The Diocese of Mainz, (, ) historically known in English as Mentz as well as by its French name Mayence, is a

Latin Church The Latin Church () is the largest autonomous () particular church within the Catholic Church, whose members constitute the vast majority of the 1.3 billion Catholics. The Latin Church is one of 24 Catholic particular churches and liturgical ...

ecclesiastical territory or

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, 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 Roman province, prov ...

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 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. It was founded in 304, promoted in 780 to Metropolitan

Archbishopric of Mainz The Electorate of Mainz ( or '; ), previously known in English as Mentz and by its French name Mayence, was one of the most prestigious and influential states of the Holy Roman Empire. In the hierarchy of the Catholic Church, the Archbishop-Elec ...

and demoted back in 1802 to bishopric. The diocese is

suffragan diocese A suffragan diocese is one of the dioceses other than the metropolitan archdiocese that constitute an ecclesiastical province. It exists in some Christian denominations, in particular the Catholic Church, the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandr ...

in the

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian churches, including those of both Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity, that have traditional hierarchical structures. An ecclesiastical province consist ...

of the

metropolitan Metropolitan may refer to: Areas and governance (secular and ecclesiastical) * Metropolitan archdiocese, the jurisdiction of a metropolitan archbishop ** Metropolitan bishop or archbishop, leader of an ecclesiastical "mother see" * Metropolitan ar ...

Archdiocese of Freiburg The Archdiocese of Freiburg im Breisgau (Latin ''Archidioecesis Friburgensis'') is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in Baden-Württemberg comprising the former states of Baden and Hohenzollern. The Archdiocese of Freiburg is led by a ...

."Diocese of Mainz"
''

Catholic-Hierarchy.org ''Catholic-Hierarchy.org'' is an online database of bishops and dioceses of the Latin Church and the 23 Eastern Catholic Churches that are in full communion with Rome. The website, not officially sanctioned by the Church, is run as a private pro ...

''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved February 29, 2016"Diocese of Mainz"
''GCatholic.org''. Gabriel Chow. Retrieved February 29, 2016 Its district is located in the states of

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; ; ; ) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the sixteen states. Mainz is the capital and largest city. Other cities are ...

and

Hesse Hesse or Hessen ( ), officially the State of Hesse (), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt, which is also the country's principal financial centre. Two other major hist ...

. The seat of the diocese is in

Mainz Mainz (; #Names and etymology, see below) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and with around 223,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 35th-largest city. It lies in ...

at the Cathedral dedicated to Saints

Martin Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * M ...

and

Stephen Stephen or Steven is an English given name, first name. It is particularly significant to Christianity, Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; he is w ...

History

* Established in 340 as Diocese of Mainz * Gained territory in 755 from the suppressed Diocese of Erfurt * Promoted in 780 as Metropolitan Archdiocese of Mainz * Demoted (back) on the 29th of November, 1801 to Diocese of Mainz (gained territory from Diocese of Metz, Diocese of Speyer, Metropolitan Archdiocese of Trier and Diocese of Worms) * Lost territories repeatedly; in April 1818 to

Diocese of Konstanz The Prince-Bishopric of Constance () was a small ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire from the mid-12th century until its secularisation in 1802–1803. In his dual capacity as prince and as bishop, the prince-bishop also admini ...

, Diocese of Speyer and Diocese of Wurzburg; in July 1821 to

Diocese of Paderborn The Prince-Bishopric of Paderborn () was an ecclesiastical principality (Hochstift) of the Holy Roman Empire from 1281 to 1802. History The Diocese of Paderborn was founded in 799 by Pope Leo III. In the early years it was subordinated to t ...

; in August 1821 to

Diocese of Fulda The Diocese of Fulda () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in the north of the Germany, German state of Hessen. It is a suffragan diocese of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Paderborn, Archdiocese of Paderborn. The bishop's episc ...

and to establish

Diocese of Limburg The Diocese of Limburg () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. It belongs to the ecclesiastical province of Cologne, with metropolitan see being the Archdiocese of Cologne. Its territory encompasses parts of the States ...

, and exchanged territory with

Diocese of Trier The Diocese of Trier (), in English historically also known as ''Treves'' () from French ''Trèves'', is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic church in Germany.Diocese of Hildesheim The Diocese of Hildesheim () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. Founded in 815 as a missionary diocese by King Louis the Pious, his son Louis the German appointed the famous former archbishop of Rheims, Ebbo, as bishop. ...

