Barbed wire seminar
The barbed wire seminar (French: "Séminaire des barbelés" ) was a Catholic seminary in French prisoner-of-war camps that existed from 1945 to 1947 , first in Orléans , then near Chartres . At the initiative of the French government and with the support of the Apostolic Nuncio in France Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, German-speaking priests and seminarians prisoners of war were brought together and taught. The aim was to give young people who were called to take on practical and moral responsibility in post-war Germany a spiritual training during their internment in order to counteract the indoctrination they had been exposed to during the Nazi era . Lecturers - priests, friars and seminarians from Germany and Austria - came to the camp on the condition that they were prisoners of war there. The seminar was chaired by Abbé Franz Stock .
history
The barbed wire seminar was launched on April 24, 1945 in the Dépôt 51 prisoner-of-war camp in Orléans.
In August of that year, it was transferred to the Dépôt 501 prison camp in the municipality of Le Coudray near Chartres. For this purpose, a part of the prison camp, which contained up to 38,500 prisoners, was separated. The main building of the seminar in Le Coudray consisted of a 70 × 20 m double hall that was divided. One half was the dormitory with multi-story beds. The other half was again divided and was, on the one hand, a dining room that also had to be used as an auditorium and study room. A chapel separated from it.
The interned seminarians were instructed while maintaining the status and functioning of a prisoner of war camp. Under these conditions, they could continue or even begin their studies. However, there was no room in which individuals could withdraw. The seminary library was also small in the beginning.
The daily schedule of the seminar was strictly regulated: 6 a.m. wake-up, silent prayer, mass - 7.40 a.m. breakfast - 8.30 a.m. lessons / lectures - 11.30 a.m. lunch - 2.15 p.m. lessons and studies - 5.30 p.m. dinner, after free time again studies, Compline - 10 p.m. Tattoo. The inadequate food supply was a constant problem. The dormitory was named " Ice Palace " by the students in winter .
The barbed wire seminary was the largest seminary in European history. A total of 949 lecturers, priests, brothers and seminarians from Germany and Austria worked there from 1945 to 1947. The highest occupancy was in May 1946 with 506 people. Lectures were given in the subjects of dogmatics , morality , canon law , apologetics , exegesis of the New Testament and the Old Testament, pastoral theology , homiletics , journalism , sociology , philosophy and history of philosophy . There were also courses in French, Latin, Greek, Hebrew and others in pedagogy and biology. An Abitur course was set up for the youngest seminarians. The University of Freiburg im Breisgau took over the sponsorship of the seminar and also took exams. Abitur exams took place in March 1947 under the supervision of the Baden Ministry of Culture and Education.
About 600 of the seminarians became priests. The seminarians of the barbed wire seminar included Bishop Emil Stehle , Bishop Bernado Witte , Auxiliary Bishop Bernhard Rieger , Auxiliary Bishop Franz Josef Kuhnle , Abbot Laurentius Hoheisel , Franciscan Father Gereon Goldmann , Pastor Lothar Zenetti , Josef Rommerskirchen , the writers Erich Kock and Otto Gillen .
The Apostolic Nuncio Angelo Roncalli - later Pope John XXIII. - attended the seminar several times. On the Sunday after Christmas 1946 he emphasized during a visit: “The Chartres seminar is a glory for both France and Germany. It is very well suited to become a sign of understanding and reconciliation. "
The barbed wire seminar existed until June 5, 1947. The last 369 seminarians left the prison camp. Franz Stock returned to Paris. Today the Franz Stock European meeting place is located on the site of the former camp .
literature
- Karl-Heinz Kloidt: Chartres 1945. Seminar behind barbed wire; a documentation . Herder, Freiburg / B. 1979, ISBN 978-3451211980 .
- Josef Seuffert : Singing behind barbed wire. Memories of the seminary for prisoners of war in Orléans and Chartres 1945-1947 . Diocese of Mainz Publications, Mainz 2015, ISBN 978-3-934450-63-9 .
Web links
- The barbed wire seminar in Dépôt 501 on the website of the Franz-Stock-Komitees für Deutschland eV
Individual evidence
- ↑ Military Bishop's Office . Last accessed on September 7, 2015.