The death of a holy man
Father Ernst Plöchl and his rural missionA venerated, elderly Cistercian missionary from Upper Austria who had dedicated the last forty years of his life to building up a rural mission in the Griqualand region of South Africa near Kokstad, was found murdered there on Sunday. Authorities said Father Ernst Plöchl, 78, born in Neumarkt im Mühlkreis in the Austrian district of Freistadt, was killed under circumstances which remain murky. He was either shot to death or strangled, and it’s also not known if anything was stolen or what the actual motive may have been.The priest was widely admired in his hometown for his dedication to try and uplift the poor. A memorial mass is planned in his Austrian hometown on Friday.
A group of friends from Austria has already boarded a flight to South Africa for Plöchl’s mission, known as the "Maria Zell", to investigate the murder, and also to bring his body back to Austria for burial. Information initially given by the South African authorities was confusing: it was at first announced that he had been shot, while the word later was that he had been strangled. His religious order announced Monday that he would be brought back to Austria and buried in his native country.
Pictures of the Maria Zell mission were taken by the Australian-based author Scott Balson, who wrote a book about this entire unique region, its history and its people.
Father Plöchl, right, was found dead on Sunday morning at his lonely outpost of Maria Zell mission, said Father Andreas Rohring, a spokesman for the Mariannhill order. He spoke to Austria's APA news agency. The elderly priest’s murder sent immediate shockwaves throughout Austria, as the ‘socially very engaged’ priest was a much-loved figure in his home country. A memorial mass will be held for him on Friday at Neumarkt-im-Mühlkreis, his home town, where he is much loved for his dedication to help the poor in South Africa.
The Marianhill missions were founded in South Africa n 1882 by the Rev. Francis Pfanner, then prior of the Trappist (Reformed Cistercian) Monastery of Maria-stern (Bosnia). He landed at Port Elizabeth with thirty-one companions in July, 1880, and settled in a place he called Dunbrody, after an old Irish monastery. This he had to abandon in 1882; and at the solicitation of the late Bishop Jolivet, O.M.I., transferred his community to Mariannhil.
A group of friends from Austria has already boarded a flight to South Africa for Plöchl’s mission, known as the "Maria Zell", to investigate the murder, and also to bring his body back to Austria for burial. Information initially given by the South African authorities was confusing: it was at first announced that he had been shot, while the word later was that he had been strangled. His religious order announced Monday that he would be brought back to Austria and buried in his native country.
Pictures of the Maria Zell mission were taken by the Australian-based author Scott Balson, who wrote a book about this entire unique region, its history and its people.
Father Plöchl, right, was found dead on Sunday morning at his lonely outpost of Maria Zell mission, said Father Andreas Rohring, a spokesman for the Mariannhill order. He spoke to Austria's APA news agency. The elderly priest’s murder sent immediate shockwaves throughout Austria, as the ‘socially very engaged’ priest was a much-loved figure in his home country. A memorial mass will be held for him on Friday at Neumarkt-im-Mühlkreis, his home town, where he is much loved for his dedication to help the poor in South Africa.
The Marianhill missions were founded in South Africa n 1882 by the Rev. Francis Pfanner, then prior of the Trappist (Reformed Cistercian) Monastery of Maria-stern (Bosnia). He landed at Port Elizabeth with thirty-one companions in July, 1880, and settled in a place he called Dunbrody, after an old Irish monastery. This he had to abandon in 1882; and at the solicitation of the late Bishop Jolivet, O.M.I., transferred his community to Mariannhil.
Farming couple survive seige by five attackers
On May 31st, the Day before Father Plöchl's death a middle-aged Afrikaner couple, Koos Dreyer (57) and his 58 year old wife Rea, who own a smallholding Krugersdorp, fought for their lives against at least five attackers who invaded their homestead on Saturday-night. Mr Dreyer was repeated stabbed with a short knife and also chopped in his upper torso with a handmade sword.
The couple were asleep at 1.30am on Saturday when 'at least five men' cut through the electrified fencing around their smallholding and broke into their homestead. Mr Dreyer said he stormed down the hallway when hearing the noise, and one man grabbed his homemade-sword, another grabbed a hockey-stick, and started hammering at him. He fell to the ground while the blows kept raining on him, he said. "I know I had to try and reach my handgun and when they gave me another blow, I playacted by stumbling backwards and falling across the bed to get my gun.' He fired off one shot, but missed. Meanwhile his wife Ria also was grappling with the attackers, throwing them with 'anything at hand', he said. Then Ria managed to get hold of his gun and fired off several shots in the general direction of the attackers. The men fled with the handmade sword and a pair of binoculars in one of Dreyer's farm vehicles. It was however found abandoned about a kilometre down the road at the appropriately named 'Stilhou' street (Standing Still Street) when its automatic theft-prevention device turned it off automatically.
The couple were asleep at 1.30am on Saturday when 'at least five men' cut through the electrified fencing around their smallholding and broke into their homestead. Mr Dreyer said he stormed down the hallway when hearing the noise, and one man grabbed his homemade-sword, another grabbed a hockey-stick, and started hammering at him. He fell to the ground while the blows kept raining on him, he said. "I know I had to try and reach my handgun and when they gave me another blow, I playacted by stumbling backwards and falling across the bed to get my gun.' He fired off one shot, but missed. Meanwhile his wife Ria also was grappling with the attackers, throwing them with 'anything at hand', he said. Then Ria managed to get hold of his gun and fired off several shots in the general direction of the attackers. The men fled with the handmade sword and a pair of binoculars in one of Dreyer's farm vehicles. It was however found abandoned about a kilometre down the road at the appropriately named 'Stilhou' street (Standing Still Street) when its automatic theft-prevention device turned it off automatically.
Details taken from http://afrikaner-genocide-achives.blogspot.com/
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In South Africa 45% of all rape victims are children, and a child is raped ever three minutes, that is 530 children every day.
Full details here
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1 comment:
By the way, they think very little differently whether they are in Africa, the Caribbean, the USA, or the UK. Their thought processes seem to be wired into their DNA, and only slightly affected by the surrounding culture, if any.
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