Kwami affair

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The so-called Kwami affair was triggered by the National Socialist Gauleiter of Weser-Ems and Prime Minister of the Free State of Oldenburg , Carl Röver , when he tried to prevent the sermon of the Ghanaian pastor Robert Kwami on September 20, 1932 in the Lambertikirche in Oldenburg .

Lecture tour

Robert Kwami was invited to a lecture tour in Germany in the summer of 1932 as a representative of the Ghanaian Ewe Church at the invitation of the North German Mission Society . a. Donations should also be collected to support the young church in the former German colony of Togo . During the time of the global economic crisis , donations from Germany had recently fallen sharply. 60 lectures were planned, but due to the great public interest, almost 150 lectures were held in 82 locations in Lippe , East Friesland , the Grafschaft Bentheim and the Oldenburger Land .

Confrontation between the National Socialists and the Church

In Oldenburg, which was already ruled by the National Socialists, the church council decided to make the St. Lamberti Church available to the North German Mission for Pastor Robert Kwami's lecture. The incumbent Gauleiter of Weser-Ems and since June 16, 1932 Prime Minister of the Free State of Oldenburg , Carl Röver, immediately rushed with racist tirades against Kwami and the event planned for September 20, 1932. The NSDAP called on the Oldenburg State Ministry to stop the African pastor's appearance. In a letter from the Deputy Gauleiter Georg Joel and the head of the National Socialist Education Department of the NSDAP Oldenburg, Jens Müller , the ministry was asked to "stop such a cultural disgrace and challenge to the National Socialist Oldenburg Ministry immediately."

The parish passed the matter on to the Oberkirchenrat Heinrich Tilemann , who publicly stated that he had " never had any reservations about letting certified Christian personalities from the pagan world have their say among us ." Röver, known for his verbal abuses, attacked the Council of Churches thereupon, describing the decision as “ stupidity ” or “ frivolity ”, which should actually be punished with prison . In a public speech on September 16, 1932, Röver threatened: “ With the people who dare to put the Negro on the same level as the whites, one will speak very clearly of Fraktur in the Third Reich , and the day will come one will speak of the day when the Negro spoke in Oldenburg as a day of deepest disgrace. “The North German Mission worried about Kwami's safety after these public hate speeches.

Wide public through an open letter

Thereupon the Oldenburg pastor Erich Hoyer turned indignantly in an open letter, which he sent to 35 regional newspapers, to the incumbent Prime Minister of Oldenburg and protested against the public attacks. As the initiator of the event, Pastor Hoyer saw himself personally attacked: “ I call on you [...] to take back the words that contain a threat to the security and life of a dutiful Oldenburg citizen with a clear expression of regret. “National papers also take over the letter, so that the affair is known throughout Germany. Even Dutch and English newspapers report on the case. Councilor Buck turned to Lord Mayor Dr. Goerlitz and asked for police protection because of feared unrest and harassment.

Lecture Kwamis

Despite the public threats from the ruling National Socialists, the event was held on September 20, 1932. Robert Kwami, who not only spoke fluent German, but also had German citizenship , held a heavily attended children's service in the afternoon. In the evening he spoke in front of the church, which was completely overcrowded with around 2000 visitors, “On the blessing of missionary work in Eweland in West Africa”. Numerous other parishioners waited in front of the church to encourage Kwami and wish him a safe journey home. In his speech in the church, Kwami asked urgently not to let up in missionary work and to continue to be faithful to the Christian faith.

Legal proceedings after the lecture event

When Röver did not withdraw his threats, the upper church council initiated legal proceedings. Suddenly the official shorthand of Röver's speech had disappeared, the hearing of witnesses caused problems and the Oldenburg State Ministry intervened massively in the judicial investigation of the events. Finally, the proceedings were discontinued at the end of December 1932 as part of a Christmas amnesty. The Kwami affair ended under the first National Socialist state government in Oldenburg, which caused a stir not only across Germany but also in the international press, just a few weeks before Adolf Hitler came to power .

The General Preachers' Association, the professional representation of the pastors, regretted the interference of the NSDAP in church affairs "deeply" and, in response, presented a series of theses on Christianity and racial doctrine that received national attention. The energetic resistance of the Oldenburg church superiors to the accusations of the National Socialist state government had consequences above all for Oberkirchenrat Tilemann. The head of the Oldenburg Church , who had been in office since 1920, was so harassed by the National Socialists after the takeover in the Reich that he submitted his resignation in mid-January 1934.

Today's assessment of the affair

"For the North German Mission based in Bremen, the affair is more than an episode in history," says today's Secretary General Hannes Menke. The affair made those responsible at the time aware of how important it was to read and interpret the Bible critically. As a result, the mission clearly distanced itself from the so-called German Christians . 'A living church knows that it has to speak out critically for human rights and democracy.' "

- Hannes Menke : Evangelische Zeitung , September 30, 2012, p. 15

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Georg Joel and Jens Müller to the Oldenburg State Ministry. Printed in: Klaus Schaap: Oldenburg's way into the “Third Reich”. Sources for the regional history of Northwest Lower Saxony, issue 1. Oldenburg 1983, document no. 157. See also: Confessional community and confessing communities in Oldenburg during the years of National Socialist rule. Protestant ecclesiasticalism and everyday Nazi life in a rural region, vol. 39, part 5, p. 52.
  2. ^ Carl Röver, speech of September 16, 1932 in the Ziegelhof, quoted in from a press report. Printed in: Klaus Schaap: Oldenburg's way into the “Third Reich”. Sources on the regional history of Northwest Lower Saxony, Issue 1. Oldenburg 1983, Document No. 158
  3. ↑ a b The "Kwami Affair" , accessed on July 11, 2020.
  4. ↑ Erich Hoyer to Carl Röver, letter of September 19, 1932. Printed in: Klaus Schaap: Oldenburgs Weg ins “Third Reich”. Sources on the regional history of Northwest Lower Saxony, Issue 1. Oldenburg 1983, Document No. 159
  5. ↑ Reinhard Rittner: Religion, Church and Society in the City of Oldenburg around 1930. In: Oldenburger Jahrbuch 103, 2003, pp. 85–106, here p. 94.
  6. ↑ In the Evangelische Zeitung of September 30, 2012, p. 15N, 3000 people are mentioned.
  7. ^ Reinhard Rittner: Religion, Church and Society in the City of Oldenburg around 1930. In: Oldenburger Jahrbuch. 103, 2003, pp. 85-106, here p. 95.
  8. ↑ Reinhard Rittner: Sketches from the more recent Oldenburg church history. In: Britta Konz, Ulrike Link-Wieczorek (ed.): Vision and responsibility. Festschrift for Ilse Meseberg-Haubold. Münster 2004, pp. 106–119, here p. 109.

literature

  • Klaus Schaap: Oldenburg's way into the “Third Reich”. In: Sources on the regional history of Northwest Lower Saxony. Issue 1. Oldenburg 1983.
  • Jörg Nielsen: 80 years ago the black pastor Robert Kwami prevailed against the resistance of the NSDAP, With trust in God against the Nazis , in Evangelische Zeitung , Between Weser & Ems, September 30, 2012, p. 15
  • Kokou Azamede: transculturations? Ewe Christians between Germany and West Africa, 1884–1939. Franz Steiner Verlag, Stuttgart 2009.
  • Christoph Reinders-Düselder: History of the City of Oldenburg 1830–1995. Isensee publishing house 1996.

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