Christoph Cardinal Schönborn
Encyclopedia
Christoph Maria Michael Hugo Damian Peter Adalbert (Graf von) Schönborn, OP (born 22 January 1945) is an Austria
n Cardinal
of the Catholic Church and theologian
. He currently serves as the Archbishop of Vienna
and President of the Austrian Bishops Conference. He was elevated to the cardinalate
in 1998.
, Bohemia
(now Czech Republic
), the second son of the Count Maria Hugo Damian Adalbert Josef Hubertus von Schönborn and Baroness Eleonore Ottilie Hilda Maria von Doblhoff. They divorced in 1959. He has two brothers and one sister. He belongs to the Central Europe
an noble
family of Schönborn, several members of which held high offices in the Catholic Church
and the Holy Roman Empire
, including several prince-bishop
s, cardinals
and ecclesiastical prince-elector
s.
examination in 1963, and entered the Order of Preachers
. He studied theology
in Paris
; and philosophy
and psychology
in Bornheim-Walberberg and Vienna
. Schönborn also attended the Catholic Institute of Paris
for further theological work, before studying Slavic
and Byzantine
Christianity at the Sorbonne
.
He was ordained
to the priesthood
by Cardinal Franz König
on 27 December 1970 in Vienna. Schönborn obtained a Licentiate of Sacred Theology
in 1971, and later studied in Regensburg
under Fr. Joseph Ratzinger
(later Pope Benedict XVI). He subsequently completed a doctorate in Sacred Theology
in Paris. From 1975 he was Professor
of Dogmatics
at the University of Fribourg
, Switzerland
. In 1980, he became a member of the International Theological Commission
of the Holy See
, and in 1987 he became editorial secretary for the Catechism of the Catholic Church
. In 1991 he was chosen to become an Auxiliary Bishop
of Vienna.
Archbishop of Vienna on 11 April 1995 and succeeded as Archbishop of Vienna
on 14 September 1995. He was created Cardinal-Priest
of Gesù Divin Lavoratore by Pope John Paul II
in the consistory
of 21 February 1998. Considered among the papabili following John Paul's death, Cardinal Schönborn was one of the cardinal electors
who participated in the 2005 papal conclave
that selected Pope Benedict XVI
. Cardinal Schönborn remains eligible to vote in any future papal conclave
s that begin before his 80th birthday on 22 January 2025.
He serves as a member of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
, that for the Oriental Churches
, and that for Catholic Education
, and of the Pontifical Council for Culture
and the Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church
. On 5 January 2011 he was appointed among the first members of the newly created Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelisation
.
Cardinal Schönborn also serves as the chaplain
to the Austrian Order of the Golden Fleece
. In addition to his native German
, he is fluent in English
, French
, Italian
, Spanish
and Latin. Schönborn's episcopal motto
is Vos autem dixi amicos (I have called you friends) from .
In 2009, he was critical of the lifting of the excommunication
of controversial Bishop Richard Williamson of the Society of St. Pius X
.
Cardinal Schönborn presided over the requiem for Otto of Habsburg, former Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary
, in St. Stephen's Cathedral on 16 July 2011.
. Cardinal Schönborn suggested that the Church should carry out an "unflinching examination" of causes of the scandal, including "the issue of priests' training". He wrote in his archdiocesan magazine, "...the question of priest celibacy and the question of personality development...requires a great deal of honesty, both on the part of the church and of society as a whole". Cardinal Schönborn's spokesman, Erich Leitenberger, issued a clarification later stating that the cardinal was not "in any way seeking to question the Catholic Church's celibacy rule". Sources in Rome said he had been obliged to issue his "clarification" under pressure from the Holy See
. His remarks came days after Father Hans Küng
, a Catholic theologian, blamed the Catholic Church's "uptight" views on sex for child abuse
scandals in Germany
, Ireland
and the United States
.
A number of sex abuse scandals involving priests came to light in Schönborn's homeland of Austria, one involving a man of 53 who claimed to have been abused by two priests for six years from the age of 11.
