The Diocese of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg ( la, Dioecesis Lausannensis, Genevensis et Friburgensis) is a Latin
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
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, pro ...
in Switzerland, which is (as all sees in the Alpine country) exempt (i.e. 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 Rome ...
, not part of any
ecclesiastical province
An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction
Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United State ...
).
It comprises the Cantons of
Fribourg,
Geneva
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
,
Vaud
Vaud ( ; french: (Canton de) Vaud, ; german: (Kanton) Waadt, or ), more formally the canton of Vaud, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of ten districts and its capital city is Lausanne. Its coat of arms b ...
and
Neuchâtel
, neighboring_municipalities= Auvernier, Boudry, Chabrey (VD), Colombier, Cressier, Cudrefin (VD), Delley-Portalban (FR), Enges, Fenin-Vilars-Saules, Hauterive, Saint-Blaise, Savagnier
, twintowns = Aarau (Switzerland), Besançon (France), ...
, with the exception of certain parishes of the right bank of the
Rhône
The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
belonging to the Diocese of
Sion
Sion may refer to
* an alternative transliteration of Zion
People
* Sion (name) or Siôn, a Welsh and other given name and surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with the name
* Shion or Sion, a Japanese given name
Plac ...
(Sitten). It was created by the merger in 1821 of the Diocese of Lausanne and the Diocese of Geneva, both
prince-bishoprics until they were secularized during the Reformation. Until 1924, it was called the Diocese of Lausanne and Geneva. The diocese has its seat at
Fribourg; it has 680,000 Catholics, constituting 51% of the population of its district (as of 2004). The current bishop is
Charles Morerod
Charles Morerod, O.P. (born 28 October 1961), is a Swiss (people), Swiss Dominican Order, Dominican prelate. Since 2011, he has been Roman Catholic Diocese of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg, bishop of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg. Previously, he s ...
, O.P., who was ordained and installed on 11 December 2011.
Despite the name, it has no direct link with the former
Roman Catholic Diocese of Geneva
The Catholic Diocese of Geneva was a Latin Catholic diocese in part of Switzerland and Savoy from 400 to 1801 when it merged with the Diocese of Chambéry. The merged diocese later lost Swiss territory to the Catholic Diocese of Lausanne, Geneva an ...
(400-1801), which was merged into the then
Diocese of Chambéry, which was promoted a Metropolitan see but lost former Genevan territory to the bishopric of Lausanne in 1819.
History
Lausanne
The origin of the See of Lausanne can be traced to the ancient See of
Windisch
Windisch may refer to:
* Windisch (surname) (including a list of people with the name)
* Windisch, Switzerland, a municipality in the canton of Aargau
* Windisch (ethnonym), German word Wends for Slavs
* Windisch Kamnitz, German name of Srbská Ka ...
(
Vindonissa). Bubulcus, the first Bishop of Windisch, appeared at the imperial
Synod of Epaone
The Council of Epaone or Synod of Epaone was held in September 517 at Epaone (or Epao, near the present Anneyron) in the Kingdom of Burgundy, Burgundian Kingdom.
It was one of three national councils of bishops held around that time in former Rom ...
for the
Arelatic
The following is a list of the kings of the two kingdoms of Burgundy, and a number of related political entities devolving from Carolingian machinations over family relations.
Kings of the Burgundians
*Gebicca (late 4th century – c. 407) ...
Kingdom of the Burgundians in 517. The second and last known Bishop of Windisch was Gramatius (Grammatius), who signed the decrees of the Synods of
Clermont in 535, of
Orléans
Orléans (;["Orleans"](_blank)
(US) and [Konstanz
Konstanz (, , locally: ; also written as Constance in English) is a university city with approximately 83,000 inhabitants located at the western end of Lake Constance in the south of Germany. The city houses the University of Konstanz and was th ...]
, until investigations, particularly by Marius Besson, made it probable that, between 549 and 585, the see was divided and the real seat of the bishops of Windisch transferred to
Avenches (Aventicum), while the eastern part of the diocese was united with the
Diocese of Konstanz
The Prince-Bishopric of Constance, (german: Hochstift Konstanz, Fürstbistum Konstanz, Bistum Konstanz) was a small ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire from the mid-12th century until its secularisation in 1802–1803. In his dua ...
.
