Ambassadors of tolerance

Franz Meurer has been honored as an "Ambassador for Democracy and Tolerance. The "Alliance for Democracy and Tolerance – Against Extremism and Violence" justified its choice by saying that the Cologne social pastor had "made a significant contribution to the development of the district in a socially deprived area with his wide range of services".

As a result, the Church has become a new refuge and bearer of hope for people, it was said during the tribute on Monday (23.05.2011) in Berlin. The BfDT also honored Kazim Erdogan, who works for integration in the Berlin district of Neukolln with numerous projects, as well as the association "StreetUniverCity Berlin," which offers young people in the Berlin district of Kreuzberg workshops in the areas of society, street culture, art and media, as well as sports.

The Alliance also honored Waltraud Thiele, who is active as a contemporary witness for the reappraisal of the SED dictatorship, and the couple Birgit and Horst Lohmeyer from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. According to the BfDT, they organize a three-day music festival every year at personal risk to make a stand against right-wing extremism. The one with 5.The prize, which is endowed with € 000, was awarded for the eleventh time.

Pastor Meurer in the BfDT portrait
At first glance, Cologne's Hohenberg and Vingst neighborhoods do not appear to be a haven of charity: a working-class neighborhood with 23.000 people, almost 4000 of them live on Hartz IV, every third person has a migrant background. Cologne Hohenberg-Vingst is a so-called social hotspot – and yet it is precisely here that there is a special bond between the people and a high degree of effort to ensure that the residents of the neighborhood live together in harmony and peace.

This is mainly due to the work of the Catholic priest and youth pastor Franz Meurer, who took over the parish in 1992 and thoroughly turned it around. With tireless commitment, he stands up for the neglected district, mobilizes and motivates, and has achieved the almost unbelievable: that in the face of declining membership and a dwindling number of young people in the churches in the problem district of Hohenberg-Vingst, a church has become a new point of refuge and a source of hope for the people.

Meurer organizes clothing and food distributions to the poor, provides lunch supervision for children of welfare recipients, initiates sex education projects, publishes applicant books for employers with resumes of special needs students, or arranges continuing education programs for the long-term unemployed. Together with the residents of the neighborhood, planted over 1000 flower beds to give the high-rise landscape a green face. Since 2001, its diverse offerings have found their place under the umbrella of the Pro-Hovi support association, founded especially by Pastor Meurer, which, in addition to self-help projects, also realizes Hovi-Land every year, a summer camp for socially disadvantaged children. Under the name Hovi-Land, every year about 500 children of the district aged 6-14 years are given the opportunity to take a vacation.

His commitment has earned him the title of "ghetto priest," a title he wears with pride and self-irony. If one had to describe Franz Meurer and his church work with one adjective, it would be the word "unconventional". The Catholic doesn't mince words, doesn't think much of dogmas and abstract sermons, but believes that church must be lived from the bottom up in order to reach people: "We don't wait to see if anyone comes. We want to be a church in the neighborhood, part of people's lives. Sharing as much as possible – this is the basic idea of practical community life."

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Christina Cherry
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