Catholic Diocese of the Old Catholics in Germany

Classification| Old Catholic
Theology| Ultrajectine
Governance| Episcopal
Leader| Matthias Ring,
Catholic Bishop of the Old Catholics in Germany
Associations| International Old Catholic Bishops' Conference
Region| Germany
Headquarters| Bonn
Separated from| Catholic Church
Congregations| 55
Members| 15,910[1][2]
Ministers| 100

The Catholic Diocese of the Old Catholics in Germany (German: Katholisches Bistum der Alt-Katholiken in Deutschland) is the German member body of the Union of Utrecht of Old Catholic Churches, which follow Ultrajectine theology. It is permitted to levy the German church tax on its members. Its episcopal see is in Bonn, as is its theological faculty. Its membership is concentrated around Cologne, Bonn, the Ruhr and southern Baden. The bishop of the diocese is Matthias Ring.[3]

## Legal status

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In Germany, the Old Catholic Church is a Körperschaft des öffentlichen Rechts or statutory corporation and is empowered as such to levy church tax in most federal states except some in northern and eastern Germany.[4]

## Prevalence

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The oldest parish in Germany is on the North Frisian island of Nordstrand; its origins go back to the year 1654. It was established by Dutch Ultrajectine Catholics from the Archdiocese of Utrecht employed to build dykes.[5]

Old Catholic parishes are most concentrated in North Rhine-Westphalia and in Baden-Württemberg. The parishes in southern Baden are very close to the parishes of the Christian Catholic Church of Switzerland, with whom they share their heritage from the reform-friendly Roman Catholic Diocese of Constance, which was dissolved in 1821. In Bavaria, Old Catholic parishes are particularly concentrated in areas where German refugees from Bohemia and Moravia settled after World War II. In Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland, and Hesse, Old Catholics are relatively evenly distributed. In the traditionally Protestant areas of northern and eastern Germany, by contrast, parish boundaries are far larger, reflecting the diaspora situation there.[3]

The Old Catholic bishop has his episcopal see in Bonn, which is also the location of the diocesan seminary at the University of Bonn, which has a professor’s chair of Old Catholic theology.[6] Since 20 March 2012, Matthias Ring has been bishop. There is only one diocese, which covers the entire country.[3] The diocese has its cathedral at the Namen-Jesu-Kirche (Church of the Holy Name of Jesus) in Bonn, which was renovated by the state and provided to the Old Catholics for their use starting 2 June 2012.[7]

## Bishops

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* Joseph Hubert Reinkens (1873–96), first German Old Catholic bishop, instituted liturgical and disciplinary reforms
* Theodor Weber (1896–1906)
* Josef Demmel (1906–1913)
* Georg Moog (1913–1934), first married Old Catholic bishop
* Erwin Kreuzer (1935–1953)
* Johann Josef Demmel (1953–1966)
* Josef Brinkhues (1966–1986)
* Sigisbert Kraft (1986–1995), first Old Catholic bishop to ordain a woman to the diaconate
* Joachim Vobbe (1995–2010), first Old Catholic bishop to ordain a woman to the priesthood
* Matthias Ring (2010–)

## References

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1. ^ "Meldungen > Meldungen • Katholisches Bistum der Alt-Katholiken in Deutschland". www.alt-katholisch.de. Archived from the original on 2017-03-23. Retrieved 2017-04-04.
2. ^ "Jahresstatistik : Leichtes Wachstum". Katholisches Bistum der Alt-Katholiken in Deutschland. 2016-04-03. Retrieved 2016-04-04.
3. ^ a b c "Information > Kurzdarstellung • Katholisches Bistum der Alt-Katholiken in Deutschland". Archived from the original on 2014-07-16. Retrieved 2014-07-31. Website of Old Catholic German diocese (German)
4. ^ "Länderunterschiedliche Werte für die Lohnsteuer-Anmeldung". Archived from the original on 2012-01-26. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
5. ^ "Gemeinden > Gemeinden > Gemeinde Nordstrand • Katholisches Bistum der Alt-Katholiken in Deutschland". www.alt-katholisch.de.
6. ^ "Website of the Old Catholic seminary (German)". Archived from the original on 2014-07-13. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
7. ^ "Startseite". Archived from the original on 2014-07-30. Retrieved 2014-07-31. Website of the cathedral (German)

## External links

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* Official website

* v
* t
* e

The Union of Utrecht of the Old Catholic Churches

Unifying institutions|

* Old Catholic Archbishop of Utrecht
* International Old Catholic Bishops' Conference
* International Old Catholic Congresses

