Nütschau Priory is a house of the Benedictine Order located at Travenbrück

Travenbrück

Travenbrück is a municipality in the district of Stormarn, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.It has a catholic monastery, the Nütschau Priory, which is a former manor of Heinrich Rantzau....

 near Bad Oldesloe

Bad Oldesloe

Bad Oldesloe is a town located in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein. It is the capital of the Kreis Stormarn .The area has been inhabited since mesolithic times. The flint tools found here from that era are clearly defined and known as the Oldesloer Stufe...

, Stormarn

Stormarn

Stormarn is a district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is bounded by the districts of Segeberg and Ostholstein, the city of Lübeck, the district of Lauenburg, and the city-state of Hamburg.-History:...

, Schleswig-Holstein

Schleswig-Holstein

Schleswig-Holstein is the northernmost of the sixteen states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Schleswig...

 in Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

.

History

Occupying the former Nütschau manor house (Herrenhaus Nütschau), built in 1577-79 by Heinrich Rantzau

Heinrich Rantzau

Heinrich Rantzau or Ranzow was a German humanist writer and statesman, a prolific astrologer and an associate of Tycho Brahe. He was son of Johan Rantzau....

, this community originated after World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 as a refuge for displaced persons, particularly Catholics from the former German territories.

The church acquired the site in 1951 and at the request of Hermann Wilhelm Berning, the Bishop of Osnabrück

Bishop of Osnabrück

The Bishop of Osnabrück is the ordinary of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Osnabrück, the current incumbent is Franz-Josef Hermann Bode. Theodor Kettmann is his auxiliary bishop.- List of Bishops of Osnabrück :*Paul Ludolf Melchers...

, it was developed by and staffed from Gerleve Abbey

Gerleve Abbey

Gerleve Abbey is a monastery of the Benedictine Order situated between Coesfeld and Billerbeck in Westphalia , in Germany.-History:...

. St. Ansgar

Ansgar

Saint Ansgar, Anskar or Oscar, was an Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen. The see of Hamburg was designated a "Mission to bring Christianity to the North", and Ansgar became known as the "Apostle of the North".-Life:After his mother’s early death Ansgar was brought up in Corbie Abbey, and made rapid...

's House (Haus Sankt Ansgar) opened in 1951. In 1955 the community was raised to the status of a priory

Priory

A priory is a house of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or religious sisters , or monasteries of monks or nuns .The Benedictines and their offshoots , the Premonstratensians, and the...

 under Gerleve, and in 1975 Nütschau became an independent monastery, which now includes a training house and a youth house.

The priory is part of the Beuronese Congregation

Beuronese Congregation

The Beuronese Congregation, or Beuron Congregation, is a union of mostly German or German-speaking religious houses of both monks and nuns within the Benedictine Confederation...

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Priors

Under direct control of the Abbot of Gerleve:

1951-60 Pius Buddenborg

Priory of Gerleve Abbey

1960-71 Amandus Eilermann

1971-75 Gaudentius Sauermann

Independent priory

1975-94 Gaudentius Sauermann

1994 Antonius Terstiege

From 1994 Leo Overmeyer

External links

• Website of Nütschau Priory