De la part du P. Kramer, Prov.

Nous avons le grand regret de vous annoncer le décès

With regret we inform you of the death of our confrère

Father Paul van Thiel
......


This happened Heythuysen this night at 02.30 , January 03st .
He was born at Beek en Donk on December 07th, 1920 .

A l'âge de 85 ans dont 58 de vie missionnaire en Ouganda, et aux Pays-Bas

Prions pour lui et pour les personnes de sa famille.

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About the life of Paul van Thiel

During most of his life Paul was troubled by different sicknesses like Bilharzia and malaria, a stroke and the illness of Kahler. Besides this his sensitivity was influenced by injustices, opposition to his views and just worries. In spite of these he lived an active missionary life.

He was born in Beek en Donk on December 7th 1920 as child of Herman van Thiel and Anna Meuwese. His brother joined the Premonstratensians of Berne abbey. His sister married Dr. Geerdes and she thus had three White Fathers as in-laws. He started his priestly training at "Beekvliet" seminary of the diocese of Bois-le-Duc, continued his formation with the Norbertines in Heeswijk and finished these at the Society of the Missionaries of Africa (White Fathers). He studied at the "St Charles" house of philosophy at Boxtel and his further studies took him to 's-Heerenberg where Paul took his missionary oath on May 22nd 1947 and was ordained priest on April 11th, 1948. He departed for the diocese of Ruwenzori-Mbarara in Uganda early 1949. Until the year 1962 Paul worked in different parishes but longest in Nyamitanga and Mbarara. He got to know the Runyankole language well.

Paul was a musician. At early age he played the piano and the organ and studied the theory of Gregorian chant as well as the history of music and composition. Once in Africa he showed great interest in traditional Ankole music. He wrote: "As a missionary I want to put my work at the service of the African Church. I want to meet composers who also are involved with church music, I want to learn from them and encourage them, possibly advise them how to make use of their talents to promote African liturgical music". In the five western kingdoms in Uganda the rich musical heritage was bound to disappear and Paul decided to bring this to a halt. He wrote about this: "The missionary message of each Christian is to proclaim the good news of the Son of God to the world. Each tribe and nation will do that in in its own tradition. Church music here is often too European and this ought to be changed". Therefore his main attention and life-long interest was in studying, promoting and recording this music and to make it serve in church liturgy. He made contacts with Banyankole musicians and dancers, with choir masters and missionaries who also tried to Africanise church music. Paul did research in these fields, made tape recordings, took photographs and made films and also composed hymns in the African style. He had access to the royal courts of Ankole and Bunyoro and was allowed to study and document on the rituals.

Paul's work was appreciated. It was admired how he endeavoured to conserve the African music and rituals. Fellow missionaries of Zambia, Tanzania, Malawi and Uganda collected texts, music and cultural objects in order to preserve these for future generations. They collected language notes, proverbs and wrote down many African stories. Musea in Bujola, Mbala, Mua and elsewhere as well as our own libraries and archives in Rome are witnessing to his missionary dedication. Paul was also appreciated outside Ankola territory and he applied for and took courses at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London during the year 1963, in 1965 at Makerere University, Uganda, and at the UCLA of Los Angeles from 1967 till 1968.

All this dedication and his studies resulted in many publications in magazines, more research, sessions and radio broadcasts. He wrote a study called "Multi-tribal Music of Ankole ", composed a lexicon about the Runyankole music terminology and assisted the monks of a Trappist monastery in Kenya and Franciscan sisters in Uganda to improve their singing of the Office and he also composed a hymnal.
More research followed in western Uganda, and his classes and teaching continued in East- and in West-Africa, in pastoral centres of protestant and catholic churches.

He also met with opposition as some European collegues thought him intrusive. Some African monks wanted to make more use of their own instruments while Paul rather suggested more vocal music. Paul could be quite critical himself but would not tolerate it from others. Referring to such he wrote that "they seem to crush and batter their instruments". All his research, his work and contacts sometimes created tensions, and there were also constant anxieties about funding his research work. As a musician and man of arts these tensions caused his health to deteriorate. Yet his interests in this field remained with him. It affected his frail health.

He returned definitively to the Netherlands in 1974 and became chaplain to "de Beemden", a home for the elderly at St. Michielsgestel, where he offered all the necessary pastoral care. But here, too, he actively promoted the participation of the people in the liturgy. But he also visited again Eldoret (Kenya) Vienna, Tervuren near Brussels, and Zambia where he gave courses.

In 1992 Paul took up residence in our retirement home at "St Charles", Heythuysen. He was a contented man and grateful for the good care he received in our house. Whenever he was asked to play the organ in one of the villages in the neighbourhood he consented. During the last few years his health appeared to be strong, partly because of the good care he received at "St Charles". He was grateful for this. But then his final days came abrubt. After a rather short illness Paul died peacefully at our house "St Charles" on January 3rd 2006.

In the book of Psalms we find: "Sing a new song to the Lord, all you people; sing to the Lord and bless his name". May Paul's voice be added to the heavenly choirs. May he find the peace that the world cannot give.

"Il ne faut pas que vous vous attristiez comme les autres qui n'ont pas d'Espérance". Thess 4,13

Nous le recommandons instamment à votre prière.

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