Paul Melchers (6 January 1813 – 14 December 1895) was a

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

and

Archbishop of Cologne The Archbishop of Cologne is an archbishop governing the Archdiocese of Cologne of the Catholic Church in western North Rhine-Westphalia and is also a historical state in the Rhine holding the birthplace of Beethoven and northern Rhineland-Palat ...

. At the height of the '' Kulturkampf'' he took refuge in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

Life

Melchers was born in

Münster Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state di ...

. He studied law at

Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ru ...

(1830–33), and a few years practice at

, took up theology at

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

under

Heinrich Klee Heinrich Klee (20 April 1800 in Münstermaifeld, Rhine province – 28 July 1840 in Munich) was a German theologian and Biblical exegete who argued against liberal and Rationalist currents in Catholic thought. Biography At the age of sevent ...

Joseph Görres Johann Joseph Görres, since 1839 von Görres (25 January 1776 – 29 January 1848), was a German writer, philosopher, theologian, historian and journalist. Early life Görres was born in Koblenz. His father was moderately well off, and sent hi ...

Karl Joseph Hieronymus Windischmann Karl Joseph Hieronymus Windischmann (25 August 1775, in Mainz – 23 April 1839, in Bonn) was a German philosopher and anthropologist. Biography Windischmann attended the Gymnasium in Mainz, and in 1772 took the course in philosophy at t ...

and

Ignaz von Döllinger Johann Joseph Ignaz von Döllinger (; 28 February 179914 January 1890), also Doellinger in English, was a German theologian, Catholic priest and church historian who rejected the dogma of papal infallibility. Among his writings which proved con ...

. Ordained in 1841, he was assigned to duty in the village of

Haltern Haltern am See (''Haltern at the lake'', before December 2001 only Haltern) is a town and a municipality in the district of Recklinghausen, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated on the Lippe and the Wesel–Datteln Canal, approx. nor ...

. In 1844 he became vice-rector of the diocesan seminary, rector (1851), canon of the cathedral (1852), vicar-general (1854). Pope Pius IX appointed him

Bishop of Osnabrück A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

(1857) and

(1866). He inaugurated (1867) at Fulda, meetings of the German bishops. He regarded the formal definition of

papal infallibility Papal infallibility is a dogma of the Catholic Church which states that, in virtue of the promise of Jesus to Peter, the Pope when he speaks '' ex cathedra'' is preserved from the possibility of error on doctrine "initially given to the apos ...

as untimely, a conviction which he, with thirteen other bishops, expressed in a letter to the pope, 4 September 1869. In the First Vatican Council Melchers took a prominent part. At the session of 13 July 1870, he voted negatively on the question of papal infallibility; but he refused to sign an address in which fifty-five other members of the minority notified the pope of their immediate departure and reiterated their ''non placet''. He left Rome before the fourth session, giving as his reason the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian war, and declaring his readiness to abide by the decisions of the Council. On his return to Cologne he proclaimed in an address (24 July) the dogma defined on 18 July. As a means of ensuring obedience to the Council, the bishops assembled by him in Fulda, published (1 September) a joint letter, for which Pius IX (20 October) expressed gratitude. To eliminate the opposition at Bonn, the archbishop (20 Sept. and 8 Oct.) called on professors

Franz Xaver Dieringer Franz Xaver Dieringer was a Catholic theologian (22 August 1811, at Rangendingen (Hohenzollern-Hechingen) – 8 September 1876, at Veringendorf (today a district of Veringenstadt)). He was a professor of dogma and homiletics at the University of Bo ...

, Franz Heinrich Reusch,

Joseph Langen Joseph Langen (3 June 1837 – 13 July 1901) was a German theologian and priest, who was instrumental for the German Old Catholic movement. Langen was born at Cologne, studied at Bonn, and was ordained priest for the Roman Catholic Church in 1 ...

, and

Franz Peter Knoodt Franz Peter Knoodt (6 November 1811 – 27 January 1889) was a German Catholic theologian who was a native of Boppard. He studied theology in Bonn und Tübingen, and later worked as a chaplain and teacher in Trier. In 1841-43 he furthered hi ...

to sign a declaration accepting the Vatican decree and pledging conformity thereto in their teaching. Dieringer alone complied; the others were suspended and eventually (12 March 1872) excommunicated. The ''Kulturkampf'' was firmly resisted by Archbishop Melchers. In June, 1873, he excommunicated two priests who had joined the

Old Catholics The terms Old Catholic Church, Old Catholics, Old-Catholic churches or Old Catholic movement designate "any of the groups of Western Christians who believe themselves to maintain in complete loyalty the doctrine and traditions of the undivide ...

; for this and other administrative acts he was fined and imprisoned for six months (12 March–October, 1874). On 2 December 1875, the President of the Rhine Province demanded his resignation on pain of deposition; he refused, but learning that preparations were being made to deport him to Küstrin he escaped (13 December) to

Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; li, Mestreech ; french: Maestricht ; es, Mastrique ) is a city and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg. Maastricht is located on both sides of the ...

and took refuge with the

Franciscans , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

. From their monastery he administered his dioceses for ten years. On different occasions he informed

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 ...

of his willingness to resign for the general good. The pope at last consented, but called him to Rome, and created him cardinal (27 July 1885). In 1892, during a serious illness he was received into the

Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

and lived as a Jesuit until his death three years later in Rome. He was laid to rest in the cathedral of Cologne. St. Paul's Church, Cologne, completed in 1908, commemorates Melchers.

Works

His principal publications are: ''Erinnerungen an die Feier des 50jährigen Bischofsjubiläums des h. Vaters Pius IX.'' (Recollections on the Golden Jubilee of Pope Pius IX; Cologne, 1876); ''Eine Unterweisung über das Gebet'' (Cologne, 1876); ''Einer Unterweisung über des heilige Messopfer'' (Cologne, 1879); ''Das Sendschreiben des heiligen Vaters Papst Leo XIII. über den Socialismus'' (Cologne, 1880); ''Die katholische Lehre von der Kirche'' (Cologne, 1881); ''Das eine Nothwendige'' (Cologne, 1882); ''De canonica dioecesium visitatione'' (Rome, 1892).

References

*Heinrich Maria Ludwigs, ''Kardinal Erzbischof Dr. Paulus Melchers und die St. Pauluskirche in Köln'' (Cologne, 1909) * Theodor Granderath/Konrad Kirch, ''Geschichte des Vatikanischen Konzils'', I, II, III (Freiburg, 1903–1906) *Theodor Granderath, ''Acta et Decreta S. S. conciliorum recentiorum'', tom. VII (Freiburg, 1890)

External links

* , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Melchers, Paul 1813 births 1895 deaths People from Münster Roman Catholic bishops of Osnabrück Archbishops of Cologne 19th-century German cardinals Cardinals created by Pope Leo XIII 19th-century German Jesuits People from the Province of Westphalia Burials at Cologne Cathedral Jesuit cardinals 20th-century German Roman Catholic priests