Mainz Cathedral Chapter
| The Mainz cathedral chapter and cathedral monastery | |
|---|---|
 Coat of arms of the episcopal cathedral chapter |
|
| Members | |
| Cathedral dean | |
| Prelate Heinz Heckwolf (since 2003) | |
| Cathedral capitals: | |
| Prelate Peter Hilger | |
| Prelate Hans-Jürgen Eberhardt | |
| Prelate Jürgen Nabbefeld | |
| Klaus Forster | |
| Auxiliary Bishop Udo Bentz | |
| Franz-Rudolf Weinert | |
| Cathedral capitular emeritus: | |
| Prelate Günter Emig | |
| Bishop Ulrich Neymeyr , diocesan bishop of Erfurt | |
| Msgr. Horst Schneider | |
| Prelate Dietmar Giebelmann | |
| Dome of Honor Chapter: | |
| Msgr. Engelbert Prieß | |
| Tobias Schäfer | |
| Michael Ritzert | |
| Cathedral temple data: | |
| Gerold Reinbott | |
| Alexander Nawar | |
| Emeritus Cathedral Dates: | |
| Prelate Klaus Leo Klein |
The Mainz Cathedral Chapter is a college of clergy who support the Bishop of Mainz in the management of the diocese. He is not only responsible for the celebration of the liturgy in the cathedral , as an independent legal person it is also entrusted with the administration of the diocese under the bishop .
history
Until the 9th century
There was a Christian community in Mainz as early as the 2nd century AD. Exactly when Mainz became the seat of a bishop is not exactly known, according to some sources the series of Mainz bishops began with Mar (t) inus (around 350), with Sidonius (around 565) a bishop is most certainly attested. The nature of the relationship between the bishop and the city clergy was largely unknown until the 9th century. However, one can assume that in Mainz, as elsewhere, the bishop was surrounded by clerics who advised him, supported him, represented him if necessary, administered the diocese after the death of the bishop during the vacancy and participated in the election of the new bishop.
Development from the 9th century
At the Mainz Synod of 813, the clergy were given the canonical way of life, i.e. living together in the community. In the 9th century the formation of a committee began to do common service to the cathedral church and from which the cathedral chapter developed. The decisive factor for this development was that the cathedral clergy were soon no longer supported by the diocese's assets, but instead acquired property themselves, which they shared and administered. The separation between diocesan property and chapter property has been established since 961, making the chapter an independent corporation. In addition to material independence, this development marked the acquisition of powers, institutions and legal forms. In order to regulate their coexistence, the clerics gave themselves a statute, a seal (1170 at the latest) and regulated the admission of new members to the chapter. In order to maintain order and the fulfillment of duties, a disciplinary power had to be used, the many tasks of the community led to the formation of offices.
From the 9th century onwards, the cathedral chapter developed into a community of clerics who had common assets as well as an internal structure and administration. After this development was completed, the chapter was empowered to regulate its internal affairs independently. The loose community of clerics around the local bishop had thus developed into a legal person.
Dissolution of common life since the 12th century
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The common life of the cathedral capitals, however, soon dissolved. This development began with moving into their own apartments and ended with the common property being divided into shares for each canon. In addition there was the accumulation of offices. Many cathedral capitulars held the provost's office in one of the many monasteries in the city of Mainz. The provosts of those monasteries were often also archdeacons , i.e. entrusted with the administration of a larger part of the archdiocese. The resulting obligations made life together practically impossible, the efforts of the Archbishops of Mainz and even some Popes ( Urban II and Paschal II ) to counteract this development and to oblige the capitulars to reside were ultimately unsuccessful. In the year 1254 we can no longer speak of the canons living together.
The expansion of the duties and tasks of the cathedral capitulars in the administration of their monasteries and archdeaconates went hand in hand with a neglect of their duties in the choral service and the convent masses. In order to maintain these services nonetheless, vicars (vicarius = deputy) were appointed as early as the 12th century , to whom the cathedral capitals could pass on their worship obligations.
Extension of powers from the 13th century
From the first half of the 13th century, participation in the tasks of the archbishop was solely a matter for the cathedral chapter, while before that the rest of the city's clergy and representatives of communities also participated. The type of participation and when the chapter on legal acts of the archbishop had to approve was primarily determined by customary law. The dignitaries played an important role as representatives of the chapter. The rights of the cathedral chapter in this regard expanded over time. This also led to the cathedral chapter receiving a share in the government of the archbishopric territories.