According to the Synod of Mâcon of 585 St. Marius seems to have been the first resident Bishop of Avenches. The Chartularium of Lausanne affirms that St. Marius was born in the Burgundian
Diocese of Autun
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Autun (–Chalon-sur-Saône–Mâcon–Cluny) (Latin: ''Dioecesis Augustodunensis (–Cabillonensis–Matisconensis–Cluniacensis)''; French: ''Diocèse d'Autun (–Chalon-sur-Saône–Mâcon–Cluny)''), more simpl ...
about 530, was consecrated Bishop of Avenches in May, 574, and died 31 December, 594. To him we owe a valuable addition (455-581) to the Chronicle of
St. Prosper of Aquitaine
Prosper of Aquitaine ( la, Prosper Aquitanus; – AD), a Christianity, Christian writer and disciple of Augustine of Hippo, was the first continuator of Jerome's Chronicon (Jerome), Universal Chronicle.
Life
Prosper was a native of Aquitaine ...
. The episcopal see of Avenches may have been transferred to Lausanne by Marius, or possibly not before 610.
Lausanne was originally a
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 jurisdictiona ...
of the
archbishopric of Lyon
The Archdiocese of Lyon (Latin: ''Archidiœcesis Lugdunensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Lyon''), formerly the Archdiocese of Lyon–Vienne–Embrun, is a Latin Church metropolitan archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. The Archbishops ...
(certainly about the seventh century), later of
Besançon, from which it was detached by the French
Napoleonic Concordat
The Concordat of 1801 was an agreement between Napoleon Bonaparte and Pope Pius VII, signed on 15 July 1801 in Paris. It remained in effect until 1905, except in Alsace-Lorraine, where it remains in force. It sought national reconciliation ...
of 1801. In medieval times the diocese extended from the
Aar
AAR or Aar may refer to:
Geography
* Aar, a river in Switzerland, tributary of the Rhine
*Aar (Lahn), a tributary of Lahn river in Germany, descending from the Taunus mountains
* Aar (Dill), a tributary of Dill river in Germany, also in the bas ...
, near Solothurn, to the northern end of the Valley of St. Imier, thence along the Doubs and the ridge of the
Jura Mountains
The Jura Mountains ( , , , ; french: Massif du Jura; german: Juragebirge; it, Massiccio del Giura, rm, Montagnas da Jura) are a sub-alpine mountain range a short distance north of the Western Alps and mainly demarcate a long part of the Frenc ...
to where the Aubonne flows into Lake Geneva, and thence along the north of the lake to Villeneuve whence the boundary-line followed the watershed between
Rhône
The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
and Aar to the
Grimsel
The Grimsel Pass (german: Grimselpass; french: Col du Grimsel; it, Passo del Grimsel) is a mountain pass in Switzerland, crossing the Bernese Alps at an elevation of . The pass connects the Haslital, the upper valley of the river Aare, with the ...
, and down the Aar to
Attiswil
Attiswil is a municipality in the Oberaargau administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.
History
Attiswil is first mentioned in 1364 as ''Attenswile''.
The region around the Aare river was inhabited at least as early as th ...
. Thus the diocese included the town of
Solothurn and part of its territory that part of the
Canton of Berne which lay on the left bank of the River Aar, also
Biel/Bienne, the Valley of St. Imier, Jougne and Les Longevilles in the
Franche-Comté
Franche-Comté (, ; ; Frainc-Comtou: ''Fraintche-Comtè''; frp, Franche-Comtât; also german: Freigrafschaft; es, Franco Condado; all ) is a cultural and historical region of eastern France. It is composed of the modern departments of Doubs, ...
, the countships of Neuchâtel and
Valangin, the greater part of the
Canton of Vaud, the
Canton of Fribourg
The canton of Fribourg, also canton of Freiburg (french: Canton de Fribourg ; german: Kanton Freiburg ; frp, Canton de Fribôrg rm, Chantun Friburg it, Canton Friburgo) is located in western Switzerland. The canton is bilingual, with French ...
, the countship of
Gruyère and most of the
Bernese Oberland. The present Diocese of Lausanne includes the Cantons of Fribourg, Vaud and Neuchâtel.
Of the bishops who in the seventh century succeeded St. Marius almost nothing is known. Between 594 and 800 only three bishops are known: Arricus, present at the Council of
Chalon-sur-Saône
Chalon-sur-Saône (, literally ''Chalon on Saône'') is a city in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France.
It is a sub-prefecture of the department. It is the largest city in the department; h ...
