DENIS, M. The History of the Luxemburg-Walloon Province Dehoniana 1978/1, 130-149

Per la citazione: DEH1978-12-EN

The History of the Luxemburg-Walloon Province

Marcel Denis, scj

1. THE PROVINCE 1 On the 13th April 1929 the General Council decided to apply to the Sacred Congregation for religious to have the Franco-Belgian province divided into two parts. The rescript was granted on the 25th May 1929 and the General Council fixed the 1st of October 1930 as the day when requested division would come into force. In the meantime all the members of the Franco-Belgian province were notified to opt for one or other of the two future provinces, before the 1st August 1930. 2 The headquarters of the Belgio-Luxemburg provincialate was in Brussels, as was the Procure for the mission to the Congo and the community who were responsible for the important public church of Rue E. Cattoir. The first provincial superior was Fr. Victor Pauly (1889-1953), who had already been provincial counsellor from 1923 to 1930. His term as provincial lasted from 1930 to 1937 and in the meantime he carried out the functions of Procurator for the Congo missions, which he held until the year 1953, when he died. 3 The first provincial counsellors were Frs. Gengler, Delgoffe, Veerkamp and Peffer. Fr. Max De Wulf was elected provincial bursar. At the beginning the new province was composed of the houses of Brussels, the novitiate of Brugelette-Fresignies, the scholasticate of Louvain, the house of administration at Quévy, the three apostolic schools of Clairefontaine, Tervuren and Lanaken. 4 In 1947, during the General Chapter, held from the 16th to the 19th of July, a further division of the Province was proposed, in such a way that Luxemburg would become autonomous. The proposal was defeated. 5 In 1953, in the much different context of the North-South division, the proposal was taken up again at the Chapter held at Howald from the 1st to the

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4th of June 1953. The thirteenth General Chapter, which started on the 7th of January 1954 in Rome, examined the proposal to divide the province. A committee comprised of members from the General Council and delegates from the province was elected and having carried out an on the spot investigation, they decided that the General Council should apply to the Holy See for the erection of two vice-provinces. As a result on the 1st December 1954 the Luxemburg-Walloon province came into existence. It was composed of the houses of Burnot, Charleroi, Clairefontaine, Howald, Luxemburg and Quévy, with a total of 129 religious. Louvain was declared provisionally utriusque provinciae, while Brussels depended directly on the General Curia. 6 The direction of the new vice-province was entrusted to Fr. Thomas Kaschten, assisted by Frs. Wirtz and Gindt. 7 In August 1955 the novices were transferred from Loppem to Cinqfontaines. 8 In 1960 the vice-province which had a total of 124 religious, became a province and the provincial superior became Fr. Jean Pierre Gindt, assisted by Frs. Kaschten, Trossen Wirtz and Adam. Fr. May was elected provincial bursar. 9 On the 1st of July 1964 the province of Zaire was erected. Many of the missionaries from the Luxemburg-Walloon province transferred to the new province. Some months later some of these missionaries were massacred by the Simba. 10 On the 1st May 1965 the scholasticate of Louvain was attributed to the Flemmish province.

2. THE HOUSES OF THE PROVINCE 11 Clairefontaine: The history of Clairefontaine was written by Fr. N. Kayser to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the foundation of the house1. In this well documented work, one can find the history of the valley from the Gallic-Roman epoch up to the present day. 12 Fr. Rasset (1843-1905) wrote to his sister, a missionary sister, on the 23rd May 1889: “Our Father Superior is leaving for Luxemburg, where they have invited him to set up a house. Fr. Dehon notes in his Diary some days earlier: Visit of the Rev. Professor Hengesch of Luxemburg. Project of a foundation at our Lady of Clairefontaine, to recruit missionaries. We are praying. This project presents itself under favourable auspices” (NQ IV, 84v: 12-15 May 1889).

1 N. KAYSER, “Clairefontaine”. Ed. Heimat und Mission, Clairefontaine.

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13 There existed at Clairefontaine during the 18th and 19th centuries an artisan foundry. It belonged to the Simonet family and in the year 1860 there were still 80 workers employed there. But as a result of the advent of bigger industries, the foundry closed after the death of the last owner, Francis Simonet. In 1882, some priests from Luxemburg, professors at the major seminary, Frs. Berthel and Hengesch, bought a part of the Simonet property in order to set up a convent for the newly founded Congregation of Dominican Sisters, founded by Mother Clare Moes. The Dominicans did not stay there very long. In 1886 the anticlerical protest spread also to the province of Luxemburg and to the Arlon region, from where bullies came to molest the sisters. As a result the sisters felt too isolated and decided to return to the city of Luxemburg where they set up house at Limpertsberg. 14 Faced with the task of occupying the deserted convent of Clairefontaine Professor Hengesch thought of setting up a centre of spiritual assistance to the emigrants who were leaving for South America, many of them from Anversa. At Clairefontaine priests would be trained, and some would come from Italy, at the decision of Mons. Scalabrin, bishop of Piacenza. A young priest, who came from Italy, Rev. Henri Degrenne, initiated in 1888 at the abbey of Clairefontaine, the apostolate for the evangelisation of European emigrants. He succeeded in recruiting some candidates for the priesthood and he hoped to found a missionary congregation, which would be called the Congregation of Saint Peter Claver. At the end of the academic year the founder was taken ill and he did not see through his aim of founding a congregation which would have had contact with the priests of different dioceses. The candidates dispersed. 15 The Rev. Hengesch who, at the beginning of 1889, had spoken to one of our members on his way to Luxemburg, about Fr. Dehon (known as a stenographer at Vatican Council 1) thought of our Founder as someone who would continue the work at Clairefontaine. 16 This was the occasion of the journey of Fr. Dehon to Luxemburg. He wished to take note of the possibilities. He notes in his diary: “21-23 May. Journey to Luxemburg. Providence has granted us a great favour. We are going to Clairefontaine. Hopefully we will have a seminary there for missionaries for the territories of South America and Scandinavia. This journey to a Christian country is like a dream for a poor native of St. Quentin. What devotion these people have as I see them crowding to the pilgrimage of Our Lady of Consolation. The bishops of Luxemburg and Namur give me a very cordial reception” (NQ IV, 84v - 85r). 17 There was at that time a great zeal for the missions among the people of Luxemburg, especially for the territories of Norway and South America. Some seminarians from Ecuador were training in the Seminary at Luxemburg, intending to devote themselves to the apostolate in the republic

