TOPIC:

Reverend Father Joseph Victor Hecht, O.M.I.; CMG.

- Companion of St Michael and St George (C.M.G.)
- Queens South Africa Medal with clasp Orange Free State to Rev. V.J. HECHT

Fr. Hecht was born on1 March 1868 in Strasbourg, the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and a city which is close to the border with Germany. Before I was able to research him I assumed that the name was of German descent, a not uncommon mistake considering the close proximity to Germany.





Having completed his schooling he decided that a life devoted to the service of God was his future and, at the young age of 20 in 1888 he took his first vows – the first step in a long process on the road to priesthood. On August 15 of 1889 he completed his Oblation at St Gerlach in France and in 1893 was ordained as a Priest in the Roman Catholic Church, specifically the Oblates of Mary Immaculate or O.M.I.

Once ordained it was commonplace for most priests who belonged to this missionary Order to be sent into the wide blue yonder to spread the gospel to those who in far flung corners of the earth had not yet been exposed to Christianity. Hecht was no different and he soon received his posting to Southern Africa on 26 August 1893, accompanying Bishop Goughren destined for the missions of Bechuanaland (now known as Botswana) and sailing from Southampton to Cape Town aboard the “Gaul”. Interestingly the ship’s manifest records Fr. Hecht and his companions as being “Irish” whereas they were Gallic to the bone.



The document confirming Hecht as a Marriage Officer in the OFS

Conditions were rough in those days and hardships frequent but such was the life of a priest and he set about his task with zeal and determination. Having initially been stationed in the Mafikeng area he was soon transferred to Kimberley in the Cape Colony where he continued his ministry. It wasn’t very many years later that the storm clouds which had been gathering apace between the might of the British Empire on the one hand and the two Dutch speaking Boer Republics on the other burst out into full scale war in October 1899.



Fr. Hecht, on the right, in Kimberley

Fr. Hecht was at this stage in the Orange Free State where, on 28 August of that year he had been commissioned as a Marriage Officer.
Soon the numbers of sick and wounded, on both sides of the conflict began streaming in and Fr. Hecht, being unbiased by both his nationality and his faith, was called upon to provide succour to these unhappy combatants. Ere long the British took control of the Orange Free State in 1900 and Kitchener’s policy of creating concentration camps came about. Boer women and children in their thousands were driven off their land and housed in huge tent towns where, initially, conditions were extremely harsh and decent food almost impossible to come by. It was in these camps that Emily Hobhouse was to make her mark and it was in these camps, at around the same time, that Fr. Hecht was called upon to do his duty and minister to a flock that were not in any sense of his religious persuasion, first as an Acting Chaplain and then as a Chaplain.





A number of telling examples are given by way of illustrating the untiring work that Fr. Hecht gave of himself unstintingly. The first came in the form of the award of the Companion of St. Michael and St. George bestowed on him for his services. This honour, to be an Ordinary Member of the Third Class or Companions of the said Most Distinguished Order, was Gazetted on 31 October 1902. The second was with the award of the Anglo Boer Medal in the same year. In the remarks column of the medal roll Fr. Hecht has written, in his own hand, the following comment,

“As I have served in the Orange River Colony from 18.3.1900 to 25.4.1902 I have put in a claim not only for the S.A. Medal, but also clasp: Orange Free State, if such clasp is also given to Chaplains.”

Fr. Hecht’s efforts saw him spent and riddled with enteric fever and it was at the instigation of the British that he was sent to Europe to recover from his illness. An article published in the Catholic Magazine, The Tablet, on 8 November 1902 ran as follows;

“The long and last of War Honours brings once more into prominence in military circles a number of names easily identified by Catholics as their own, in this there is nothing new or surprising; but a pleasure which comes partly by way of a surprise is that of finding, among the Army Chaplains, a Catholic selected for the single honour of Companionship of the Order of St Michael and St George, Father Hecht, C.M.G. The letters are novel as an appendix where the prefix is “Reverend”; and in a sense, one may say that no more fitting nomination has ever been made to the Companionship which comes to be under the auspices of SS. Michael and George.”

A humble man Fr Hecht took the award in his stride and went on, the war having now ended, with his church work.
On 26 June 1918 he received the following letter from a fellow Oblate, Fr. Charles Cox of Johannesburg,

“Dear Father Hecht

I wish to join all your friends in congratulating you upon the Divine Mercy given you to see your Silver Jubilee. Thank God these twenty five years of priesthood have not been wasted. You piety and zeal have given zest to your devotedness to duty. Through many experiences you have kept up your good name, and won golden opinions. May the years that remain to you see you blessed in your work, and afford you every consolation! And may you do good work up to the time of your golden jubilee and beyond it!

As I don’t know what to send you, I enclose £5 for your personal wants or for any church need.

