dr max josef metzger (1887-1944)
80th anniversary ofmartyrdom april 17th 2024
Signature of Dr. Max Josef Metzger ( Br. Paulus) saying 'God be with you all ...Yours Br Paulus'
2023-2024 celebrates the 80th anniversary of final year of the life of German Catholic priest and Martyr Fr Max Josef Metzger. A special oratorio has been created to celebrate this event. The Oratorio tells his story in Fr Max Josef Metzger's own words, combining texts and hymns written in his early life with poems written during his imprisonments leading up to his execution on April 17th 1944. We hope that this work will bring to to the knowledge of audiences both in America and in Germany Metzger's deep Christian commitment and heroism, and his unique contribution to ecumenism in the Catholic Church and to the development of modern post war Germany.
Fr Max Josef Metzger was born on February 3rd 1887 in a small town called Schopfheim in Baden-Wurttemberg in southern Germany. His experience as a young priest helped him understand the necessity of working together with other Christians for Christian Unity. Fr Max caught a hold of a new wind of the Spirit for renewal and unity, and started to travel across Germany urging better understanding between the different confessions, encouraging them to meet together in small ‘Una Sancta’ groups for prayer and fellowship to help understand each others’ traditions. He called the work ‘Una Sancta Brotherhood’ after the Latin words of the Nicene Creed – a ‘one holy Catholic Church’, with ‘Una Sancta’ meaning one and Holy.
UNA SANCTA BROTHERHOOD FOUNDED MEITINGEN PENTECOST 1939
In his newspaper he gave a call to unity for this brotherhood, words which can still ring true for us today:
“Catholic brothers in faith, become evangelical! Not that you should leave the Catholic Church, but that you should fulfill its real and ultimate calling. Evangelical renewal, a thorough Christianization of the Church is the essential prerequisite, so that the serious Christian of the Evangelical Church may recognize that here is Christ and his Gospel pure and unfalsified, in full unbroken vital power.
Evangelical brothers, become Catholic! Free yourselves from negative protestation, from pre-judgement, narrowness and racist attachment! Take up again where your forefathers left off – Make their demands your own - the genuine evangelical renewal of the Church. It will not be accomplished by holding oneself aloof from the life-springs of the Church, but rather by living from them and by working together with all earnestly striving Christians to build up the Communion of Saints, in one holy catholic and apostolic church. Catholics become evangelical! Evangelicals become Catholic, then there will be ‘Una Sancta’, the one holy church for which we jointly strive and pray.
“Catholic brothers in faith, become evangelical! Not that you should leave the Catholic Church, but that you should fulfill its real and ultimate calling. Evangelical renewal, a thorough Christianization of the Church is the essential prerequisite, so that the serious Christian of the Evangelical Church may recognize that here is Christ and his Gospel pure and unfalsified, in full unbroken vital power.
Evangelical brothers, become Catholic! Free yourselves from negative protestation, from pre-judgement, narrowness and racist attachment! Take up again where your forefathers left off – Make their demands your own - the genuine evangelical renewal of the Church. It will not be accomplished by holding oneself aloof from the life-springs of the Church, but rather by living from them and by working together with all earnestly striving Christians to build up the Communion of Saints, in one holy catholic and apostolic church. Catholics become evangelical! Evangelicals become Catholic, then there will be ‘Una Sancta’, the one holy church for which we jointly strive and pray.