Organization, extent and statistics

Under Article 14 of the

Reichskonkordat The ''Reichskonkordat'' ("Concordat between the ... between the Holy See"> ... between the Holy See and the German Reich") is a treaty negotiated between the Vatican and the emergent Nazi Germany">Holy See and the German Reich">Holy See"> .. ...

of 1933, which remains in force, the determination of the bishop to head the episcopal see and the composition of the chapter are governed by the provisions of Baden Concordat of 1932. As per 2014, it pastorally served 749,583 Catholics (25.9% of 2,891,000 total) on 7,692 km² in 319 parishes, 504 priests (409 diocesan, 95 religious), 124 deacons, 447 lay religious (132 brothers, 315 sisters), 19 seminarians. It is divided into 20

deaneries A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the 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 residence of a ...

, which in turn are divided into 136 pastoral care units. In 2007 these parish associations or parish groups included all 335 parishes and other chaplaincies of the diocese (as of 2007).Schematismus der Diözese Mainz 2007 Pastoral units on the parish level have been introduced as a result of a profound structural change in the

Catholic Church in Germany The Catholic Church in Germany () or Roman Catholic Church in Germany () is part of the worldwide Catholic Church in communion with the Pope, assisted by the Roman Curia, and with the German bishops. The current "Speaker" (i.e., Chairman) of th ...

in many dioceses, the constitution of these units was determined by particular law aw of a particular region or territory i.e., allowing for differences from one diocese to another. In the diocese of Mainz a parish group may be several parishes merged under the leadership of a single pastor. The parishes retain their church and state church legal personality. The pastor is attached to a pastoral team and a pastoral council. Parish associations, however, are combinations of several parishes, each with its own pastor. Several parish groups can join to form a parochial associations.

Catholic Education

Catholic Private Schools

The most important educational institution of the Diocese is the Catholic University of Applied Sciences, Mainz. Besides the Roman Catholic Diocese of Mainz and the (arch)dioceses of

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

Limburg Limburg or Limbourg may refer to: Regions * Limburg (Belgium), a province since 1839 in the Flanders region of Belgium * Limburg (Netherlands), a province since 1839 in the south of the Netherlands * Diocese of Limburg, Roman Catholic Diocese in ...

Speyer Speyer (, older spelling ; ; ), historically known in English as Spires, is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate in the western part of the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany with approximately 50,000 inhabitants. Located on the left bank of the r ...

and

Trier Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...

belong to the initiators of this university . There are also other schools as the Edith-Stein-Schule in Darmstadt, Liebfrauenschule in Bensheim, the Episcopal Willigis-Gymnasium in Mainz, Abendgymnasium Ketteler of Mainz and the Episcopal College Willigis secondary school in Mainz.

Facilities at state universities

The diocese maintains three facilities at state universities. The most important of them is the Catholic Theological Faculty at the

University of Mainz The Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz () is a public research university in Mainz, Rhineland Palatinate, Germany. It has been named after the printer Johannes Gutenberg since 1946. it had approximately 32,000 students enrolled in around 100 a ...

. In addition, there are at

University of Giessen University of Giessen, official name Justus Liebig University Giessen (), is a large public research university in Giessen, Hesse, Germany. It is one of the oldest institutions of higher education in the German-speaking world. It is named afte ...

, the Institute for Catholic theology and their didactics, which is located at the Department of History and Cultural Studies. At the

Technische Universität Darmstadt The Technische Universität Darmstadt (official English name Technical University of Darmstadt, sometimes also referred to as Darmstadt University of Technology), commonly known as TU Darmstadt, is a research university in the city of Darmsta ...

is an institute for theology and social ethics.

Bildungswerk der Diözese Mainz

The Bildungswerk der Diözese Mainz (educational works of the diocese of Mainz) promotes "... the church's adult education in the diocese from the parish to the diocesan level ..." The Bildungswerk is also a member of the Catholic

Adult Education Adult education, distinct from child education, is a practice in which adults engage in systematic and sustained educating activities in order to gain new knowledge, skills, attitudes, or values. Merriam, Sharan B. & Brockett, Ralph G. ''The Pr ...

Hesse - Regional Working Group.

Other educational institutions

* Institut für Kirchenmusik Mainz: training institution for catholic

Church music Church music is a genre of Christian music written for performance in church, or any musical setting of ecclesiastical liturgy, or music set to words expressing propositions of a sacred nature, such as a hymn. History Early Christian musi ...

ians

Major churches

Cathedral and Major basilicas

Mainz Cathedral Mainz Cathedral or St. Martin's Cathedral ( or, officially, ') is located near the historical center and pedestrianized market square of the city of Mainz, Germany. This 1000-year-old Roman Catholic cathedral is the site of the episcopal see of th ...

