the Catholic communities. As a result, the Old Catholics of Boppard raised the right to use the Carmelite Church . Dechant Berger protested violently and refused to hand over the church keys. But this was unsuccessful. With the backing of the Upper President, the Old Catholics gained access to the church on October 1, 1876 and celebrated worship there.

In the 1870s, Berger had renewed renovation work carried out in the St. Severus Church. The choir windows located there today were also installed. The John the Baptist window (Berger's namesake) was created in 1880 for Berger's golden jubilee as a priest. On it, under the Baptist in an oval frame, the church patron Severus of Ravenna is shown in a blessing posture, with Johann Baptist Berger kneeling at his feet and folding his hands in prayer. Below is the request in Latin verses:

IOHANNES CHRISTI PRAEVIE
BAPTISTA REGIS INCLYTE
QUEM DEMONSTRASTI DIGITO
FAC SUBVENIRE PAROCHO

John, forerunner of Christ,
the king's glorious Baptist,
make that he, whom you pointed your finger
at, come to the aid of the pastor.

Berger had this window designed on the occasion of his 50th jubilee as a priest.

Act as a poet

Memorial for Gedeon von der Heide in the Bopparder Rheinanlagen

Even as a schoolboy, Berger wrote poems and lectures on special occasions. In addition to his work as a pastor, writing remained his favorite occupation. Many of his poems, which he published for the first time in 1846, became folk songs and found their way into song and hymn books of his time. Among the best-known are the Marienlied über die Berge echoes with the subtitle "The Ave-Bells zu Bornhofen ", the song of the golden walking stick and must leave you, beautiful Rhine . His Pentecostal hymn Spirit of Knowledge is still sung today in church services in the parish of St. Severus. From 1852 he called himself Gedeon von der Heide in his works . Mainly he wrote native and Christian-religious poems and songs. His poems were very popular during his lifetime, but are largely forgotten today.

Honors

In 1915, a stone monument was erected in the Bopparder Rheinanlagen (in front of the Hotel Ebertor), which commemorates the poet Gedeon von der Heide. The plaster cast model that goes with it was given to the Boppard hospital. There it was set up in the foyer of the Dechant-Berger-Haus. In addition, a street in Boppard, Gedeonsstraße, was named in his honor and the Gedeonseck high-altitude viewing point, which is said to have been Berger's favorite place, was named in his honor.

literature

Web links

Commons : Johann Baptist Berger  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Ferdinand Pauly: Boppard - St. Severus . Ed .: Rhedruck. Boppard 1987, p. 141-154 .
  2. ↑ Who was Clara Berger. In: All about Boppard. No. 29, 2007.
  3. ↑ Martin Persch:  BERGER, Johann Baptist. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 15, Bautz, Herzberg 1999, ISBN 3-88309-077-8 , Sp. 124-126.
  4. ^ Heinz Kähne: The station path in Boppard . Ed .: Verkehrs- und Verschönerungsverein Boppard 1872 eV Boppard 2013, p. 10:12 (tombstone, obituary notice).
  5. ↑ On the 100th birthday of "Gedeon von der Heide". In: All about Boppard. No. 8, 2007.
  6. ↑ a b c d e Heinz Kähne: The station path in Boppard . Ed .: Verkehrs- und Verschönerungsverein Boppard 1872 eV Boppard 2013, p. 6-10 .
  7. ↑ Heinz E. Missling (Ed.): Boppard. History of a city on the Middle Rhine. Second volume . Dausner Verlag, Boppard 1997, ISBN 3-930051-03-6 , p. 127-144 .
  8. ↑ Willi Nickenig: The windows of St. Severus in Boppard . Ed .: Verkehrs- und Verschönerungsverein Boppard 1872 eV Boppard 2011, p. 29 ( online ).
  9. ↑ About the mountains resounds in poems (1846)
  10. ↑ Works by "JOHANNES BAPTIST BERGER (GEDEON VON DER HEIDE)". Retrieved April 3, 2014 .
  11. ↑ Jürgen Johann: 120 years ago: Johann Baptist Berger died on January 6, 1888 ". In: Rund um Boppard. No. 1/2, 2008.
personal data
SURNAME Berger, Johann Baptist
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Berger, Jean Baptiste; Heide, Gedeon von der (pseudonym)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Theologian and poet
DATE OF BIRTH December 19, 1806
PLACE OF BIRTH Koblenz
DATE OF DEATH January 6, 1888
Place of death Boppard