In May 2010 Cardinal Schönborn told Austrian Catholic news agency Kathpress: "The days of cover-up are over. For a long while the Church's principle of forgiveness was falsely interpreted and was in favour of those responsible and not the victims." He added that during the 1990s, when Cardinal Groër
, the then leader of Austria's Catholics, was accused of sex abuse, a "track of Vatican diplomacy" had muddied the investigation and led to a cover-up. Cardinal Schönborn said that the then Cardinal Secretary of State
Angelo Sodano
indirectly blocked the attempts and Cardinal Groër had simply faded into the background.
can be resolved, if the two faiths can overcome the burden of history.
had been automatically excommunicated for having allowed an abortion clinic to rent space in a shopping mall owned by Lugner. The Cardinal had asked Lugner not to rent the space to the abortion clinic, and declared: "The destruction of life must not be made banal and viewed like a shopping trip. Everything you need to know about abortion is to be found in the Fifth Commandment."
might use a condom as a "lesser evil," but he quickly cautioned, "no one could affirm that the use of a condom is the ideal in sexual relations."
, and said it was doctrinally important for Christians to recognize Jews' connection to the Holy Land
, and that Christians should rejoice in Jews' return to Palestine
as a fulfillment of biblical prophecy.
and Hans Urs von Balthasar
are close and different at the same time, being mutually complementary.
was a free mason
, but that he was also fully Catholic.
would not give a free pass to the Society of Saint Pius X, saying that the Church's core values and its relations with Judaism
were not negotiable.
In an editorial in the New York Times on 7 July 2005 Schönborn accepted the possibility of evolution
but criticised certain "neo-Darwinian"
theories as incompatible with Catholic teaching:
This statement created considerable controversy, including public criticism of Schönborn's views by the director of the Vatican Observatory
, George Coyne
, SJ, and a response by Catholic physicist Stephen Barr
in the Catholic periodical First Things
, to which Schönborn in turn replied.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n Cardinal
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
of the Catholic Church and theologian
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
. He currently serves as the Archbishop of Vienna
Archbishop of Vienna
The Archbishop of Vienna is the prelate of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vienna who is concurrently the metropolitan bishop of its ecclesiastical province which includes the dioceses of Eisenstadt, Linz and St. Pölten....
and President of the Austrian Bishops Conference. He was elevated to the cardinalate
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
in 1998.
Early life
Christoph Maria Michael Hugo Damian Peter Adalbert Graf von Schönborn was born at Skalken Castle, west of LeitmeritzLitomerice
Litoměřice is a town at the junction of the rivers Elbe and Ohře in the north part of the Czech Republic, approximately 64 km northwest of Prague....
, Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
(now Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
), the second son of the Count Maria Hugo Damian Adalbert Josef Hubertus von Schönborn and Baroness Eleonore Ottilie Hilda Maria von Doblhoff. They divorced in 1959. He has two brothers and one sister. He belongs to the Central Europe
Central Europe
Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...
an noble
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
family of Schönborn, several members of which held high offices in the Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
and the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
, including several prince-bishop
Prince-Bishop
A Prince-Bishop is a bishop who is a territorial Prince of the Church on account of one or more secular principalities, usually pre-existent titles of nobility held concurrently with their inherent clerical office...
s, cardinals
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
and ecclesiastical prince-elector
Prince-elector
The Prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire were the members of the electoral college of the Holy Roman Empire, having the function of electing the Roman king or, from the middle of the 16th century onwards, directly the Holy Roman Emperor.The heir-apparent to a prince-elector was known as an...
s.
