Josef Richard Frings (6 February 1887 – 17 December 1978), was a German Cardinal of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Cologne from 1942 to 1969. Considered a significant figure in Catholic resistance to Nazism, he was elevated to the cardinalate in 1946 by Pope Pius XII. Early life and ordination Frings was born as the first of eight children of Heinrich, a weaving industrialist and manufacturer, and Maria (née Sels) Frings, in Neuss. He was baptised on 10 August 1887. After 1905 he studied Catholic theology in Munich, Innsbruck, Freiburg and Bonn. On 10 August 1910, he received his ordination to the priesthood. At first he worked as a chaplain in Cologne-Zollstock until 1913, followed by a study visit in Rome until 1915. In 1916, he earned a doctorate in theology in Freiburg. From 1915 to 1922, he was pastor in Cologne-Fühlingen. Then, he worked as a principal of an orphanage in Neuss from 1922 to 1924. Until 1937, he was pastor in Cologne-Braunsfeld. Then, he led the archiepiscopal seminary in Bensberg. According to Leni Riefenstahl, in her autobiography, Frings approached her on behalf of the Vatican to commission a pro-Catholic film. The Church had been impressed by her film The Blue Light, particularly with respect to its mystical elements. But Riefenstahl declined the offer on the same grounds she later used (unsuccessfully) with Adolf Hitler: that she would not accept a commission to make a film. Nazi period Archbishop of Cologne On 1 May 1942 he was surprisingly named archbishop of Cologne, a post which he held until his resignation in 1969. Frings received his episcopal consecration from Archbishop Cesare Orsenigo, the Apostolic Nuncio to Germany, in Cologne Cathedral. The National Socialist regime had banned the German media from covering the consecration ceremonies; therefore, the citizens of Cologne started to publish small private advertisements to inform each other of the news. However, the international press was allowed to report the consecration. The persecution of the Jews was described by Frings as "himmelschreiendes Unrecht" (injustice crying out to heaven). His popularity saved him from reprisals more than once. Nevertheless, he was closely monitored by the Gestapo with the aid of several informers, including some clerics. Frings's consecration was used as a demonstration of Catholic self-assertion. In his sermons, he repeatedly spoke in support of persecuted peoples and against state repression. In March 1944, Frings attacked arbitrary arrests,