, Protasius, elected about 651, and Chilmegisilus, about 670. From the time of
Charlemagne
Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first Holy ...
until the end of the ninth century the following bishops of Lausanne are mentioned: Udalricus (Ulrich), a contemporary of Charlemagne; Fredarius (about 814); David (827-50), slain in combat with one of the lords of
Degerfelden
Rheinfelden ( gsw, Badisch-Rhyfälde, ) is a town in the district of Lörrach in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated on the right bank of the Rhine, across from Rheinfelden, Switzerland, and 15 km east of Basel. The population is ...
; Hartmann (851-78); Hieronymus (879-92).
The most distinguished subsequent bishops are:
Heinrich von Lenzburg (d. 1019), who rebuilt the cathedral in 1000; Hugo (1019–37), a son of
Rudolf III of Burgundy, in 1037 proclaimed the "Peace of God"; Burkart von Oltingen (1057–89), one of the most devoted adherents of
Emperor Henry IV
Henry IV (german: Heinrich IV; 11 November 1050 – 7 August 1106) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1084 to 1105, King of Germany from 1054 to 1105, King of Italy and Burgundy from 1056 to 1105, and Duke of Bavaria from 1052 to 1054. He was the son ...
, with whom he was banished, and made the
pilgrimage to Canossa
The Humiliation of Canossa ( it, L'umiliazione di Canossa), sometimes called the Walk to Canossa (german: Gang nach Canossa/''Kanossa'') or the Road to Canossa, was the ritual submission of Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor, the Holy Roman Emperor, H ...
; Guido von Merlen (1130–44), a correspondent of
St. Bernard; St. Amadeus of Hauterive, a
Cistercian
The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...
(1144–59), who wrote homilies in honour of the Blessed Virgin;
[P. L., CLXXXVIII, 1277–1348] Boniface of Brussels
Boniface of Brussels (1183 – 19 February 1260) was a Catholic prelate who served as the Bishop of Lausanne from circa 1231 until 1239 when he resigned after agents of Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II assaulted him. His relics are housed at the ...
, much venerated (1230/1-39), formerly a master in the
Sorbonne University of Paris and head of the
cathedral school at
Cologne
Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...
, resigned because of physical ill-treatment, afterwards auxiliary bishop in
Brabant Brabant is a traditional geographical region (or regions) in the Low Countries of Europe. It may refer to:
Place names in Europe
* London-Brabant Massif, a geological structure stretching from England to northern Germany
Belgium
* Province of Bra ...
(see Ratzinger in "Stimmen aus Maria-Laach", L, 1896, 10-23, 139-57); the
Benedictine
, 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 ...
Louis de la Palud (1432–40), who took part in the Councils of Konstanz (1414), Pavia-Siena (1423) and Basle (1431--) and at the last-named was chosen, in January, 1432, Bishop of Lausanne, against Jean de Prangins, the chapter's choice; Palud was later vice-chamberlain of the
conclave whence
Amadeus VIII of Savoy emerged as
Antipope Felix V, by whom he was made a cardinal;
George of Saluzzo
George may refer to:
People
* George (given name)
* George (surname)
* George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George
* George Washington, First President of the United States
* George W. Bush, 43rd President ...
, who published synodical constitutions for the reform of the clergy; Cardinal
Giuliano della Rovere
Pope Julius II ( la, Iulius II; it, Giulio II; born Giuliano della Rovere; 5 December 144321 February 1513) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1503 to his death in February 1513. Nicknamed the Warrior Pope or the ...
(1472–76), who in 1503 ascended the papal throne as Julius II.
Meanwhile, the
prince-bishops of Lausanne, who had been
Count
Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...
s of
Vaud
Vaud ( ; french: (Canton de) Vaud, ; german: (Kanton) Waadt, or ), more formally the canton of Vaud, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of ten districts and its capital city is Lausanne. Its coat of arms b ...
since the time of
Rudolph III of Burgundy
Rudolph III (french: Rodolphe, german: Rudolf; – 6 September 1032), called the Idle or the Pious, was the king of Burgundy from 993 until his death. He was the last ruler of an independent Kingdom of Burgundy, and the last male member of the Bu ...
(1011), and until 1218 subject only to imperial authority, were in 1270 granted the status of
prince of the Holy Roman Empire, but their temporal power only extended over a small part of the diocese, namely over the city and district of Lausanne, as well as a few towns and villages in the Cantons of Vaud and Fribourg; on the other hand, the bishops possessed many feoffees among the most distinguished of the patrician families of what is now western Switzerland.
