Joseph Ludwig Colmar (born at Strasburg, 22 June 1760; died at

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 (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...

, 15 December 1818) was a German

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 ...

Bishop of Mainz The Diocese of Mainz, historically known in English as ''Mentz'' as well as by its French name ''Mayence'', is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. It was founded in 304, promoted in 780 to Metrop ...

Life

After his ordination (20 December 1783) he was professor of history and Greek at the Royal Seminary, and curate at St. Stephen's, Strasbourg. During the reign of terror, brought about at Strasbourg by the apostate monk,

Eulogius Schneider Eulogius Schneider (baptized as: Johann Georg; October 20, 1756 – April 1, 1794) was a Franciscan friar, professor in Bonn and Dominican in Strasbourg. Life Johann Georg Schneider was born as the son of a wine grower and his wife in Wipfel ...

, he secretly remained in the city, and administered the sacraments. After the fall of

Robespierre Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre (; 6 May 1758 – 28 July 1794) was a French lawyer and statesman who became one of the best-known, influential and controversial figures of the French Revolution. As a member of the Esta ...

he went about preaching and instructing.

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

appointed him Bishop of Mainz; he was consecrated at Paris, 24 August 1802. The metropolitan see of St. Boniface had been vacant for ten years; the

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

had been profaned and partially destroyed during the siege of Mainz in 1793; a new diocese had been formed under the old title of Mainz, but subject to the

Archbishop of Mechelen In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdioc ...

; revolution, war, and secularization of convents, monasteries, and the property of the former archdiocese had affected his new diocese. Due to the fact that

Mainz Cathedral , native_name_lang = , image = Mainzer Dom nw.jpg , imagesize = , imagelink = , imagealt = , caption = , pushpin map = , pushpin label position = , pushpin map alt = , pushpin mapsize = , relief = , map caption = , iso regi ...

lay partially in ruins St. Peter's was chosen for the inauguration of bishop Joseph Ludwig Colmar in 1803.Martina Rommel, Elmar Rettinger, ''Mainz - Stift Alt-St.Peter.'' In: Klöster und Stifte in Rheinland-Pfalz Colmar rebuilt and reconsecrated the cathedral, and by his influence saved the

Speyer Cathedral , native_name_lang = German , image = Speyer_dom_11.jpg , imagesize = 280px , imagelink = , imagealt = , landscape = , caption = , pushpin ma ...

which was about to be destroyed by order of the Government. He opened a seminary (1804), which he placed under the direction of the Venerable

Liebermann Lieberman, Liebermann, or Liberman are names deriving from ''Lieb'', a German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) nickname for a person from the German ''lieb'' or Yiddish ''lib'', meaning 'dear, beloved'.Patrick Hanks and Flavia Hodges, ''A Dictionary of Surn ...

; he visited parishes and school, and reorganized the religious structure which the Revolution had swept away. He was an active adversary of Wessenberg and the rationalistic liberal tendencies represented by him and the

Illuminati The Illuminati (; plural of Latin ''illuminatus'', 'enlightened') is a name given to several groups, both real and fictitious. Historically, the name usually refers to the Bavarian Illuminati, an Enlightenment-era secret society founded on ...

. He tried to reintroduce several religious communities in his diocese, but accomplished, however, only the restoration of the Institute of Mary Ward (Dames Anglaises). Shortly before his death he established the sisters of Divine Providence in the Bavarian part of his diocese (the former

Diocese of Speyer The Diocese of Speyer (lat. Dioecesis Spirensis) is a diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. The diocese is located in the South of the Rhineland-Palatinate and comprises also the Saarpfalz Districts of Germany, district in the east of the S ...

). During the epidemic of 1813 and 1814, after the

battle of Leipzig The Battle of Leipzig (french: Bataille de Leipsick; german: Völkerschlacht bei Leipzig, ); sv, Slaget vid Leipzig), also known as the Battle of the Nations (french: Bataille des Nations; russian: Битва народов, translit=Bitva ...

, he personally served the sick and dying. Colmar edited a collection of old German church hymns (1807) and several excellent prayer books. His sermons were published in seven volumes (Mainz, 1836; Ratisbon, 1879).

References

*Selbst, ''J. L. Colmar'' (1902) *Franz Xaver Remling, ''Gesch. der Bischöfe von Speyer'' (Speyer, 1867) *life by Franz Sausen in editions of Colmar's sermons.

External links

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colmar, Joseph Ludwig 1760 births 1818 deaths Bishops of Mainz (1802-present) German sermon writers