Bert Hellinger (1925-2019) was a German psychotherapist, former Catholic priest, and author, known worldwide for developing the Family Constellations method.
1Early Years and Training
Anton Hellinger, known as Bert, was born on December 16, 1925, in Leimen, Germany. He grew up in a Catholic family and showed religious inclination from a young age.
At age 10, he entered a Catholic boarding school and later joined the Mariannhill Missionaries order. During World War II, he was drafted at 17, served on the Western Front, was captured, and spent time in a prisoner camp in Belgium.
After the war, he studied philosophy and theology and was ordained a priest. He obtained a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Würzburg.
2The Years in Africa
From 1953 to 1969, Hellinger worked as a missionary among the Zulu people in South Africa. During these 16 years:
• He ran schools and was involved in education
• Learned the Zulu language and integrated into the culture
• Observed the central importance of ancestors in the African worldview
• Increasingly questioned Catholic dogma and colonialism
This experience was transformative. The Zulu worldview, where ancestors are always present and the family system is sacred, deeply influenced his later work.
In 1969, he left the priesthood and returned to Germany to begin a new stage of his life.
3Therapeutic Training
Back in Germany, Hellinger immersed himself in the study of various therapeutic approaches:
Psychoanalysis: Studied in Vienna, though he later distanced himself from many of its principles.
Gestalt Therapy: Worked with Ruth Cohn and others, learning about the "here and now" and phenomenology.
Transactional Analysis: Studied with Eric Berne, learning about "life scripts" and transgenerational patterns.
Primal Therapy: Encountered Arthur Janov's work on accessing deep emotions.
Systemic Family Therapy: Influenced by Virginia Satir, Ivan Boszormenyi-Nagy, and other pioneers who saw the family as a system.
Ericksonian Hypnotherapy: Learned Milton Erickson's techniques on language use and the unconscious.
NLP: Studied neurolinguistic programming, especially work with beliefs.
4Development of Constellations
In the 1980s, Hellinger began developing his own method, integrating his knowledge:
First workshops: He started facilitating workshops in Germany where he tested his ideas about family dynamics and representation.
Field discovery: He observed that representatives experienced sensations and emotions of the people they represented, without knowing the family history. This phenomenon, difficult to explain rationally, became the basis of the method.
The Orders of Love: He identified universal principles that seemed to govern family systems.
Spread: In the 1990s, his workshops became very popular in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. He published numerous books that were translated into many languages.
Global expansion: The method spread to Latin America, where it was especially well-received, and to other continents.
5Controversies and Legacy
Hellinger was a controversial figure:
Criticisms:
• Some of his statements were considered sexist or excessively traditional
• His positions on victims and perpetrators generated debate
• The movement fragmented, with various disciples developing their own variants
• Lack of rigorous scientific studies validating the method
Legacy:
Despite controversies, his contribution is undeniable:
• Millions of people have participated in constellations
• The method is taught in universities in several countries
• It has influenced other therapeutic approaches
• Generations of facilitators continue developing the work
Bert Hellinger died on September 19, 2019, at age 93, leaving a legacy that continues to evolve.