Fr. Eduardo Aguirre, postulator for Fr. Joseph Kentenich’s cause of canonization, gave an update on March 15 regarding the independent investigations being carried out by academics concerning the founder of the Schoenstatt Movement. He also spoke about other research, studies, and publications related to this topic that are underway in different parts of the world. The presentation took place as part of the celebration of the eighth anniversary of the “Groups of Silence and Prayer” (1), which are dedicated to deepening understanding of Fr. Kentenich’s charism and praying for his canonization.
The complete list of Study Editions published in all three languages is presented at the bottom of the article.
Below is a transcription of that presentation. (2)
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The Independent Researchers Are Academics Who Previously Knew Very Little About Schoenstatt
An independent investigation regarding Fr. Kentenich is underway, particularly focused on the Visitations (both the canonical, by the Diocese of Trier, and the apostolic visitation, by the Holy Office) and the period of his exile in Milwaukee. It is being led by a professor from a German university and another academic. This small team has already been working for two years. They are studying documents we have sent them from all our Schoenstatt archives. We’ve provided every document they requested, and they are conducting very thorough and serious research.
Studies Necessary to Continue the Canonization Process
It’s important to note that these academics were not familiar with Schoenstatt beforehand—they only knew it superficially. But through this research, they’ve had to delve deeply into the history of the Movement, its spirituality, pedagogy, and the life of Fr. Kentenich—especially everything concerning his confrontation with the Church, beginning with May 31, 1949 through the time of exile, etc. This investigation will be crucial in addressing the accusations and defamation made by (Alexandra) von Teuffenbach and in resuming the beatification process in the Diocese of Trier so that the diocesan phase can be concluded.
We Have Not Received a Report on Their Progress
They have a great deal to study, including, of course, the second milestone, January 20, 1942, as well as the other milestones. The lead professor outlined a three-year research project, and we are now roughly halfway through. Since they started slowly, I estimate we still have about two more years to go before seeing results. As this is an independent investigation, we are not informed of its progress or the steps being taken. Our role is to provide them with any documents or archives they request. We have a good relationship in that regard, good communication, but we receive no updates on what they’re doing.
However, we know they are interested in the topic. The person leading the research is a Church history professor, a married lay theologian who specializes in the history of the German Church before, during, and after the Second Vatican Council. That’s why he is especially interested in studying Schoenstatt—because it was the fastest-growing and most vibrant movement in Germany before the Council. It expanded rapidly across Germany and, from as early as 1935, began international expansion to other parts of Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Australia. This motivates him to study it in depth. I can’t say more about the researchers’ progress because we don’t have any information.
Other Research Publications: The Epistola perlonga, Study Edition No. 5
Regarding other research, Sister María Julia (Agüero) already mentioned the documents we are publishing. We call them “study editions.” Seven volumes have already been published in German, and five in Spanish. We hope that Editorial Nueva Patris, in Chile, will soon publish the Epistola perlonga (“very long letter” in Latin), the famous Letter of May 31st. It was published in two volumes in German and has already been translated into Spanish. We hope that by April, or at least before May 31, we can release this “study edition 5,” prepared by two German professors, both theologians and philosophers, who conducted in-depth research.
These professors worked for about three years to produce this critical and scientific edition, with an excellent introduction and a rich array of footnotes. This will be the first time the Epistola perlonga is accessible to the general public. Until now, it was mostly available only to Schoenstatt leaders. It’s a complex text to read, and existing Spanish translations were not widely distributed. So, this is an important opportunity to spread our charism and mission.
I hope you can access this Epistola soon, such a significant and important book for our father and founder, where he synthesizes or elaborates on the essential themes of our charism. It’s an effort to make the Church aware of it and to be able to appreciate it. We know that the consequences of the Epistola perlonga were not what our father hoped for. He hoped for a deeper discussion on Schoenstatt’s charism, but instead received disciplinary measures that led to his exile. All of this is also explained in the introduction to this edition.
