Of Gods and Men
Of Gods and Men (French: Des hommes et des dieux) is a 2010 French drama film directed by Xavier Beauvois, starring Lambert Wilson and Michael Lonsdale. Its original French language title is Des hommes et des dieux, which means "Of Men and of Gods" and refers to a verse from the Bible shown at the beginning of the film. It centers on the monastery of Tibhirine, where nine Cistercian monks lived in harmony with the largely Muslim population of Algeria, until seven of them were kidnapped and assassinated in 1996 during the Algerian Civil War.
Largely a tale of a peaceful situation between local Christians and Muslims before becoming a lethal one due to external forces, the screenplay focuses on the preceding chain of events in decay of government, expansion of terrorism, and the monks' confrontation with both the terrorists and the government authorities that led up to their deaths. Principal photography took place at an abandoned monastery in Azrou, Morocco.
Des hommes et des dieux est un film dramatique Français réalisé par Xavier Beauvois, inspiré librement de l'assassinat des moines de Tibhirine en Algérie en 1996. Le film retrace la vie quotidienne des moines et leurs interrogations face à la montée de la violence durant les mois précédant leur enlèvement lors de la guerre civile algérienne.
The seven monks of the Our Lady of the Atlas, who were kidnapped and later beheaded, were beatified with twelve other martyrs of Algeria on December 8, 2018. The celebration occurred in Oran, Algeria.
L'assassinat des moines de Tibhirine fait référence à la mort, en 1996, lors de la guerre civile algérienne, de sept moines trappistes du monastère de Tibhirine, en Algérie. Les sept moines sont enlevés dans la nuit du 26 au 27 mars 1996 et séquestrés durant plusieurs semaines. Un communiqué, attribué au Groupe islamique armé (GIA), annonce le 21 mai 1996 leur assassinat. Les têtes des moines sont retrouvées le 30 mai 1996, à 4 km au nord-ouest de Médéa.
Les autorités algériennes cherchent alors à cacher la disparition des corps. Pour entretenir l'illusion, elles lestent les cercueils des moines avec du sable. Mais l'obstination du secrétaire général adjoint des trappistes, le père Armand Veilleux, à identifier les corps permettra de découvrir cette manœuvre. Les faits alimentent ainsi les doutes quant à la véracité de la thèse officielle du « crime islamiste » pour expliquer leur décès.
En raison de l'absence d'enquête judiciaire algérienne, les commanditaires de l'enlèvement des moines, leurs motivations ainsi que les causes et les circonstances réelles de leur assassinat demeurent mal connus à ce jour. La version officielle d'Alger impute toute la culpabilité au GIA de Djamel Zitouni. Mais des témoignages d'anciens agents des services secrets algériens, tout comme ceux d'islamistes, pointent le rôle des services secrets algériens dans l'enlèvement. L'enquête de la justice française montre également le rôle trouble des services algériens dans cette affaire.
Les moines de Tibhirine sont béatifiés le 8 décembre 2018 par le pape François, en même temps que les autres martyrs d'Algérie.
Fondé en 1938, ce monastère trappiste se situe près de Médéa, à 90 km au sud d'Alger, dans une zone montagneuse. L'abbaye Notre-Dame de l'Atlas est située dans un domaine agricole. Les moines s'y consacrent à la prière et vivent du travail de la terre, selon la doctrine trappiste. La ferme et les terres sont nationalisées en 1976, mais les moines gardent ce qu’ils peuvent cultiver.
On the night of 26–27 March 1996, seven monks of the Trappist order from the Our Lady of the Atlas Abbey of Tibhirine near Médéa, Algeria, were kidnapped during the Algerian Civil War. They were held for two months and found dead in late May 1996. The circumstances of their kidnapping and death remain controversial; the Armed Islamic Group (Groupe Islamique Armé, GIA) claimed responsibility for both, but in 2009, retired General François Buchwalter reported that the monks were killed by the Algerian army.
At approximately 1:15 a.m. on 27 March 1996, about twenty armed members of the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) arrived at the monastery of Tibhirine and kidnapped seven monks. Two others, Father Jean-Pierre and Father Amédée, were in separate rooms and escaped the kidnappers' notice. After the kidnappers left, the remaining monks attempted to contact the police but found that the telephone lines had been cut. As there was a curfew in force, they had to wait until morning to drive to the police station in Médéa.
On 18 April, the GIA's communiqué no. 43 announced that they would release the monks in exchange for Abdelhak Layada, a former GIA leader who had been arrested three years earlier. On 30 April, a tape with the voices of the kidnapped monks, recorded on 20 April, was delivered to the French Embassy in Algiers. On 23 May, the GIA's communiqué no. 44 reported that they had executed the monks on 21 May. The Algerian government announced that their heads had been discovered on May 31; the whereabouts of their bodies is unknown. The funeral Mass for the monks was celebrated in the Catholic Cathedral of Notre-Dame d'Afrique (Our Lady of Africa) in Algiers on Sunday, 2 June 1996. Their remains were buried in the cemetery of the monastery at Tibhirine two days later.
The surviving two monks of Tibhirine left Algeria and travelled to a Trappist monastery near Midelt in Morocco.
All of the murdered monks were French. They were: Dom Christian de Chergé, Brother Luc (born Paul Dochier), Father Christophe (Lebreton), Brother Michel (Fleury), Father Bruno (born Christian Lemarchand), Father Célestin (Ringeard), and Brother Paul (Favre-Miville)
Seven Brothers for Eternity’ The Monks of Tibhirine (Original version with subtitles)