Johann Nepomuk von Tschiderer

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Johann Tschiderer, lithograph by F. Dewerth, 1858

Johann Nepomuk von Tschiderer zu Gleifheim (born April 15, 1777 in Bozen ; † December 3, 1860 in Trient ) was Prince-Bishop of Trient from 1835 until his death and was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1995

Life

childhood and education

Exterior view of the parish church Maria Himmelfahrt in Bozen
Gleifheim residence in Eppan

Johann-Nepomuk Johann-Baptist Franz-Xaver Maria von Tschiderer zu Gleifheim was born as the fifth of seven sons of the married couple Joachim von Tschiderer zu Gleifheim and Katharina von Giovanelli zu Gerstburg and Hörtenberg in Bozen , where his birthplace (corner of Silbergasse / Pfarrgasse) is still exists today. On the day of his birth he was baptized in the parish church of the Assumption of Mary . His father's family immigrated to Paznaun from Graubünden in 1529 and reached Bozen and Innsbruck via Eppan ; Emperor Ferdinand III. she had ennobled in 1620. His father was a civil servant and a house and landowner in Bolzano. Relatives on the mother's side are Joseph von Giovanelli zu Gerstburg and Hörtenberg and Ignaz von Giovanelli zu Gerstburg and Hörtenberg . Tschiderer's mother attached great importance to a simple life, they only ate dry bread and water. After healing from dumbness, Johann Nepomuk attended the Bozen Franciscan High School . In 1783 the family moved to Innsbruck , where the father was appointed first tax collector in the Crown Land of Tyrol in 1785 due to his conscientiousness and efficiency . However, Johann-Nepomuk initially stayed in Bozen and only switched to the Lyceum in Innsbruck when he was 15. There he studied philosophy and theology in 1795 and was on 27 July 1800 Trento by Prince Bishop Emmanuel Maria Graf Thun and Hohenstein for priests ordained . He celebrated his Primiz service in St. Antonius in Klobenstein , where the family spent the summers.

Work in parishes and universities

  • The German Order Coming in Lengmoos

  • St. Pankraz in July 2007

  • The upper Sarntal: View from Weißenbach in northeast direction

  • Dorf Tirol (left) in Meraner Land

After a stay in Rome , since there was initially no cooperation available due to the large number of young priests, he was accepted for three years by the pastor of Lengmoos in Klobenstein , where he was a cooperator for another year. In November 1804 he was transferred to St. Pankraz im Ultental , where he also gave religious instruction, visited the sick and prepared for the pastor's examination. Even at this time, von Tschiderer was referred to as “God's almsgiver”.

In 1807, to his great surprise, von Tschiderer was appointed to Trento by the King of Bavaria at the age of 30 as professor of moral and pastoral theology . His position there was not an easy one, since the rector and other professors were followers of the Enlightenment and Josephinism . In the Tyrolean popular uprising in 1809, he especially took care of the expelled priests from the Vinschgau and Merano in Trento . His kindness and his lectures delighted the students, and he was a sought-after confessor.

Von Tschiderer, however, did not like the intellectual and political climate in Trento, he wanted to return to pastoral care . In 1810 he became a pastor in the Sarntal . During the famine of 1815/16 he collected and distributed food there and advocated that the rural youth should learn trades, the girls especially the lace-making and sewing of blankets. At the beginning he encountered resistance from the peasants, the following exchange with some angry peasants in the parsonage is handed down: “You came in at this door - you can go out here again!” To which he calmly replied: “You don't have this parish for me awarded - you can't take it away from me either! ".

In 1819 von Tschiderer was appointed pastor and dean of Merano and school inspector for Tyrol-Merano, where he walked from the Sarntal. At the beginning there was resistance there too, because the Vinschgau and the burgrave office had only recently been annexed by the diocese of Chur to the diocese of Trento. In particular the former head of the South Tyrolean part of the diocese and vicar of the bishop of Chur, Josef-Florin Lutz, resisted the appointment of Johann Nepomuk von Tschiderer as a priest of the diocese of Trento. Von Tschiderer immediately sought out Lutz, who was so impressed by this gesture that he gave up his resistance. His inauguration took place traditionally in the parish church of Dorf Tirol . As a school inspector he founded five external schools in the Sarntal; in Bozen he suggested a school home from which the Johanneum later emerged. He visited the schools personally, convinced himself of the achievements of the students and made it possible for the gifted to study. During this time he made, mostly anonymously, e.g. B. gifts to prison inmates, unemployed and other needy people, as well as sick people for which he had sold his own valuables. He said to prison inmates: "Who knows what would have become of us if we had had such youth!"