Our father and founder accepted all the consequences brought about by this “letter in response” with great faith in the guidance of Divine Providence, and for that reason, he never lost his trust and hope.
The first two study editions have already been published in Portuguese in Brazil, and we hope they will soon be available in Portugal as well. We have mainly encountered difficulties with shipping, but in recent days, the two Portuguese-language study editions should be arriving in Portugal too. In Brazil, they are already being distributed.
All these publications are an effort to make known these important documents from our Schoenstatt history, especially from the period of confrontation with the Holy Office, and which include many documents that were previously unknown. They help us gain a much deeper understanding of everything that took place, beginning from Dachau and the third milestone (May 31, 1949). It is also an effort to encourage others to continue studying and, based on these documents, to develop new works on these topics.
In that sense, I also want to share that we have been working with the small team I have. One member is a professor, also of pastoral theology. In fact, just as we were starting our work, he retired, which has allowed him to dedicate himself extensively to this task. Another is a man who is responsible for communications in Schoenstatt (Germany) and is also partly behind the Schoenstatt (Germany) website. He has been essential in the layout and design of these editions. Both have also been very important in writing the introductions and proofreading these editions.
Increasingly Strict Prohibitions and Decrees
For nearly three years now, we have been working on the preparation and editing of everything related to the decrees and prohibitions issued by the Holy Office, the Bishop of Trier, and also by the Pallottine superiors—directed at the Sisters, the Movement in general, the Schoenstatt Fathers, etc. These include all the decrees, prohibitions, and norms that gradually emerged and became increasingly strict over the years. It’s a long list of decrees and prohibitions, but they all have a background, a story.
So, along with presenting these decrees, we will also see in these editions how they developed—how the prohibitions were formed, how they became increasingly severe, how this affected our father and Schoenstatt, and how he responded. That is, we are going to witness a very intense story (he smiles),–and I believe it will read almost like a novel,–in order to follow these developments. We plan to publish a large number of letters from various individuals who were involved in all of this, and we will explore the consequences these documents had.
Intricate History and Intrigue
Let me give you a couple of examples to help you understand the prohibitions that landed on our father and founder or on the sisters. For instance, there were interventions by Auxiliary Bishop Bernhard Stein, who was the bishop of the first visitation, the canonical one, and who later followed the developments of this history very closely. He would write to his bishop, Matthias Wehr, the bishop of Trier, and to the visitator, Father (Sebastian) Tromp, of the Holy Office, offering advice on what measures should be taken and why. There was an exchange of letters. And suddenly, a new decree would appear, sometimes with almost exact phrases from what this bishop had proposed.
Other examples I’ll share with you are about how orders from the Holy Office would reach the sisters through Palottine fathers, who were the ones opposed to Father. This is why I say there is also a lot of history, even intrigue, to follow. We will see how Fr. Kentenich tried to respond (to the accusations) and, on the other hand, how he encouraged the Schoenstatt Family, strengthening their faith and trust in God’s Providence.
As you know, the first decrees of 1951 initially removed Fr. Kentenich from his position as General Director of the Sisters, forbade any contact with them, and ordered him to leave Schoenstatt. He was also dismissed as the leader of the Movement. At the end of 1951, he received the Provisional decree, which demanded he go into exile in the United States. Up until that point, the prohibition was related to his relationship with the sisters and his contact with Schoenstatt, but he could still interact with his community. This is why, at the beginning, he maintained an intense relationship with the Pallottine fathers who worked with the Schoenstatt Movement.
1952: Stay in Latin America and More Decrees
Since he had to leave Europe but did not yet have a visa for the U.S., and the Visitator, Father Tromp, wanted him to leave Rome as soon as possible, Father Kentenich was authorized to travel to South America and continue processing his visa there. Thus, he spent a few months in Latin America in 1952. While in Brazil, he offered a retreat –tertianship– for Brazilian priests and others attending the retreat. This was an extended course of talks by Father. He also visited Argentina and dedicated the Shrine in Florencio Varela, and later went to Chile. From there, in June 1952, he was able to depart for the place of his exile after securing his residency visa.
