God’s powerful servant – Wikipedia

God’s powerful servant Is a two -part German television film from 2011. He has Pascalina Lehnert, the housekeeper of the Pope Pius XII.

First part [ Edit | Edit the source text ]

The young peasant girl Josephina Lehnert no longer endures her father’s anti -educational regiment and enters into the monastery of the teaching sisters from the Holy Cross. After years of testing in the monastic way of life, she becomes a nurse Pascalina.

When Eugenio Pacelli is transferred to Munich as an apostolic nuncio to negotiate the “Bavarian Concordat”, Pascalina is commissioned to conduct his household; Soon she will also become his private secretary. She takes up the job full of energy and improves the household of the nunciature. During the revolutionary confusion in Munich, she gets a visit from her sister Theresa, who tells her that her father is dying. Pacelli pushes the reluctant Pascalina to drive to her father and reconcile with him. But when she arrives, her father has already died.

When Pascalina’s Oberin Tharsilla Thanner does not succeed in recalling Pascalina from Pacelli’s household, she assigns her to support the sisters Bonifatia and Johanna. Under the impression of the Hitler coup, Pope Pius XI decides to have Pacelli negotiated with Prussia in Berlin; Pascalina takes over the preparations. When she accuses sister Bonifatia in this context, she puts on a letter to the top with Johanna and accuses Pascalina of living with Pacelli in unchastity. As a result, Pascalina is recalled by Oberin Tharsilla and placed under house arrest to force them to confess.

When Pacelli’s household is now increasingly chaoted, he asks the general superior in Switzerland that Pascalina returns to him. Since Pascalina is ill in the house arrest to Asthma, she is initially sent to St. Bartholomä (Königssee) against her will. There she can clear out her doubts founded by the arrest, which way is the right one and asks the Ober General to be able to return to Pacelli.

Shortly afterwards, he celebrates the successful completion of the “Prussian Concordat” and is promoted by the Pope to Cardinal State Secretary. Pascalina is shaken to hear from Pacelli that she must not accompany him to the Vatican. But when she is supposed to hand over a farewell gift from the German bishops, she smuggles into the Vatican.

Second part [ Edit | Edit the source text ]

When Pacelli sister Pascalina asks to go through his draft for a concordat with Germany, her comments attract the displeasure of Pacelli’s secretary Wilson and on the other hand, but on the other hand, the benevolence of the Pope, who decides to remain in Pascalina, that she can stay in the Vatican. While Pacelli can successfully complete the “Reich Concordat” with Germany, the Vatican is linked to diplomatic relationships with America, whose President Franklin D. Roosevelt sends a special ambassador to the Holy Stool.

A little later, Pacelli’s friend, Cardinal Michael von Faulhaber, reports this about the Jewish persecution in Nazi Germany and Adolf Hitler’s disregard for the “Reich Concordat”. Pacelli suggests the Pope to address a circular in German to the German bishops; The encyclical is “with burning concern”. While Pacelli has to learn that Hitler reacted to the spread of the encyclical with drastic persecution, Pius XI. In the subsequent conclave, Pacelli is elected Pope and takes the Pope name Pius XII. at.

The peace appeals of the new Pope have no effect; On September 1, 1939, the Second World War stopped. While the conflict between Pascalina and Wilson continues to smile, Pius XII has to. The concern of Great Britain about his neutrality in view of his German housekeeper and his German chauffeur. Due to the criticism of the British press in her person, Pascalina wants to return to Germany; However, the Pope rejects. Instead, he gives her the task of Warehouse to manage the Vatican and to send the proceeds from the sale of the church treasures to war; The Pontificia Commissione di Assistenza is created.

The silence of the Vatican against the persecution of Jews is seen critically, but after the Archbishop of Utrecht had publicly protested and 4,000 Dutch Jews were deported the next day, Pius XII fears. Even worse Jewish persecution if he publicly criticizes as a Pope. Instead, when Rome is bombarded, he organizes medical help for the wounded.

Meanwhile, Major Herrmann from the German Wehrmacht is given the warning that Hitler has plans to have the Holy Father kidnapped and brought to Germany. Pius XII. If it refuses to leave the Vatican and prepares his declaration of withdrawal in the event of the kidnapping. When the first Jews are deported from Rome, Pius XII offers. They in the church facilities in church asylum and mobilize the palatin guard.

Shortly before his death in 1958, Pius XII fights. Still with doubts whether he acted properly in view of the persecution of Jews by Nazi Germany. The Pope died on October 9, 1958.

The film teams had to move 14 times for the two -parter, and was rotated at different locations in Germany and Italy. The sequence over the Hitler coup was shot at the original location on Munich Odeonsplatz. Around 350 extras were used in historical costumes. Film recordings in the Vatican could not be made, so one looked around for alternatives that are similar to the Vatican architecture. For the coronation scene on the papal balcony, you had to fall back on a replica balcony. The costume department made a total of 4,000 historical clothing for the actors and extras.

Remo Girone was for his role as Pius XII. nominated as a “best supporting actor” at the “Festival de Télévision de Monte-Carlo”. The director Marcus O. Rosenmüller received a nomination in the “Best multi -part” division.

1. ↑ God’s powerful servant. In: Lexicon of international film. Movie service, accessed on March 2, 2017 .
2. ↑ http://www.tittelbach.tv/programm/mehrteiler/artikel-1400.html