The Diocese of Chur is a

Latin Church , native_name_lang = la , image = San Giovanni in Laterano - Rome.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , alt = Façade of the Archbasilica of St. John in Lateran , caption = Archbasilica of Saint Jo ...

ecclesiastical territory or

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associ ...

of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. It extends over the Swiss Cantons of Graubünden (Grisons), Schwyz,

Glarus , neighboring_municipalities= Glarus Nord, Glarus Süd, Muotathal (SZ), Innerthal (SZ) , twintowns= Wiesbaden-Biebrich (Germany) } Glarus (; gsw, Glaris; french: Glaris; it, Glarona; rm, Glaruna) is the capital of the canton of Glarus ...

, Zurich,

Nidwalden Nidwalden, also Nidwald (german: Kanton Nidwalden, ; rm, Chantun Sutsilvania; french: Canton de Nidwald; it, Canton Nidvaldo) is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eleven ...

Obwalden Obwalden, also Obwald (german: Kanton Obwalden, rm, Chantun Sursilvania; french: Canton d'Obwald; it, Canton Obvaldo), is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of seven municipalities and the seat of the gover ...

and Uri. The modern Catholic diocese must be distinguished from the historical Prince-Bishopric of Chur, a state of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...

History

A Bishop of Chur is first mentioned in 451/ 452 when its Bishop Saint Asimo attended the Synod of Milan, but probably existed a century earlier. The see was at first

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Anglican Communion, a suffragan bishop is a bishop who is subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop (bishop ordinary) and so is not normally jurisdiction ...

to the Archbishop of

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...

, but after the

Treaty of Verdun The Treaty of Verdun (), agreed in , divided the Frankish Empire into three kingdoms among the surviving sons of the emperor Louis I, the son and successor of Charlemagne. The treaty was concluded following almost three years of civil war and ...

(843) it became suffragan to

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-west, with Ma ...

. In consequence of political changes it became in 1803 immediately subject to the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

. According to local traditions, the first Bishop of Chur was Saint Lucius, who is said to have died a martyr at Chur around the year 176 and whose relics are preserved in the cathedral. St. Lucius is venerated as the principal patron of the diocese. The country had to pass through very severe struggles for the Christian faith.

Theodoric Theodoric is a Germanic given name. First attested as a Gothic name in the 5th century, it became widespread in the Germanic-speaking world, not least due to its most famous bearer, Theodoric the Great, king of the Ostrogoths. Overview The name ...

, King of the Ostrogoths, and the

Lombards The Lombards () or Langobards ( la, Langobardi) were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written between 787 an ...

after him, attempted to introduce

Arianism Arianism ( grc-x-koine, Ἀρειανισμός, ) is a Christological doctrine first attributed to Arius (), a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt. Arian theology holds that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who was begotten by God ...

in the sixth and seventh centuries. The bishop soon acquired great temporal powers, especially after his dominions were made in 831 dependent on the Empire alone. In the dispute between Emperor Barbarossa and

Pope Alexander III Pope Alexander III (c. 1100/1105 – 30 August 1181), born Roland ( it, Rolando), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 September 1159 until his death in 1181. A native of Siena, Alexander became pope after a con ...

, Bishop Egino of Chur sided with the emperor and was rewarded with the dignity of Prince of the Empire in 1170. The bishop was also temporal lord of the city and in several cases a better warrior than pastor. The Prince-Bishopric of Chur became an independent state of the

, its borders being different from the borders of the diocese. In 1367, the League of God's House was formed by members of the

cathedral chapter According to both Catholic and Anglican canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics ( chapter) formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese during the vacancy. ...

, the bishop's own

ministerialis The ''ministeriales'' (singular: ''ministerialis'') were a class of people raised up from serfdom and placed in positions of power and responsibility in the High Middle Ages in the Holy Roman Empire. The word and its German translations, ''Minis ...

