Josef Richard Frings (6 February 1887 – 17 December 1978), was a German
Cardinal
Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to:
Animals
* Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds
**'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae
**'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...
of the
Catholic Church. He served as
Archbishop of Cologne
The Archbishop of Cologne is an archbishop governing the Archdiocese of Cologne of the Catholic Church in western North Rhine-Westphalia and is also a historical state in the Rhine holding the birthplace of Beethoven and northern Rhineland-Pala ...
from 1942 to 1969. Considered a significant figure in
Catholic resistance to Nazism
Catholic resistance to Nazi Germany was a component of German resistance to Nazism and of Resistance during World War II. The role of the Catholic Church during the Nazi years remains a matter of much contention. From the outset of Nazi rule in ...
, he was elevated to the
cardinalate
The College of Cardinals, or more formally the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. its current membership is , of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Cardinals are app ...
in 1946 by
Pope Pius XII
Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. ...
.
Early life and ordination
Frings was born as the first of eight children of Heinrich, a weaving industrialist and manufacturer, and Maria (née Sels) Frings, in
Neuss
Neuss (; spelled ''Neuß'' until 1968; li, Nüss ; la, Novaesium) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the west bank of the Rhine opposite Düsseldorf. Neuss is the largest city within the Rhein-Kreis Neuss district. I ...
. He was baptised on 10 August 1887. After 1905 he studied Catholic
theology
Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...
in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
,
Innsbruck
Innsbruck (; bar, Innschbruck, label=Austro-Bavarian ) is the capital of Tyrol and the fifth-largest city in Austria. On the River Inn, at its junction with the Wipp Valley, which provides access to the Brenner Pass to the south, it had a po ...
,
Freiburg
Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population of about 230,000 (as o ...
and
Bonn
The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr ...
. On 10 August 1910, he received his
ordination
Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform v ...
to the
priesthood.
At first he worked as a
chaplain in
Cologne-Zollstock until 1913, followed by a study visit in
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (Romulus and Remus, legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
...
until 1915. In 1916, he earned a doctorate in theology in
Freiburg
Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population of about 230,000 (as o ...
. From 1915 to 1922, he was pastor in Cologne-Fühlingen. Then, he worked as a principal of an orphanage in
Neuss
Neuss (; spelled ''Neuß'' until 1968; li, Nüss ; la, Novaesium) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the west bank of the Rhine opposite Düsseldorf. Neuss is the largest city within the Rhein-Kreis Neuss district. I ...
from 1922 to 1924. Until 1937, he was pastor in Cologne-Braunsfeld. Then, he led the archiepiscopal
seminary
A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...
in
Bensberg.
According to
Leni Riefenstahl
Helene Bertha Amalie "Leni" Riefenstahl (; 22 August 1902 – 8 September 2003) was a German film director, photographer and actress known for her role in producing Nazi propaganda.
A talented swimmer and an artist, Riefenstahl also became in ...
, in her autobiography, Frings approached her on behalf of the Vatican to commission a pro-Catholic film. The Church had been impressed by her film ''
The Blue Light'', particularly with respect to its mystical elements. But Riefenstahl declined the offer on the same grounds she later used (unsuccessfully) with Adolf Hitler: that she would not accept a commission to make a film.
Nazi period
Archbishop of Cologne
On 1 May 1942 he was surprisingly named
archbishop of Cologne
The Archbishop of Cologne is an archbishop governing the Archdiocese of Cologne of the Catholic Church in western North Rhine-Westphalia and is also a historical state in the Rhine holding the birthplace of Beethoven and northern Rhineland-Pala ...
, a post which he held until his resignation in 1969. Frings received his
episcopal consecration
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...
from Archbishop
Cesare Orsenigo, the
Apostolic Nuncio
An apostolic nuncio ( la, nuntius apostolicus; also known as a papal nuncio or simply as a nuncio) is an ecclesiastical diplomat, serving as an envoy or a permanent diplomatic representative of the Holy See to a state or to an international org ...
to Germany, in
Cologne Cathedral
Cologne Cathedral (german: Kölner Dom, officially ', English: Cathedral Church of Saint Peter) is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and of the administration of the Archdiocese of ...