Up until then, Father Kentenich had no prohibition regarding the Palottine fathers. However, as they saw he continued to influence them through his contact with Father (Alex) Menningen, who was his right-hand man, etc., new decrees were issued forbidding him from having any contact with his confreres in his community and, later, with any Schoenstatt leaders.
Edition No. 4 with Four Volumes on the Third Visitation, Father’s Rehabilitation, etc.
They tried to diminish Father Kentenich’s influence more and more. The developments in this regard are presented in the study number 4. The Epistola perlonga (no. 5) was published earlier, but we were already working on study no. 4. The first volume of this edition in German is expected to be published before May 31.
We hope to publish more volumes by October. We estimate that this study no. 4 will consist of four volumes, as there is a lot of information, including on the third visitation, which would be crucial in separating Schoenstatt from the Pallottines, and also about Father Kentenich’s return and rehabilitation, which is related to the fourth milestone in Schoenstatt’s history.
There will be a lot of information, and as I mentioned, many documents that have not been released to the public before, as they were kept in the archives. Now we’ve been able to study these documents, organize them, classify them, and present them with introductions, clarifications, and notes.
The Accusations of von Teuffenbach Gave a Great Impulse to the Cause of Father Kentenich
So, well, all the challenges we’ve had regarding Father Kentenich’s cause, with all the accusations made starting in 2020 in the book by (Alexandra) von Teuffenbach, have given a great boost to the cause of canonization. It’s true that the cause was suspended, it was put on hold in Trier (the diocese where Schoenstatt is located), but it has brought us a very great impetus concerning Father Kentenich.
The “Groups of Silence and Prayer” are also, to a large extent, a fruit of this, of everything we are experiencing, of all we have studied; also of this international commission, and of my own research team. The sisters also formed a team that is investigating their own archives, and it has also yielded many fruits. The Schoenstatt Family has united much more around the figure of Father Kentenich. Precisely the campaign We Are All Schoenstatt, which has been promoted by the General Presidium, is largely due to everything we’ve experienced in the last few years regarding Father Kentenich.
Several Investigations to Deepen Father Kentenich’s Charism
The General Presidium created an international group which led to the research done by these two German professors concerning the Epistola perlonga (study no. 5). There is also a team, mostly in Argentina and led by two sisters, who have been working and developing a critical edition of the Apologia pro vita mea (which Father Kentenich wrote in his defense in 1960). At the moment, we are reviewing it and we hope it will be published soon. There are no dates yet, but we hope, as Sister María Julia (Agüero) said, before October. This edition will be in Spanish.
Those are all the updates on what is happening, on what is also planned going forward with these investigations. Once we publish Study edition 4 -in its four volumes-, we already have other documents in mind that need to be prepared. As I said, all of this is to lay a very solid foundation for future studies and elaborations concerning the charism of our father, to better know and grasp it.
Philipp Spörry: Von Teuffenbach’s Book Has No Scientific Basis
And perhaps one last piece of information that has been shared through the Groups of Prayer and Silence is that a Swiss jurist (Philipp Spörry), who was a chancellor in a Swiss canton, read the book by (Alexandra) von Teuffenbach with her criticisms. He had heard about Schoenstatt, had people he knew who participated in Schoenstatt, so he became interested. As a jurist, he found that this book really had no scientific foundation, that it wasn’t a very serious book. It was more of a book of accusations, almost like yellow journalism. Therefore he became interested in the subject, began researching more, and wrote an article related to the Church in Switzerland. He published an article on the official website of the Church in Switzerland (3), which discusses how the Swiss Church has handled the issue of abuse, both of authority and sexual abuse. This article has also had an impact on the Swiss Church.
This jurist also criticizes the enormous influence the media have, quickly condemning anyone who is accused, without any proof of the truth of the allegations being presented, and without these allegations being subjected to a trial and having a sentence passed. He expresses that this would be a kind of media lynching, which, even if it is later proven that the accused is innocent, already destroyed the person who cannot recover his or her reputation of honesty.
