Matthias Franz Johann Ring (born 22 February 1963 in

Wallenfels Wallenfels is a town in the district of Kronach, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated in the Franconian Forest, 11 km east of Kronach, and 32 km west of Hof. Geography Wallenfels lies on the B 173, between Hof and Coburg. Neighbouri ...

, District of Kronach,

Upper Franconia Upper Franconia (, ) is a (administrative 'Regierungs''region 'bezirk'' of the state of Bavaria, southern Germany. It forms part of the historically significant region of Franconia, the others being Middle Franconia and Lower Franconia, wh ...

) is a German

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

and the

Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the Catholic Diocese of the Old-Catholics in Germany. He attended elementary school in

from 1969 to 1973 and secondary school ("Kaspar-Zeuss- Gymnasium") in the city of

Kronach Kronach (; ) is a Town#Germany, town in Upper Franconia, Germany, located in the Franconian Forest area. It is the capital of the Kronach (district), district Kronach. The town is equipped with a nearly complete city wall and Germany's biggest an ...

from 1977, from which he graduated in 1982 ("

Abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...

"). After graduation from secondary school he read

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

at the

University of Würzburg The Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg (also referred to as the University of Würzburg, in German ''Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg'') is a public research university in Würzburg, Germany. Founded in 1402, it is one of the ol ...

and at the

University of Bamberg The University of Bamberg () in Bamberg, Germany, specializes in the humanities, cultural studies, social sciences, economics, and applied computer science. Campus The university is partly housed in historical buildings in Bamberg's Old Town. ...

and graduated with a diploma in 1988. After reception into the Old Catholic Church he subsequently studied at the Department for Old Catholic Theology at the

University of Bonn The University of Bonn, officially the Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn (), is a public research university in Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was founded in its present form as the () on 18 October 1818 by Frederick Willi ...

for a further two semesters and passed the supplementary examination required for ordination on 25 October 1991. Ring was

made Made or MADE may refer to: Entertainment Film * ''Made'' (1972 film), United Kingdom * ''Made'' (2001 film), United States Music * ''Made'' (Big Bang album), 2016 * ''Made'' (Hawk Nelson album), 2013 * ''Made'' (Scarface album), 2007 *'' M.A.D.E. ...

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...

by Bishop Sigisbert Kraft on 13 May 1989 to serve the Old Catholic communities of

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is, after Nuremberg and Fürth, the Franconia#Towns and cities, third-largest city in Franconia located in the north of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. It sp ...

and

Nürnberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the largest city in Franconia, the second-largest city in the German state of Bavaria, and its 544,414 (2023) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest city in Germany. ...

. Some six months later (18 November 1989) he was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

and installed as

pastor A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...

of the Old Catholic parishes in

Regensburg Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...

and

Passau Passau (; ) is a city in Lower Bavaria, Germany. It is also known as the ("City of Three Rivers"), as the river Danube is joined by the Inn (river), Inn from the south and the Ilz from the north. Passau's population is about 50,000, of whom ...

on 1 October 1993. In order to pursue further academic studies and to earn a doctorate in theology, Ring left active parish ministry in 2001 and became a research associate at the Department of Old Catholic Theology at the University of Bonn and a graduate student at the Faculty of Old Catholic Theology at the

University of Bern The University of Bern (, , ) is a public university, public research university in the Switzerland, Swiss capital of Bern. It was founded in 1834. It is regulated and financed by the canton of Bern. It is a comprehensive university offering a br ...

. Simultaneously, he served as rector of the

diocesan 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 associated ...

seminary of the Old Catholic Church in

Bonn Bonn () is a federal city in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, located on the banks of the Rhine. With a population exceeding 300,000, it lies about south-southeast of Cologne, in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr region. This ...

. He graduated ( "Dr. theol.") after finishing his dissertation titled "Catholic and German. The Old Catholic Church of Germany and National Socialism" in 2006. He had already returned as pastor to Regensburg the previous year. Ring as served as editor of the diocesan magazine ''Christen heute'' ("Christians Today"),''Christen heute'', German Old Catholic magazine
/ref> as president of the synod of the Bavarian parishes, and as chairman of the finance committee. At an extraordinary diocesan synod on 7 November 2009, in

Mannheim Mannheim (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (), is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, second-largest city in Baden-Württemberg after Stuttgart, the States of Ger ...

, Ring was elected to succeed Joachim Vobbe as the tenth Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of the Old Catholics in Germany; Ring was consecrated a bishop in

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( ; ; ; South Franconian German, South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, third-largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, after its capital Stuttgart a ...

on 20 March 2010.
:de:Matthias Ring

/ref>

References

External links

Katholisches Bistum der Alt-Katholiken in Deutschland

Pictures of Electoral Synod

Pictures of Electoral Synod, day I

Pictures of Electoral Synod, day II
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ring, Matthias 1963 births Living people People from Kronach (district) German Old Catholic bishops Former Roman Catholics University of Bonn alumni University of Würzburg alumni German Old Catholic theologians German male non-fiction writers 21st-century German theologians 21st-century German writers 20th-century German Catholic theologians 20th-century German writers