3 Dehoniana of legendary Garcia Moreno. Frs. Gabriel Grison and Irénée Blanc had left for Ecuador on the 10th of November 1888. There was then, a happy coincidence between this missionary project, the first of the Congregation, and the offer of the Rev. Hengesch. 18 Fr. Dehon speaks of his journey to Luxemburg in a letter to Mother Mary of the Sacred Heart, dated the 24th May 1889: “I had a very good trip to Luxemburg. All the arrangements have been made. We will start on the 13th of June (Saint Anthony of Padua). Send me two sisters to help us to set up house, two who can speak German. I am writing to Mons. Thibaudier to get permission. The house is called Clairefontaine. It is beside the station of Eischen, in Luxemburg. All of this seems providential to me. It is a very sacred place being an old monastery founded by Saint Bernard. People make pilgrimages there and there is also a miraculous fountain. All is ready. The sisters will find on their arrival that there are two cows, a poultry-pen, etc. A Dominican sister will remain with them for some weeks in order to help them. The House is dedicated to Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (Mater Misericordiae). The building is very beautiful. It will be a house for seminarians for service in Scandinavia and South America. The foundress of the Dominicans, with whom I have dealt, is a soul who has extraordinary graces”. 19 Fr. Dehon wrote to the “chere Mere”, the foundress of the handmaids, who at that time was in Dauendorf in Alsace. At the end of the letter he makes the following reflection: “Doesn’t it seem to you that the terrible dates of the 28th November and the 4th of December 1883 (the suppression of the Oblates by Rome) the date of Calvary, has changed for us to being a date of gratitude… I am happy now to accept the famous decree” (AD, B 18/3). 20 In his Diary, Fr. Dehon notes on the 12-13 June: “Foundation of the house of Clairefontaine. It is truly Our Lord who has brought us here. I intend and I hope to train seminarians who will truly love and serve Him with ardour and simplicity” (NQ IV, 85v). He also refers to a journey made to Anversa, to Malines and to Clairefontaine between the 31st of July and the 2nd of August 1889. Fr. Dehon had hoped to found at Anversa a house for emigrants which would have carried on the work of and be an extension of Clairefontaine. He notes that Mons. Cartuyvels (the archbishop of Malines) is interested in the work of Clairefontaine. 21 Fr. Dehon was very anxious to send word to the missionaries in Ecuador, very soon tried by many difficulties, of the happy news of the foundation of a house of recruitment for missionaries for South America. “I am writing to you about our beautiful monastery of Clairefontaine, beside Arlon. There we have a good apostolic school. Fr. James (Herr) is the superior. With him are Brother Wenceslaus (Francis Otto), Brother Gertrude (Joseph Zilles), Brother Englebert (Gustav Raab). Five of our sisters are there to look after

4 Dehoniana the students and the property” (Letter to Fr. Grison of the 8th of July 1889, AD, B. 24/8). 22 To a seminarian (the Rev. Desmis) who sought advice for a confrere, the Rev. Wecksteen, a professor in the College of Roubaix, and who wanted to go to South America, Fr. Dehon wrote: “At Clairefontaine we prepare priests for South America, they are however religious priests of our Congregation” (letter of the 12th of July 1889, AD, B. 18/3). 23 Some of the first students of Clairefontaine were: the valiant missionary in Brazil, Jempy Graaf of Perle, also Fr. Peter Keyser from Schengen (Luxemburg) who died in the Congo after only two years of his apostolate in 1902. Also to be remembered is Fr. John Haubrich, superior of Cinqfontaines from 1912 to 1927, with an interruption in 1920. Also belonging to this first group was Mons. Philippe. All of these students did the spiritual exercises, at the beginning of September under the direction of Fr. Depre sj, from Arlon. 24 Thus the work at Clairefontaine began Under the guidance of Fr. James Herr, a man of great qualification on the pedagogical level, assisted by Rev. Joseph Thoss who was prefect of studies (who made his religious profession at Sittard in 1901) and who was appointed to Clairefontaine after his priestly ordination by Mons. Koppes, the bishop of Luxemburg. Mons. Philippe wrote of him: “Full of ideals, very learned, he made the students enthusiastic and was excellent from the point of view of studies and discipline” (Memoirs, Lugdunensia, n. 42, p. 16). 25 From 1891 to 1896, Clairefontaine also operated as a scholasticate and was the only scholasticate of the Congregation, because our students were at Lille, Rome or at St. Sulpice (Paris). 26 In 1898 the students left the scholasticate of Clairefontaine to go to the new one in Luxemburg (Germans) or to Louvain (to Demi-rue) for the students from other countries, which was under the guidance of Fr. Willibrordo Triebels, who was the superior of the scholasticate in Louvain from 1898 to 1902. 27 Clairefontaine also accepted brother helpers. The last religious profession at Clairefontaine was in 1903, the year when the novices left with Fr. Tillmann for the new house in Cinqfontaines. Clairefontaine became the novitiate for German speaking students from December 1928 until 1936. 28 From the beginning the school at Clairefontaine had an international character. In 1889 there were thirteen students from Luxemburg and twenty one from other countries. In the years from 1890 to 1891 the proportion of the latter to the former increased. Among the teaching staff in 1889 there were three from Luxemburg while there were nine from other countries. In fact it was only in the period after 1922 that people from Luxemburg would be in the majority (cf. Memoirs of Mons. Philippe, JV, p. 234, note J).