CAUSE SUBMITTIED TO VATICAN FOR CANONISATION
Naturally, the new Nazi regime neither approved of his work for peace nor of his work for Church unity as they wished for Christians to become a part of the anti- semitic ‘German Christian Church’ fostered and initiated by Hitler himself. For these reasons he found himself regularly spending time in jail. He counted all such experiences ‘as occasions of Joy’, and used this time alone to write letters, pamphlets, sermons, books, a thesis on Church unity as well as poems and songs. He would then send the poems and songs back to his community in Meitingen. In 1943 Max Josef Metzger was sentenced to death by the notorious German Judge Roland Freisler, for his attempt to end the war with the intercession of a Lutheran Archbishop from Sweden. On hearing of his execution he wrote: ‘Now it is over, I am at peace. I have offered my life to God for the peace of the world and the unity of the Church. If God accepts it, I will be glad; if he grants me a longer life, I shall also be thankful. As God wills.’ On April 17th 1944 he was executed in a prison in Brandenburg near Berlin. His cause for canonization has been submitted to the Vatican for consideration
CELEBRATING THE INHERITANCE OF MAX JOSEF METZGER
Cormac O'Duffy, the composer of the Metzger oratorio says:
'I discovered the story of Max Josef when I was researching the history of ecumenism in the Catholic Church in the 20th century. It became clear to me that Metzger and his Una Sancta Brotherhood were a prophetic voice in the development of the Second Vatican Council and in particular the Secretariat and the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity. Though there were new understandings between Lutherans and Catholics in Germany, Metzger made these stirrings into a movement with lasting effects, leading to the celebration of the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification in 1999. This was the first agreed statement of faith between Lutherans and Catholics since the time of the Reformation. Politically Metzger's legacy in ecumenism was celebrated in Berlin in 1946 by the new Christian Democratic Party. The movement was an inspiration to Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, the first Chancellor of post war West Germany.
'I discovered the story of Max Josef when I was researching the history of ecumenism in the Catholic Church in the 20th century. It became clear to me that Metzger and his Una Sancta Brotherhood were a prophetic voice in the development of the Second Vatican Council and in particular the Secretariat and the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity. Though there were new understandings between Lutherans and Catholics in Germany, Metzger made these stirrings into a movement with lasting effects, leading to the celebration of the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification in 1999. This was the first agreed statement of faith between Lutherans and Catholics since the time of the Reformation. Politically Metzger's legacy in ecumenism was celebrated in Berlin in 1946 by the new Christian Democratic Party. The movement was an inspiration to Chancellor Konrad Adenauer, the first Chancellor of post war West Germany.
the writing of the song cycle 'gefangnisgedichte'/ prison poems
The Gefangnisgedichte Song cycle is a setting of the Prison Poems of Fr Max Josef Metzger who was martyred for his beliefs and ministry in a Brandenburg Prison on April 17th 1944. It represents the second part of the Metzger Oratorio, even though composed first. The prison poems were written over several imprisonments of Fr Metzger experienced during the time he was establishing his Una Sancta Brotherhood. The Song Cycle of the poems was given its World Premiere on November 3rd at St Wolfgang's Catholic Church in Meitingen, Germany, the small town in Bavaria where Max Josef Metzger is buried. It was given to celebrate 100 years since the founding of the Christ the King Institute, founded by Metzger in 1919 and was performed by the Una Sancta Choir, an ecumenical Choir drawn from local Churches and community groups. Soloists were Udo Scheuerpflug and Helene Lindqvist.
AMERICAN PREMIERE ST MATTHEW'S LUTHERAN CHURCH CHARLESTON FEB 2020
The Song Cycle was subsequently given its American Premiere by the Taylor Festival Choir conducted by Rob Taylor with soloist Bates O'Neal at the Lutheran Church of St Matthew's in Charleston on February 2nd 2020. Following the concert 133 bells were rung from the steeple to celebrate the 133th birthday of Metzger in Shopfheim on April 3 1887.
Fr Joe Tedesco, Superior Mepkin Trappist Monastery who gave thanks for the American performance of Gefangnisgedichte.
the making of the oratorio 'metzger'
Subsequent to the German and American Premieres of Gefangnisgedichte, new texts were sent from Meitingen by Christ the King Institute Archivist, Sister Gertraud Roßmann. One of the first was a beautiful poem celebrating the New Year of 1944. The text was written on a letter from Brandenburg- Görden Prison near Berlin where Fr Max was awaiting his execution. This was one of the first text a whole new Song Cycle called 'Hymns and Songs' which became part one of the Oratorio 'Metzger'.
The text of the Poem 'Neu Jahr', written on New years Eve 1944 and sent on January 13th 1944 to the Christ the King Institute in Meitingen.
