Blessed Engelmar Unzeitig
Priest & Martyr (
1945 Anno Domini A.D.) Feast: 2March
As a boy growing up in Germany , Engelmar Unzeitig dreamed of becoming a missionary priest-to travel to foreign lands & dedicate his life to saving souls, perhaps by the laying down of his life. At the age of 18 he entered the seminary of the Mariannhill Missionaries 
& was ordained just weeks before the outbreak of World War II
https://www.facebook.com/100740761460060/photos/a.100745291459607/261091808758287/?type=3
2 years later Unzeitig was arrested ⛓️ by the Gestapo 👮♂️ for preaching in defense of the Jews, & in June 1941 A.D. he was conveyed to Dachau . Dachau's wartime population had swelled to 200,000 inmates, including nearly 3,000 members of the clergy. Housed in "priest's barracks," these clergy were held in special contempt by the SS guards. Yet despite the hellish conditions, Fr. Unzeitig considered it a school for holiness. #Catholic https://youtu.be/yqqrVJbhhpo
Unzeitig survived nearly 4 years of starvation, beatings, & exposure to the freezing elements. Then in January 1945 the camp was hit by an outbreak of typhoid 🦠 Those who were infected were confined to a special barracks & left to die in horrible squalor. Fr. Unzeitig volunteered to join them. Here at last was his mission. For 6 weeks he cared for & consoled the sick & dying-washing their fevered bodies 🧼
🤒 cleaning their filthy pallets ... #Catholic https://youtu.be/xj9zMaYcQgo
Father Unzeitig also heard the confessions & offered the last rites to his fellow prisoners. Inevitably, he succumbed to the typhoid himself, dying on March 2, 1945 A.D. He was beatified in 2016. "One sees again and again that the human heart is attuned to love 💗 & it cannot withstand its power in the long run." -Blessed Engelmar Unseitig, in a letter days before his death #BlessedEngelmarUnzeitig #PrayForUs 🙏 #Catholic https://youtu.be/QBYVXbthHPI
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