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29 Mons. Philippe mentions that they followed the programme of the University of Luxemburg with particular emphasis on the French language. In fact they organised “French days” on which it was obligatory for the students to speak French. 30 In 1897, there was an exchange of students and professors between Clairefontaine and Sittard with the eventual aim of designating Sittard as a centre for German students who were becoming more numerous. Clairefontaine kept its character of an international school. The Prefect of studies was Fr. Jean Batiste Rattaire from Savoy, while Fr. G. Schmitz, the first German priest to be ordained in the Congregation, left Clairefontaine for Sittard. About twenty students came from Sittard, among them some of German origin, like Lennartz, Jacobs, Demont, Storms, who preferred to continue their studies in French (N. Kayser, o.c., p. 98). 31 At the end of 1902, Fr. James Herr, who had directed the house at Clairefontaine for thirteen years, was transferred to Louvain, as Rector of the new scholasticate, established provisionally in a part of the old convent of the Annunciate (Dem i-rue). 32 His successor at Clairefontaine was Fr. G. Benedict Lequeux (1861 to 1908) who had directed the scholasticate of Luxemburg from 1895 to 1902. He was a very active man. Unfortunately he did not enjoy good health. In 1907 he had to retire and died some months later, at the house of his brother, parish priest of Fieulaine (Aisne). Fr. Lequeux, in the first few months of his rectorship, witnessed the departure of the handmaids of the heart of Jesus, who had looked after the house for thirteen years. On this occasion Fr. Dehon wrote a letter thanking the “chere Mere”, the foundress of the handmaids (AD. B 19/1). “The sisters are leaving our houses… Many sacrifices are demanded off me, one after the other, so be it!”. Thus wrote Fr. Dehon in his Diary (NQ XVII, 14, 148: July 1902). 33 The handmaids were replaced by the sisters of the Sacred Heart, who had their mother house in Britain. In 1903 the hydro-electric installations were constructed in the old mill. It was a novelty in those times. Fr. Herr was in charge of the project with the help of a professor from the major seminary, Rev. Woltrink (cf. N. Kayser, o.c., p. 99). 34 A great change came among the students of Clairefontaine, when the apostolic schools of Bergen op Zoom in Holland was opened 1900 and that of Tervuren in Belgium was subsequently opened in 1904. Clairefontaine, from being an international school confined itself to students from Luxemburg and Alsace-Lorraine. Among those who were its superiors up to the First World War we recall especially, Fr. E. Broville (1879-1940), Fr. S. Glod (1879-1912) and Fr. N. Gengler. Fr. Glod was especially unpopular among the religious because of his rather irritating attitude as a reformer.

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35 The tragic events of July-August 1914 took the inhabitants of Clairefontaine by surprise as they celebrated the twenty-fifth anniversary of the foundation of their house. Students and professors left the house and there only remained a small number priests, students and brothers. However the house began to function again in November 1915, but with great difficulty from many points of view, not least because the superior had to retire in consequence of his ill-health. He was replaced by Fr. Alphonsus Weber, who had been imprisoned in Bonn under the charge of having helped French prisoners to escape. Fr. Arsene Schmit (1880-1938) was also captured at Simmern, the village where he was bom, under the accusation of being a possibly “spy”, being as he was a Belgian professor. He was brought on a goods truck with his hands tied behind his back, as far as Treviri. The students were able to resume their studies at Louvain when the scholasticate was liberated after the personal intervention of Father Founder. 36 The post war period saw the school grow further, and starting from 1925 a steady flow of students went each year to the novitiate at Brugelette. 37 In 1927, the magazine Heimat und Mission (Fatherland and Mission) began with the collaboration of Frs. Meder, G. Keup and N. Kayser. At the death of Fr. Meder (1888-1927) things looked gloomy but however one put one’s faith in Providence. The magazine became a means of propaganda and indirectly of financial income for the house which had always been in a precarious position because of its particular situation. The school was sited in Belgium, far away from its recruitment area and from possible benefactors. It was little known in Luxemburg itself before the publication of Heimat und Mission. On more than one occasion Fr. Dehon had to intervene and pay the money owed to debtors. 38 Important additions were carried out in the years 1923-1924 and 1931- 1932. 39 In 1928 the school became exclusively a school for Luxemburg students, and as a result the French professors, especially those from Alsace-Lorraine, returned to France and the students from Lorraine were sent to the Apostolic school of Viry-Chatillon, founded after the division of the Franco-Belgian province into two parts. 40 During the Second World War the trials of the 1914-18 war were experienced again. Separation from one’s mother-land, difficulty in recruiting and in obtaining supplies were the order of the day. But the students remained in their place courageously, far from their families. The superior, Fr. N. Kayser and the bursar, Fr. F. Hertges (1897-1977) were interned in Germany under the accusation of having given hospitality to a German deserter, who lived in Luxemburg. They were imprisoned from 1943 to 1944.