Early church career
In September 1945, his family was forced to flee from Bohemia. Schönborn took his MaturaMatura
Matura or a similar term is the common name for the high-school leaving exam or "maturity exam" in various countries, including Albania, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Serbia,...
examination in 1963, and entered the Order of Preachers
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
. He studied theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
; and philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
and psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
in Bornheim-Walberberg and Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. Schönborn also attended the Catholic Institute of Paris
Institut Catholique de Paris
The Institut Catholique de Paris, or the Catholic University of Paris, is a private university located in Paris, France. The institute was founded in 1875, under the name Université Catholique de Paris, by Maurice Le Sage d'Hauteroche d'Hulst....
for further theological work, before studying Slavic
Slavic peoples
The Slavic people are an Indo-European panethnicity living in Eastern Europe, Southeast Europe, North Asia and Central Asia. The term Slavic represents a broad ethno-linguistic group of people, who speak languages belonging to the Slavic language family and share, to varying degrees, certain...
and Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
Christianity at the Sorbonne
Sorbonne
The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
.
He was ordained
Holy Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
to the priesthood
Priesthood (Catholic Church)
The ministerial orders of the Catholic Church include the orders of bishops, deacons and presbyters, which in Latin is sacerdos. The ordained priesthood and common priesthood are different in function and essence....
by Cardinal Franz König
Franz König
Franz König was an Austrian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Vienna from 1956 to 1985, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1958...
on 27 December 1970 in Vienna. Schönborn obtained a Licentiate of Sacred Theology
Licentiate of Sacred Theology
Licentiate of Sacred Theology is the title of the second cycle of studies of a Faculty of Theology offered by a pontifical universities or ecclesiastical faculties of sacred theology. An Ecclesiastical Faculty offers three cycles of study: Baccalaureate or fundamentals, Licentiate or specialized,...
in 1971, and later studied in Regensburg
Regensburg
Regensburg is a city in Bavaria, Germany, located at the confluence of the Danube and Regen rivers, at the northernmost bend in the Danube. To the east lies the Bavarian Forest. Regensburg is the capital of the Bavarian administrative region Upper Palatinate...
under Fr. Joseph Ratzinger
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
(later Pope Benedict XVI). He subsequently completed a doctorate in Sacred Theology
Doctor of Sacred Theology
The Doctor of Sacred Theology is the final theological degree in the pontifical university system of the Catholic Church....
in Paris. From 1975 he was Professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of Dogmatics
Dogmatic theology
Dogmatic theology is that part of theology dealing with the theoretical truths of faith concerning God and his works, especially the official theology recognized by an organized Church body, such as the Roman Catholic Church, Dutch Reformed Church, etc...
at the University of Fribourg
University of Fribourg
The University of Fribourg is a university in the city of Fribourg, Switzerland.The roots of the University can be traced back to 1582, when the notable Jesuit Peter Canisius founded the Collège Saint-Michel in the City of Fribourg. In 1763, an Academy of law was founded by the state of Frobourg...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. In 1980, he became a member of the International Theological Commission
International Theological Commission
The International Theological Commission of the Roman Catholic Church consists of up to 30 Catholic theologians from around the world. These theologians are appointed for renewable five year terms and have tended to meet together in person once every year for a week...
of the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
, and in 1987 he became editorial secretary for the Catechism of the Catholic Church
Catechism of the Catholic Church
The Catechism of the Catholic Church is the official text of the teachings of the Catholic Church. A provisional, "reference text" was issued by Pope John Paul II on October 11, 1992 — "the thirtieth anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council" — with his apostolic...
. In 1991 he was chosen to become an Auxiliary Bishop
Auxiliary bishop
An auxiliary bishop, in the Roman Catholic Church, is an additional bishop assigned to a diocese because the diocesan bishop is unable to perform his functions, the diocese is so extensive that it requires more than one bishop to administer, or the diocese is attached to a royal or imperial office...
of Vienna.
Archbishop of Vienna
He was appointed CoadjutorCoadjutor bishop
A coadjutor bishop is a bishop in the Roman Catholic or Anglican churches who is designated to assist the diocesan bishop in the administration of the diocese, almost as co-bishop of the diocese...
