Joseph Wewel

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Joseph Wewel (born September 12, 1907 in Bevergern ; † February 5, 1978 ) was a German Roman Catholic clergyman .

The priest , who was later appointed a prelate , gained prominence through his central role in the financial administration of the Catholic Church in West Germany and as a pilgrimage director and apostolic visitor .

Live and act

A native Bevergerner Joseph Wewel received after studying Catholic theology on 29 July 1934 at the Great Cathedral in Munster the priesthood . He took up his first chaplaincy in the parish of St. Paul in Recklinghausen . There the National Socialists forbade him to enter the school, which was still Catholic at the time, and put him before a special court . Bishop Clemens August Graf von Galen appointed him to the Episcopal General Vicariate in Münster in 1937 . In 1939 he was appointed head of the episcopal finance chamber of the ecclesiastical province of Cologne , whose director he became in 1941.

Grave of Prelate Joseph Wewel in the new cemetery in Bevergern

Due to his special expertise, Joseph Wewel was also given numerous other tasks in boards of trustees, hospitals and homes. Until 1969 he was responsible for the central distribution of funding for cross-diocesan tasks on behalf of the West German Bishops' Conference . This work, which he managed with only one employee, was then taken over by the Secretariat of the German Bishops in Munich. Prelate Wewel thus held key functions within the financial administration of the Catholic Church in West Germany. On behalf of the Vatican he also worked as an Apostolic Visitator.

In 1949, Bishop Michael Keller also appointed him head of the diocesan pilgrimage site. Joseph Wewel made this function known to many believers in the diocese of Münster , as he led numerous pilgrimages to Lourdes , Fátima and Rome . The sick pilgrimages to Lourdes were his special love. In addition, the clergyman, who remained in close contact with his hometown Bevergern until his death, led the Telgter pilgrimage a total of 41 times .

The services of Joseph Wewel were recognized by the Church in 1960 with his appointment as papal secret chamberlain and in 1965 as papal house prelate . When handing over the certificate of appointment as prelate, Bishop Joseph Höffner referred above all to Wewel's merits in handling the cross-diocesan burden sharing.

In 1974 he was retired. Prelate Joseph Wewel died after a long illness on February 5, 1978 at the age of 70. He was buried on February 9, 1978 at the Kreuzgruppe in the new cemetery in Bevergern, right next to the honorary dean Albert Freude . The funeral mass held diocesan Bishop Reinhard Lettman .

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c Heinrich Tenhumberg : Prelate Joseph Wewel. Obituary in: Ibbenbürener Volkszeitung on February 9, 1978
  2. ↑ a b c N.N .: Prelate Wewel †. In: Ibbenbürener Volkszeitung from February 8, 1978
  3. ↑ NN: Streiflichter from Bevergern: Appointed prelate. In: Ibbenbürener Volkszeitung from November 6, 1965
personal data
SURNAME Wewel, Joseph
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German Roman Catholic clergyman; Head of the Episcopal Finance Chamber of the Church Province of Cologne
DATE OF BIRTH September 12, 1907
PLACE OF BIRTH Bevergern
DATE OF DEATH 5th February 1978