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41 As was the case after the First World War, we continued to work courageously and many young people, tempered by many trials, offered themselves to the Lord in the novitiate of Brugelette, and later at Loppem and finally at Cinqfontaines. Nevertheless there had been a profound change in the world of young people. The scholastic population of our minor seminaries lived in unison with the other young people. Furthermore the traditional missionary ideal was completely transformed, following the autonomy of the young churches of Africa and Asia. 42 As in the case of the other apostolic schools, Clairefontaine, while retaining the name of apostolic school, became a college, in which vocations were not lacking but where there was a difficulty of turning them into positive commitment. Here we must note, that thanks to the efforts of Fr. Kayser and with the support of the National Federation for Free Teaching in Belgium, the courses were recognised as being valid for obtaining the diploma which made one eligible for inscription at the University. All this took place in 1929. 43 Thanks to the campaign carried out by the Belgian Catholics to obtain grants for the running costs of the free schools and professors’ salaries, the school at Clairefontaine was able to benefit from these advantages. Unfortuneately these grants are limited for foreigners who are studying in Belgium. 44 In order to accommodate the increasing number of students in the last few years, it has been necessary to make further additions.

Bumot-Profondeville 45 In 1933, a new language law made it obligatory in the future to use the language spoken in the region as the medium through which students were taught. An exception was made in the case of students who had commenced their studies of the humanities in a specific language. 46 Vocations from Walloon, few in number, had up to now gone to Tervuren. Fr. Pauly began to look for a site where he could open an apostolic school in the South of Belgium. Such a site soon became available. The Canonesses of St. Augustine, founded by St. Peter Fourrier (1565-1640), in 1597, under the title of the Congregation of Our Lady, with the help of B. Alice Le Clerc (1576-1622) and subsequently expelled from Reims, following the Combes persecution laws, wished to sell the college which they had in Belgium at Burnot-Riviere. In fact the political horizon in France had become clearer after the first world war and the old house of the Sisters of Our Lady, at Rheims, had risen from the ruins. These religious who had only sojourned in Belgium, wished to come together at Rheims and thus sought a buyer for their house in Burnot.

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47 The Canonesses had bought a castle in 1903, which belonged to the de Pierpont family (also called di Burnot), a castle in which the Belgian writer Camille Lemonier had lived (1844-1913). The sisters had built three new buildings, where there were training courses and also primary schools needed for the young who wished to take on a teaching career. Here it is necessary to add that the population of the region always remember with gratitude the Mothers of Burnot who had given to their children an education which distinguished them from all others. 48 Furthermore, a cement factory was built nearby and as a result contaminated very seriously the narrow valley of the “Burnot”, the little river which cut through the property. The serious crisis of the 1930’s contributed to a slowing down in the activity of the factory but it began full production again for twenty years in 1933. 49 Fr. Pauly, founder of the school, as provincial at that time, found, according to his own words: “the occasion enticing”, and later he regrets that it was not completely as it appeared to him. He described the house of Burnot in the following manner: “a beautiful property in a perfect state of conservation (and it was true), a spacious property in a tranquil and verdant ambience, a salubrious air...” One can read this description in the Reign of the Sacred Heart of Louvain (1933, p. 154ff.). The deeds were handed over on the 21st March 1933. It was also decided that the house would be used during the holidays by the students from Louvain. 50 In reality it was probably the particularly favourable condition which the owners offered which drew the attention of Fr. Pauly (Le Regne..., ibid). 51 Mons. Heylen, the bishop of Namur, had listened very favourably to the request that our congregation should establish itself in his diocese, where there were already 14 apostolic schools or minor seminaries, with the consequent difficulties in recruitment. 52 On the 15th March our first three religious went to Burnot, where they found some of the sisters who were vacating the house. The work of adapting the house was difficult and all had to work hard doing all types of jobs. On this occasion, Fr. G. Blavier (1902-1958), a late vocation, showed his talents as a good carpenter. He had learned the trade from his father. From his early days he had always confided in Rev. Cardijn, founder of the young Christian workers, JOC, and later cardinal, regarding his wish to become a priest and he came to Tervuren as a late vocation. 53 In September the new apostolic school of Burnot began with the three lower classes. Some of the students came from Tervuren (Walloon students) and from the recruiting that had been done in Walloon. 54 Our priests soon came to have a good relationship with the diocesan clergy. Within the house there was a great family spirit, between students and

9 Dehoniana professors. The students were not too numerous and the professors dedicated themselves to them in a spirit of love. 55 The first students entered the novitiate in 1938. The second World War came and disturbed the life of the house and many of the Belgian professors were enlisted. In May 1940 there came the enforced evacuation of the Mosa zone. Finally in September 1940, after a lively exodus, many religious of the congregation and community came together at Neussargues in Chantal (France) and regular courses began again. Thanks to the work of the superior, Fr. Balthasar (1909-1952) things went well from the point of view of the indispensable supplies until the end of the war regime (1946). 56 Here it is necessary to point out that the house at Burnot was used by a part of the students and professors from Louvain who took refuge there after the bombings of 1944. 57 During the rectorship of Fr. Thomas Kaschten, the standard of education was quite high. The need to reconstruct the house at Burnot became more evident in the following years. The old buildings of the castle were demolished to make way for a more attractive and well planned building. 58 To avail of the new school laws, which set a certain minimum of students per class in order to be eligible for state grants, it was necessary, under the rectorship of Fr. Armand Maloteaux, to construct supplementary class halls. 59 It is important to note here that the professors of the two schools of Clairefontaine and of Burnot-Profondeville remained faithful to their task, despite the changes of regime, set out by the official teaching and by the orientations which came from the “base”, that is from the scholastic world of the youth. All of the religious teachers of our schools dedicated themselves seriously to the intellectual Christian formation of their students. Even if they do not have the consolation of seeing a change or progression which is sufficient, they continue in their dedication to the youth of today, knowing that the future is in the hands of God. 60 It became necessary to employ an ever increasing number of lay professors. It is a question of life or death for our schools. In fact it is true sometimes that these young lay professors have a Christian ideal which at times would make religious jealous.