Work in the dioceses of Trento and Brixen / Vorarlberg

Bressanone Cathedral

In 1826 von Tschiderer was appointed to the cathedral chapter of Trento after 16 years in pastoral care and was appointed provicar for the German-speaking part of the diocese of Trento by the Trento bishop Franz Xaver Luschin (1781–1854, r. 1823–1834) on December 26, 1827 . His extensive sphere of activity also included parts of today's dioceses of Brixen , Innsbruck and Feldkirch . In 1831 Bernhard Galura , Bishop of Brixen , proposed him and the emperor appointed him vicar general and on February 24, 1832 as auxiliary bishop for Vorarlberg , who resided in Feldkirch, with the confirmation of the pope . He was ordained titular bishop of Heliopolis in Augustamnica on May 20, 1832 in Innsbruck Cathedral . Already on the way to Feldkirch he donated the sacrament of Confirmation and consecrated churches. His affable demeanor quickly won the hearts of the population. During this time he was particularly committed to the so-called Swabian children: Tyrolean peasant children who were sent to Swabia as seasonal workers. Von Tschiderer gladly used the short period of relaxation for a pilgrimage to the Rankweil Basilica . A Vorarlberg priest said about him at the time: "It is enough to see him, it is enough to exchange two words with him - he is a saint".

Prince-Bishop of Trento

Archbishop's Palace, Trento
Johanneum Dorf Tirol - south view

When Bishop Luschin was transferred to Lemberg in 1834 , von Tschiderer was nominated by Emperor Franz I to succeed him as Bishop of Trento and was replaced by Pope Gregory XVI. appointed as such. On May 3, 1835, he solemnly took possession of the prince-bishopric . The apolitical von Tschiderer concentrated entirely on the spiritual tasks in his bilingual diocese, which was in the political area of ​​tension between Austria and Italy. Since the training of priests was a central concern of his, as an opponent of the Josephine reforms he immediately set about replacing those professors at the seminary who adhered to Josephine ideas with men of his trust. He sent qualified clergymen for further training to the Frintaneum in Vienna or to the Germanicum in Rome . He introduced annual retreat courses for the clergy, with whom he maintained a cordial relationship. He also stood up for the unity of faith in Tyrol. His commitment to the formation of priests is emphasized. He founded Konvikte in Borgo and Bozen as well as the Johanneum. Regular visits to his diocese as well as the promotion of the orders ( Jesuits , Redemptorists , priestly community of the Teutonic Order , Sacred Heart Sisters, etc.) also served to increase pastoral care .

About his mother, distantly related to the mystic Maria von Mörl , he was silent about the sensational events, but together with her confessor he made sure that she was spared the negative effects of her fame and arranged for a testimony to be prepared to avoid calumny and rumors to withdraw the ground. Together with the parish of Kaltern , he decided to build an annex to the sacristy of the Church of the Tertiary Sisters, which would serve as a room for the mystic visited by pilgrims . He allowed an altar in her room so that she could often receive the sacraments. In 1837 and 1847 he visited her personally.

A high point of his work was the 300th anniversary of the Council of Trent in 1845 . Von Tschiderer used it for a religious renewal of his entire diocese and was well received by the people. Numerous bishops and cardinals came to Trento. The Archbishop of Salzburg, Cardinal Friedrich zu Schwarzenberg , who had been ordained bishop by Tschiderer himself, was received with special honor as papal envoy . When the people wanted to storm the pantries and magazines in Trento in the revolutionary year of 1848, von Tschiderer met them on the barricade with the words: “Only over my corpse!”, Whereupon the keys were handed over to him and the people shouted: “Long live the bishop". In the 25 years of his episcopal activity, von Tschiderer visited all 710 pastoral care stations in his large diocese twice. Around 200,000 children and young people received confirmation from his hand. Approx. He ordained 2,000 young men as priests and consecrated 60 churches.

After a long illness, Tschiderer died on December 3, 1860 in Trient in the name of holiness . He was buried in the left aisle of the cathedral in Trento. In his will he considered the home for the deaf and dumb he founded in Trento, which today bears his name, and the Johannäum, which has been visited by around 3,000 students since then.