In order to expand its influence, the cathedral chapter primarily used its right to elect the new bishop. This right, which in the early days was still exercised by the city clergy and by distinguished citizens, was only granted to the cathedral chapter from the second half of the 12th century, although it was repeatedly contested by papal commissions in the 14th and 15th centuries . Starting in 1328, the cathedral chapter had the new archbishop regularly make promises, so-called electoral capitulations , with which it wanted to exempt itself as far as possible from the rule of the archbishop and encourage him to recognize the privileges of the chapter. Thus, through the electoral surrenders, the cathedral chapter secured a say in the filling of various secular offices, above all the office of governor in the absence of the archbishop and in relation to foreign powers. The high point of this development was Diether von Isenburg's election surrender , which he had to give to the cathedral chapter on the occasion of his second election as archbishop in 1475. The election surrender obliged the new archbishop to transfer the rule of the city to the cathedral chapter. However, this regulation only lasted one year because of a civil uprising.
Restriction of independence efforts and reform decisions of the Council of Trent
Despite the electoral capitulations and the not insignificant influence of the cathedral chapter, the capitulars, like the entire diocesan clergy, were subject to the jurisdiction of the archbishop, who could thus also exercise the right of visitation towards them. From 1555 the cathedral capitulars tried to be exempted from this. The Council of Trent , which was just in session, forbade such efforts and also ordered that at least half of the canons should be priests and half should also have degrees in theology or canon law . In addition, the council ordered the appointment of a cathedral theologian and a penitential canon . In addition, the council curtailed the position of the cathedral chapters during the vacancy by requiring them to appoint a chapter vicar within eight days , who then had to administer the diocese independently of the cathedral chapter. However, the resolutions of the Council of Trent changed nothing in the practice of electoral surrender.
The 17th century was marked by absolutism , consequently rulers who represented an absolutist understanding of rule were often at the head of the principalities. The ecclesiastical principalities, including the Mainz electoral state with the archbishop and elector at the head, were no exception. This development ran counter to the efforts of the cathedral chapter for more power and the status of a second force in the electoral state. In addition, the practice of electoral surrenders was viewed more and more critically by the power-conscious archbishops, but above all by the Roman Curia and the imperial authorities. Pope Innocent XII. In 1695, in the Bull Ecclesiae Catholicae, it banned all agreements entered into before the election and submitted agreements made after the election to the examination of the Roman Curia . This and the verdicts of the imperial authority, which saw their influence on the imperial bishoprics waning through the electoral surrenders, meant that electoral surrenders were formulated much more cautiously. Spectacular demands like those in 1475 were no longer raised.
New beginning after the end of the archdiocese
The fall of the archbishopric also marks a turning point in the history of the Mainz cathedral chapter. It should be noted that Mainz became a French diocese as early as 1801 , that is, before the electoral state and the old archbishopric were finally liquidated (1803). In this respect, double structures existed for a short time.
In the turmoil of the Revolutionary Wars at the beginning of the 19th century, the city of Mainz came under French rule, as I said. The French also restructured the diocese. The old archbishopric and its cathedral chapter continued to exist on the right bank of the Rhine until 1803 before they finally went under. The French concluded a concordat with the church as early as 1801, which provided for the establishment of cathedral chapters at every episcopal church. The new Mainz cathedral chapter received a statute from Bishop Joseph Ludwig Colmar in 1809 . It provided for ten real and five honorary cathedral capitals. The dignities and domicellaries were abolished. The Mainz cathedral chapter no longer had a state function and only performed internal tasks. The advisory function in the management of the diocese had to be shared with other clerics who together formed the clergy .
After the withdrawal of the French and the resolutions of the Congress of Vienna in 1815, Mainz came to the Grand Duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt . Its boundaries laid down in the circumscription bull Provida solersque of August 16, 1821 therefore largely coincide with those of the Grand Duchy. The bull established a cathedral chapter in Mainz, which consisted of the dignity of the dean and six cathedral capitulars. They were provided with four Cathedral Dates (vicars) to support them . The sovereign, i.e. the Grand Duke, was granted certain rights of co-determination in filling the positions. The list of suitable candidates had to be presented to him, from which he could cross names that were not agreeable to him. The final installation took place alternately through the election of the chapter or appointment by the bishop. On November 5, 1829, the first cathedral capitals were appointed. According to the bull, the cathedral chapter had the right to elect the bishop.
