Ludwig Schwarz
Encyclopedia
Ludwig Schwarz, S.D.B.
(born 4 June 1940) is the Roman Catholic bishop
of the Diocese of Linz
, Austria
.
. After the expulsion of his family from Slovakia in 1945, he arrived in Vienna, where he attended primary school. He attended a Gymnasium in Vienna for a time, but switched to the Salesian school in Ebreichsdorf-Unterwaltersdorf
at the age of fourteen. In June 1959, he sat for the Matura
exams and subsequently joined the order of the Salesians of Don Bosco
. He was assigned a two-year teaching practicum; for the first year he served as a general assistant in Ebreichsdorf, and the second at the Schülerheim Vinzentinum in Klagenfurt
.
He studied philosophy in Ebreichsdorf and Catholic theology in Klagenfurt; from 1961 to 1964 he studied at Benediktbeuern Theological College
(Philosophisch-Theologischen Hochschule Benediktbeuern). On 29 June 1964, he was ordained to the priesthood by the Bishop of Augsburg
, Josef Stimpfle. He afterwards served briefly as assistant chaplain at a parish church in Graz
. He then studied classical philology
and archeology
at the University of Vienna
, and was also the hospital chaplain at Sacred Heart Hospital (Herz Jesu Krankenhaus Wien). He received his doctorate in 1970. From 1969 to 1978, he was rector of an inter-diocesan seminary, Canisiusheim Centrum Horn. Until 1984, he was superior of the Austrian province of the Salesians, situated in Vienna.
In 1984 he was appointed to a directorship at the Salesian Pontifical University
in Rome. Starting in 1985, he taught Christian classical philology at the university. In 1993, he assumed the responsibilities of provincial for the Roman Province of the Salesians of Don Bosco.
From February 1999 to February 2005, he was National Director of Pontifical Mission Societies
in Austria (popularly known as Missio). On 15 October 2001, Pope John Paul II
appointed him an auxiliary bishop
for the Archdiocese of Vienna with the titular see
of Simidicca. Schwarz received episcopal ordination on 25 November 2001 by Cardinal Christoph Schönborn at St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna. In that capacity, he directed Vienna's Diocesan Office for Mission and Development.
; he assumed that office on 18 September.
Schwarz put an end to some of the liberal practices of his predecessor, Maximilian Aichern
. Unlike his predecessor, Schwarz is typically unwilling to grant exemptions from ecclesiastical norms. He has enforced Catholic teaching that prohibits baptism
s and preaching
by lay people
, and has been more stringent about norms for the reception of the Eucharist.
Schwarz has also had to deal with some controversy over the nomination of Gerhard Maria Wagner
as auxiliary bishop of the diocese, whose selection by the Congregation for Bishops
was rejected by many of the liberal deans in Austria. Wagner turned down the appointment as a result.
Salesians of Don Bosco
The Salesians of Don Bosco is a Roman Catholic religious order founded in the late nineteenth century by Saint John Bosco in an attempt, through works of charity, to care for the young and poor children of the industrial revolution...
(born 4 June 1940) is the Roman Catholic bishop
Bishop (Catholic Church)
In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders and is responsible for teaching the Catholic faith and ruling the Church....
of the Diocese of Linz
Roman Catholic Diocese of Linz
The Diocese of Linz is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Vienna, Austria.-Early history:In the early Middle Ages the greater part of the territory of the present Diocese of Linz was subject to the bishops of Lauriacum ; at a later date it formed part of the great Diocese of Passau, which extended...
, Austria
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...
.
Life
Ludwig Schwarz was the first of nine children and grew up in Most pri BratislaveMost pri Bratislave
Most pri Bratislave is a village and municipality in western Slovakia in Senec District in the Bratislava Region.-Geography:The municipality lies at an altitude of 130 metres above sea level and covers an area of 19.01km². It has a population of 1594 people.-External...
. After the expulsion of his family from Slovakia in 1945, he arrived in Vienna, where he attended primary school. He attended a Gymnasium in Vienna for a time, but switched to the Salesian school in Ebreichsdorf-Unterwaltersdorf
Ebreichsdorf
Ebreichsdorf is a town in the district of Baden in Lower Austria in Austria....
at the age of fourteen. In June 1959, he sat for the Matura
Matura
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,...
exams and subsequently joined the order of the Salesians of Don Bosco
Salesians of Don Bosco
The Salesians of Don Bosco is a Roman Catholic religious order founded in the late nineteenth century by Saint John Bosco in an attempt, through works of charity, to care for the young and poor children of the industrial revolution...
. He was assigned a two-year teaching practicum; for the first year he served as a general assistant in Ebreichsdorf, and the second at the Schülerheim Vinzentinum in Klagenfurt
Klagenfurt
-Name:Carinthia's eminent linguists Primus Lessiak and Eberhard Kranzmayer assumed that the city's name, which literally translates as "ford of lament" or "ford of complaints", had something to do with the superstitious thought that fateful fairies or demons tend to live around treacherous waters...
