Georg Michael Wittmann (22 (23?) January 1760, near
Pleistein,
Oberpfalz,
Bavaria
Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...
– 8 March 1833, at
Ratisbon
Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state. With m ...
) was a German prelate of the Catholic Church.
Life
Wittman studied first with the
Jesuits
The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
, then with the
Benedictines
The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly Christian mysticism, contemplative Christian monasticism, monastic Religious order (Catholic), order of the Catholic Church for men and f ...
at
Amberg
Amberg () is a Town#Germany, town in Bavaria, Germany. It is located in the Upper Palatinate about halfway between Regensburg and Bayreuth.
History
The town was first mentioned in 1034 with the name Ammenberg. It became an important trading c ...
(1769–78), and at the
University of Heidelberg
Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (; ), is a public university, public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is List ...
(1778-9). On 21 December 1782, he was ordained priest. He served in the parishes of
Kenmath,
Kaltenbrunn, and
Miesbrunn.
Wittman became professor and subregens at the diocesan seminary of Ratisbon in 1788, and regens in 1802. He served there for forty-five years, overseeing the preparation of over 1500 candidates for the priesthood. From 1804 he was also pastor of the cathedral.
In 1829 he was appointed auxiliary
Bishop of Ratisbon and consecrated titular
Bishop of Comana. In 1830, when the
coadjutor The term "coadjutor" (literally "co-assister" in Latin) is a title qualifier indicating that the holder shares the office with another person, with powers equal to the other in all but formal order of precedence.
These include:
* Coadjutor bishop ...
Johann Michael Sailer became ordinary of Ratisbon, Wittmann was made his
vicar-general
A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop or archbishop of a diocese or an archdiocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar ...
; and after Sailer's death he was nominated Bishop of Ratisbon, 1 July 1832, but died before his
preconization
A preconization (Late Lat. ''praeconizatio'', from ''praeconizare'', "to proclaim", Lat. ''praeco'', "a public crier") is a public proclamation or announcement. In this sense it is practically obsolete; but the word is still technically used of th ...
. He was buried in the cathedral of Ratisbon, where a monument was erected to his memory by
Conrad Eberhard.
Works
His chief literary works are:
* (Ratisbon, 1793)
* (Ibid., 1796)
* (Augsburg, 1801)
* (s. l., 1804; Ratisbon, 1834)
* (Sulzbach, 1832).
Wittmann also prepared with
Feneberg a translation of the New Testament (Nuremberg, 1808; latest edition, Sulzbach, 1878). For a time he availed himself of the services of the Protestant
Bible Society of London to spread his translation among the people, but in 1820 he severed all relations with this society.
References
The entry cites:
*Mittermuller, (Landshut, 1859)
*Mehler, (Ratisbon, 1894)
*Hahn, (Ratisbon, 1860)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wittman, Georg Michael
1760 births
1833 deaths
Roman Catholic bishops of Regensburg
19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Bavaria
Burials at Regensburg Cathedral