. The
National Socialist regime had banned the German media from covering the consecration ceremonies; therefore, the citizens of Cologne started to publish small private advertisements to inform each other of the news.
However, the international press was allowed to report the consecration. The persecution of the Jews was described by Frings as "himmelschreiendes Unrecht" (injustice crying out to heaven). His popularity saved him from reprisals more than once. Nevertheless, he was closely monitored by the
Gestapo
The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe.
The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organis ...
with the aid of several informers, including some clerics.
Frings's consecration was used as a demonstration of Catholic self-assertion. In his sermons, he repeatedly spoke in support of persecuted peoples and against state repression. In March 1944, Frings attacked arbitrary arrests, racial persecution and forced divorces. That autumn, he protested to the Gestapo against the deportations of Jews from Cologne and surrounds.
[Josef Frings](_blank)
German Resistance Memorial Centre, Index of Persons; retrieved at 4 September 2013 In 1943, the German bishops had debated whether to confront Hitler directly and collectively over what they knew of the treatment of Jews. Frings wrote a pastoral letter cautioning his diocese not to violate the inherent rights of others to life, even those "not of our blood" and even during war, and preached in a sermon that "no one may take the property or life of an innocent person just because he is a member of a foreign race".
Postwar
Cardinal
Frings, who had been a fierce and outspoken opponent of Hitler and Nazism during
World War II, was, after the war, appointed head of the German Bishops' conference, and appointed a Cardinal. Against the declared neutrality of the clergy, as demanded by Rome, he joined the
Christian Democratic Union (CDU). This step was a signal for many Rhenish Catholics (also clergymen), who before had a rather critical view of an interconfessional party, to support the CDU as well, instead of the
Centre Party. Though Frings left the CDU a few months later because of pressure from Rome, his public partisanship is said to have been the start of the marginalising and gradual decline of the Catholic
Centre Party.
His episcopal
motto
A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. M ...
was ''Pro hominibus constitutus'',
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
for "Appointed for the people". Frings was appointed
Cardinal-Priest
A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Co ...
of
San Giovanni a Porta Latina
San Giovanni a Porta Latina (Italian: "Saint John Before the Latin Gate") is a Basilica church in Rome, Italy, near the Porta Latina (on the Via Latina) of the Aurelian Wall.
History
According to Tertullian, as quoted by Saint Jerome, in the ...
by
Pope Pius XII
Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. ...
in the
consistory of 18 February 1946. From 1945 to 1965, he was chairman of the
Conference of the German Bishops
A conference is a meeting of two or more experts to discuss and exchange opinions or new information about a particular topic.
Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always decisions, are the main p ...
. In the year 1948 he was named as the "high protector" of refugee affairs.
Frings was an ardent supporter of the
dogma
Dogma is a belief or set of beliefs that is accepted by the members of a group without being questioned or doubted. It may be in the form of an official system of principles or doctrines of a religion, such as Roman Catholicism, Judaism, Islam o ...
of the
Assumption of Mary
The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it in 1950 in his apostolic constitution ''Munificentissimus Deus'' as follows:
We proclaim and define it to be a dogma revealed by Go ...
, whose proclamation he personally attended 1 November 1950.
Pope Pius XII
Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. ...
credited him for participation and signing the related
Apostolic Constitution Munificentissimus Deus
''Munificentissimus Deus'' ( la, The most bountiful God) is the name of an apostolic constitution written by Pope Pius XII. It defines ''ex cathedra'' the dogma of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It was the first ''ex-cathedra'' inf ...
. In 1954, Cardinal Frings initiated the diocesan godparenthood between the
Archbishopric of Cologne
The Archdiocese of Cologne ( la, Archidioecesis Coloniensis; german: Erzbistum Köln) is an archdiocese of the Catholic Church in western North Rhine-Westphalia and northern Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany.
History
The Electorate of Cologn ...
and the
Archdiocese of Tokyo, one of the first archdiocesan partnerships within the
Catholic Church. In 1958 he was the initiator of the social relief organisation
Misereor. The relief organisation
Adveniat, founded in 1961, also started its work on his behalf.