The guardians of the ecclesiastical property (advocati,
avoués) of the see were originally the counts of
Genevois, then the lords of
Gerenstein, the dukes of
Zähringen, the counts of
Kyburg, lastly the counts (later dukes) of
Savoy
Savoy (; frp, Savouè ; french: Savoie ) is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps.
Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south.
Savo ...
. These guardians, whose only duty originally was the protection of the diocese, enlarged their jurisdiction at the expense of the diocesan rights and even filled the episcopal see with members of their families. Wearisome quarrels resulted, during which the city of Lausanne, with the aid of Berne and Fribourg, acquired new rights, and gradually freed itself from episcopal suzerainty. When Bishop Sebastian de Montfaucon (1517–60) took sides with the Duke of Savoy in a battle against Berne, the Bernese used this as a pretext to seize the city of Lausanne. On 31 March 1536, Hans Franz Nägeli entered Lausanne as conqueror, abolished Catholicism, and began a religious revolution. The bishop was obliged to flee, the ecclesiastical treasure was taken to Berne, the cathedral chapter was dissolved (and never re-established), while the cathedral was given over to the
Swiss Reformed Church
The Protestant Church in Switzerland (PCS), (EKS); french: Église évangélique réformée de Suisse (EERS); it, Chiesa evangelica riformata in Svizzera (CERiS); rm, Baselgia evangelica refurmada da la Svizra (BRRS) formerly named Federation o ...
. Bishop Sebastian died an exile in 1560, and his three successors were likewise exiles. It was only in 1610, under Bishop Johann VII of Watteville, that the see was provisionally re-established at
Fribourg, where it has since remained.
The cantons of Vaud, Neuchâtel and Berne were entirely lost by the See of Lausanne to the Reformation. By the
French revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...
ary
Constitution Civile du Clergé (1790) the Parishes of the
French Jura
The Jura Mountains ( , , , ; french: Massif du Jura; german: Juragebirge; it, Massiccio del Giura, rm, Montagnas da Jura) are a sub-alpine mountain range a short distance north of the Western Alps and mainly demarcate a long part of the Frenc ...
fell to the
Diocese of Belley
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 associate ...
, and this was confirmed by the
Concordat of 1801. In 1814 the parishes of Solothurn, in 1828 those of the
Bernese Jura, and in 1864 also that district of Berne on the left bank of the Aar were attached to the
bishopric of Basle
The Diocese of Basel (german: Bistum Basel; la, Diœcesis Basileensis) is a Catholic diocese in Switzerland.
Historically, the bishops of Basel were also secular rulers of the Prince-Bishopric of Basel (german: Fürstbistum Basel).
The bish ...
. In compensation,
Pius VII
Pope Pius VII ( it, Pio VII; born Barnaba Niccolò Maria Luigi Chiaramonti; 14 August 1742 – 20 August 1823), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 14 March 1800 to his death in August 1823. Chiaramonti was also a m ...
assigned, in a
papal brief
A papal brief or breve is a formal document emanating from the Pope, in a somewhat simpler and more modern form than a papal bull.
History
The introduction of briefs, which occurred at the beginning of the pontificate of Pope Eugene IV (3 Marc ...
of 20 September 1819, the city of Geneva and twenty parishes belonging to the old Diocese of Geneva (which in 1815 had become Swiss) to the See of Lausanne. The bishop (in 1815 Petrus Tohias Yenni) retained his residence at Fribourg, and since 1821 has borne the title and arms of the Bishops of Lausanne and Geneva. His
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 ...
resides at
Geneva
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
, and is always parish priest of that city.
Lausanne and Geneva
Bishop Yenni died on 8 December 1845 and was succeeded b
Etienne Marilley Deposed in 1848 by the Cantons of
Berne, Geneva,
Vaud
Vaud ( ; french: (Canton de) Vaud, ; german: (Kanton) Waadt, or ), more formally the canton of Vaud, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of ten districts and its capital city is Lausanne. Its coat of arms b ...
and
Neuchâtel
, neighboring_municipalities= Auvernier, Boudry, Chabrey (VD), Colombier, Cressier, Cudrefin (VD), Delley-Portalban (FR), Enges, Fenin-Vilars-Saules, Hauterive, Saint-Blaise, Savagnier
, twintowns = Aarau (Switzerland), Besançon (France), ...
