Fr. Richard Henkes, S.A.C., A Picture of His Life A Picture of His Life | Page 14

“In the beginning, I was still praying for my freedom,” he wrote
from the prison in Ratibor to Hedwig Buhl, an employee in Franken-
stein. “To this day, I am in solitary confinement, it is very nerve wrack-
ing, but still I am mentally and physically healthy. Except for twice
a week, I can go to Holy Communion and this is a great comfort to
me and for the last few days I have been able to go to work at least to
another hall, where I can talk. But it remains a way of the cross. In the
beginning I was still praying for my freedom. Now I’ve got through it,
and if I have to go to the camp, I’ll just as well say Deo gratias as when
I was arrested. After all, I must be able to practice what I preached to
others during the retreat. To this day, the Lord has visibly protected
me; that is why I am not afraid of the future. God will continue to give
me his grace.”
This letter from May 1943 was not the last, as many followed.
Most of them were to Paula Miketta - the head of the prybestery - as
he had made her his contact person. Supported by two trusted helpers,
she was asked to copy his letters and send them to friends - includ-
ing his family in the Westerwald. He thanked Paula Miketta from
Dachau and often thought of her like a mother-figure. He was very
worried when, at the beginning of 1945, he no longer heard from her,
suspecting that she was behind the Russian lines. Paula Miketta had
quickly won his confidence when he moved out of Branitz. In the
course of the past two years, Fr. Henkes had won the trust of all the
people of Strandorf. They prayed daily for the prisoners in the church,
hoping for his return, and sending him food packages. They urged the
local mayor to work for him, which resulted in his receiving a telling
off from the district administrative office.
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