, the city of Chur, and a number of jurisdictions of the prince-bishopric. The reason was that Bishop Peter Jelito, who mostly stayed abroad, was suspected by his own subjects of planning to sell the prince-bishopric to the

House of Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

, with a loss of independence looming. Instead, Peter then became Bishop of Leitomischl in 1368 and archbishop of Magdeburg in 1371. In 1392, the next prince-bishop became the nominal head of the League. The

Grey League The Grey League (german: Grauer Bund, it, Lega Grigia, rm, Ligia Grischa or ), sometimes called ''Oberbund'', formed in 1395 in the ''Vorderrhein'' and '' Hinterrhein'' valleys, Raetia. The name Grey League is derived from the homespun grey cl ...

was founded in 1395, as a reaction to various feuds between the Bishopric of Chur and its own vassals, namely the Barons of Belmont, the Barons of Vaz, the Barons of Sax, the Barons of Rhäzüns, the Counts of Werdenberg, the Barons of Matsch, the abbots of Disentis Abbey and others. Both leagues became part of the Three Leagues that later formed the Swiss canton of Graubünden. The Three Leagues, in fact a republic ruled by local aristocrats, remained part of the Holy Roman Empire until 1798, but has been allied to the

Old Swiss Confederacy The Old Swiss Confederacy or Swiss Confederacy ( Modern German: ; historically , after the Reformation also , "Confederation of the Swiss") was a loose confederation of independent small states (, German or In the charters of the 14th centur ...

since 1497. Both, league and alliance, limited the power of the prince-bishops further. The struggles of Switzerland for liberty in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, and, later, the secret preaching of Zwingli and Calvin, did great harm to the diocese, especially as the Catholic clergy neglected the instruction of the people. The bishop lost much of his power through the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

in 1526, after several nobles and towns had become Protestant. The Reformation was publicly proclaimed at Chur in 1524, and the two Catholic churches of St. Martin and St. Regula were given over to the Protestants, who retain possession of them to this day. The bishop fled, and his administrator, Abbot Theodore Schlegel, was publicly beheaded (1 January 1529). Bishop Thomas Planta, a friend of St. Charles Borromeo, tried, but without success, to suppress Protestantism. He died, probably poisoned, 5 May 1565. (See Camenisch, "Carlo Borromeo und die Gegenreform im Veltlin", 1901.) Twenty years later St. Charles sent the Capuchins into the endangered region, but Bishop Peter II (de Rascher) refused to admit them. His successor, Bishop John V (Flugi d'Aspermont, 1601–27), a saintly and courageous man, endeavoured to restore the Catholic religion, but was compelled to flee three times (1607, 1612, and 1617), and for several years a bloody war was waged between the Catholics and the Protestants. Finally, the newly erected Congregation of Propaganda commissioned the

Capuchins Capuchin can refer to: *Order of Friars Minor Capuchin The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. O.F.M. Cap.) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of Three " First Orders" that reformed from t ...

to 'save the Catholic faith' among the people (1621). The first Capuchin superior of the mission was St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen, who, on his way from Sewis to Grüsch, a little north of Chur, was slain (24 April 1622) by peasants whom the sermons of the Protestant preachers had wrought up to a fury. Some relics of this martyr are preserved in the cathedral at Chur. A second mission, that of Misocco and Calanca, in the southern part of the diocese, was entrusted to the Capuchins in 1635. These two missions, Rhætiæ and Mesauci, were made

prefectures Apostolic An apostolic prefect or prefect apostolic is a priest who heads what is known as an apostolic prefecture, a 'pre-diocesan' missionary jurisdiction where the Catholic Church is not yet sufficiently developed to have it made a diocese. Although i ...

under the care of Italian Capuchins and these prefects resided in the towns of Obervaz and Cama, both in the Canton of Graubünden. Several holy and extraordinary men have contributed to the splendour of the Diocese of Chur. Four of its bishops are honoured as saints: Saint Asimo (c. 450), Saint Valentinian (530–548), Saint Ursicinus (d. 760), and Saint Adalbert(1151–60). Saint Sigisbert flourished about the year 600, Saint Pirminus a century later; Saint Florian, whom the diocese has chosen as its second patron, lived in the ninth century, the hermit Saint Gerold in the tenth. The Capuchin Theodosius Florentini,

vicar-general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ...

from 1860 till his death (15 February 1865), was a very distinguished missionary; in 1852 he erected the Hospital of the Cross at Chur; before this he had already laid the foundations of two female religious congregations, one for the instruction of children, the other for the care of the sick.

In 1906

According to the "Kirchliches Handlexicon" (Munich, 1906) the diocese had a Catholic population of about 248,887 (non-Catholics, 431,367). There were 358 secular and 226 religious priests in charge of about 201 parishes, besides many chaplaincies and mission- stations. The largest Catholic community is at Zürich (43,655). The 35 Capuchins of the prefectures Apostolic had charge of 79 chapels in 1906. Three Benedictine abbeys —

Einsiedeln Einsiedeln () is a municipality and district in the canton of Schwyz in Switzerland known for its monastery, the Benedictine Einsiedeln Abbey, established in the 10th century. History Early history There was no permanent settlement in the area ...

