Daniel Comboni
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Centenary of the ‘Josefinum’ house in Ellwangen and Provincial Assembly
Saturday, July 5, 2025
On 22nd June, the Comboni missionaries working in the German province celebrated the Centenary of the “Josefinum” house in Ellwangen. In 1921, a small group of confrères from the Congregation of the Sons of the Sacred Heart of Jesus–FSC (at that time still united; the Congregation of the Missionary Sons of the Sacred Heart of Jesus–MFSC, would be erected in 1923) had bought a dilapidated mill, situated along a barred pond, together with a small farm, in Schleifhäusle, tiny village of Ellwangen. [Comboni Missionaries]
Father Isidor Stang, expelled from Sudan during the First World War, had raised the necessary funds. Four years later, in 1925, i.e. two years after the formal division (which also included the division of material goods), the funds were made available for the purchase of a larger house in Ellwangen. A seminary, then called the “apostolic school”, was founded there.
Until the end of the German Empire after the First World War, the religious orders of the Reich were not allowed to found religious houses. Therefore, until 1918 German-speaking candidates had to go either to Brixen or Verona for their formation. The opening of Ellwangen was possible thanks to a special gesture by the then bishop of Rottenburg, Msgr. Wilhelm Keppler: he decided to welcome a religious order in his diocese and with the possibility of opening a seminary there. Several other dioceses had, however, denied this possibility.
The seminary in Ellwangen and the community in Schleifhäusle (this one initially very poor and immediately nicknamed “Josefstal” by the confrères), experienced an unexpected expansion. This is not the place to describe their rapid development.
Msgr. Klaus Mathhias Krämer, ordained bishop of Rottenburg-Stuttgart on 1st December 2024, also wished to be present at the centenary celebration, not least because he is familiar with the missionary work of our Institute, and was not only responsible for the missionary contacts of the dioceses, but also president of the pontifical missionary organisationMissio-Deutschland for several years.
The large basilica in Ellwangen was packed for the jubilee celebration. The bishop described the tireless work of the Comboni missionaries as “their hallmark, despite difficulties and failures.”
All of us were pleasantly surprised to see how much appreciation we still enjoy in this nation. About 500 guests attended the event, and no less than 350 portions of excellent food were served at lunchtime. Most of the confrères from the various communities in the province were also present.
The following day, we started the provincial assembly with a day of reflection on the theme of the Sacred Heart, introduced by Father Josef Altenburger.