Johannes Greber

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Johannes Greber

Johannes Greber (born May 2, 1874 in Kleinesath bei Bernkastel ; † March 31, 1944 in New York ) was a former Catholic priest and member of the Reichstag. He is considered to be the author of one of the most important works of Christian spiritualism ; He also wrote a spiritist translation of the New Testament and founded his own spiritist church.

Life

Greber came from a poor family of small farmers from Kleinesath . Thanks to his talent and the financial support of the village pastor, he was able to do his Abitur and study Catholic theology at the seminary in Trier . He was ordained a priest on March 31, 1900. On May 1, 1904, he took up his first pastorate in Obergondershausen in the Hunsrück. He was very active in the diaconal . Because of the prevailing poverty and the great need of families with sick people, he founded and led an aid association that was so successful that it was copied many times in other communities. He also dealt with the treatment of diseases based on the methods of Kneipp . During the war, Greber began sending starving children to farming families for care. By the end of the war he was able to send 14,175 children to Holland and a further 6,000 children to German foster families through great personal commitment. For many, he paid the travel expenses out of pocket. Greber carried out both the relief association and the care campaign against the initial resistance of his bishop.

From January to November 1918 he was also a member of the German Reichstag for the German Center Party and the constituency Koblenz 3 ( Koblenz-Stadt , St. Goar ) for social issues. On May 31, 1921, he was reinstated as pastor in the parish of Kell in the Brohl valley , which belongs to the independent city of Andernach . At the same time he passed on his aid association, whose office was in Koblenz.

In 1923 Greber came into contact with a spiritualist group to which he remained loyal despite the ban by the bishop. In order to forestall his impeachment, he asked for a leave of absence on December 31, 1925, relocated to Koblenz and mainly worked for his aid association. Nevertheless, the ban on spiritism still applied to him, which is why Greber moved to New York to live with friends in 1929. Greber himself founded a spiritualist group there, married in 1931 and had two sons. Greber died suddenly on March 31, 1944, presumably of a heart attack.

theology

From 1925 Greber increasingly distanced himself from the Catholic Church . In 1929 he emigrated to America and founded a spiritist church there. In 1932 he wrote the book The Intercourse with the Spirit World, Its Laws and Its Purpose , in which he describes his experiences with a spiritistic circle and its deep trance medium Erich Zimmermann, a simple 16 to 17 year old boy. When Greber asked the boy who was speaking through him, the answer was: “I swear to God that I am a good spirit of God, and one of the highest. Keep my name for you. ”This book was dictated to him through the media by a special angel, in the language of the Greberians“ high angel ”, as he describes it.

The book describes theoretically and on the basis of many practical examples the work of a biophysical energy as a connection between humans and spirits. Furthermore, reference is made to falsifications of the original texts of the Gospels as well as basic information about the fall of the angel , God's plan of salvation and the role of Jesus Christ , the training of the media in the Bible and much more.

Greber's statements have sparked great controversy: the opponents of his teaching claim that God forbids questioning spirits. Proponents declare that communication with the spirit world of God continues what began at biblical Pentecost.

Johannes Greber represented a modern form of Arian doctrine , according to which Christ is seen as the first created Son of God and thus as a free spirit being independent of God. His dualistic opponent after Greber his fallen brother , Lucifer . Instead of the Holy Spirit , Greber speaks of God's holy spirit world , which stands by the side of humanity.

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Works

  • Intercourse with the spirit world of God, its laws and its purpose - personal experiences of a Catholic clergyman. Johannes Greber Memorial Foundation, Teanneck NJ 1986, ISBN 3-87667-067-5 [1] - [2] .
  • The new Testament. Adapted from the Spiritual Christian e. V., Göppingen 2001, ISBN 3-9808576-2-X .
  • The New Testament: A New Translation Based Upon the Latest Manuscripts . 1937.

literature

  • Gottfried Briemle: Credo in unum Deum ... - a prayer and its roots. The Christian Creed in the Light of Spiritual Truths. Theophanica-Verlag, Aulendorf 2004, ISBN 3-9802569-5-2 .
  • Werner Schiebeler: Johannes Greber. His life and his work. Johannes-Greber-Arbeitskreis-Verlag, Göppingen 1998, ISBN 3-9808576-0-3 .
  • Ingeburg Graf: The “Greber Book” for children: Sven and his friend the apple tree. Sera Print publishing house, Einhausen 1994, ISBN 3-926707-06-2 .
  • La comunicazione col Mondo degli Spiriti, le sue leggi ed il suo scopo - Esperienze personali di un sacerdote cattolico. Casa Editrice Leuchterhand, Kindenheim 2012, ISBN 978-3-9809257-7-8 . ( online ( Memento from November 4, 2013 in the Internet Archive ))

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Werner Schiebeler, "Johannes Greber, his life and his work", Wersch-Verlag Martin Weber, Fabrikstr. 1, D-77746 Schutterwald, ISBN 3-9805119-1-X
  2. ^ Biography of Johannes Greber . In: Heinrich Best : database of the members of the Reichstag of the Empire 1867/71 to 1918 (Biorab - Kaiserreich)
personal data
SURNAME Greber, Johannes
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German clergyman and politician (center), MdR
DATE OF BIRTH May 2, 1874
PLACE OF BIRTH Lessath , Bernkastel district
DATE OF DEATH March 31, 1944
Place of death new York