, owing to serious differences with the Radical regime at
Fribourg, Marilley was kept a prisoner for fifty days in the
Château de Chillon
Chillon Castle (french: Château de Chillon) is an island castle located on Lake Geneva, south of Veytaux in the canton of Vaud. It is situated at the eastern end of the lake, on the narrow shore between Montreux and Villeneuve, which gives acce ...
, on
Lake Geneva
, image = Lake Geneva by Sentinel-2.jpg
, caption = Satellite image
, image_bathymetry =
, caption_bathymetry =
, location = Switzerland, France
, coords =
, lake_type = Glacial lak ...
, and then spent eight years in exile in France; he was allowed to return to his diocese on 19 December 1856.
In 1864,
Pope Pius IX
Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...
appointed the
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 ...
of Geneva,
Gaspard Mermillod
Gaspard Mermillod (22 September 1824 – 23 February 1892) was a Swiss Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. Despite a lengthy investiture conflict with the Calvinist Canton of Geneva, he served as Bishop of Lausanne and Geneva from 1883 ...
, as an
auxiliary bishop. In 1873, Pius IX detached the Genevese territory from the diocese, made it an
apostolic vicariate, and appointed Mermillod as vicar apostolic. By this action, Geneva was again severed from the Diocese of Lausanne and Freiburg, contrary to the wishes of the civil authorities, and, it was asserted, the wishes of a majority of the Catholic population.
[
] The Apostolic Vicariate of Geneva was not recognized by either the State Council of Geneva or the Swiss Federal Council, and Mermillod was banished from Switzerland by a 17 February 1873 decree. When the Holy See condemned this measure, the Government answered, on 12 December 1873, by expelling the
Nuncio
An apostolic nuncio ( la, nuntius apostolicus; also known as a papal nuncio or simply as a nuncio) is an ecclesiastical diplomat, serving as an envoy or a permanent diplomatic representative of the Holy See to a state or to an international or ...
. After Marilley had resigned his diocese in 1879
Monsignor Christophore Cosandey Provost at Fribourg's seminary, was elected Bishop of Lausanne and Geneva, and after his death, Mermillod. The Apostolic Vicariate of Geneva was given up, the conflict with the Government ended, and the decree of expulsion against Mermillod was revoked. In 1890,
Pope Leo XIII
Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-old ...
made Mermillod a cardinal and he moved to Rome
Monsignor Joseph Déruazwas named as his successor.
Reports of sex abuse
On July 15, 2020, a Vatican investigation revealed that the number of reported cases of abuse involving Catholic priests and monks serving in the Diocese of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg have been increasing over the past few years and that the payment of financial compensation which people in the Diocese distributed for victims of abuse totaled CHF675,000 ($718,000) in 2018 - up from CHF425,000 in the previous year - according to figures released by the Vatican News.
However, another Catholic Church inquiry found the Bishop Charles Morerod did not protect a former priest in the Diocese who was facing sex abuse allegations, but that he instead "downplayed" the seriousness of the allegations when they were reported to him.
The accused former priest, who submitted his resignation the previous month, was alleged to have sexually abused a 17-year-old and molested a fellow priest between 1998 and 2011.
Bishops of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg
The see had its borders changed in 1924 and became the diocese of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg
*Marius Besson (7 May 1920 Appointed – 22 Feb 1945 Died)
*
François Charrière
François Charrière (1 September 1893 - 11 July 1976) was the Roman Catholic bishop of Roman Catholic Diocese of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg, Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg from 1945 to 1970.
Biography
François Charrière was born into a peasan ...
(20 Oct 1945 Appointed – 29 Dec 1970 Retired)
*Pierre Mamie (29 Dec 1970 Appointed – 9 Nov 1995 Retired)
*
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 Di ...
O.S.B. (9 Nov 1995 Appointed – 12 Jun 1998 Confirmed, Bishop of Chur)
*Bernard Genoud (18 Mar 1999 Appointed – 21 Sep 2010 Died)
*
Charles Morerod
Charles Morerod, O.P. (born 28 October 1961), is a Swiss (people), Swiss Dominican Order, Dominican prelate. Since 2011, he has been Roman Catholic Diocese of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg, bishop of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg. Previously, he s ...