The Novitiates of Manage - Brugelette - Loppem - Cinqfontaines 61 As is known, the first novitiate of the Congregation was that of the house of the Sacred Heart at St. Quentin. It was only in 1879 that the spiritual exercises, proper to a novitiate, began at the house of the Sacred Heart. It continued until the beginning of 1883, the year in which Fr. Francis Xavier Lamour assumed the functions of master of novices at Watersleyde

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(Holland). The anniversary of the foundation of the novitiate of Watersleyde was celebrated on the 5th February (AD. B 19/4). Fr. Andrew Prevot succeeded Fr. Lamour at the beginning of October 1886 and simultaneously held the functions of master of novices and superior of the community. 62 While awaiting the division of the Institute into two provinces it was decided to create a novitiate for those from French-speaking areas. Fr. A. Prevot was then appointed as master of novices of the future western province and he started, on the 25th September 1907, with eighteen novices in the castle of Manage at Meslin l’Eveque, so called because Fenelon, the archbishop of Cambrai, stayed there during the summer. The students at Saint Clement’s (Fayet) had been transferred in the meantime to Mons to an old house of the sisters of Saint Maria (NQ XXIII, 96). 63 The “Castle” of Meslin, situated close to Ath (Belgium) was only a small country house, with a small garden and a lake. There were very few rooms, but nevertheless, the life lived by the students was that of a regular novitiate. 64 During the seventh General Chapter of 1908 held in Louvain, the division of the Institute into two provinces was decided upon, the Eastern and the Western. Fr. Dehon notes in his Diary: “This is a great step forward for the Congregation. Oh that it be possible that the Heart of Jesus will find it to his glory. There were sixteen votes in favour and fourteen against” (NQ XXIV, 48). It would seem that Fr. Dehon counted abstentions among the negative votes. In any case the majority was fairly narrow. The Chapter also decided to introduce a month of Renewal, to be held every three years. Fr. Dehon writes: “I expect great benefit from this month. It will be the salvation of the Work” (NQ XXIV, 123). 65 The General Council held at Brussels on the 6th January 1909 elected Fr. Andrew Prévot as provincial of the new western province. The counsellors were Frs. Van Halbeek, Mailer, Broville, Hermans. Fr. Prévot and Fr. Dehon were appointed to preach the homilies at the masses of renewal in the various houses. It was impossible for Fr. Prévot to continue as master of novices and he was succeeded by Fr. Paul Augustin Jacquemin (1875-1964). It was a great change as Fr. Prévot was considered as master of novices par excellence. Now all the houses of the new province were put in contact with a true saint. Father Founder preached the spiritual exercises to the novices from the 16th to the 24th of September 1909, taking as his theme, The life of Union with Our Lord (NO XXIV, 123). 66 In 1912, the novitiate of the western province was transferred to Brugelette (Belgium), not far away from Meslin - l’Evêque. For some time previously the Scouvémont family, through Fr. Falleur, had expressed the wish to house in its castle and farm at Brugelette, the religious who were expelled from France. From 1901, Fr. Dehon had been thinking of founding

11 Dehoniana at Brugelette a house for Flemish vocations (Letter to Fr. Falleur of the 21st December 1901, AB. B. 20/8). 67 In 1902, Fr. Dehon went to Brugelette, to the Castle of Frésignies, where the property of the Scouvemont family was situated, and administered after the death of the parents by one of their daughters, Amata. Fr. Dehon wished to survey personally the possibility of setting up a religious community. He wrote in his diary that he had made the visit on the 21st October 1902, that he was received with warmth by the Scouvemont family, and of having received promises of great generosity in the case of the apostolic school of Fayet being suppressed in France (cf. NQ XVIII, 26). All this happened in April of 1903 (NO XVIII, 52). The school of Saint Clement of Fayet camped at Frésignies (Brugelette) for five months with the superior Fr. Herbemont. “Camped” is the opportune word! The study hall was in the veranda of the castle and Amata made her unexpected visits to check the exercises of the students. 68 In the following years the religious of Fr. Dehon also came to Frésignies and there they added on a wing which prolonged the castle. 69 The school of Saint Clement was set up in September 1903 in a country house, not very far from Ath, in the “Castle of Manage”. However the house was very small and there was only enough room for twenty students. When a guesthouse became available in Mons, Fr. F. Heberle seized the opportunity and transferred the school of Saint Clement there. In 1919 there was further movement to Thieu (Hainaut) and then to Blaugies still in Hainaut. 70 The return to Brugelette came because Amata Scouvemont had a very happy recollection of Fr. Prévot, and offered her property to the Fathers of the Sacred Heart with the promise to vacate. On the 21st June Fr. Dehon passed through Brugelette and there he found 15 novices who were in formation, under the guidance of Fr. Jacquemin, master of novices and superior (NQ XXXIV, 104). 71 At the end of 1912 Fr. Falleur, bursar general of the congregation, started the work of St. Francis Xavier at Brugelette. “We have started a house for vocations at Brugelette, under the auspices of Saint Francis Xavier. This work will be blessed...” Thus wrote Fr. Dehon in his diary (NQ XXXIV, 177). 72 Fr. Andrew, although having replaced Fr. A. Charcosset as “assistant”, still went to live at Brugelette. In this way he was able to assist spiritually with great results the surrounding communities. Pie died on the 26th November 1913. Fr. Founder wrote in his diary: “My saintly assistant Fr. Andrew is dead. Everybody says that he was a saint. He practiced the counsels of perfection heroically every day” (NQ XXXV, 62 -63). 73 The 1914-1918 war came. The late vocations of Frésignies, as indeed the novices returned to their countries. More than a quarter of the students of