Spörry Analyzes the iIssue from a Legal Standpoint: There is no case for justice here
Well, (the author) then uses as an example the influence and manipulation of the media, what has happened with the book by (Alexandra) von Teuffenbach and Father Kentenich. And he asks how is it possible that a man who has been the founder of an international movement, who has had so much influence, who is so well-recognized in many parts, and whose movement is also valued in the Church, how is it possible that some accusations, which have no foundation, have created all this turmoil, leading the bishop of Trier to put Father Kentenich’s cause on hold.
This article is especially interesting because it comes from outside (the Movement), criticizing the book (by von Teuffenbach) and expressing from a legal or juridical point of view: there is no case here, there is no case of abuse, that is, there is nothing that could truly go to court to be judged as a crime.
The Holy Office: There is no crime. The measure is disciplinary to restore order.
This is the same thing the Church said at the beginning when it sent Father Kentenich into exile. The Holy Office explained to Father Kentenich: there is no crime here. That’s why there has been no trial, and there is no sentence. The measures we’ve taken are disciplinary, to restore order here in Schoenstatt. In the meantime, we need you to be far away. And that separation lasted 14 years. But they also told him: there is no crime. If there had really been any form of sexual abuse, or what would have been recognized as such at that time, Father Kentenich would have been judged. But there was no formal trial.
These are the latest updates I can share with you about what’s coming up. We also hope that, further down the road, some other articles will appear, especially from people who are not Schoenstatt members, objective people from “outside,” but who have delved into the issue and are providing an objective and appropriate opinion.
This transcription of the presentation was reviewed by Father Eduardo Aguirre.
- Go to Silence and Prayer Groups.
- Go to video of Father Eduardo Aguirre’s presentation in Spanish.
We recommend watching this video, which features Fr. Alexandre Awi Mello speaking about the ‘We Are All Schoenstatt’ campaign, and Sr. María Julia Agüero discussing the fourth milestone of the Movement’s history. - Go to the summary and review of Philipp Spörry’s article about the book by Alexandra von Teuffenbach in relation to Father Kentenich.
Transcription of the video by Millie Mota, New York
Translation: Abby Dedisnky, U.S.
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Existing and upcoming Study editions:
ESPAÑOL
Editor de la Edición de estudio: Eduardo Aguirre
Documentos Historia Movimiento Schoenstatt.
Editorial Nueva Patris, Chile
PUBLICADO
Edición de estudio 1: Informes de las Visitaciones Episcopal y Apostólica 1949 – 1953
Editorial Nueva Patris, Chile, 2022, Formato 14,8 x 21 cms., 316 pág., ISBN 978-956-246-957-9
Edición de estudio 2: Correspondencia epistolar y alocuciones en torno de la Visitación Episcopal 1949
Correspondencia entre el P. Kentenich y el obispo auxiliar de Tréveris, Bernhard Stein
Editorial Nueva Patris, Chile, 2023, Formato 14,8 x 21 cms., 222 pág., ISBN 978-956-246-981-4
Edición de estudio 3, tomo 1: Confrontación con el Santo Oficio
Correspondencia epistolar entre el P. Kentenich y el Rector General Turowski SAC
Editorial Nueva Patris, Chile, 2022, Formato 14,8 x 21 cms., 320 pág., ISBN 978-956-246-968-5
Edición de estudio 3, tomo 2: Confrontación con el Santo Oficio
Correspondencia epistolar entre el P. Kentenich y el Rector General Turowski SAC
Editorial Nueva Patris, Chile, 2022, Formato 14,8 x 21 cms., 320 pág., ISBN 978-956-246-975-3
Edición de estudio 3, tomo 3: Confrontación con el Santo Oficio
Correspondencia epistolar entre el P. Kentenich y el Rector General Turowski SAC
Con un índice detallado de fuentes, personas, lugares y temas para los tres volúmenes
Editorial Nueva Patris, Chile, 2024, Formato 15 x 21 cms., 532 pág., INSB 978-956-246-995-1
EN EDICIÓN
Edición de estudio 4
Decretos y controversias en torno a la Obra de Schoenstatt. Documentos y contextos de los años de la Visitación Apostólica y del tiempo de exilio – 1951 a 1966
Se publicarán 4 tomos.