Archbishop of Vienna on 11 April 1995 and succeeded as Archbishop of Vienna
Archbishop of Vienna
The Archbishop of Vienna is the prelate of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vienna who is concurrently the metropolitan bishop of its ecclesiastical province which includes the dioceses of Eisenstadt, Linz and St. Pölten....
on 14 September 1995. He was created Cardinal-Priest
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
of Gesù Divin Lavoratore by Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
in the consistory
Consistory
-Antiquity:Originally, the Latin word consistorium meant simply 'sitting together', just as the Greek synedrion ....
of 21 February 1998. Considered among the papabili following John Paul's death, Cardinal Schönborn was one of the cardinal electors
Cardinal electors in Papal conclave, 2005
The following is a list of the 115 cardinal electors in the 2005 papal conclave, arranged by region and, within each region, alphabetically. Two cardinals who were eligible to participate in the conclave, namely Adolfo Suarez Rivera and Jaime Sin, did not attend due to ill health.-Roman...
who participated in the 2005 papal conclave
Papal conclave, 2005
The Papal conclave of 2005 was convened as a result of the death of Pope John Paul II on 2 April 2005. After his death, the cardinals who were in Rome met and set a date for the beginning of the conclave to elect John Paul's successor. The conclave began on 18 April 2005 and ended on the following...
that selected Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
. Cardinal Schönborn remains eligible to vote in any future papal conclave
Papal conclave
A papal conclave is a meeting of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a Bishop of Rome, who then becomes the Pope during a period of vacancy in the papal office. The Pope is considered by Roman Catholics to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and earthly head of the Roman Catholic Church...
s that begin before his 80th birthday on 22 January 2025.
He serves as a member of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith , previously known as the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Roman and Universal Inquisition , and after 1904 called the Supreme...
, that for the Oriental Churches
Congregation for the Oriental Churches
The Congregation for the Oriental Churches is the dicastery of the Roman Curia responsible for contact with the Eastern Catholic Churches for the sake of assisting their development, protecting their rights and also maintaining whole and entire in the one Catholic Church, alongside the liturgical,...
, and that for Catholic Education
Congregation for Catholic Education
The Congregation for Catholic Education is the Pontifical congregation of the Roman Curia responsible for: seminaries and houses of formation of...
, and of the Pontifical Council for Culture
Pontifical Council for Culture
The Pontifical Council for Culture is a department of the Roman Curia charged with fostering the relationship of the Catholic Church with different cultures. Pope John Paul II founded it on 20 May 1982...
and the Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church
Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church
The Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Heritage of the Church is an institution within the Roman Catholic Church and the Roman Curia that guardians the historical and artistic patrimony of the entire Church which includes works of art, historical documents, books, everything kept in museums as...
. On 5 January 2011 he was appointed among the first members of the newly created Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelisation
Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelisation
The Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelization is a dicastery of the Roman Curia whose creation was announced by Pope Benedict XVI at vespers on 28 June 2010, eve of the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul...
.
Cardinal Schönborn also serves as the chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
to the Austrian Order of the Golden Fleece
Order of the Golden Fleece
The Order of the Golden Fleece is an order of chivalry founded in Bruges by Philip III, Duke of Burgundy in 1430, to celebrate his marriage to the Portuguese princess Infanta Isabella of Portugal, daughter of King John I of Portugal. It evolved as one of the most prestigious orders in Europe...
. In addition to his native German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, he is fluent in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
, Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
and Latin. Schönborn's episcopal motto
Motto
A motto is a phrase meant to formally summarize the general motivation or intention of a social group or organization. A motto may be in any language, but Latin is the most used. The local language is usual in the mottoes of governments...
is Vos autem dixi amicos (I have called you friends) from .
In 2009, he was critical of the lifting of the excommunication
Excommunication
Excommunication is a religious censure used to deprive, suspend or limit membership in a religious community. The word means putting [someone] out of communion. In some religions, excommunication includes spiritual condemnation of the member or group...
of controversial Bishop Richard Williamson of the Society of St. Pius X
Society of St. Pius X
The Society of Saint Pius X is an international Traditionalist Catholic organisation, founded in 1970 by the French archbishop Marcel Lefebvre...
.
Cardinal Schönborn presided over the requiem for Otto of Habsburg, former Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
, in St. Stephen's Cathedral on 16 July 2011.
