Catholic Scouts of Europe
Katholische Pfadfinderschaft Europas | |||
---|---|---|---|
Location | Herbstein-Rixfeld | ||
Country | Germany | ||
Founded | 1976 | ||
Founder | Andreas Hönisch SJM, Günther Walter | ||
Membership | 2,500 | ||
Bundesfeldmeister | Martin Hafner | ||
Bundesmeisterin | Edeltraut Weßler | ||
Affiliation | International Union of Guides and Scouts of Europe | ||
| |||
Website http://www.kpe.de | |||
The Katholische Pfadfinderschaft Europas (KPE; roughly Catholic Guides and Scouts of Europe) is a German Catholic Scouting organization with 2,500 members.[1] It is part of the International Union of Guides and Scouts of Europe. Katholische Pfadfinderschaft Europas - Österreich (KPE-Ö) is an Austrian sister organization which works closely with its German counterpart.
The KPE is closely linked with the
Self image of the KPE
The KPE describes its activities as follows: "By our education according to the scouting method, we promote the development of the entire person of girls and boys. In this manner, they may become responsible, Christian personalities who develop their abilities and talents, who form their lives based on the power of Faith and take on responsibility for society and the Church."[2]
The constitution of the KPE lists five concrete goals of its youth work:
- Physical development
- Sensitivity for the concrete and practical life and artistic talents
- Development of character and personality
- Sensitivity for charity and service for others
- Sensitivity for God and Christian education[3]
Regarding its relationship to other youth organizations, the KPE “works for friendly and brotherly relations with other organizations, groups and movements of Christian and non-Christian Scouting movement in order to establish together a just and fraternal society in the spirit of Baden-Powell in accordance with his original pedagogical concept.”[4]
History
The KPE was founded on February 15, 1976. Its founding members had left the Deutsche Pfadfinderschaft Sankt Georg because they felt that their ideas about Scouting and spirituality had been disregarded in the reforms of the 1960s and 1970s. Andreas Hönisch, late Superior General of the SJM, and Günther Walter were both instrumental in the KPE's founding.
In 1977, the Fédération du Scoutisme Européen (FSE), predecessor of the
Some local groups left the KPE in 1986 because of its rigid structure and founded a new Scouting organization, the Europapfadfinder Sankt Michael.
The
In 1994, the
After press reports on the KPE membership of one superior of the seminary in St. Pölten during the
Later in the same year some groups and most of the leaders of the Austrian sister organization KPE-Ö (Katholische Pfadfinderschaft Europas - Österreich) left the organization and accused the German KPE and Andreas Höhnisch of interfering in its internal affairs.[7]
The Conference of German Bishops recognized the organization in December 2021. [8]
External Observers
The activity of the Catholic Scouts of Europe (KPE) is judged by external observers with mixed opinions. There are both supporters of the KPE as well as critics. Especially during the 1990s, the work of the KPE was discussed controversial.
Critics of the KPE focus mainly on two points, namely:
- proselytization
- cooperation with Catholic fundamentalist groups
Critics accuse the KPE of forcing its members to participate in religious exercises, especially in attending mass and regular confession.[9] In some cases younger Scouts and Guides had been horrified by drastic descriptions of Hell.[6]
The cooperation of the KPE with the Servants of Jesus and Mary (
In 2011, the executive governing board of the KPE issued an official statement to each of the points made by critics. The KPE expressly distanced itself from any nationalistic ideology and anti-Semitism. In questions of religion, the KPE rejects all questionable teachings which deviate from the common teachings of the Catholic Church. In addition, the KPE insistently rejects pressure and force as a pedagogical means of teaching the Catholic faith. Contacts to the Work of the Holy Angels – both organizational as well as concerning the content – are also emphatically denied.[10]
Alongside of the critics, there are also positive recommendations for the youth work of the KPE, even from official positions in the
During his pastoral experience as cathedral prelate in Mainz, Guido Becker described the activities of the KPE as “ray of light in dark times”. For him, “the fruits of Catholic youth ministry in the KPE are openly apparent.”[13]
Before his election to the papacy, Joseph Kardinal Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, “explicitly praised and recommended any kind of support for the KPE”: “The youth work in the KPE, as a whole, has to be considered positively and it gives many young people a solid foundation for their way in life.”
