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Modern · Bishop
Bl. Clemens August von Galen
Bishop of Münster
ConfessorModern WitnessReformer
1878 – 1946
1904
Ordained
1933
Consecrated Bishop
Münster
Diocese
Germany
Country
The Life
Clemens August Graf von Galen was a German nobleman ordained a priest in 1904 and appointed Bishop of Münster in 1933, the year the Nazis took power. He became one of the most outspoken episcopal critics of National Socialism.
His sermons of July-August 1941, openly denouncing Gestapo terror and the 'Aktion T4' euthanasia killings of the disabled, earned him the title 'the Lion of Münster.' Created a cardinal by Pius XII in 1946, he died weeks later and was beatified by Benedict XVI in 2005.
Notable Actions
- Nicknamed 'the Lion of Münster' for his public defiance of the Nazi regime
- In his sermon of 3 August 1941, publicly condemned the Nazi 'euthanasia' (Aktion T4) of the disabled
- Denounced Gestapo terror and the persecution of religious orders; his sermons spread illegally across Germany
- His protest is credited with helping force the regime to halt the centralized T4 program
- Created a cardinal in 1946 by Pius XII; beatified by Benedict XVI in 2005
Never under any circumstances may a human being kill an innocent person, apart from war and legitimate self-defense.
Sermon of 3 August 1941Portrait: Domkapitular Gustav Albers († 1957) / Wikimedia Commons