Josef Janßen
Josef Edmund Janßen (born August 27, 1881 in Goch ; † April 5, 1966 in Wesel ) was a German pastor and prelate of the Catholic Church and an honorary citizen of the city of Wesel. In the service of the diocese of Münster, he was the first episcopal commissioner for the Lower Rhine.
Life
Josef Janßen grew up in Goch on the Lower Rhine and attended the nearby episcopal high school in Gaesdonck . He then studied theology in Münster and was ordained a priest there on June 17, 1905. He then worked as a chaplain in the Lower Rhine towns of Walbeck , Duisburg , Xanten and Kempen . During the First World War he was field chaplain and hospital chaplain. In August 1926 he was given the position of pastor at the Church of St. Mary's Assumption in downtown Wesel and thus became head of an independent parish. At the time of National Socialism from 1933 to 1945 the freedom of action of the Catholic churches was considerably restricted. At this time Janßen stood up for the persecuted, including making it possible for Catholic forced laborers to attend church.
After the city had been largely destroyed during the war in February 1945, which also applied to the Church of the Assumption, he was committed to the establishment of an emergency hospital and a temporary church, which was outside the city center in the district of Fusternberg . In the first post-war years he devoted himself not least to the reconstruction of the church-sponsored buildings. In addition to the church, which was completed in 1952, an orphanage and a youth home were also built.
When the Catholic diocese of Münster set up an episcopal commissariat for the Lower Rhine in 1953, Janßen became the first head of this department. Later this office was filled by auxiliary bishops . In January 1960 he announced his resignation from his pastorate.
Honors
- 1949: Honorary Cathedral Chapter , among other things for his achievements in the reconstruction
- 1951 (August 15): Honorary citizenship of the city of Wesel, 25 years after taking office as pastor in the city
- 1954: Federal Cross of Merit
- 1960: Appointment as papal house prelate by Pope John XXIII.
- 1966: Half a year after his death, a downtown street in Wesel was renamed Pastor-Janßen-Straße in his honor .
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d April 5, 1966 - Pastor Janßen's death (wesel.de)
- ↑ Josef Janßen (wesel.de)
- ↑ Kleve: The Catholic stronghold (rp-online.de)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Janßen, Josef |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Janßen, Josef Edmund |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German Catholic clergyman |
| DATE OF BIRTH | August 27, 1881 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Goch |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 5th 1966 |
| Place of death | Wesel |