12 Dehoniana the School of Saint Francis Xavier died during the war. In 1921 the school for late vocations was transferred to France, to Domois (Côte d’Or). 74 It was only in 1925 that the novitiate of Brugelette began to function with some consistency. The schools started to send a consistent number each year to the religious life. 75 It was in this last year of his life that Fr. Dehon was occupied with the reorganisation of the spiritual life at Brugelette. On the second day of his illness he appointed Fr. Philippe to go to the Father Provincial of the Jesuits in order to get a spiritual director for the novitiate (Memoirs of Mons. Philippe, III, 159). 76 Fr. Leopold Mahiat was given the appointment and for twelve years he looked after the spiritual formation of the future missionaries of Fr. Dehon. Fr. Mahiat died at Brugelette in October 1940, having left a very important mark on the spiritual formation of the members of the Institute. 77 In 1931 the French novices left Brugelette for the new novitiate of Boutillerie-lez-Amiens. Fr. Charles Kanters (1874-1944) was elected as master of novices until 1934. He was succeeded by Fr. Emile Peffer (1895- 1941) who was nominated Counsellor General in the Chapter of 1935. His post as superior and master of novices was taken until 1945 by Fr. Peter van Hommerich. 78 Fr. Peffer had planned a series of new constructions at Brugelette, because many of the old ones were falling; but having become Counsellor General, the plan was not realised. Fr. Jacquemin constructed a new chapel in a neo-gothic style. A Grotto to Our Lady of Lourdes was also built under the direction of Brothers Louis Gardella and N. Kinsch. 79 The period of the Second World War was not too heavy for the novitiate, because there was a good farm nearby. There was the danger of frequent bombardments because of the proximity of the airfield of Chièvres. 80 The new direction of the province wished to found a house in Flanders, transferring the novitiate, more readily acceptable to the bishops than an apostolic school. A very good property of six hectares was acquired just 7 kilometres from Bruges. On the 13 December 1936 the Community of the novitiate was transferred there. Fr. A. van Nuffel was the superior and Fr. M. Denis succeeded Fr. van Hommerich in August 1945 as master of novices. 81 The house at Brugelette had been destined as a centre for abandoned children but as time went on it became dear that it was not suitable for such. The centre was transferred to Opdoip (eastern Flanders) in 1948. The property at Brugelette was sold and the chapel was demolished by the new owner. 82 The novitiate at Loppem took the name of St. John, like that of the first novitiate at Watersleyde. Life there was more pleasant than at Brugelette and the novices were often requested for supplementary work in the surrounding

13 Dehoniana countryside. There was also a park to look after as well as many other duties for the novices at Ter Loo, (the name of the area where the novitiate at Loppem was situated). 83 A little castle was home to the community; but it soon became evident that it was too small to house the postulants and novices of four apostolic schools. After various projects an extension was built on to the castle (1948- 1949). The new novitiate was blessed by the provincial Fr. A. Janssen on the 22nd. August 1949. 84 In the provincial chapter which was held in 1953 the possibility of dividing the Belgio-Luxemburg province into two vice provinces was raised. Having investigated the possibilities, Fr. Lellig (1909-1958) obtained the rescript from the Holy See which came into operation on the 1st December 1954. Frs. Kessels and Kaschten were nominated vice provincials, respectively of the Flemish Province and of the Luxemburg-Walloon Province. 85 Later a rescript of the Holy See (4th April 1955) authorised the erection of the novitiate in the house at Cinqfontaines, transferred from the German province to the vice province of Luxemburg-Walloon. In August 1955 the novices of the new vice province left Loppem for Cinqfontaines. The changeover was difficult: from the small rooms at Loppem to the dilapidated house of Cinqfontaines, although restorations had been in progress from some time. However the situation soon improved and twenty rooms were made available. The building was also used during the summer period for summer schools, in which the students from Louvain were involved. 86 As time went on the number of novices became smaller. They were sent to the houses Amiens and later to the Scholasticate at Lyons in order to have a large enough group for practical reasons. 87 The house at Cinqfontaines continued to support eventual novices and seminarists. An annual programme of spiritual exercises, retreats and weekends justified our remaining on at Cinqfontaines.

