Anno Sjoerd Brandsma (1881 - 1942)

Born 23 Feb 1881 in Ugoklooster, Friesland, Nederland

Ancestors

Died 26 Jul 1942 at age 61 in Dachau, Bayern, Duitsland

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Biography

Titus Brandsma died from a lethal injection while imprisoned at Dachau concentration camp.

Titus Brandsma is Notable.

He was a Dutch Carmelite friar, Catholic priest and professor of philosophy. He was beatified in 1985 by Pope John Paul II and canonized May 15th 2022 by Pope Francis I.^[1][2]

Anno Sjoerd was born on February 23, 1881, in Oegeklooster, Friesland, Netherlands. He was the son of Titus Brandsma and Tjitje Postma.^[3]where his parents ran a dairy farm. He was one of seven children, six of whom became religious. From the age of 11 young Anno wanted to be a priest and when he was seventeen he began his Carmelite novitiate at Boxmeer. It was there that he was given the religious name Titus, which was in fact his father’s baptismal name. Titus was ordained in 1905 and sent to Rome for further studies. After gaining his Doctorate in Divinity he returned to Holland and taught philosophy in the Catholic University at Nijmegen and in 1932 he was appointed rector there. Titus lectured extensively, especially on Carmelite mysticism, not only in Holland, but all over Europe and in the United States. In preparation for a lecture tour in the U.S. he came to Ireland in 1935 to improve his English and stayed with his brother friars at Whitefriar Street, Dublin and at Kinsale, Co. Cork. That same year, 1935, the Dutch bishops appointed Titus chaplain and advisor to Catholic journalists. When the Nazis invaded and occupied Holland in 1940 Titus courageously spoke out against the persecution of the Jews and encouraged Catholic newspapers to refuse to publish Nazi propaganda. The Nazis named him a ‘dangerous little friar’. It was his active opposition to the Nazi ideology and his Christian stance for freedom of the press and the dignity of all people regardless of race or religion, which led to his arrest on January 19th 1942. He was taken to the prison at Scheveningen, and from there to the concentration camp at Amersfoot, back to Scheveningen for questioning and finally to the Concentration Camp at Dachau where he was killed by lethal injection on July 26th 1942.^[4][5] He told the nurse who gave him the injection that he would pray for her and gave her a rosary. His prayers were answered when she later became a Catholic and gave important testimony in his beatification process. She testified ‘I was brought back to the right way through the intercession of Fr. Titus. Personally I consider him a martyr because National Socialism was a kind of anti-Christ’. Titus was beatified by Pope John Paul II on November 3rd 1985 since when the feast of Blessed Titus Brandsma O. Carm. Priest and Martyr, has been kept on July 27th each year. In his deep suffering Titus never failed to pray for his persecutors. He wrote ‘God bless the Netherlands! God bless Germany! May God grant these two peoples to return to the path of peace and freedom, and to recognise his Glory for the good of these two nations that are so close. On May 15th 2022, he was canonized by Pope Francis I.

Sources

1. ↑ Vatican News, 14 May 2022
2. ↑ Father Roderick's Stories on YouTube attending the canonization of Titus Brandsma
3. ↑ Openarch AlleFriezen in Leeuwarden, Civil registration births. Burgerlijke Stand Wonseradeel - Tresoar, Bron: boek, Part: 1056, Period: 1881, Wonseradeel, archive 30-42, inventory number 1056, February 24, 1881, Geboorteregister 1881, record number 60.
4. ↑ Openarch Dutch Prayer Cards Archives, Prayer card collection, Helmond.
5. ↑ Openarch Museum Greccio, Prayer card collection, Leiden.

See Also:

• Geboorteregister 1881, archiefnummer 30-42, Burgerlijke Stand Wonseradeel - Tresoar, inventarisnummer 1056, aktenummer 0060
• Titus Brandsma on wikipedia
• Openarch AlleFriezen in Leeuwarden, Militia records. Provinciaal bestuur van Friesland 1813-1922 - Tresoar, Part: 9646, Period: 1901, Onbekend, archive 11, inventory number 9646, 1901, Militieregisters, record number 137483.
• Openarch Regional Archives Nijmegen in Nijmegen, Notarial records. Notaris B. Nieuwenhuis Nijmegen, Nijmegen, archive 1203, inventory number 4, December 6, 1935, record number 772. Permalink.
• Anno Sjoerds Brandma war remembrance stone on online-begraafplaatsen.nl