Member churches|

* Old Catholic Church of the Netherlands
* Catholic Diocese of the Old Catholics in Germany
* Old Catholic Church of Austria
* Christian Catholic Church of Switzerland
* Old Catholic Church of the Czech Republic
* Polish-Catholic Church (not to be confused with PNCC based in the United States, see below)

Dependent jurisdictions|

* Old Catholic Church of Croatia
* Old Catholic Mission in France
* Old Catholic Church in Sweden and Denmark

Churches in full communion|

* Anglican Communion
* Church of Sweden
* Philippine Independent Church

Churches no longer in communion|

* Polish National Catholic Church (PNCC; based in the United States)

Defunct Churches|

* Old Catholic Church in Italy

Derivatives|

* Union of Scranton

* v
* t
* e

Christianity in Germany

Eastern Christianity|

| Eastern Orthodox
(Main article)|

| Eastern
Orthodox
Church|

* Archdiocese of Russian Orthodox churches in Western Europe
* Bulgarian Orthodox Eparchy of Central and Western Europe
* Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Germany and Central Europe (Antioch)
* Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Germany (Constantinople)
* Macedonian Orthodox Diocese of Europe
* Polish Orthodox Church
* Romanian Orthodox Metropolis of Germany and Central Europe
* Russian Orthodox Diocese of Berlin and Germany (Moscow)
* Russian Orthodox Diocese of Berlin and Germany (ROCOR)
* Serbian Orthodox Eparchy of Düsseldorf and all of Germany
* Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow)

|

True Orthodox|

* True Orthodox Metropolis of Germany and Europe

Oriental Orthodox
(Main article)|

* Armenian Orthodox Diocese of Cologne
* Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Höxter
* Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church
* Ethiopian Orthodox Diocese of Cologne
* Syriac Orthodox Metropolis of Germany

Nestorian|

* Assyrian Church of the East

Catholic|

* Maronite Church
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Western Christianity|

| Catholic|

| Latin Church|

* Roman Catholic Church

|

Old Catholic[a]|

* Old Catholic Church[b]

Independent[a]|

* Free Catholic Church

Proto-Protestant|

| Hussite|

* Moravian Church[c]

|

Protestant
(Main article)|

| Protestant
Church in
Germany[c]|

| Lutheran[d]|

| United Evangelical
Lutheran Church
of Germany|

* Bavaria
* Brunswick
* Hanover
* Northern Germany
* Saxony
* Schaumburg-Lippe

|

* Oldenburg
* Württemberg

Union of
Protestant
Churches|

| United[d]|

* Anhalt
* Baden
* Berlin, Brandenburg and Silesian Upper Lusatia
* Bremen[e]
* Central Germany[f]
* Hesse Electorate-Waldeck[e]
* Hesse and Nassau[e]
* Palatinate
* Rhineland[e]
* Westphalia[e]

|

Calvinist|

| Landeskirche|

* Church of Lippe[e]

|

* Evangelical Reformed Church[e]

Free
Churches|

| Lutheran|

| Confessional|

* Evangelical Lutheran Free Church
* Independent Evangelical-Lutheran Church

|

* Danish Church[c]
* Evangelical Lutheran Church in Baden

Calvinist|

* Evangelical Old-Reformed Church in Lower Saxony[e]

Anglican|

* Church of England

Anabaptist|

* Amish
* Bruderhof
* Hutterites
* Mennonites
* Schwarzenau Brethren

Baptist
(Main article)|

* International Baptist Convention
* Union of Evangelical Free Churches in Germany

Methodist|

* Church of the Nazarene in Germany
* Evangelical Methodist Church[c]

Adventist|

* Sabbath Rest Advent Church
* Seventh-day Adventist Church
* Seventh Day Adventist Reform Movement

Pentecostal|

* Federation of Pentecostal Churches
* Volksmission- The People’s Mission of Decided Christians
* Gemeinde Gottes – Church of God

Neo-charismatic|

* Vineyard DACH

Other|

* Open Brethren

Restorationist|

* New Apostolic Church
* Jehovah's Witnesses
* The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Germany

Interdenominational
organisations|

* Association of Evangelical Missions
* Council of Christian Churches in Germany
* German Evangelical Alliance

1. ^ a b Not in communion with the rest of the Catholic Church
2. ^ Part of the Union of Utrecht
3. ^ a b c d Part of the Communion of Protestant Churches in Europe
4. ^ a b All of them Landeskirche
5. ^ a b c d e f g h Part of the Reformed Alliance
6. ^ Part of the United Evangelical Lutheran Church of Germany as well

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
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National|

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Other|

* Yale LUX

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