Response to sex abuse
In March 2010 he called for priestly celibacy in the Latin Rite to be re-examined in the light of sex scandalsRoman Catholic sex abuse cases by country
This page documents notable Alleged Roman Catholic sex abuse cases by country.- Kenya :In 2009 several people came forward with accusations of sexual molestation against an Italian priest working in the country. The Church gave assurances of an investigation, but this has not taken place...
. Cardinal Schönborn suggested that the Church should carry out an "unflinching examination" of causes of the scandal, including "the issue of priests' training". He wrote in his archdiocesan magazine, "...the question of priest celibacy and the question of personality development...requires a great deal of honesty, both on the part of the church and of society as a whole". Cardinal Schönborn's spokesman, Erich Leitenberger, issued a clarification later stating that the cardinal was not "in any way seeking to question the Catholic Church's celibacy rule". Sources in Rome said he had been obliged to issue his "clarification" under pressure from the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
. His remarks came days after Father Hans Küng
Hans Küng
Hans Küng is a Swiss Catholic priest, theologian, and prolific author. Since 1995 he has been President of the Foundation for a Global Ethic . Küng is "a Catholic priest in good standing", but the Vatican has rescinded his authority to teach Catholic theology...
, a Catholic theologian, blamed the Catholic Church's "uptight" views on sex for child abuse
Child abuse
Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
scandals in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
A number of sex abuse scandals involving priests came to light in Schönborn's homeland of Austria, one involving a man of 53 who claimed to have been abused by two priests for six years from the age of 11.
In May 2010 Cardinal Schönborn told Austrian Catholic news agency Kathpress: "The days of cover-up are over. For a long while the Church's principle of forgiveness was falsely interpreted and was in favour of those responsible and not the victims." He added that during the 1990s, when Cardinal Groër
Hans Hermann Groër
Hans Hermann Wilhelm Groër, OSB was an Austrian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Vienna from 1986 to 1995, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1988...
, the then leader of Austria's Catholics, was accused of sex abuse, a "track of Vatican diplomacy" had muddied the investigation and led to a cover-up. Cardinal Schönborn said that the then Cardinal Secretary of State
Cardinal Secretary of State
The Cardinal Secretary of State—officially Secretary of State of His Holiness The Pope—presides over the Holy See, usually known as the "Vatican", Secretariat of State, which is the oldest and most important dicastery of the Roman Curia...
Angelo Sodano
Angelo Sodano
Angelo Sodano is an Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He is the current Dean of the College of Cardinals and former Vatican Secretary of State, having held that post from 1990 to 2006, under both popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI...
indirectly blocked the attempts and Cardinal Groër had simply faded into the background.
Catholic-Orthodox dialogue
Cardinal Schönborn has said that theological differences between the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox churchesEastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
can be resolved, if the two faiths can overcome the burden of history.
Alleged excommunication for renting space for an abortion clinic
Cardinal Schönborn distanced himself from a pronouncement by Salzburg's auxiliary bishop Andreas Laun, who mistakenly said that Viennese businessman Richard LugnerRichard Lugner
Richard Lugner is a successful Austrian entrepreneur in the construction industry, a Viennese society figure, and a former political candidate not affiliated with any of the Austrian political parties. Since August 2, 2007, he has been divorced from Christina Lugner...
had been automatically excommunicated for having allowed an abortion clinic to rent space in a shopping mall owned by Lugner. The Cardinal had asked Lugner not to rent the space to the abortion clinic, and declared: "The destruction of life must not be made banal and viewed like a shopping trip. Everything you need to know about abortion is to be found in the Fifth Commandment."
HIV/AIDS and condoms
In 1996, Cardinal Schönborn told an Austrian television audience that someone suffering from AIDSAIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
might use a condom as a "lesser evil," but he quickly cautioned, "no one could affirm that the use of a condom is the ideal in sexual relations."
Jewish connection to the Holy Land
As part of a visiting Austrian delegation, he spoke to the Hebrew University of JerusalemHebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...