Worms Cathedral St Peter's Cathedral (German: ''Wormser Dom'') is a Catholic Church, Roman Catholic church and former cathedral in Worms, Germany, Worms, southern Germany. The cathedral is located on the highest point of the inner city of Worms and is the mos ...

* Basilica of St. Martin, Bingen am Rhein * Basilica of Sts. Marcellinus and Petrus, Seligenstadt * Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, Sts. Peter and Paul, Ilbenstadt

Other well-known churches

* St. Stephen's Church, Mainz with Chagall windows * St. Ludwig, Darmstadt, dome of Neoclassicism * Collegiate church, Pfaffen-Schwabenheim * Church of Our Lady, Worms * Chapel of St. Roch, Bingen

Liturgical calendar

Reliquienschrein in der Ostkrypta des Mainzer Doms

Local feasts of the diocese are: * 5. January:

John Neumann John Nepomucene Neumann (, , ; March 28, 1811 – January 5, 1860) was a Bohemian-born American prelate of the Catholic Church. An immigrant from Bohemia, he came to the United States in 1836, where he was ordained, joined the Redemptorist ...

, Redemptorist priest and fourth Bishop of Philadelphia * 4. February:

Rabanus Maurus Rabanus Maurus Magnentius ( 780 – 4 February 856), also known as Hrabanus or Rhabanus, was a Frankish Benedictine monk, theologian, poet, encyclopedist and military writer who became archbishop of Mainz in East Francia. He was the author of t ...

, Frankish Benedictine monk, archbishop of Mainz * 14. February: Valentine, 3rd-century Christian martyr * 23. February:

Willigis Willigis (; ; 940 – 23 February 1011 AD) was Archbishop of Mainz from 975 until his death as well as archchancellor of the Holy Roman Empire. Life Willigus was born in the Duchy of Saxony, possibly at Schöningen, the son of a free peasant. ...

, Archbishop of Mainz and statesman of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

* 27. April:

Peter Canisius Peter Canisius (; 8 May 1521 – 21 December 1597) was a Dutch Jesuit priest known for his strong support for the Catholic faith during the Protestant Reformation in Germany, Austria, Bohemia, Moravia, Switzerland and the British Isles. The ...

, Jesuit priest who supported the Catholic faith during the Protestant Reformation in Germany * 15. May:

Rupert of Bingen Saint Bertha of Bingen (German: ''Heilige Berta'', died ) was the mother of Rupert of Bingen. Her biography was written, and subsequently her cult popularized, by Hildegard of Bingen, who lived in the same region, about four hundred years later ...

, patron saint of pilgrims * 2. June:

Marcellinus and Peter Saints Marcellinus and Peter (sometimes called ''Petrus Exorcista'' - Peter the Exorcist;Alban Butler, Kathleen Jones, Paul Burns, ''Butler's Lives of the Saints'' (Continuum International Publishing Group, 1997), 14. ) are venerated within the Cat ...

, 4th-century Christian martyrs in Rome * 5. June:

Boniface Boniface, OSB (born Wynfreth; 675 –5 June 754) was an English Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of Francia during the eighth century. He organised significant foundations of the church i ...

, leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the German parts of the Frankish Empire. * 10. June:

Bardo of Mainz Bardo (c. 980 – 10/11 June 1051) was the Archbishopric of Mainz, Archbishop of Mainz from 1031 until 1051, the Abbey of Werden, Abbot of Werden from 1030 until 1031, and the Abbey of Hersfeld, Abbot of Hersfeld in 1031. Bardo was born in Oppers ...

, presided over the Synod of Mainz in 1049 which denounced simony and priest marriage * 21. June: Alban of Mainz, priest, missionary, and martyr. * 27. June: Creszenz,

Aureus The ''aureus'' ( ''aurei'', 'golden') was the main gold coin of ancient Rome from the 1st century BC to the early 4th century AD, when it was replaced by the ''solidus (coin), solidus''. This type of coin was sporadically issued during the Roman ...

, Theonest saints venerated by the Church of Mainz * 4. July: anniversary of the consecration of Mainz cathedral * 16. August:

Roch Roch (lived c. 1348 – 15/16 August 1376/79; traditionally c. 1295 – 16 August 1327), also called Rock in English, was a Majorcan Catholic confessor whose death is commemorated on 16 August and 9 September in Italy; he was especially invoke ...

, Christian saint, confessor, specially invoked against the plague * 6. September: Anniversary of the consecration of churches who do not know the day of their consecration * 17. September:

Hildegard of Bingen Hildegard of Bingen Benedictines, OSB (, ; ; 17 September 1179), also known as the Sibyl of the Rhine, was a German Benedictines, Benedictine abbess and polymath active as a writer, composer, philosopher, Christian mysticism, mystic, visiona ...

