Father Joseph Kentenich was a father

Father

A father, Pop, Dad, or Papa, is defined as a male parent of any type of offspring. The adjective "paternal" refers to father, parallel to "maternal" for mother...

 of the Pallottines

Pallottines

The Society of the Catholic Apostolate , better known as the Pallottines, are a Society of Apostolic Life within the Roman Catholic Church, founded in 1835 by the Roman priest Saint Vincent Pallotti. Pallottines are part of the Union of Catholic Apostolate and are present in 45 countries on six...

 and founder of the Schoenstatt Movement

Schoenstatt Movement

The Apostolic Movement of Schoenstatt is a Roman Catholic Marian Movement founded in Germany in 1914 by Father Joseph Kentenich. Fr. Kentenich saw the movement as being a means of spiritual renewal in the Catholic Church...

. He is also remembered as a thinker

Thinker

Thinker may refer to:*Intellectual, one who tries to use his or her intellect to work, study, reflect, speculate on, or ask and answer questions with regard to a variety of different ideas...

, theologian, educationalist and pioneer of a Catholic response to an array of modern issues, whose teachings underwent a series of challenges from political and ecclesiastical powers. He attempted to teach Christians how to live out their faith.

Considered by many of those who came into contact with him to have been a saint, his cause for sainthood is currently at the diocesan level in the Diocese of Trier

Trier

Trier, historically called in English Treves is a city in Germany on the banks of the Moselle. It is the oldest city in Germany, founded in or before 16 BC....

, pending the compilation of his writings and correspondences.

Biography

He was born in Gymnich

Erftstadt

Erftstadt is a town located about 20 km south-west of Cologne in the Rhein-Erft-Kreis, state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The name of the town derives from the river which flows through it, the Erft...

, near Cologne, and christened Peter Josef Kentenich the next day at the parish church of St. Kuniberts. A sickly, illegitimate boy in Imperial Germany, he faced many difficulties in his early life. At the age of nine he began a strong devotion to the Virgin Mary whom he credited with bringing him through his life's many trials.

He joined the seminary at an early age, by which time he already knew he wanted to become a priest. Nevertheless, the following years were very difficult for him. He had a very strong sense of truth, and constantly questioned his teacher's ideas. There were many things he thought should be different in the way they were taught to relate with God. At the same time, it was not easy for him to get along with his companions. It was only God and the Virgin Mary he felt comfortable with. His mother would visit him sporadically with great concern, especially about his health.

When the time for Ordination had come, the Pallottine Council had to decide whether the students were fully prepared to receive the Sacrament

Sacrament

A sacrament is a sacred rite recognized as of particular importance and significance. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites.-General definitions and terms:...

. On account of his challenges and moral and theological hesitations, Joseph Kentenich was a matter of strong discussion between them. There was one member of the Council that stood up for him, claiming he had great faith. Kentenich would very often pray to God: “Why did you create me, if you are not going to let me be your Priest?”. Eventually, the Council approved his ordination.

Although he wished to become a missionary in Africa with the Pallottines

Pallottines

The Society of the Catholic Apostolate , better known as the Pallottines, are a Society of Apostolic Life within the Roman Catholic Church, founded in 1835 by the Roman priest Saint Vincent Pallotti. Pallottines are part of the Union of Catholic Apostolate and are present in 45 countries on six...

, his health prevented him, and by his early twenties, he was working as the spiritual director of young men studying for the priesthood. He taught his students that before they could conquer the world, the most important conquest would be within. Inspired by an article about the conversion of Bartolo Longo

Bartolo Longo

Blessed Bartolo Longo was a Satanist priest who later repented and became a lay Dominican, dedicating his life to the Virgin Mary. He was eventually awarded a papal knighthood.-Early years:...

 and the place of pilgrimage that had grown from the Marian shrine he had begun, Josef guided the young men in his care into a Covenant of Love with the Blessed Virgin Mary, on October 18, 1914, a day that would prove to be the most important in his life. As the World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 began, under his spiritual guidance, young soldiers were striving for sanctity and virtue even in the trenches of history's most horrific war. Some young men offered up their lives as a sacrifice in the hope that their Shrine in Schoenstatt could be more than a place of pilgrimage, and become a global movement of holiness and love that would have practical application in people's lives.

Founding of Schoenstatt

Fr. Kentenich interpreted the ideas of his order's founder, Vincent Pallotti

Vincent Pallotti

Saint Vincent Pallotti was an Italian ecclesiastic, born in Rome, and a saint. He was the founder of the Pious Society of Missions , He is buried in the church of San Salvatore in Onda. He was descended from the noble families of the Pallotti of Norcia and the De Rossi of Rome...