Cardinal Frings is the only archbishop of Cologne who earned the honorary citizenship of Cologne, which happened in 1967. In the same year, he was also awarded the honorary citizenship of his native town
Neuss
Neuss (; spelled ''Neuß'' until 1968; li, Nüss ; la, Novaesium) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the west bank of the Rhine opposite Düsseldorf. Neuss is the largest city within the Rhein-Kreis Neuss district. I ...
. The street in Cologne in which the residence of the present Archbishops of Cologne is located was renamed Kardinal-Frings-Straße.
Second Vatican Council
In advance of the
Second Vatican Council
The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions), each lasting between 8 and 1 ...
, Frings gave a speech in
Genoa
Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of Ge ...
with the title: "Das Konzil auf dem Hintergrund der Zeitlage im Unterschied zum ersten vatikanischen Konzil" ("The council against the background of the present time in contrast to the
First Vatican Council
The First Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the First Vatican Council or Vatican I was convoked by Pope Pius IX on 29 June 1868, after a period of planning and preparation that began on 6 December 1864. This, the twentieth ecu ...
"). When
Pope John XXIII
Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death in June 19 ...
later got hold of the text of the speech, he summoned Frings for an audience at the
Vatican
Vatican may refer to:
Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum
The Holy See
* The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...
. Cardinal Frings, who was doubtful as to whether the pope liked his speech, said to his secretary, Dr
Hubert Luthe Hubert Luthe (22 May 1927 – 4 February 2014) was a German Roman Catholic bishop.
Ordained to the priesthood in 1951, Luthe was appointed titular bishop of ''Egabro'' and auxiliary bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cologne, Germany
...
, who would later become the bishop of
Essen
Essen (; Latin: ''Assindia'') is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and Dor ...
, in his humorous
Kölsch dialect: "Hängen se m'r doch ens dat ruude Mäntelsche üm, wer weiß ob et nit dat letzte Mohl is" ("Please wrap the little red coat around my shoulders again, who knows if it will not be the last time you do it?"). However, the pope appeared enthusiastic when he read Frings' manuscript and gave him a warm welcome. It was recently discovered that the speech had been written by Frings' ''
peritus
''Peritus'' (Latin for "expert") is the title given to Roman Catholic theologians attending an ecumenical council to give advice. At the Second Vatican Council, some ''periti'' (the plural form) accompanied individual bishops or groups of bisho ...
'' (theological adviser),
Joseph Ratzinger
Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...
, the future Pope Benedict XVI.
[Jared Wicks, "Six texts by Prof. Joseph Ratzinger as ''peritus'' before and during Vatican Council II," ''Gregorianum'' 89, no. 2 (2008): 234-5.]
Frings participated in the Second Vatican Council (1962–1965) and was a member of the ten-prelate council chair board. In his speech, delivered in fluent Latin, about the rules of procedure in the opening session of the council ("of the first general
congregation), he demanded a time of "getting known to each other" of the council fathers before the act of deciding about the compilation of the council commissions and delayed execution of the plans developed by the curia. His speech, predominantly composed by Ratzinger, about the
Holy Office
The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) is the oldest among the departments of the Roman Curia. Its seat is the Palace of the Holy Office in Rome. It was founded to defend the Catholic Church from heresy and is the body responsible ...
, which the prelate perceived as too
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization ...
and
authoritarian
Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic voti ...
, had tremendous effects and eventually led to its reorganisation as the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) is the oldest among the departments of the Roman Curia. Its seat is the Palace of the Holy Office in Rome. It was founded to defend the Catholic Church from heresy and is the body responsible f ...
.
Retirement and death
In 1963, Frings became
philister of honour of the
K.St.V. Arminia Bonn in the KV and on 3 May 1967 honorary member of the
A.V. Rheinstein, a Catholic student fraternity that is a member of the
.
In 1969, he resigned from the governance of his archdiocese for age reasons. He lost more and more of his eyesight and eventually was completely blind.
Frings died in 1978 from a heart attack in Cologne at 91. He was entombed in the archiepiscopal crypt in the
Cologne Cathedral
Cologne Cathedral (german: Kölner Dom, officially ', English: Cathedral Church of Saint Peter) is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and of the administration of the Archdiocese of ...
. His successor was
Joseph Höffner.