, Engelberg, and Disentis — are within the diocese and, with the church of Saint Nicholas of Flüe at Sachseln, are places of pilgrimage. There was an ecclesiastical seminary in Chur, besides colleges in Schwyz, Disentis, Einsiedeln, Engelberg,

Sarnen , neighboring_municipalities= Alpnach, Entlebuch (LU), Flühli (LU), Giswil, Hasle (LU), Kerns, Sachseln , twintowns = Sarnen is a small historic town, a municipality, and the capital of the canton of Obwalden situated on the northern shores ...

, and Stans. The diocese include nine orders of men and ten orders of women (

Franciscans , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

Augustinians Augustinians are members of Christian religious orders that follow the Rule of Saint Augustine, written in about 400 AD by Augustine of Hippo. There are two distinct types of Augustinians in Catholic religious orders dating back to the 12th–1 ...

, Dominicans,

Benedictines , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

, and others), as well as eleven congregations.

Separation of the Principality of Liechtenstein from Chur

In 1997 the

Archdiocese of Vaduz The Archdiocese of Vaduz encompasses the territory of the Principality of Liechtenstein. History The Archdiocese of Vaduz was erected by Pope John Paul II in the apostolic constitution ''Ad satius consulendum'' on 2 December 1997. Before then i ...

was erected by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

in the apostolic constitution ''Ad satius consulendum''. Before then it had been the Liechtenstein

Deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or reside ...

of the Diocese of Chur. The former bishop of Chur, Wolfgang Haas has been the Archbishop of Vaduz since the founding of the Archdiocese.

List of bishops

The known bishops of the diocese are given in the following list. Either their years in office or death date is given after their names. Hof Chur

# Asinio (451) # Valentian (died 548) # Paulinus (548) # Theodor (599–603) # Viktor I (614) # Paschalis (Last third of 7th century) # Viktor II (Early 8th century) # Vigilius (First half 8th century) # Tello (759/60 – 765, began second cathedral) # Constantius (773/74) # Remedius (791/96 – 806) # Viktor III (822/23 – 831) # Verendar (836–843) # Esso (849–868) # Ruodhar (Rothar) (died before 888) # Diotolf (Theodolf) (888–913) # Waldo (920–940, died 949) # Hartbert (951–972) # Hiltibald (976–988) # Ulrich I (1006–1024) # Rupertus (Ruopert) (?) # Hartmann I (1030–1036, died 1039) # Dietmar von Montfort (1040–1061, died 1070) # Heinrich I von Montfort (1070–1078) # Norbert (1080–1087, died 1088) # Ulrich II von Tarasp (1087–1095) # Wido (1096–1122, first Prince-Bishop) # Konrad I von Biberegg (1123–1142) # Konrad II (1142–1150) #

Adalgott Adalgott II of Disentis (died 1165) was a twelfth-century monk and bishop. He entered Clairvaux Abbey as a monk, and was appointed as abbot of Disentis. Adalgott cared for the sick and poor. He was subsequently named bishop of Chur, and continued t ...

(1151–1160) # Egino von Ehrenfels (1160–1168) # Ulrich III von Tegerfelden (1170–1179) # Bruno (1180) # Heinrich II von Arbon (1180, 1192) # Arnold I (1199) # Reinher della Torre (1194–1209) # Arnold II von Matsch (1209–1221) # Rudolf I von Güttingen, OSB (1224–1226) # Berthold von Helfenstein (1228–1233) # Ulrich IV von Kyburg (1233/34–1237) # Volkard von Neuburg (1237–1251) # Heinrich III von Montfort, OP (1251–1272, until 1268 only Bishop Elect) # Konrad III von Belmont (1273–1282, until 1278 only Bishop Elect) # Friedrich I von Montfort (1282–1290, until 1287 only Bishop Elect) # Berthold II von Heiligenberg (1291–1298 only Bishop Elect) # Siegfried von Gelnhausen (1298–1321) # Rudolf II von Montfort (1322, 1322–1325 administrator, Bishop of Constance 1322–1334) # Johannes I Pfefferhard (1325–1331) # Ulrich V (Ribi) von Lenzburg, OESA (1331–1355) # Peter I Wurst (Jelito) (1356–1368, also 1368–1371 Bishop of Leitomischl, 1371–1381

Archbishop of Magdeburg The Archbishopric of Magdeburg was a Roman Catholic archdiocese (969–1552) and Prince-Archbishopric (1180–1680) of the Holy Roman Empire centered on the city of Magdeburg on the Elbe River. Planned since 955 and established in 968, the Rom ...

