Reinhold Ruthe

Reinhold Ruthe (born June 5, 1927 in Löhne , East Westphalia ) is a German Protestant theologian, YMCA secretary, pastor, counselor, psychotherapist , supervisor , lecturer and author of advice literature with a focus on psychology.

Live and act

Ruthe grew up as the son of the master tailor Ernst Ruthe and his wife Frida, née Nolting, in a farmhouse in Falscheide near Löhne. His school days from 1933 to 1941 were strongly influenced by National Socialist indoctrination, and in the summer of 1942 he was sent to Pivitsheide in the Senne near Bielefeld to do military training at the subsequent grammar school in Herford . In 1943 his high school class was drafted into the army, he was deployed as an air force helper in Bielefeld and Upper Silesia and, before the end of the war, was still used as a tank grenadier on the western front. He fell into American captivity near Münster and was taken to a camp in Foucarville in Normandy , where he had to stay until autumn 1945. There he experienced a departure from the National Socialist ideology and through Americans of the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) he received a Bible and learned to know, appreciate and practice an authentic Christian faith.

After returning to his hometown of Löhne, he worked at home in agriculture and in 1947 founded a youth group with a friend in the local Protestant parish. In 1948 he attended high school in Bad Oeynhausen to catch up on the regular Abitur . In 1949 he did an internship in youth work with the Protestant pastor Johannes Busch in Witten , which had a strong impact on him. Another internship followed in 1950 in Wuppertal - Sonnborn . Ruthe studied Protestant theology in Kassel from 1950 to 1952 to become the YMCA secretary. There he was most strongly influenced by his roommate Fritz Pawelzik , the lecturers Kurt Miethke and Werner Jentsch . He received his first position from 1952 to 1955 as the YMCA secretary in Remscheid , and he also worked as a religion teacher at vocational schools. From 1955 to 1966 he was in Hamburg for eleven years , from 1958 as General Secretary of the YMCA. In addition, Ruthe taught religion at a private high school. As a volunteer, he began to work in the military chaplaincy and later in the police chaplaincy in Northern Germany.

Together with his wife Charlotte, Ruthe founded Germany's first marriage school in Hamburg in 1957, which, in conjunction with doctors, psychologists, biologists, lawyers and theologians, prepared young people for marriage. 1966 to 1968 he was an editor at YMCA's own Aussaat-Verlag in Wuppertal - Barmen . At the same time he worked as a sex educator for the West German Young Men Association, today the YMCA West Association. He was trained as a marriage counselor at the Berlin Central Institute for Marriage and Family Counseling . He was very impressed by Alfred Adler's individual psychology and his students Fritz Künkel and Lucy Ackerknecht . After further training at the Alfred Adler Society in Aachen and Düsseldorf as an individual psychological advisor and psychotherapist for children and young people, he headed the Evangelical Marriage and Family Counseling Center of the Elberfeld Church District from 1968 to 1992 . From 1973 to 1987 he was a lecturer in psychology and education for 14 years at two state technical schools, the Bethesda hospital and the evangelical geriatric care seminar in Wuppertal. On September 5, 1976, he was appointed to the Protestant Church of Aprath by the Rhenish superintendent Dr. Edzard Rohland ordained publisher in the Bergische Diakonie .

In 1986 Ruthe founded the Magnus Felsenstein Institute for advisory and therapeutic pastoral care with his wife, daughter and son-in-law, based in Velbert . He worked there as a training manager until 1998, but left because of differences with his daughter and second son-in-law. The institute had to close in 2000. He then worked as a private consultant, supervisor, author and speaker on theological and psychological topics.

Teaching

In the German-speaking world, Ruthe is considered to be a major driving force behind the pastoral care movement. He knows both therapeutic pastoral care as well as psychological counseling and science and can assess their essential differences. In his concepts, courses and lectures, he is committed to ensuring that both subject areas are observed, trained, applied and complement each other. For counseling and therapeutic pastoral care based on the Bible , which sees the relationship to God as a central dimension and resource, he formulated six guiding principles:

1. Pastoral care is help in faith and life
2. Healing is a mandate in the New Testament
3. It's about sin , not mistakes and weaknesses
4. With God's Spirit against egoism and selfishness
5. Communication means: really talking to each other
6. Therapeutic pastoral care works on the motivations

Awards

In April 2019 he was honored for his life's work with the Crown Cross of the Diakonie in Gold at a ceremony in Wuppertal.

Private

He got to know his future wife Charlotte, née Schwentker, at school. They married in 1952 and their daughter Lydia was born in 1957.

Works (selection)

Ruthe wrote about 150 books on theological, psychological and socially relevant topics. His first book was published in 1962 under the title I want to guide you with my eyes. How do I know and experience the will of God? released. His educational book “Intimely asked, openly answered”, published in 1964, saw several editions.