Legacy
On 8 December 1979, the
archiepiscopal Gymnasium Beuel in
Bonn
The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr ...
, which was founded in 1964 by Frings, was named in
Kardinal-Frings-Gymnasium. In 1996, the Kardinal-Frings-Association was founded in Frings' hometown of Neuss. The aim of the association is a scholarly study of the life and work of the Cardinal, and making the knowledge accessible to a broader public.
On 12 August 2000 a memorial of Frings was erected on behalf of the Cardinal Frings Association. It was inaugurated by the patron of the event, Cardinal
Joachim Meisner
Joachim Meisner (25 December 1933 – 5 July 2017) was a German cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was the immediate past Archbishop of Cologne, serving from 1989 until his resignation was accepted by Pope Francis in 2014. He previously serve ...
, at the time Archbishop of Cologne. On 24 June 2006, the Südbrücke (south bridge) between
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...
and Neuss was renamed Josef-Kardinal-Frings-Brücke.
"fringsen"
Cardinal Frings is eternalised in the
Kölsch language with the word "fringsen" (, a verb, literally translates as "to Frings") which became synonymous for "stealing food" and other low-value consumables out of need. The expression dates back on his New Year's Eve sermon which he held on 31 December 1946 in the St. Engelbert church in Cologne-Riehl, in which he referred to the looting of coal trains and the bad supply situation in the grim winter: Accordingly, the term "fringsen" refers to obtaining food and fuel for the winter among Cologne citizens. However, it is often overlooked that Cardinal Frings, in the very next sentence, also put the onus of returning the goods or repaying the original owner as soon as possible on whoever would appropriate consumables in this fashion:
Works
* ''"Die Einheit der Messiasidee in den Evangelien. Ein Beitrag zur Theologie des Neuen Testaments"'', Mainz: Kirchheim, 1917. Zugl.: theol. Diss. Freiburg/Br. 1916
* ''"Grundsätze katholischer Soziallehre und zeitnaher Folgerungen"'', Köln 1947
* ''Verantwortung und Mitverantwortung in der Wirtschaft. Was sagt die katholische Soziallehre über Mitwirkung und Mitbestimmung?'', Köln: Bachem, 1949.
* ''"Das Verhältnis der Kirche zu den Juden im Lichte des Zweiten Vatikanischen Konzils'', Köln 1970
* ''"Für die Menschen bestellt. Erinnerungen des Alterzbischofs von Köln'', Autobiographie, Köln: Bachem 1973
References
Further reading
* Froitzheim, Dieter (Hrsg.), ''Kardinal Frings - Leben und Werk.'' Wienand, Köln 1979.
* Kettel, Joachim: ''Josef Kardinal Frings, Leben & Wirken des Kölner Erzbischofs in Anekdoten'', 1. Auflage, J.P. Bachem Verlag, Köln 2003.
* Trippen, Norbert: ''Josef Kardinal Frings, Band 1: Sein Wirken für das Erzbistum Köln und für die Kirche in Deutschland'', (= Veröffentlichungen der Kommission für Zeitgeschichte, Reihe B: Forschungen, 94), Verlag
Ferdinand Schöningh, Paderborn-München-Wien-Zürich 2003.
* Trippen, Norbert: ''Josef Kardinal Frings, Band 2: Sein Wirken für die Weltkirche und seine letzten Bischofsjahre'', (= Veröffentlichungen der Kommission für Zeitgeschichte, Reihe B: Forschungen, 94), Verlag Ferdinand Schöningh, Paderborn-München-Wien-Zürich 2005.
External links
Cardinal Frings AssociationLiterature of and about Cardinal Fringsin the catalogue of the
German National Library
The German National Library (DNB; german: Deutsche Nationalbibliothek) is the central archival library and national bibliographic centre for the Federal Republic of Germany. It is one of the largest libraries in the world. Its task is to colle ...
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Frings, Josef
1887 births
1978 deaths
People from the Rhine Province
20th-century German cardinals
Grand Crosses 1st class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
Archbishops of Cologne
Participants in the Second Vatican Council
Cardinals created by Pope Pius XII
Burials at Cologne Cathedral
Blind people from Germany
Roman Catholics in the German Resistance