, 1381–1387 Bishop of Olomouc) # Friedrich II von Erdingen (1368–1376, appointed Bishop, also 1376–1396

Bishop of Brixen The Diocese of Bolzano-Brixen (german: Diözese Bozen-Brixen, it, Diocesi di Bolzano-Bressanone, la, Dioecesis Bauzanensis-Brixinensis) is a Catholic diocese in northern Italy, with its seat in the city of Bolzano. Its territory corresponds wi ...

) # Johannes II (Ministri) von Ehingen (1376–1388, until 1377 only Bishop-elect) # Hartmann II von Werdenberg-Sargans (1388–1416, until 1412 only Bishop-elect) # Johannes III. Ambundii (1416–1418, also 1418–1424 Archbishop of Riga) # Johannes IV Naso (Naz) (1418–1440) # Konrad von Rechberg zu Hohenrechberg (1440–1441 administrator) # Heinrich IV Freiherr von Hewen (1441–1456 administrator, also 1436–1462 Bishop of Constance) # Antonio de Tosabeciis (1456 appointed Bishop) # Leonhard Wismair (1456–1458 only Bishop-elect) # Ortlieb von Brandis (1458–1491) # Heinrich V von Hewen (1491–1505) # Paul Ziegler (1505–1509 administrator) # Lucius Iter (1542–1549) # Thomas von Planta (1550–1565, possibly poisoned) # Beat à Porta (1565–1581) # Peter de Raschèr (1581–1601) # Johann V Flugi von Aspermont (1601–1627) # Joseph Mohr (1627–1635) # Johann VI Flugi von Aspermont (1636–1661) # Ulrich VI de Mont (1661–1692) # Ulrich VII von Federspiel (1692–1728) # Joseph Benedikt von Rost (1729–1754) # Johann Baptist Anton von Federspiel (1755–1777) # Johann Franz Dionys von Rost (1777–1793) #

Karl Rudolf von Buol-Schauenstein Karl Rudolf Graf von Buol-Schauenstein (30 June 1760 – 23 October 1833) was Bishop of Chur (1794–1824), then of Chur-St. Gallen (1824-1833). He had also been the last prince-bishop of the Prince-Bishopric of Chur until the ecclesiastical prin ...

(1794–1833, last Prince-Bishop, also 1824–1833 Bishop of St. Gallen) # Johann Georg Bossi (1835–1844, also 1835–1836 Bishop of St. Gallen) # Kaspar de Carl ab Hohenbalken (1844–1859) # Nikolaus Franz Florentini (1859–1876) # Kaspar Willi, OSB (1877–1879) # Franz Konstantin Rampa (1879–1888) # Johannes Fidelis Battaglia (1889–1908) # Georgius Schmid von Grüneck (1908–1932) # Laurenz Matthias Vincenz (1932–1941) # Christianus Caminada (1941–1962) # Johannes Vonderach (1962–1990) # Wolfgang Haas (1990–1997, also 1997–1998 Apostolic Administrator, 1997–present Archbishop of Vaduz) #

Amédée Grab Amédée Grab (3 February 1930 – 19 May 2019) was a Swiss Roman Catholic bishop. Grab was born in Switzerland and was ordained to the priesthood in 1954. He served as titular bishop of ''Canæ'' and auxiliary bishop of the Roman Catholic D ...

, OSB (1998–2007) #

Vitus Huonder Vitus Huonder (born 21 April 1942) is a Swiss prelate of the Catholic Church who was bishop of Chur from 2007 to 2019. Vitus Huonder was born in Trun on 21 April 1942. He studied at the Pontifical Atheneum Saint Anselm and at the University of ...

(2007–2019) #

Joseph Maria Bonnemain Joseph Maria Bonnemain (born 26 July 1948) is a Swiss prelate of the Catholic Church who has been the bishop of Chur since 2021. Life Joseph Bonnemain was born on 26 July 1948 in Barcelona, the son of a Swiss father and a Spanish mother. He spe ...

(2021–present)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chur, Diocese (Roman Catholic) Roman Catholic dioceses in Switzerland Diocese (Roman Catholic)

History

In 1906

Separation of the Principality of Liechtenstein from Chur

List of bishops

See also

References