.
He studied philosophy in Ebreichsdorf and Catholic theology in Klagenfurt; from 1961 to 1964 he studied at Benediktbeuern Theological College
Benediktbeuern Abbey
Benediktbeuern Abbey is a monastery of the Salesians of Don Bosco, originally a monastery of the Benedictine Order, in Benediktbeuern in Bavaria, near the Kochelsee, 64 km south-south-west of Munich...
(Philosophisch-Theologischen Hochschule Benediktbeuern). On 29 June 1964, he was ordained to the priesthood by the Bishop of Augsburg
Bishop of Augsburg
The Bishop of Augsburg is the Ordinary of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Augsburg in the Ecclesiastical province of München und Freising.The diocese covers an area of 13,250 km².The current bishop is Konrad Zdarsa who was appointed in 2010....
, Josef Stimpfle. He afterwards served briefly as assistant chaplain at a parish church in Graz
Graz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
. He then studied classical philology
Classical philology
Classical philology is the study of ancient Greek and classical Latin. Classical philology has been defined as "the careful study of the literary and philosophical texts of the ancient Greek and Roman worlds." Greek and Latin literature and civilization have traditionally been considered...
and archeology
Classical archaeology
Classical archaeology is the archaeological investigation of the great Mediterranean civilizations of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. Nineteenth century archaeologists such as Heinrich Schliemann were drawn to study the societies they had read about in Latin and Greek texts...
at the University of Vienna
University of Vienna
The University of Vienna is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world...
, and was also the hospital chaplain at Sacred Heart Hospital (Herz Jesu Krankenhaus Wien). He received his doctorate in 1970. From 1969 to 1978, he was rector of an inter-diocesan seminary, Canisiusheim Centrum Horn. Until 1984, he was superior of the Austrian province of the Salesians, situated in Vienna.
In 1984 he was appointed to a directorship at the Salesian Pontifical University
Salesian Pontifical University
The Salesian Pontifical University is a pontifical university in Italy run by the Salesian order...
in Rome. Starting in 1985, he taught Christian classical philology at the university. In 1993, he assumed the responsibilities of provincial for the Roman Province of the Salesians of Don Bosco.
From February 1999 to February 2005, he was National Director of Pontifical Mission Societies
Pontifical Mission Societies
The Pontifical Mission Societies is the name given to a group of Catholic missionary societies that are under the canonical juridiction of the bishop of Rome. These organizations include the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, the Society of St...
in Austria (popularly known as Missio). On 15 October 2001, 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 ...
appointed him 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...
for the Archdiocese of Vienna with the titular see
Titular see
A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular bishop", "titular metropolitan", or "titular archbishop"....
of Simidicca. Schwarz received episcopal ordination on 25 November 2001 by Cardinal Christoph Schönborn at St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna. In that capacity, he directed Vienna's Diocesan Office for Mission and Development.
As bishop of Linz
Schwarz was appointed the Diocesan Bishop of Linz on 6 July 2005 by Pope Benedict XVIPope 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...
; he assumed that office on 18 September.
Schwarz put an end to some of the liberal practices of his predecessor, Maximilian Aichern
Maximilian Aichern
Maximilian Aichen OSB is an Austrian Roman Catholic bishop who was the ordinary of the diocese of Linz from 1982 to 2005.- Life :...
. Unlike his predecessor, Schwarz is typically unwilling to grant exemptions from ecclesiastical norms. He has enforced Catholic teaching that prohibits baptism
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
s and preaching
Homiletics
Homiletics , in theology the application of the general principles of rhetoric to the specific department of public preaching. The one who practices or studies homiletics is called a homilist....
by lay people
Laity
In religious organizations, the laity comprises all people who are not in the clergy. A person who is a member of a religious order who is not ordained legitimate clergy is considered as a member of the laity, even though they are members of a religious order .In the past in Christian cultures, the...
, and has been more stringent about norms for the reception of the Eucharist.
Schwarz has also had to deal with some controversy over the nomination of Gerhard Maria Wagner
Gerhard Maria Wagner
Gerhard Maria Wagner — born 1954 July 17, Wartberg ob der Aist, Austria—was appointed auxiliary bishop of Linz, Austria, by Pope Benedict XVI on 2009 January 31...
as auxiliary bishop of the diocese, whose selection by the Congregation for Bishops
Congregation for Bishops
The Congregation for Bishops is the congregation of the Roman Curia which oversees the selection of new bishops that are not in mission territories or those areas that come under the jurisdiction of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches who deal with the Eastern Catholics, pending papal...
was rejected by many of the liberal deans in Austria. Wagner turned down the appointment as a result.