Balthasar Linsinger (1902 – 19 October 1986) was an

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

Life

Linsinger was born in 1902 in

Sankt Veit im Pongau St. Veit im Pongau is a market town in the St. Johann im Pongau district in the Austrian state of Salzburg. St. Veit is the first healthy climate spa town in Salzburg. Submontane to the "Hochglocker" there is the 1912 founded sanatorium. Author Th ...

. He was a

pastor A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...

Großarl Grossarl (Großarl) is a market town in the St. Johann im Pongau district in the state of Salzburg in western central Austria. The valley Grossarltal got its name from Grossarl. Geography Location The market town is located in the Grossarl ...

and offered a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family from the city

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

to come to Großarl in the case of danger. In 1944 when a deportation was imminent, the family immersed to his home. Linsinger impersonated the family as a family which lost their home in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, because of the bombing war. No denunciation happened and the family survived the era of

National Socialism Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was frequ ...

. On 13 April 2011, Linsinger was added to the list of

Righteous Among the Nations Righteous Among the Nations ( ) is a title used by Yad Vashem to describe people who, for various reasons, made an effort to assist victims, mostly Jews, who were being persecuted and exterminated by Nazi Germany, Fascist Romania, Fascist Italy, ...

. The tribute was initiated by the Viennese journalist Angelica Bäumer. She was one of three children of the Jewish artist Eduard Bäumer, who Linsinger accommodated in the presbytery including his wife and the three children at the ages of three, nine and twelve. Linsinger was ordained a priest in 1925. The stages of his priestly life as a pastor were: Weißbach bei Lofer (1937–1943), Großarl (1943–1954) and from 1954 until his retirement Sankt Michael im Lungau. He died in 1986 in

Tamsweg Tamsweg () is a market town in the Austrian state of Salzburg near the border with Styria. It is the administrative centre of the eponymous Tamsweg District (''Bezirk'') and the largest town of the Salzburg Lungau region. Geography Tamsweg is loca ...

References

External links

Balthasar Linsinger
– his activity to save Jews' lives during the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

, at

Yad Vashem Yad Vashem (; ) is Israel's official memorial institution to the victims of Holocaust, the Holocaust known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (). It is dedicated to preserving the memory of the Jews who were murdered; echoing the stories of the ...

website {{DEFAULTSORT:Linsinger, Balthasar 1902 births 1986 deaths 20th-century Austrian Roman Catholic priests Austrian Righteous Among the Nations