Georg Gatt (1843–1924) was a Tyrolean Roman Catholic priest and missionary, best known for establishing a parish and several institutions in Gaza, and his association with the Austrian Pilgrim Hospice to the Holy Family in Jerusalem, during the late 19th century.[1]
Early life
editBorn in Nörsach, Austria, Gatt was ordained as a priest in 1867 in Brixen im Thale. He was appointed Vice-Rector of the Austrian Hospice in Jerusalem in 1871 by Joseph Othmar von Rauscher. In 1873 he became the headmaster of a boys' school in Jerusalem.
Gaza
editIn 1879 Gatt moved to Gaza City, where he founded the Catholic parish "Zur Heiligen Familie" in 1887, focusing on pastoral care rather than proselytizing.
Following a fundraising journey back to Austria, he purchased land in Gaza, where he built a large house, established a school, and endowed a chapel. He became a partner in two grain-steam mills located in Gaza and Ashdod, using the profits to support the local Austrian community and fund his ongoing work.
In 1887, he published a detailed map of the city.[2]
After 30 years in Gaza, he returned to the Austrian Hospice in Jerusalem, where he died in 1924.
Bibliography
edit- Sauer, Franz (1983). Georg Gatt, Missionar in Gaza: 1843 - 1924. Miscellanea / Neue Reihe. na. Retrieved 2024-09-22.
- Austrian Hospice (2014), Austrian Hospice News, Number 14 (PDF)
References
edit- ^ Austrian Hospice 2014.
- ^ Gatt, Georg (1888). "Legende zum Plane von Gaza". Zeitschrift des Deutschen Palästina-Vereins (1878-1945). 11. Deutscher Verein zur Erforschung Palästinas: 149–159. ISSN 2192-3124. JSTOR 27928513. Retrieved 2024-09-22.