, to be calling for a worldwide effort to involve lay people in apostolic work, and to unite the various factions in the Church. Soon, the Worldwide Apostolic Federation of Schoenstatt was founded, and eventually grew to involve people of every degree of commitment, from every walk of life, in a free association of people united by the “Covenant of Love”. This movement was named after its place of origin, a word meaning Beautiful Place.

During the Nazi-regime in Germany

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...

, he was interrogated by the Gestapo

Gestapo

The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...

 and incarcerated in their prison in Koblenz. He was sent to the feared Dachau concentration camp, having chosen on January 20, 1940, after clandestinely celebrating Mass in his cell, not to sign a health waiver to escape the punishment for his outspoken opposition to Hitler's regime. He spent over 3 years in the camp, where he became a support for many, especially among the priests, and according to firsthand accounts, he guided many prisoners to show compassion, instead of degenerating into animalistic behavior, to be good men even in the midst of certain death. In Dachau, new branches of the Schoenstatt Movement, including its first international and family branches, were founded.

Further challenges

After the liberation of Dachau by the Allies

Allies

In everyday English usage, allies are people, groups, or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out between them...

, Father Kentenich continued his work in building the Schoenstatt

Schoenstatt Movement

The Apostolic Movement of Schoenstatt is a Roman Catholic Marian Movement founded in Germany in 1914 by Father Joseph Kentenich. Fr. Kentenich saw the movement as being a means of spiritual renewal in the Catholic Church...

 Family all over the world. With a Vatican

Holy See

The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...

 passport, he travelled to South Africa, the United States of America and many nations in Latin America. During this time, the Schoenstatt Movement was examined by authorities of the Church in Germany. In Bellavista, Chile

Chile

Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

, on 31 May 1949, Kentenich wrote a letter as an answer to the report of the visitation, which set forth his teachings about the mechanistic thinking that he claimed was endangering modern theological thought. Fr. Kentenich, who could have chosen to remove himself voluntarily from the movement, was ordered to leave Schoenstatt by order of the Church authorities, although with little or no knowledge of the highest Vatican authorities, and sent to Milwaukee in the USA. He remained there for 14 years, showing loyalty and obedience to the Church to his followers by his silent and powerful example. At the end of 1965, a mysterious telegram recalled him to Rome, where he was received with much bewilderment, just as the Second Vatican Council

Second Vatican Council

The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...

 was drawing to a close. However, as the reforms of the Council confirmed what Fr. Kentenich had prophetically been teaching for decades, he was permitted to stay in Rome for the closing of the Council, rehabilitated by Pope Paul VI

Pope Paul VI

Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...

, and sent back to Schoenstatt. He arrived on Christmas Eve, in time to say Midnight Mass

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth that takes place on December 25...

 in the original Shrine of Schoenstatt.

A father to many

In the three years left to him at the end of his exile in 1965, he dedicated his time and energy to be a father to countless visitors from his international Schoenstatt Family, as well as spending hours in prayer. He was known to throw fruit from his window, and an amazing number of people still own small gifts, cards, and letters that he showered upon those who sought, and found in him the assurance of a loving God, and the courage to attempt to change the world for the better. After celebrating Holy Mass, Fr. Kentenich died in the sacristy

Sacristy

A sacristy is a room for keeping vestments and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records.The sacristy is usually located inside the church, but in some cases it is an annex or separate building...

 of the newly constructed Church of the Blessed Trinity on Mt. Schoenstatt. He is buried in this room, in a large stone sarcophagus inscribed with the Latin words DILEXIT ECCLESIAM (He loved the Church).

The process for his beatification

Beatification

Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a dead person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in his or her name . Beatification is the third of the four steps in the canonization process...

 was opened on 10 February 1975. When some of Fr. Kentenich's supporters greeted Pope John Paul II

Pope John Paul II

Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...

 with the words, “Canonize Father Kentenich!” he smiled and returned, “YOU canonize him!” implying that canonization

Canonization

Canonization is the act by which a Christian church declares a deceased person to be a saint, upon which declaration the person is included in the canon, or list, of recognized saints. Originally, individuals were recognized as saints without any formal process...

is not to be seen as merely a bureaucratic process, but an acclamation of a heroic, virtuous person by the people. To this day, devotion to Joseph Kentenich is spreading and awareness of his contributions to educational, philosophical, theological, social, and other thought are being translated and disseminated.

External links

• Official Secretariat of Joseph Kentenich
• www.paterkentenich.de Website about Pater Joseph Kentenich
• The founder: Joseph Kentenich
• Link to Father Kentenich's Facebook Page