In 2018, the German journalist Georg Restle kept qualifying KPE’s publications as anti-Semitic, which had been legally confirmed by Supreme Court Rule in Vienna before.[6][14][15]
Literature
KPE’s works
- Andreas Hönisch: Liebe Freunde von Pfadfinder Mariens. Volume 1. SJM-Verlag, Meckenheim 2001. ISBN 3-932426-20-7
- Alfred Pokorn / Günther Walter: Pfadfinder-Handbuch, 5th extended and revised edition. SJM-Verlag, Neusäß 2010. ISBN 978-3-932426-02-5
- Barbara Roczniak / Anton Bentlage: Leitfaden für die Wölflingsstufe. SJM-Verlag, Neusäß 2013. ISBN 978-3-932426-57-5
- Günther Walter: Deine Sippe, Kornett. 2nd extended edition. SJM-Verlag, Neusäß 2002. ISBN 978-3-932426-22-3
External works
- Heiner Boberski: Das Engelwerk. Theorie und Praxis des Opus Angelorum. Otto Müller Verlag, Salzburg 1993, ISBN 3-7013-0854-3(particularly pages 229–235, in chapter Freunde und „verwandte Seelen“).
- Bundesvorstand der Deutschen Pfadfinderschaft Sankt Georg (Hrsg.): Arbeitspapier mit Dokumenten zum Phänomen der „Katholischen Pfadfinderschaft Europas“ (KPE) sowie zu neueren Entwicklungen im Spektrum katholischer Splittergruppen. Georgs-Verlag, Neuss 1994
- Hubert Kohle: Fundamentalistische Marienbewegungen. In: Wolfgang Beinert, Heinrich Petri (Hrsg.): Handbuch der Marienkunde. 2nd volume, Pustet, Regensburg 1997, ISBN 978-3-7917-1527-8, pages 60–106 (particularly 77–79)
- Thomas M. Hofer: Gottes rechte Kirche. Ueberreuter Verlag, Vienna 1998. ISBN 3-8000-3675-4(chapter Die Katholische Pfadfinderschaft Europas, pages 142–152)
Sources
- ^ Der Große Pauli. Pfadfinderbünde und –verbände in Deutschland, Band 2. Spurbuchverlag, Baunach 2012, p. 78.
- ^ "Unser Ziel". Katholische Pfadfinderschaft Europas. Archived from the original on 2013-11-12. Retrieved 2013-12-04.
- ^ Katholische Pfadfinderschaft Europas, Bundesordnung Archived 2013-11-12 at the Wayback Machine Nr. 1.2 (in German), Retrieved 2013-12-4.
- ^ Katholische Pfadfinderschaft Europas, Eigendarstellung und erzieherisches Ziel Archived 2013-11-12 at the Wayback Machine, Nr. 1.1 (in German), Retrieved 2013-12-4.
- ^ Landgericht Stuttgart, Az. 17 O 190/96
- ^ a b c "Katholischer Fundamentalismus: Pfadfinder auf Abwegen" (in German). Westdeutscher Rundfunk. Archived from the original on September 27, 2006. Retrieved 2007-01-28.
- ^ "KPE-Webmaster erhebt schwere Anschuldigungen gegen SJM und Hönisch" (in German). kath.net. Archived from the original on 2007-03-23. Retrieved 2007-01-28.
- ^ "nachgefragt was bedeutet fur euch die anerkennung der kpe durch die dbk" (in German). kpe.de. Retrieved 2022-03-30.
- ^ a b "Katholische Pfadfinderschaft Europas (KPE)" (in German). Netzwerk gegen Sekten Arbeitskreis Münsterland. Archived from the original on 2007-08-12. Retrieved 2007-01-28.
- ^ Klarstellungen zu Vorwürfen gegen die KPE in: Ad Mariam Europa Nr. 38 / Dezember 2011, 9-18.
- ^ "Der Weihbischof und Leiter des diözesanen Jugendamtes Augsburg zu Gast beim Stufentreffen der KPE". Archived from the original on 2013-11-12. Retrieved 2013-12-05.
- ^ "Ein Thema, das auf den Nägeln brennt". Retrieved 2013-12-05.
- ^ Guido Becker (2012), Weihrauch und Pulverdampf. Heitere Anekdoten und ernste Episoden aus dem Schatten der Dom- und Kirchtürme (in German), Neusäß, pp. 315–316
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: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ „Răspopiţi“ catolici din Austria păcătuiesc în România. Adevărul, 4 of May 2010
- ^ Georg Restle on Twitter, 18 of January 2018
External links
- http://www.kpe.de KPE (Germany) - Official Website
- http://www.kpe-austria.at KPE-Ö (Austria) - Official Website