The houses at Luxemburg - Howald - Charleroi – Quévy Luxemburg

88 After the first world war the idea of continuing the German scholasticates at Limpertsberg became more difficult. The currency had been devalued and there was a lack of resources. On the other hand the German government allowed the foundation of religious houses. Having stayed in various localities! Sayn-Wittgenstein, Bendorf, Innsbruck, Dillingen) Fr. Frassle who had been in the Congo was given the task of founding a new house at Freiburg-in-Breisgau, which is an episcopal city and has a

14 Dehoniana university. The project was successful as though by a miracle writes Mons. Philippe in his Memoirs (II, 30). The old scholasticate in Luxemburg was sold to the Sisters of Saint Elizabeth. The students from Luxemburg came there in 1927 but it was only after 1932 that there was place for everyone. At this time the German province was going through a particularly difficult time from an economic point of view. 89 Some of the priests (Weiskopf, Wiese...) remained on at Limpertsberg in a small house which they had rented. On the 11th June 1923 Fr. Weiskopf (1874-1934) bought a bigger house in the Bd de L’Alzette (now the Bd d’Avranches). He was superior there until 1926 when he became a general counsellor. Fr. Arnold (1879-1933) was his successor and enlarged the building, and was responsible for the construction of the chapel there. In 1930 the house was acquired by the Belgio-Luxemburg province and eventually became the headquarters of the Provincial. In 1967 it was further enlarged with the acquisition of an adjacent house. 90 The house in Luxemburg has been very successful in its mission, above all as a centre of worship and as a centre for confessions for the faithful and clergy, a work which it still continues.

Howald 91 The enterprising Fr. G. Keup had the idea of founding another house in the suburbs of Luxemburg in 1937. For some time the priests who were available, among them Fr. Andrew Wolf, had preached frequently giving retreats and the spiritual exercises in the region, in 1938, six priests of the Sacred Heart order, among them Fr. Schunck, the German provincial, participated in the large mission in Luxemburg, from the 3rd to the 17th of April. The necessity of a house that would cater for the spiritual exercises became more evident. An area of three hectares in a place called Howald, in the borough of Hesperange, 2 kilometres from the south of the capital, was bought. 92 It was also the intention of the founders to supply priests who would look after the spiritual needs of an area that was developing rapidly. On the 24th October 1939 the house was officially opened. In 1941 the priests in Howald were expelled as were those in Luxemburg. The house passed from the hands of the nazis, who did much damage to it. to the Americans. It was the headquarters of the nazi youth, and also of the Americans, and finally a military hospital. Fr. A. Wolf went back there as Catholic chaplain. After many other vicissitudes the community began to function regularly at the end of 194-5 as a community dedicated to preaching. Fr. Daubenfdd 0913-1976) was nominated administrator and designated diocesan General assistant to the JOC in Luxemburg. The house was reorganised for closed days of

15 Dehoniana spiritual exercises and retreat days. Soon the diocese built the parish church of Howald. As a result the fathers and the house were more easily available for their specific mission. In 1972 the Provincialate was transferred from Luxemburg to Howald. 93 In the years 1965-1966 there seemed to be a falling off in the demand for the spiritual exercises among the young people. All the efforts of renewal in this field have not shown any appreciable results so far.

Charleroi 94 For quite some time there had been a desire to open a house in the province of Liege, possibly in a working-class centre. A friend of the congregation, Rev. Heyen, invited the Provincial to set up a community in his parish of Ougrée. The negotiations concluded on the 1st October 1945. Mons. Kerkhofs granted the authorization. The house that was being used by Frs. Lenz and Keup was very small. Everywhere there were still the ruins of the war. It was December 1945. The church, the presbytery, the parish hall were all-unusable. Mass was celebrated in an hovel. It was soon evident that there was very little future in the work. 95 The superiors wanted a parish in the populated centre of Charleroi. In a suburb of the city, the Dominican Fathers wished to transfer the responsibility for a parish they had to some other hands. Mons. Carton de Wiart was very happy to give the parish of Broucheterre to the Fathers of the Sacred Heart. 96 In January 1947, Fr. Balthasar (1909-1952) was nominated parish priest and Frs. Keup and Lardo were appointed curates. Fr. Nihoul later joined the community; he was destined for the preaching ministry. 97 Fr. Balthasar was substituted in October of 1947 by Fr. Lardo (1908- 1959) as parish priest, while Fr. de Neef took a particular interest in the numerous Flemish families in the region. Both of these priests were appreciated as apostles by the humble people. Both of them died very young leaving very much grief among the people they had served. 98 Fr. Lardo was noted for his dedication to improving the teaching of Christian doctrine. Fr. Keup who succeeded him as parish priest continued this tradition, despite the many difficulties and contradictions which he encountered. 99 In the meantime the parish had changed radically. All the old buildings had been demolished and been replaced by attractive new buildings, but the population of the area was basically unstable. The parish was in a position, through Fr. A. Gardella, to be of service to the Italian mission in the area.

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Quévy 100 The house at Quévy was founded in 1903, when the priests who had been working in the north of France were expelled from the house of the Sacred Heart in St. Quentin, by order of the French government. It was for this reason that Fr. Delgoffe and Fr. Kanters left for Belgium. Mons. Walravens received them into his diocese and offered them the sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes at Quévy, near the border. 101 A priest, Rev. Hachez, who for the first time, in Belgium, had constructed a modest Lourdes grotto, built a small church with a simple house for priests nearby. Our priests set themselves up there provisionally in the hope of better times to come and are still there after 75 years. 102 They provide a service to the pilgrimage, which culminates on the Monday of Pentecost. The population has for the most part turned away from Christianity, but in any case they have retained the habit of going “to serve” or in pilgrimage to this or that sanctuary, especially in the event or bad luck of illness. 103 The principal task of the fathers was preaching, at which some of them excelled. Here we recall especially Fr. Paul Delgoffe (1861-1943) who was professed in 1882. He preached many missions and spiritual exercises with great success, due largely to his convincing manner, his ascetic aspect and his penitence. During many of the missions which he preached he often slept on the bare floor or spent the night in prayer in the church. He was inclined perhaps to exaggerate but he was also humble and was able to acknowledge his faults, as he did in a letter to Fr. Dehon, begging his pardon for having believed certain lies against the Founder (AD. B. 18/6). Nobody was able to speak as eloquently about the life of love and immolation, the foundation of our vocation, as he was. 104 Fr. Paris and Fr. Lamour, the first master of novices, spent their last years in Quévy and Fr. Lamour died there in 1921. Fr. Nihoul (1889-1956) the great apostle of the working class spent many years at Quévy and was superior there from 1929 to 1935. He wished to set up a centre for spiritual exercises for workers at Quévy. With this in mind he erected a beautiful chapel and started other constructions. Unfortunately he got very little cooperation and he remained more or less isolated. 105 Unfortunately it was necessary to sell the property at Quévy. It was the first house that the Province abandoned in the present crisis. A priest, parish priest of the parish, stayed on at the church.