Edición de estudio 5, tomo 1: Epistola perlonga
Carta de respuesta del Padre Kentenich al informe de la Visitación Episcopal de 1949. Edición histórico-crítica
Lanzamiento: Editorial Nueva Patris, Chile, 31 de mayo 2025
Edición de estudio 5, tomo 2: Epistola perlonga
Carta de respuesta del Padre Kentenich al informe de la Visitación Episcopal de 1949. Edición histórico-crítica
Lanzamiento: Editorial Nueva Patris, Chile, agosto 2025
Edición de estudio 6:
Apologia pro vita mea. Escrito de defensa del Padre Kentenich contra calumnias y rumores – 1960
Se publicará previsiblemente en 2025 en español, y posteriormente en alemán
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PORTUGUÊS
Edição de Estudo 1: Relatórios das Visitações Episcopal e Apostólica 1949 – 1953
Edição de Estudo 2: Correspondência epistolar e discursos sobre a Visitação Episcopal de 1949
Correspondência entre o Padre Kentenich e o Bispo Auxiliar de Tréveris, Dr. Bernhard Stein
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DEUTSCH
hg. von Eduardo Aguirre
Studienausgabe 1:
Berichte der Bischöflichen und Apostolischen Visitationen 1949 bis 1953
• Patris Verlag, Vallendar 2021, Format A5, Softcover, 333 Seiten, ISBN 978-3-946982-20-3
Studienausgabe 2:
Korrespondenz und Ansprachen zur Bischöflichen Visitation 1949
• Patris Verlag, Vallendar 2022, Format A5, Softcover, 220 Seiten, ISBN 978-3-946982-26-5
Studienausgabe 3:
Auseinandersetzung mit dem Heiligen Offizium – Der Briefverkehr zwischen Pater Kentenich und Generalrektor Turowski SAC
Teilband 3.1:
• Patris Verlag, Vallendar 2022, Format A5, Softcover, 320 Seiten, ISBN 978-3-946982-23-4,
Teilband 3.2:
• Patris Verlag, Vallendar 2022, Format A5, Softcover, 280 Seiten, ISBN 978-3-946982-24-1
Teilband 3.3:
• Patris Verlag, Vallendar 2023, Format A5, Softcover, 532 Seiten, ISBN 978-3-946982-25-8
Studienausgabe 4:
Dekrete und Kontroversen um das Schönstatt-Werk. Dokumente und Hintergründe aus den Jahren der Apostolischen Visitation und der Exilszeit – 1951 bis 1966
Teilband 4.1 – Januar 1951 bis Januar 1954:
• Patris Verlag, Vallendar 2025, Format A5, Softcover, 584 Seiten, ISBN 978-3-946982-23-4
Die Teilbände 4.2 bis 4.4 erscheint ab 2025 im Patris Verlag
Studienausgabe 5:
Epistola perlonga – Pater Kentenichs Antwortschreiben auf den Bericht der Bischöflichen Visitation 1949. Historisch-kritische Ausgabe
Teilband 5.1:
• Patris Verlag, Vallendar 2024, Format A5, Softcover, 388 Seiten, ISBN 978-3-946982-30-2
Teilband 5.2:
• Patris Verlag, Vallendar 2024, Format A5, Softcover, 388 Seiten, ISBN 978-3-946982-31-9
Studienausgabe 6:
Apologia pro vita mea. Pater Kentenichs Verteidigungsschrift gegen Verleumdungen und Gerüchte 1960
• erscheint voraussichtlich 2025 in Spanisch, anschließend in deutscher Sprache
Weitere Studienausgaben sind in Planung.