, writer, composer, philosopher, Christian mystic, Benedictine abbess, visionary, and polymath. * 28. September:

Leoba Leoba, (also Lioba and Leofgyth) (c. 710 – 28 September 782) was an Anglo-Saxon Benedictine nun and is recognized as a saint. In 746 she and others left Wimborne Minster in Dorset to join her kinsman Boniface in his mission to the German people ...

, Anglo-Saxon nun who was part of Boniface's mission to the Germans * 16. October:

Lullus Saint Lullus (also known as Lull or Lul, born AD 710 – died 16 October 786) was the first permanent archbishop of Mainz, succeeding Saint Boniface, and first abbot of the Benedictine Hersfeld Abbey. He is historiographically considered the firs ...

, first permanent archbishop of Mainz, succeeding Saint Boniface * 26. October: Amandus of Straßburg, confessor, first bishop of Straßburg. * 29. October: Ferrutius, Roman soldier, martyr in

Mogontiacum ''Mogontiacum'' (also ''Moguntiacum'') is the Latin name of today's city of Mainz, which it bore during its almost 500 years as part of the Roman Empire. ''Mogontiacum'' had its origins in the legionary camp built by Drusus in 13/12 BCE, which w ...

* 11. November:

Martin of Tours Martin of Tours (; 316/3368 November 397) was the third bishop of Tours. He is the patron saint of many communities and organizations across Europe, including France's Third French Republic, Third Republic. A native of Pannonia (present-day Hung ...

, soldier, later Bishop of Tours * 27. November: Bilihildis, Frankish noblewoman, founder and abbess of the monastery of Altmünster near Mainz

List of Bishops

For bishops and archbishops before 1802, see Elector_of_Mainz#Bishops_and_archbishops. * Joseph Ludwig Colmar (1802–1818) * Joseph Vitus Burg (1829–1833) *

Johann Jakob Humann Johann Jakob Humann (7 May 1771, Strasbourg – 19 August 1834, Mainz) was a German Roman Catholic clergyman. From 1860, he was vicar general of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Mainz and then Vicar Apostolic for the new Roman Catholic Diocese of S ...

(1833–1834) * Petrus Leopold Kaiser (1834–1848) * Wilhelm Emmanuel Freiherr von Ketteler (1850–1877) *''

sede vacante In the Catholic Church, ''sede vacante'' is the state during which a diocese or archdiocese is without a prelate installed in office, with the prelate's office being the cathedral. The term is used frequently in reference to a papal interre ...

(1877–1886)'' * Paul Leopold Haffner (1886–1899) * Heinrich Brück (1900–1903) * Georg Heinrich Kirstein (1903–1921) * Ludwig Maria Hugo (1921–1935) * Albert Stohr (1935–1961) * Hermann Cardinal Volk (1962–1982) *

Karl Cardinal Lehmann Karl Lehmann (16 May 1936 – 11 March 2018) was a German prelate and cardinal of the Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Mainz from 1983 to 2016, being elevated to the cardinalate in 2001. He served as chairman of the Conference of the ...

(1983–2016) * Peter Kohlgraf (2017– ...)

Auxiliary bishops

Archdiocese (to 1802)

Diocese (1802–present)

* Joseph Maria Reuß (Reuss) (1954–1978) * Wolfgang Rolly (1972–2003) *

Franziskus Eisenbach Franziskus Eisenbach (1 May 1943 – 29 May 2024) was a German Roman Catholic prelate, Roman Catholic Diocese of Mainz, auxiliary bishop of Mainz from 1988 to 2002. Life and career Eisenbach was born in Strzelce Opolskie, Groß Strehlitz, Up ...

(1988–2002) * Werner Guballa (2003–2012) * Ulrich Neymeyr (2003–2014) * Udo Markus Bentz (2015– 2024) * vacant

References

Sources and external links

GCatholic
* ; Literature * Stefan Burkhardt, ''Mit Stab und Schwert. Bilder, Träger und Funktionen erzbischöflicher Herrschaft zur Zeit Kaiser Friedrich Barbarossas. Die Erzbistümer Köln und Mainz im Vergleich.'' Thorbecke, Ostfildern, 2008 * Friedhelm Jürgensmeier: ''Das Bistum Mainz''. Von der Römerzeit bis zum II. Vatikanischen Konzil, Knecht Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, 1988, * Hans Werner Nopper, ''Die vorbonifatianischen Mainzer Bischöfe.'' Mülheim, 2001 * Franz Usinger, ''Das Bistum Mainz unter französischer Herrschaft (1798–1814)''. Falk, Mainz, 1911 {{Authority control

Organisations based in Mainz Mainz diocese Mainz diocese