Father Kentenich Accused of “Abuses” – But No Facts

The German Pallottine Father Joseph Kentenich (+1968), the founder of the Schoenstatt Apostolic Movement, was removed by the Vatican and sent to Milwaukee in 1951 – allegedly – because of “sexual abuses.”

Alexandra von Teuffenbach writes in Die-Tagespost.de (July 3) that Kentenich had sexually abused some Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary he founded and that this was the cause for Kentenich’s removal.

Teuffenbach says she found evidence in the archives of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, after Francis made documents from the time of Pius XII (+1958) accessible.

These allegations are strongly denied by the Schoenstatt movement that indicated that they had long been known, but the fact that Kentenich was reinstated in 1965 was evidence that they were not considered true.

Further, Kentenich’s process of beatification was opened in 1975 which would not have happened if such accusations were deemed true.

The Sisters of Mary were visitated between 1951-1953 by the famous Jesuit Father Sebastian Tromp (+1975) who wrote many of Pius XII’s encyclicals.

Tromp criticised that the sisters were obliged to confess with Father Kentenich, that Kentenich was too authoritarian, that he couldn’t bear criticism, and that there was a “pathological relationship” between him and the sisters.

Teuffenbach claims further that there was a “family secret” which she suggests was of sexual nature because Kentenich wanted to resolve the sisters' sexual tensions through the "depth psychological method." However, her article lacks hard facts.

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