With every best wish and blessing.”

After some 34 years serving the needs of the faithful in the Orange Free State and Northern Cape Fr. Hecht was posted to Newcastle in Natal in 1927. In his welcome letter to Hecht Bishop Delalle, the Archbishop of Durban wrote as follows,

“My dear Fr. Hecht

Deo Gratias! For you and for me. I am delighted to have you as my own, and I welcome you heartily, so will all the Fathers’ I am sure.
You have all the faculties, and you will have charge of the 3 convents and schools for confirmations etc. The Catholic population is very small. Fr. Pious Schwark is in charge of the natives and Europeans in the District, but he will not be long with you. When Fr. R..... goes home, I’ll send him to Greytown, and will give you an Oblate, Father Le Vogier instead.

The work may be a bit heavy for two, for three it would be ideal, hope I shall be able to see to that bye and bye – you will belong to the District of Ladysmith. I intend going up to Newcastle after Easter.

Mother Rose provides the Priests with Board and lodging, and will pay you as well as she did the Dominicans, I think it is £50 per year. The Communities are quite good.

With kind regards, yours sincerely in Christ.

H. Delalle”

Now officially welcomed and installed as the Parish Priest in Newcastle Fr. Hecht was quick to work his way into the affections of the locals and the religious in the area. From two nuns came the following tribute,

“To Dear Father Hecht

Wishing you all God’s Choicest Blessings from Your Devoted Children, Srs. Teresa and Martin

Since first we saw your kindly face you’ve held for us a father’s place. T’was you who blessed us on that day when we came here and came to stay. When on our heads white veils were laid; and when our first vows we made. So please God you will us bless when we our final vows profess and when at last our life is o’er welcome us on the Eternal Shore.”

On 6 June 1936 Bishop Delalle again wrote to Fr. Hecht but the news was not so good on this occasion,

“My dear Father Hecht

I just had a letter from Mother Rose, who tells me that she has decided not to rebuild the school at Newcastle and to sell the place.
I have asked her to leave the church to the Vicariate as a gift, so that it may remain the Parochial Church for Newcastle. I hope she will do it.

She says the school has not been self-supporting for a long time.”

Presumably this wish was granted and the church remained. Possibly the most meaningful compliment to Hecht came in 1948 on the occasion of his Golden Jubilee. An article in the Southern Cross, the Catholic newspaper for Southern Africa, read as follows,

“On the 29th June, the Feast of St Peter and St Paul, Rev. Father Victor Hecht, O.M.I., reached the fiftieth year of his ordination. It is now 48 years since he has worked in South Africa, coming first to Kimberley and working in the Free State, the Transvaal and finally 17 years ago, in Natal. During his stay at Bloemfontein he attended, with zeal that caused him months of sickness, the sick in the camps and hospitals. The authorities expressed their gratitude for this work by conferring upon him the Companionship of the Order of St Michael and St George, and sent him to Europe to recuperate.

The celebrations at St. Dominic’s Academy, Newcastle, began on Friday the 25th when the pupils of the Academy gave a delightful performance before a crowded audience. “Jubilee Greetings”, the opening chorus had been composed, words and music, by one of the Sisters and this was rendered by the whole school, after which the Head Girl read the address.

Many townspeople had come to greet the Jubilarian and Rev. Mr. Mountford rose towards the end to express the feelings of all towards Fr. Hecht who has passed so many years in their midst.

On Monday His Lordship the Right Reverend Bishop Delalle, O.M.I., accompanied by Very Reverend Dr. Sormay, O.M.I., V.D., and other dignitaries’ arrived from Durban. Fourteen other priests came either on the Monday or early Tuesday morning to take part in the celebrations.”

Later that year Fr. Hecht was transferred to Greyville in Durban where, after a lifetime of devotion, he passed away on 22 June.

A life well lived.

References:
Oblate of Mary Immaculate Archives, Cedara, Kwazulu Natal
The Tablet, 1902

Hello Rory,

I saw your post on BMF and hoped you would post on here.
An excellent and interesting write up as always
A superb medal and photos to accompany, you must be well pleased with this one

Paul

Thanks Paul

I saw you had joined the BMF as well. You are very welcome and a nice addition to have!

Thanks for your comments - Now to find the CMG or a replacement... sadly it was not in his file and the church Fathers don't know anything about it.

Regards

Rory

Hi Rory
An excellent medal : congrats!!
If I could use a saying of the late Dr Frank Mitchell (my medal mentor) : "That I could covet!"
Henk

Thanks Henk

I count myself as very blessed to have it.

Regards

Rory

Whilst browsing through "The Tablet" edition of December 27, 1902 - as one does.... - I happened upon this little snippet pertaining to Fr. Hecht.