In an edict of January 30, 1830, the Hessian state determined the rest: After that, the cathedral capitals had to be ordained priest , be older than 30 years and belong to the diocese. In addition, it declared the cathedral chapter to be the highest administrative authority under the bishop (episcopal ordinariate), which had to work collegially.
The newly enacted Church Code (CIC) of 1917 and the Weimar Constitution made changes to the statutes of the Mainz cathedral chapter necessary. When the cathedral dean was elected in 1920, however, everything remained the same with reservations. In 1923 the dean of the cathedral was appointed by the bishop before Rome insisted on following the CIC of 1917 in future.
With the Reich Concordat of 1933, the validity of the Baden Concordat was also extended to the Diocese of Mainz. Thereafter, the dignity of the cathedral dean was awarded by the Holy See alternately at the request of the bishop in agreement with the cathedral chapter or at the request of the cathedral chapter in agreement with the bishop. The canons were alternately appointed after a hearing and with the approval of the cathedral chapter. The practice of appointing honorary cathedral capitulars continued, but these do not have the rights set out in the Baden Concordat.
The cathedral chapter today
The legal basis of today's Mainz Cathedral Chapter continues to be the Reich Concordat of 1933, which extends the validity of the Baden Concordat to the Diocese of Mainz . According to this, the most important right is the election of the new bishop . For this purpose, the cathedral chapter submits a list of suitable candidates to the Holy See , which then submits a three-part proposal ( Terna ) to the chapter . From this the chapter chooses the new bishop. The Vatican renounced the right to confer the dignity of the cathedral dean himself in 1966. According to the statutes, which were last revised on February 29, 2000, the capitulars are asked to declare their renunciation at the age of 70, with completion They are obliged to do so at the age of 75.
Members and Organization
General
The umbrella term for the members of the cathedral chapter was canons . They were divided into capitulars and domicellaries . The former were full canons (capitularis), so they had the right to vote in the assembly, a permanent place in the choir stalls and received an income from the chapter property. The domicellar (canonici non capitulares), however, had no such rights. They were again divided into non emancipati and emancipati . This depended on whether or not they had already outgrown the supervision of the cathedral scholasters . Domicellarians had to have completed a year of residence at the cathedral church before emancipation , i.e. before being accepted as full members, and had to prove that they had studied two years at a recognized university. Domicellaries must also have received the subdiaconate ordination, cathedral capitulars were required to receive at least the diaconate ordination, but often did not get beyond the subdeacon. The admission (admission) of a domicellary as a chapter in chapter took place regularly in a general chapter.
Because the cathedral capitulars, as already described, often did not get beyond the subdiaconate ordination, four priests were established from 1277 , whose owners, the so-called priest canons , were included in the cathedral chapter as surplus capitulars (supernumeraries). They were obliged to reside.
The maintenance of a cathedral capitular consisted of his benefice and the attendance fees (for participation in the convent mass and choir prayer). However, there were no individual benefices for each chapter. The maintenance was always from the common property of the chapter.
complement
In order to get into the cathedral chapter, there were six possibilities of supplementation: nomination (or co-option = self-supplementation), archbishop's commission, papal commission, so-called imperial first petitions, resignation of the predecessor or election as canon priest. The archbishop was responsible for confirming the new capitular. From 1328 onwards, only those who belonged to the lower nobility could become canons. Later four, eventually even 16 noble ancestors had to be proven. New members were accepted regularly in the General Chapter.
Meetings
The will of the cathedral chapter always took place at the meetings. Meetings usually took place once a week, and the general chapter met four times a year. The dates of the general chapter were fixed, and additional chapters could be held if necessary. According to the current statutes, meetings take place when the occasion arises, but at least once a year. If necessary, the cathedral cathedral data can also be invited to meetings.
The dignitary
The dignitary (or prelates) were members of the chapter who excelled in rank and function. These were the provost , the dean , the custodian , the scholaster and the cantor . They were originally elected by the chapter and had more rights (including the right to wear the miter ) and higher income than the other capitulars. The new statute of the cathedral chapter of 1809, which had been issued on the basis of the French Concordat of 1801 , no longer provided for dignity. After the rewrite of the diocese by the Bull Provida solersque in 1821, only the dignity of the cathedral dean was provided.
