Strong roots to build on: Visit to Telgte

September 6, 2024: This morning, the delegates and guests of the 21st General Chapter visited Telgte, the founding place of the international congregation of the Hospital Sisters.

Telgte, founded about 1,200 years ago, is one of the oldest church locations in the Muenster area. St. Liudger, the missionary, first used this place at the ford of the river Ems, an intersection of various trade routes, to erect a wooden parish church around the year 800. The town was granted city rights in 1238 and belonged to the Hanseatic League of Merchants. Today, about 20,000 people live in Telgte.

After a short walk from the bus parking, Mass was celebrated at the parish church of St. Clemens in the town center. Then the group visited Our Lady of Grace Chapel where Father Christopher Bernsmeyer, OFM, founded the Hospital Sisters of the Third Order Regular of St Francis on July 2, 1844, 180 years ago.

This baroque chapel was built in 1654 by Prince-Bishop Bernhard von Galen especially for the Pietà of Our Sorrowful Mother of Telgte: A statue of Mary holding the body of Jesus after his death, one of the oldest depictions of its kind in North-Western Germany, carved from poplar wood in 1370. Nothing is known about its origin, and many legends have developed over time. Originally, the statue was colored. Traces of the colors may still be seen on the edges of the garment.

Since the 14th century, Our Sorrowful Mother of Telgte has attracted pilgrims from near and far. In the years of Father Christopher Bernsmeyer’s vicariate in Telgte, when he was also in charge of the pilgrims, he often prayed in front of the Pietà, and the first Hospital Sisters celebrated their investiture in this chapel.

After prayer in front of the Pietà, the visit continued at Klara house, the former home of Father Christopher, and to this day the home of Sister M. Theodora, who serves in the local parish and welcomes visitors and pilgrims in the spirit of Franciscan hospitality.

A visit to Father Christopher Bernsmeyer’s grave concluded today’s trip to Telgte. Father Christopher Bernsmeyer, who was born in Verl in the Diocese of Paderborn on May 15, 1777, moved to Telgte in 1811 and died there on June 2, 1858, at the age of 81. The Sisters’ cemetery came to be his final resting place on October 11, 1950.

Visiting the congregation’s roots was a moving experience, especially for the Sisters and guests who came here for the first time. Sharing the spirituality of Father Christopher that unites the congregation around the world also defined the common ground on which the General Chapter will make important decisions for the future of the Congregation.

The video below provides some impressions of the trip to Telgte.