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APPENDIX

The Franco-Luxemburg Mission in Paris 106 It is one of the 17 national missions, founded by Mons. Chaptal, to serve the 20.000 natives of Luxemburg resident in Paris. The Mission has an interesting history. It was started by the Jesuits to serve the numerous German and Austrian workers who lived in the French Capital. Among these Jesuits was Fr. Modeste who played an important role at the foundation of our congregation. He directed the German mission until September 1865 and he made many of the arrangements for the construction of the Church which was blessed in 1866 and called the Church of St Joseph of the Germans. On the eve of the war in 1870, 15 Jesuits were involved full time at the German mission. They had schools and many other facilities. On Sunday they distributed communion to over 1,000 people. After 1870 the ministry of the Jesuits was directed more to the exiles of Alsace Lorraine. With the laws of 1880 only the superior could remain in a religious house. In 1903 the church and the house of the Jesuits were confiscated. A German secular priest, Prince Maximillian of Saxony, professor at the University of Fribourg (Switzerland) redeemed the Church and a part of the property, while some of the Jesuit Fathers, now called Reverend were able to continue the ministry. 107 In 1914, the Church and the mission of Saint Joseph were taken over but were allowed to remain open for worship. The faithful of German origin had decreased in numbers at this stage and it was necessary to have the mass in two languages. In 1924 President Herriot, restored the Church and property to their legitimate owner, the Prince Maximillian of Saxony, who in agreement with the Cardinal at the time, Cardinal Dubois, decided to make the chapel a public church for the surrounding area, while retaining the mission for foreigners, in particular those coming from Luxemburg. A building, which was constructed due to the generosity of the Count of Fels took on the name of “France-Luxemburg”. On the advice of the bishop of Luxemburg, the archbishop of Paris entrusted the running of the Church of Saint Joseph to the Fathers of the Sacred Heart. That was in 1926. The history of the Church of Saint Joseph is recounted by Fr. M. Magnin scj: (Une église de Paris. Saint Joseph artisan. Chez Vauteur, 216 rue Lafayette - Paris 1966). 108 During wretched events of the second World War, when Frs. Stoffels and Wampach were deported to Dachau, where they died, the mission received a severe blow. 109 After the war the mission became and less necessary because of the diminishing number of foreigners. In 1958 Cardinal Feltin made the Church of St. Joseph into an autonomous parish with a population of about 23,000 inhabitants.

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The Priests of the Sacred Heart at Brussels 110 The man who was responsible for this house is Fr. Jeanroy, who as bursar at Clairefontaine, came quite often to visit the benefactors in Brussels, and he had occasion to get to know an architect called Bekkers and the Viscount de Meeus, who asked him to take responsibility for a modest church dedicated to St. Anthony and situated in the zone of Ixelles. In the meantime the area became quite populated and the archbishop of Marines, Mons. Goossens, was very happy to have the Fathers of the Sacred Heart in the area, and thus approved their foundation. 111 Fr. Jeanroy was appointed as procurator of the Congo mission. The diocese had at this stage built a parish church. Fr. Jeanroy rented a house at Bd Militaire in 1900, and having obtained a site opened a small chapel which was blessed in 1902. 112 In 1903 the mother-house of the Congregation was transferred from Saint Quentin to Brussels (NQ XVIII, 44). Fr. Jeanroy dedicated himself to his task as procurator ans was at the same time the apostle of the area, impressing everyone with his sanctity. 113 Later Frs. Ramade and van Halbeek enlarged the church as far as possible. Great work had been done in 75 years. The Chapel for Eucharistic Devotion saw a decline in popularity after the liturgical reform. 114 After the death of Fr. Founder in 1925, the transfer of the General Curia from Brussels to a location beside the Temple of Christ the King in Rome was set in motion.

LUXEMBURG-WALLOON PROVINCE - SET UP IN 1960

Statistics for the last 24 years: 1954 - 1977 115 Priests Scholastics Brothers Novices Total 1954 102 18 9 5 134 1955 99 21 9 1 130 1956 97 19 9 1 126 1957 103 13 9 2 127 1958 106 10 9 1 126 1959 107 8 9 3 127 1960 107 4 12 2 125 1961 109 4 12 1 126 1962 109 5 12 8 134 1963 108 10 14 2 134 1964 76 12 11 2 101

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1965 74 12 11 2 99 1966 73 12 11 1 97 1967 75 11 10 0 96 1968 81 8 10 1 100 1969 79 8 10 0 97 1970 82 4 9 1 96 1971 81 3 8 0 92 1972 80 1 8 1 90 1973 77 2 8 0 87 1974 75 2 7 2 86 1975 74 2 6 1 83 1976 72 3 6 0 81 1977 71 2 6 1 80

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