Appreciation

Prince according to the title, he led, against the advice of acquaintances, a life without external pomp, in simplicity and asceticism . He carried out repairs in the prince-bishop's apartment himself. The worn gown that is kept in the Johanneum still testifies to its modesty today. The home for the deaf and dumb in Trento goes back to his initiative and financial support. His social open-mindedness is evidenced by the fact that even during his time in the Sarntal he was teaching women and girls in lace and, as bishop, had a home built in Rovereto for the 300 women workers employed in a silk mill under miserable circumstances. His philanthropy and closeness to the people brought him sympathy among the population. In order to promote their education, he acquired religious literature from his own resources. Von Tschiderer was also art-loving: he donated crosses, statues, chasubles, chalices and monstrances for many churches and monasteries or sponsored artists.

He took his nephew Ernst Freiherr von Tschiderer (1830–1916), later composer, conductor, lawyer, kk chamberlain and man of letters in Trient, during his last two high school classes.

When von Tschiderer died, the unanimous opinion among the population was that a saint died and many priests declared that they had prayed to him, not for him. From a contemporary, the mayor of Trento, Count Benedikt von Giovanelli zu Gerstburg and Hörtenberg (1775–1846), z. For example, the saying goes on: “If there are saints, then Prince-Bishop Tschiderer is someone who makes virtue lovable.” A confidante, Peter Rigler , said: “Our holy bishop is, we do not doubt, already in the Possession of eternal bliss and high above ”. There were many reports of answers to prayer. A successor to the episcopate, Benedikt Riccabona von Reichenfels (1807–1879), initiated the 122-year beatification process in 1873, for which the German Jesuit and historian at the Pontifical Gregorian University , Josef Grisar, had submitted the expert opinion in 1936. The way for the beatification was cleared by the recognition of the wonderful healing of 15-year-old Attilo Lanzinger from Lavis in 1992 after his family had prayed a novena to Bishop Tschiderer for the dying man .

On April 30, 1995, von Tschiderer was beatified by Pope John Paul II in Trento with the participation of 100,000 people. and u. a. honored with the words:

“Bishop Johann Nepomuk von Tschiderer is ... a man who has crossed borders. He made the Lord's instruction his own to serve and not be served. He was able to overcome and connect the boundaries of different social camps, different languages ​​and diverse mentalities. The new Blessed worked in the heart of Europe and, with the shining example of his person, was able to preserve identities and yet promote community "

- Pope John Paul II

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Kulturstiftung Libertas per Veritatem: RAI portrait: Johann Nepomuk von Tschiderer beatification by Pope John Paul II in Trento (from 0:09:10) on YouTube , August 21, 2020, accessed on August 23, 2020.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Peter Zilger: Book and text for the RAI television film about Tschiderer, 1994
  3. ↑ Nicole Priesching (Ed.): Under the Scourge of God - The suffering of the stigmatized Maria von Mörl (1812–1868) in the judgment of her confessor, p. 43
  4. ↑ Nicole Priesching (ed.): Under the Scourge of God - The suffering of the stigmatized Maria von Mörl (1812–1868) in the judgment of her confessor, p. 190
  5. ↑ Nicole Priesching (ed.): Under the Scourge of God - The suffering of the stigmatized Maria von Mörl (1812–1868) in the judgment of her confessor, p. 192
  6. ↑ Nicole Priesching (ed.): Under the Scourge of God - The suffering of the stigmatized Maria von Mörl (1812–1868) in the judgment of her confessor, pp. 290, 294
  7. ↑ Ernst Tschiderer on musiklexikon.ac.at
  8. ↑ Omelia di Giovanni Paolo II, Trento - Domenica, April 30, 1995 on vatican.va (Italian)
  9. ↑ Address by Pope John Paul II at the celebration of the beatification, German-speaking part
predecessor Office successor
Bernhard Galura , 1829–1832 provisional Vicar General Johann Joseph Stey (1766–1842) Auxiliary Bishop of Feldkirch
1832–1834 		Georg Prünster
Franz Xavier Luschin Bishop of Trento
1835–1860 		Benedikt Riccabona von Reichenfels
personal data
SURNAME Tschiderer, Johann Nepomuk von
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Bishop of Trent
DATE OF BIRTH April 15, 1777
PLACE OF BIRTH Bolzano
DATE OF DEATH December 3, 1860
Place of death Trent