Provost
The highest dignity was that of the cathedral provost, who originally stood at the head of the cathedral chapter. He was primarily responsible for the administration of the chapter's assets and the distribution of income among the members and the servants. He was supported by assistants, so that he was soon no longer directly involved in these deals, a development that was similar to that of most other dignities. Furthermore, the cathedral provost was always archdeacon of the district of the cathedral church, i.e. the city of Mainz and its surroundings. This work slowly alienated him from the inner life of the cathedral chapter. From the late Middle Ages onwards, the cathedral provost was no longer a compulsory member of the cathedral chapter and so stood next to it, so to speak. He often did not reside in the city, but occasionally at the papal court. The Holy See kept since the late 13th century consequently often the chairperson before. This did not change until 1562, when the chapter regained the right of free choice. In 1574 the provost of the cathedral was required to be resident for six months. From 1675 he was again a regular member of the cathedral chapter as the first prelate , while the dean remained head of the chapter.
dean
The head of the cathedral chapter was the dean, who was also the head of the clergy of the entire diocese. He was obliged to receive his ordination and had to reside at the cathedral church. He was responsible for the management of the internal affairs of the cooperation, for the observance of the discipline and the divine service obligations, the convocation of the chapter meetings, the preparation of the agenda and the chairmanship of the meetings, as well as the jurisdiction over the Mainz monasteries. The dean was elected by the cathedral chapter. After the abolition of dignities after the establishment of the new diocese of Mainz (from 1801), the office of dean alone was reestablished by the rewrite bull of 1821. It continues to this day.
Custodian
The custodian was originally responsible for the maintenance of the cathedral and bells as well as for the care of the cathedral treasure , the relics and the liturgical implements and vestments. As early as the 11th century, the subcustos was at his side as an assistant. Like the provost of the cathedral, the curator was less and less concerned with his responsibilities. From the end of the 12th century he was also provost of the St. Johannesstift and thus archdeacon of an archdeaconate near the Fulda area.
Scholaster
The school was originally responsible for the school. He was also responsible for training the domicellar. Like the dean of the cathedral, he must have been ordained a priest and hold residence. In the course of time he rose to become its deputy. Here, too, a development soon took place that removed the scholaster from his very own tasks. A Magister scholarum employed by him took over the management of the cathedral school. He was also less and less involved in the training of domicellaries.
cantor
The cathedral cantor was responsible for preparing and carrying out the liturgy. For him there was therefore a stricter residence obligation than for the other cathedral capitulars. He too soon had a deputy ("succentor") who took over his duties. However, a directive continued to prescribe celebrations at which the cantor himself had to take on his own obligations.
Number of canons
The number of capitulars was probably not fixed in the early days. The Mainz synod of 813 established the canonical coexistence of the clergy, but not their number. It was probably measured by the possibility of subsistence from the chapter property. In 1405 Archbishop Johann II of Nassau set their number at 24. In addition there were usually 16 domicellaries. However, the canon priests, who remained the surplus cathedral capitals, were still excluded from the limit of 24.
The French diocese (from 1801) provided for ten real and five honor canons based on its statute of 1809. There were no more domicellaries. After the rewrite of the diocese in 1821, the rewrite bull provided for seven cathedral capitals (including the dean) and four cathedral pride dates. The cathedral chapter still has this composition today. Although neither determined by the bull nor by any later law, the practice of appointing honorary dome capitulars has continued to this day. The provost at Worms Cathedral is often also the Chapter of Honor in Mainz.
Today the cathedral chapter consists of the dean and six cathedral capitulars . Associated with these, but not belonging to the legal body of the cathedral chapter, are the honorary cathedral capitulars and four cathedral grave data , which together with the dean and the capitulars form the extended circle of the Mainz cathedral monastery. If they do not already belong to the cathedral monastery, the cathedral priest and the episcopal chaplain also receive the rank of cathedral praise for the duration of their term of office.
See also
Web links
- Episcopal cathedral chapter Mainz
- Statutes of the Mainz Cathedral Chapter (PDF; 37 kB)
- "Domstift Mainz" (GSN: 3501), in: Germania Sacra, http://klosterdatenbank.germania-sacra.de/gsn/3501 (accessed: April 17, 2017).
literature
- Handbook of the Mainz Church History , Ed .: Friedhelm Jürgensmeier , real publishing house, Würzburg 1997, ISBN 3-429-01877-3
Individual evidence
- ^ Letter of protection from Archbishop Siegfried von Mainz for Hachborn Monastery (HStAM, Urk. 25, 6). In: Archive Information System Hessen (Arcinsys Hessen), accessed on September 3, 2016.