, and said it was doctrinally important for Christians to recognize Jews' connection to the Holy Land
Holy Land
The Holy Land is a term which in Judaism refers to the Kingdom of Israel as defined in the Tanakh. For Jews, the Land's identifiction of being Holy is defined in Judaism by its differentiation from other lands by virtue of the practice of Judaism often possible only in the Land of Israel...
, and that Christians should rejoice in Jews' return to Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
as a fulfillment of biblical prophecy.
Rahner and Balthasar
Schönborn has said that the two approaches of Karl RahnerKarl Rahner
Karl Rahner, SJ was a German Jesuit and theologian who, alongside Bernard Lonergan and Hans Urs von Balthasar, is considered one of the most influential Roman Catholic theologians of the 20th century...
and Hans Urs von Balthasar
Hans Urs von Balthasar
Hans Urs von Balthasar was a Swiss theologian and priest who was nominated to be a cardinal of the Catholic Church...
are close and different at the same time, being mutually complementary.
Mozart, Catholicism, and Freemasonry
According to Eric Leitenberger, Schönborn's spokesman, the Cardinal's position is that Wolfgang Amadeus MozartWolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
was a free mason
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
, but that he was also fully Catholic.
Society of Saint Pius X
In a September 2009 interview, Schönborn stated that the Holy SeeHoly See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
would not give a free pass to the Society of Saint Pius X, saying that the Church's core values and its relations with Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
were not negotiable.
Evolution and the Catholic Church
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
but criticised certain "neo-Darwinian"
Neo-Darwinism
Neo-Darwinism is the 'modern synthesis' of Darwinian evolution through natural selection with Mendelian genetics, the latter being a set of primary tenets specifying that evolution involves the transmission of characteristics from parent to child through the mechanism of genetic transfer, rather...
theories as incompatible with Catholic teaching:
This statement created considerable controversy, including public criticism of Schönborn's views by the director of the Vatican Observatory
Vatican Observatory
The Vatican Observatory is an astronomical research and educational institution supported by the Holy See. Originally based in Rome, it now has headquarters and laboratory at the summer residence of the Pope in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, and an observatory at the Mount Graham International...
, George Coyne
George Coyne
George V. Coyne, S.J. is a Jesuit priest, astronomer, and former director of the Vatican Observatory and head of the observatory’s research group which is based at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona.-Scientific education:...
, SJ, and a response by Catholic physicist Stephen Barr
Stephen Barr
Stephen M. Barr is a professor of Particle Physics at the Bartol Research Institute and the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Delaware. His research interests include Elementary Particle Theory, Supersymmetric Grand Unified Theories, and Cosmology. He has authored over 120...
in the Catholic periodical First Things
First Things
First Things is an ecumenical journal focused on creating a "religiously informed public philosophy for the ordering of society". The journal is inter-denominational and inter-religious, representing a broad intellectual tradition of Christian and Jewish critique of contemporary society...
, to which Schönborn in turn replied.
Ancestry
See also
- List of rulers of Schönborn
- Community of the LambCommunity of the LambThe Community of the Lamb is the name of a young Roman Catholic religious order. It consists of two branches, the Little Sisters of the Lamb and the Little Brothers of the Lamb . They are a branch of the Dominican order...
- Austrian Order of the Golden FleeceOrder of the Golden FleeceThe Order of the Golden Fleece is an order of chivalry founded in Bruges by Philip III, Duke of Burgundy in 1430, to celebrate his marriage to the Portuguese princess Infanta Isabella of Portugal, daughter of King John I of Portugal. It evolved as one of the most prestigious orders in Europe...
External links
- The Schonborn Site - Following the Life and Work of Christoph Cardinal Schönborn
- A critique of Schönborn on evolution by Alec MacAndrew
- Interview with Peter SchusterPeter SchusterPeter K. Schuster is a renowned theoretical chemist, known for his work with the German Nobel Laureate Manfred Eigen in developing the quasispecies model...
regarding Cardinal Schönborn's statement on evolution - catholic-pages bio
- Christoph Schoenborn as a papabili to be the next pope after Pope Benedict XVI