, O.P. (3 Nov 2011 Appointed – )
Statistics
According to Büchi (see bibliography) and the ''Dictionnaire géographique de la Suisse'' (Neuchâtel, 1905), III, 49 sqq., the diocese numbered approximately 434,049
Protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
s and 232,056
Catholics
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
; consequently, the latter formed somewhat more than one-third of the whole population of the bishopric. The Catholics inhabit principally the
Canton of Fribourg
The canton of Fribourg, also canton of Freiburg (french: Canton de Fribourg ; german: Kanton Freiburg ; frp, Canton de Fribôrg rm, Chantun Friburg it, Canton Friburgo) is located in western Switzerland. The canton is bilingual, with French ...
(excepting the Lake District) and the country parishes transferred to
Geneva
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
in 1515, four communes in the
Canton of Neuchâtel
The Republic and Canton of Neuchâtel (french: République et Canton de Neuchâtel); rm, Chantun Neuchâtel; it, Cantone di Neuchâtel is a French-speaking canton in western Switzerland. In 2007, its population was 169,782, of whom 39,654 (o ...
, and ten in the
Canton of Vaud. The Catholic population in the Cantons of Fribourg and Geneva consisted principally of farmers, in both of the other cantons it is also recruited from the labouring classes. The Catholics were distributed among 193 parishes, of which 162 allotted to
Lausanne
, neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR-74), ...
, 31 to Geneva. The number of secular priests was 390, those belonging to orders 70.
Among the more important educational establishments of diocese, besides those already mentioned, are: the University of Fribourg ; the theological seminary of St. Charles at Fribourg, with seven ecclesiastical professors; the cantonal school of St. Michel, also at Fribourg, which comprises a German and French gymnasium, a
Realschule (corresponding somewhat to the English first-grade schools) and commercial school, as well as a lyceum, the rector of which was a clergyman. This school had in 1910 about 800 pupils, with 40 ecclesiastical and as many lay professors. Three other cantonal universities existed in the diocese: Geneva (founded by
Calvin Calvin may refer to:
Names
* Calvin (given name)
** Particularly Calvin Coolidge, 30th President of the United States
* Calvin (surname)
** Particularly John Calvin, theologian
Places
In the United States
* Calvin, Arkansas, a hamlet
* Calvin T ...
in 1559, and in 1873 raised to the rank of a university with five faculties); Neuchâtel (1866, academy; 1909, university); Lausanne (1537, academy; university since 1890, with five faculties). Geneva and Lausanne both have cantonal Protestant theological faculties, Neuchâtel a "Faculté de théologie de l'église indépendante de l'état".
For the government of the diocese there were, besides the bishop, two vicars-general, one living at Geneva, the other at Fribourg. There were, moreover, a ''
provicarius generalis'', who is also chancellor of the diocese, and a secretary. The cathedral
chapter of Lausanne (with 32 canons was suppressed at the time of the Protestant Reformation and has never been re-established, in consequence of which the choice of a bishop rests with the Holy See. In 1512
Julius II established a collegiate chapter in the church of St. Nicholas at Fribourg, which is immediately subject to the Holy See, with a
provost appointed by the Great Council, also a
dean, a
cantor and ten
prebendaries. This collegiate church took the place of the diocesan cathedral, lacking since the cathedral of St. Pierre at Geneva and that of Notre-Dame at Lausanne were given over to Protestantism at the time of the Reformation.
See also
*
Convent of Saint-Hyacinth, Fribourg
The Convent of Saint-Hyacinth is a convent of the Dominican Order in Fribourg, in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg.
See also
*Catholicism in Switzerland
The Catholic Church in Switzerland (german: Römisch-katholi ...
*
List of Catholic dioceses in Switzerland
*
Roman Catholic Diocese of Geneva
The Catholic Diocese of Geneva was a Latin Catholic diocese in part of Switzerland and Savoy from 400 to 1801 when it merged with the Diocese of Chambéry. The merged diocese later lost Swiss territory to the Catholic Diocese of Lausanne, Geneva an ...
Notes
References
Sources and external links
GCatholic *
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg, Roman Catholic Diocese
Religious organizations established in 1821
Religion is usually defined as a social-cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, tra ...
Roman Catholic dioceses in Switzerland
Diocese (Roman Catholic)
Religion in Geneva
Fribourg
Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 19th century
1821 establishments in Switzerland
Eighteen or 18 may refer to:
* 18 (number), the natural number following 17 and preceding 19
* one of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018
Film, television and entertainment
* ''18'' (film), a 1993 Taiwanese experimental film based on the short s ...