Reinhard Marx

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Styles of
Reinhard Marx
Reference style The Most Reverend
Spoken style Your Excellency
Religious style Monsignor
Posthumous style not applicable


Reinhard Marx (born September 21, 1953) is a German prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He currently serves as Archbishop of Munich and Freising.

Reinhard Marx, Archbishop of Munich and Freising
Reinhard Marx, Archbishop of Munich and Freising

Born in Geseke, Marx was ordained to the priesthood, for the Archdiocese of Paderborn, by Archbishop Johannes Degenhardt on June 2, 1979. He obtained a doctorate in theology in 1989.

On July 23, 1996, he was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Paderborn and Titular Bishop of Petina by Pope John Paul. Marx received his episcopal consecration on the following September 21 (his forty-third birthday) from Archbishop Degenhardt, with Bishops Hans Drewes and Paul Consbruch serving as co-consecrators.

He was later named Bishop of Trier (the oldest diocese in Germany) on December 20, 2001, replacing Hermann Josef Spital nearly a year after the latter's retirement. Marx is considered to be rather conservative in matters of Church discipline, but also a "social scientist ... and whiz with the media"[1]. Moreover, in 2003, he suspended a theologian for extending to Protestants an invitation to the Eucharist[2].

Pope Benedict XVI appointed Marx as Archbishop of Munich and Freising, a position that the Pope himself held from 1977 to 1981, on November 30, 2007. Rumors surrounding this were circulated before Pope Benedict's formal announcement, but Marx responded to these by saying, "The Pope names bishops, not the press"[2]. On 2 February 2008, Marx was inaugurated as Archbishop of Munich and Freising in the Munich Frauenkirche.

Bishop Marx currently serves as head of the committee for social issues at the German Bishops' Conference.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Whispers in the Loggia. Papa Ratzi's Hometown Heir? November 28, 2007
  2. ^ a b Whispers in the Loggia. Tomorrow: Hope, Munich and Media ... All By Noon November 29, 2007

[edit] External links


Preceded by
Hermann Josef Spital		 Bishop of Trier
2001–2008		 Succeeded by
none yet
Preceded by
Friedrich Wetter		 Archbishop of Munich and Freising
2008–present		 Succeeded by
incumbent