• Asked intimately, answered openly. Solid advice for young people , Ludwig Appel Verlag, Hamburg 1964; Aussaat Verlag, Neukirchen-Vluyn 1992, ISBN 978-3-7615-0065-1 .
• Pastoral care , how do you do it? R. Brockhaus , Wuppertal 1973, ISBN 3-417-12303-8 .
• Forms of partnership . A small typology of marriage with many examples from counseling practice. Herder , Freiburg 1979 (further editions under: Mimosen und Dickhäuter. Brendow , Moers 1984 and 1986, ISBN 3-87067-214-5 ).
• That's how I imagine love . 16 ways to you. Herder, Freiburg 1982, ISBN 3-451-21810-0 .
• Duet instead of duel. Concrete steps towards a harmonious marriage. R. Brockhaus, Wuppertal 1983, ISBN 3-417-12303-8 .
• We solve our marital problems ourselves! 15 rules for a harmonious coexistence. Aussaat-Verlag , Neukirchen-Vluyn 1983, ISBN 978-3-7615-2323-0 .
• Media - Magician - Powers. Superstition and Occultism in the Age of Aquarius , Brendow, Moers 1988, ISBN 978-3-87067-335-2 .
• Illnesses - signals from the soul. Help for the whole person. Brendow, Moers 1993, 3rd edition 1995, ISBN 3-87067-504-7 .
• When the scraps fly. How to deal with anger, aggression, anger and violence properly. Brendow, Moers, ISBN 3-87067-689-2 .
• Six ways out of self-deception. The right way to deal with anger, obsession with health, perfectionism, doubt, weak will, lies in life. Brendow, Moers 1998, ISBN 978-3-87067-744-2 .
• with Lydia Münzberger: types and temperaments. The four personality structures. Brendow, Moers 1998, 3rd edition 2002, ISBN 978-3-87067-725-1 .
• You are unique. Building blocks for healthy self-confidence. Brunnen , Basel 2006, ISBN 978-3-7655-1376-3 .
• In the middle of life - 15 discoveries for mature personalities , Brendow, Moers 2008, ISBN 978-3-86506-220-8 .
• Healthy conversations. Experience from my practice. SCM Hänssler Verlag , Holzgerlingen 2008. ISBN 978-3-7751-4893-1 .
• The Art of Responsible Education , Brendow, Moers 2011, ISBN 978-3-86506-344-1 .
• Letting go: ways to serenity , SCM Hänssler, Holzgerlingen 2012, ISBN 978-3-7751-5342-3 .
• Your word counts. 365 impulses for a fulfilled life , Kawohl Verlag , Wesel 2012, ISBN 978-3-86338-004-5 .
• Conscience - the secret of the inner voice , fontis, Basel 2012, ISBN 978-3-7655-4179-7 .
• With God for people (autobiography), Kawohl Verlag, Wesel 2016, ISBN 978-3-86338-008-3 .
• High sensitivity and depression. How to stay protected , Brendow, Moers 2016, ISBN 978-3-86506-896-5 .
• Charlotte goes: old age, dementia and saying goodbye to my wife , Kawohl, Wesel 2019, ISBN 978-3-86338-020-5 .
• Revolution in Bethlehem. Stories and thoughts about the Christmas season , mediaKern, Wesel 2019, ISBN 978-3-8429-2654-7 .

Web links

• Literature by and about Reinhold Ruthe in the catalog of the German National Library
• Works by and about Reinhold Ruthe  in the German Digital Library
• Reinhold Ruthe in the Lexicon of Westphalian Authors
• Reinhold Ruthe: Conscience - not everyone has the same , Bible TV The Talk, June 17, 2016
• Marco Ehrat: Character test based on Reinhold Ruthe , on the website zuagh.ch

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Reinhold Ruthe: Mit Gott für den Menschen (autobiography), Kawohl Verlag, Wesel 2016, ISBN 978-3-86338-008-3 , pp. 11–91
2. ↑ Reinhold Ruthe: Writing about the soul , wz-newsline.de, message from October 7, 2011.
3. ↑ Reinhold Ruthe: Mit Gott für den Menschen (autobiography), Kawohl Verlag, Wesel 2016, ISBN 978-3-86338-008-3 , p. 174
4. ^ Reinhold Ruthe: Mit Gott für den Menschen (autobiography), Kawohl Verlag, Wesel 2016, ISBN 978-3-86338-008-3 , pp. 215-217
5. ↑ Reinhold Ruthe: Mit Gott für den Menschen (autobiography), Kawohl Verlag, Wesel 2016, ISBN 978-3-86338-008-3 , pp. 183–191
6. ↑ Lifetime Achievement Awarded: Pastor Reinhold Ruthe receives Diakonie Crown Cross , idea.de, article from April 12, 2019.
7. ↑ Reinhold Ruthe: Mit Gott für den Menschen (autobiography), Kawohl Verlag, Wesel 2016, ISBN 978-3-86338-008-3 , pp. 24-216
8. ^ Authors of Brendow-Verlag , brendow-verlag.de, accessed on April 19, 2015.
9. ↑ An 87-year-old is an advisor for all cases , wz-newsline.de, message from February 9, 2015.