(Notice the text of Neu Jahr inked in on the second line of the Letter, beginning with 'So heb' ich's an in Gottes Namen'... )
After the Catholic priest and martyr Dr. Max Josef Metzger was sentenced to death in Berlin on October 14, 1943, and was taken to Brandenburg-Görden prison to await execution. He wrote in a letter on January 13, 1944: "I study, read and write, I write poetry and compose, even if I can't put everything on paper." On New Year's Eve 1943 he wrote a poem to encourage his Christkoenig congregation in Meitingen. He called the poem "New Year". Three months later, on April 17, 1944, Dr Max Josef was executed. 'Nuejahr' was the first part of several 'Hymns and Songs' of Metzger which became Part one of the oratorio. Cormac O'Duffy received a copy of this poem and in December 2020 and set it to music. On New Year's Eve 2020, exactly 77 years after Brother Paulus (as he was known to his congregation) first wrote his lines, tenor Udo Scheuerpflug gave a special premiere of the song to the sisters of Dr. Max Josef Metzger's congregation in Meitingen. Local filmmaker Josef Gogl filmed this special event. This composition marked the beginning of what was later to be known as the 'Metzger' Oratorio.
first performance of neu jahr new years eve 2021
further texts of metzger from sister gertraud, Christ the king institute
tHREE TEXTS OF HYMNS AND SONGS FROM THE FIRST PART OF METZGER ORATORIO
New texts were sent to America by Sister Gertraud Roßmann, the Archivist from the Christ the King Institute, founded by Fr Max in 1919. They mostly represented the earlier part of Fr Max's life and his enjoyment of the seasons, birdsong, dancing and singing, friendship, love of country as well as his deep faith. These then became Part one of the METZGER oratorio, with the Prison Poems becoming the second part. In setting these poems, Cormac sought to keep to the style of Metzger, and in two occasions used the original melodies written by Metzger for the composition.
oratorio structure: Parts one and two
'The oratorio is thus divided into two parts: 'Hymns and Songs' followed by the 'Prison Poems'. The Hymns and Songs begin and end with words ' Ich habe mein Leben Gott angeboten, für den Frieden der Welt und für die Einheit der Kirche.' In English this translates I have given my life to God for peace in the world and for the Unity of Churches. These are the same words that are written on Metzger's grave in Meitingen. Coupled with these are two other sayings of Metzger: Keine Verkündigung wirkt so überzeugend wie das Leben und Lieben überzeugter Christen', which is heard at the opening. In English this translates as ' No preaching is more convincing than the lives and loves of convinced Christians' At the end of Part one, with the repeat of the words from the gravestone are the words,' 'Als ich am Abend in meine Zelle kam, habe ich mich hingekniet und habe Gott gedankt, daß er mich so in die Jüngerschaft Christi hineingezogen hat, und ihn gebeten, mir das starke Herz bis zuletzt zu bewahren. In English this reads: 'when I came to my cell in the evening I knelt down and thanked God for drawing me thus into the discipleship of Christ and asked him to help me keep my strong heart to the end.
part 2 the prison poems.
The second part of the Oratorio was in fact written first and consists of the Prison poems written by Metzger during three times of imprisonment. Between Parts 1 and 2 there are altogether 27 texts of Metzger.
2024: THE 80TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE MARTYRDOM OF FR MAX JOSEF mETZGER
April 17th 2024 represents the 80th anniversary of the martyrdom of Fr Max Josef Metzger. To celebrate this occasion plans to have a special performance in Brandenburg where Fr Max was executed followed later by a special performance in the States. This will be the first time the complete Oratorio will be heard in both countries.
'METZGER' PENTECOST CELEBRATION MEPKIN ABBEY SOUTH CAROLINA JUNE 5 2022
Robert Taylor, Cormac and Fiona O'Duffy, Fr Joe Tedesco, OCSO Superior Mepkin Trappist Monastery, Ellen Dressler Morryl, Producer, Bishop Jacques Fabre, CS and Bishop Robert Guglielmone, Bishops of Charleston, Rev. Tory Liferidge, Grace Reformed Episcopal Church
Photo credits: Doug Deas, The Catholic Miscellany, Diocese of Charleston, USA