Peter Schweiger
Peter Schweiger (born May 6, 1894 in Roding , † August 18, 1980 in Spaichingen ) was a German Claretian and from 1949 to 1967 Superior General of the order. In this capacity he took part in the Second Vatican Council as a council father .
Life
Peter Schweiger began his novitiate with the Claretians in Cervera in Catalonia in 1910 . He studied theology and was ordained a priest on May 20, 1920 in Saragossa . He then moved to Rome to study law and received his doctorate in 1924 as a Doctor utriusque juris .
In 1930 he returned to Germany and took over management duties for the order. During the time of National Socialism he had to experience that young fathers and students of the order were obliged to do military service. The religious houses in Frankfurt and Würzburg were destroyed in the Second World War. He then lived in a nurses' house in Kriftel , from where he rode his bike to the hospital in Hofheim am Taunus for church services and took over Sunday help in Schönberg . After the war he participated in the reconstruction of the monastery in Frankfurt. As a superior in Würzburg, he read the early masses with sisters.
In 1949, Peter Schweiger was the only non-Spaniard to be called to the General Chapter in Rome, where he was elected Superior General from among the 43 participants in the Chapter. During a candle procession on Corpus Christi day it happened that the wind blew out the candles of many participants. Peter Schweiger's candle was still burning, and when his neighbor from India asked him for a light to light his candle again, Schweiger saw it as a sign that the Claretians should begin their missionary work in India too. During his time as Superior General, 162 new foundations were started in 13 nations. He initiated the construction of the Basilica of the Immaculate Heart of Mary with the title Queen of Peace in Rome. He renovated the Generalate House and built an international college for students.
After 18 years as Superior General, he resigned in 1967 so that a younger successor could renew the order in the spirit of the Second Vatican Council, as required by the decree Renovationis causam - The contemporary renewal of religious life .
Peter Schweiger went to Germany as a former general superior and became a novice master on the Trinity Mountain , where he died in a small room in the novitiate house.
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Schweiger, Peter |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German Claretian and superior general of the order |
| DATE OF BIRTH | May 6, 1894 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Roding |
| DATE OF DEATH | August 18, 1980 |
| Place of death | Spaichingen |