In 1945 the Christian churches were the only institution to have an intact organisational structure and the trust of the Western Allied Powers. Their significance concerning aid for refugees and displaced persons was correspondingly high.
Since every fourth German was looking for relatives after the war, the churches founded a tracing service. Later continued under the leadership of the German Red Cross, it helped hundreds of thousands of people to find their family members again.
In addition, the churches offered the spiritual counselling necessary to cope with flight and expulsion. In the Catholic as well as in the Protestant church this was associated with material aid, which was provided by Christian relief organisations.
The former bishop of Warmia (Ermland), Maximilian Kaller, was appointed the papal special representative for displaced Germans in 1946. His task was comparable to that of the "Ostkirchenausschuss" (eastern church committee), which acted on the Protestant side, and the aid committees, which were organised according to their national origin in the "Evangelisches Hilfswerk" (Protestant aid organisation).
Illustrations:
1.) Photograph of Christ Koller as a child
2.) After the war, 7-year-old Christa Koller from East Prussia was one of the children sought and found by her parents.
Photo: Private Archive