Most Reverend Dr. Heinrich Mussinghoff (born October 29, 1940) is the Roman Catholic Bishop of Aachen

Bishop of Aachen

-List of the Bishops of the Diocese of Aachen, Germany:-Auxiliary bishops:-Resources:* *...

, Germany.

Born in Osterwick (now Rosendahl

Rosendahl

Rosendahl is a municipality in the district of Coesfeld in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located approx. north-west of Coesfeld....

) in northwestern Westphalia

Westphalia

Westphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Dortmund, Minden and Münster.Westphalia is roughly the region between the rivers Rhine and Weser, located north and south of the Ruhr River. No exact definition of borders can be given, because the name "Westphalia"...

, he studied philosophy and theology in Münster

University of Münster

The University of Münster is a public university located in the city of Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. The WWU is part of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, a society of Germany's leading research universities...

 and Freiburg. 1968 he was consecrated as priest in Münster by Bishop Joseph Höffner. He first worked as chaplain of Herten

Herten

Herten is a town and a municipality in the district of Recklinghausen, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated in the industrial Ruhr Area, approx...

, then became secretary of Bishop Heinrich Tenhumberg.

In December 1994 he was appointed as bishop of Aachen, and was consecrated on February 11 1995 by Cardinal Joachim Meisner in the Aachen Cathedral

Aachen Cathedral

Aachen Cathedral, frequently referred to as the "Imperial Cathedral" , is a Roman Catholic church in Aachen, Germany. The church is the oldest cathedral in northern Europe and was known as the "Royal Church of St. Mary at Aachen" during the Middle Ages...

.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms of Heinrich Mussinghoff is based on the coat of arms of the diocese of Aachen, a black cross on a golden shield. The inner shield is based on the coat of arms of the diocese of Münster, a red bar on golden ground. In the upper left corner of the inner shield is an eight-cornered star, resembling the Octagon of the Aachen Cathedral as well as the eight regions of the diocese. The star symbolizes the morning star, which never sets beneath the horizon as a symbol for Jesus Christ. On the red bar are the silver Greek letters Chi

Chi (letter)

Chi is the 22nd letter of the Greek alphabet, pronounced as in English.-Greek:-Ancient Greek:Its value in Ancient Greek was an aspirated velar stop .-Koine Greek:...

 and Rho

Rho (letter)

Rho is the 17th letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 100. It is derived from Semitic resh "head"...

 as another symbol for Christ. The red rose in bottom both symbolizes the hometown Rosendahl of the bishop, but also Mary, patron saint

Patron saint

A patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...

 of the cathedral, town and diocese of Aachen.

The slogan of Bishop Mussinghoff is Parate viam domini (prepare the way of the lord), taken from Isaiah

Book of Isaiah

The Book of Isaiah is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, preceding the books of Ezekiel, Jeremiah and the Book of the Twelve...

(40:3).

The coat of arms was designed by Ludwig Schaffrath.

Resources

• Biography at the Diocese of Aachen (German)