Franz-Josef Bode

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Bishop Franz-Josef Bode

Franz-Josef Hermann Bode (born February 16, 1951 in Paderborn ) has been Bishop of the Diocese of Osnabrück since 1995 and Deputy Chairman of the German Bishops' Conference since 2017 .

Life

Franz-Josef Bode grew up in Etteln near Paderborn. In Paderborn he attended the grammar school Theodorianum and studied from 1969 there as well as in Regensburg and Münster Catholic theology .

Bode was ordained priest on December 13, 1975 in Paderborn and was initially vicar in Lippstadt . After that he was Prefect of the Leokonviktes for the training of priests in the Archdiocese of Paderborn until 1983 . In 1986, Bode at the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms University in Bonn to Dr. theol. PhD. From 1986 to 1991 he worked as a pastor in the St. Marien parish in Fröndenberg .

Franz-Josef Bode was appointed titular bishop of Mattiana and auxiliary bishop in the Archdiocese of Paderborn on June 5, 1991 . He received his episcopal consecration on September 1, 1991, the Archbishop of Paderborn and later Cardinal Johannes Joachim Degenhardt in Paderborn; Co-consecrators were the Paderborn auxiliary bishops Hans Leo Drewes and Paul Consbruch . Then Bode was cathedral capitular and episcopal vicar for the training of priests.

Pope John Paul II appointed Franz-Josef Bode on September 12, 1995 as bishop of the Osnabrück diocese. Bode was introduced to office on November 26, 1995; at that time he was the youngest diocesan bishop in Germany.

From 1996 to 2010, Bode was chairman of the youth commission of the German Bishops' Conference (DBK) and as such also the “youth bishop”, ie the representative of the episcopate that is particularly responsible for youth pastoral care in Germany. In this function, Bode also celebrated one of the three opening services of the World Youth Day 2005 with 100,000 pilgrims on the Hofgartenwiese in Bonn .

In 2015 the DBK elected him, Cardinal Reinhard Marx and Archbishop Heiner Koch as delegates for the XIV Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of World Bishops in October 2015 in Rome. Since 2010, Bode has been chairman of the pastoral commission and its sub-commission "Women in Church and Society" .

On September 26, 2017, the general assembly of DBK elected Bode as its new deputy chairman.

At its spring general assembly in Lingen in 2019, the German Bishops' Conference appointed Franz-Josef Bode as head of the preparatory forum for questions of sexual morality in the context of the announced “Synodal Path”. Bode should also deal with the topic of sexuality and sexual morality in dialogue with the Central Committee of German Catholics .

Positions (selection)

In January 2018, Bode initiated a new discussion about the introduction of the blessing of same-sex couples by the Catholic Church. He also spoke out in favor of a stronger debate with the diaconate of women.

In May 2019, Bode said that he could imagine family and civilian priests alongside celibate priests. In November 2019, Bode stated that he could imagine that women will lead Eucharistic celebrations in his diocese in the coming years , but did not consider this prospect realistic, as the teaching of the church and canon law would oppose it. However, he is determined to "exhaust everything that is possible for women now and in the near future". In the Diocese of Osnabrück, a woman is appointed for the first time as a “parish commissioner” with a superior and managerial function in a parish.

Episcopal coat of arms and motto

Coat of arms as the bishop of Osnabrück

The square of the coat of arms shows in field 1 a red wheel on a silver background, the diocese coat of arms of Osnabrück, in field 2 a gold cross on a red background, the "Paderborn cross" of the home diocese of Bishop Bodes, in field 3 a golden tree by the water on a blue background the coat of arms of his home village Etteln , and in field 4 a red heart with a cross on a silver background, the "heart-cross coat of arms" by Niels Stensen .

His motto Maior est Deus corde nostro (“God is greater than our heart”) comes from the first letter of John ( 1 John 3:20  EU ).

Awards

Works (selection)

  • Time with god. A book of hours. Advent and Christmas, Lent and Easter. Catholic Biblical Works, Stuttgart 2005, ISBN 978-3-460-28044-1 .
  • Time with god. A Book of Hours II. Time in the Year, Holy Feasts. Catholic Bible work, Stuttgart 2008, ISBN 978-3-460-28077-9 .
  • Priest: roots and visions of an exciting vocation. Dom Buchhandlung, Osnabrück 2009, ISBN 978-3-925164-46-0 .
  • Practice mercy. Rediscover the seven spiritual works of mercy. Fasting meditations 2016 by Bishop Dr. Franz-Josef Bode with the cathedral music in Osnabrück Cathedral. Dom Medien GmbH, Osnabrück 2016.
  • Allow space for appropriate personal and pastoral distinction. The Sermon on the Mount as a school of discernment. Published by the Diocese of Osnabrück, May 2017.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ German Bishops' Conference elects delegates for the Synod of Bishops in Rome. Lineamenta Theological Debate. In: Press release No. 030. German Bishops' Conference, February 24, 2015, accessed on June 8, 2015 .
  2. ^ German Bishops' Conference: Press release of September 20, 2016 - No. 175
  3. ^ German Bishops' Conference: Press release of September 26, 2017
  4. ↑ Domradio Cologne March 14, 2019
  5. ↑ ndr.de: Bishop Bode for the blessing of gay couples
  6. ^ Domradio.de: Bishop Bode calls for more occupation with the diaconate of women, tradition and facts
  7. ↑ Domradio.de: "Priest with family imaginable" , May 4th 2019.
  8. ↑ Katholisch.de :, November 18, 2019
  9. ↑ The initiative came from the Institute for Catholic Theology of the University of Osnabrück: University of Osnabrück press releases No. 97/2013 of April 30, 2013: Honorary doctorate for Bishop Dr. Franz-Josef Bode , accessed on May 1, 2013
predecessor Office successor
Ludwig Averkamp Bishop of Osnabrück
since 1995 		---
personal data
SURNAME Bode, Franz-Josef
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Bode, Franz-Josef Hermann (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German clergyman, bishop of Osnabrück
DATE OF BIRTH February 16, 1951
PLACE OF BIRTH Paderborn