Roman Catholic Diocese of Langres
Catholic diocese in France From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Catholic diocese in France From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Diocese of Langres (Latin: Dioecesis Lingonensis; French: Diocèse de Langres) is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church comprising the département of Haute-Marne in France.
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Diocese of Langres Dioecesis Lingonensis Diocèse de Langres | |
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Location | |
Country | France |
Ecclesiastical province | Reims |
Metropolitan | Archdiocese of Reims |
Statistics | |
Area | 6,250 km2 (2,410 sq mi) |
Population - Total - Catholics | (as of 2021) 173,041 128,000 (74%) |
Parishes | 31 |
Information | |
Denomination | Catholic |
Sui iuris church | Latin Church |
Rite | Roman Rite |
Established | 3rd Century |
Cathedral | Cathedral of St. Mammes in Langres |
Patron saint | St. Mammes of Caesarea |
Secular priests | 36 (Diocesan) 10 (Religious Orders) 17 Permanent Deacons |
Current leadership | |
Pope | Francis |
Bishop | Joseph de Metz-Noblat |
Metropolitan Archbishop | Éric de Moulins-Beaufort |
Bishops emeritus | Philippe Gueneley |
Map | |
Website | |
52.catholique.fr |
The diocese is now a suffragan in ecclesiastical province of the Archdiocese of Reims, having been a suffragan of Lyon until 2002. The current bishop is Joseph Marie Edouard de Metz-Noblat, who succeeded Bishop Philippe Jean Marie Joseph Gueneley on 21 January 2014. The diocese covers a territory of 6,250 km2 and its estimated catholic population is 128,000.
In 2021, in the Diocese of Langres there was one priest for every 2,782 Catholics.
Louis Duchesne considers Senator, Justus and Didier de Langres , who was martyred during the invasion of the Vandals (about 407), the first three bishops of Langres. The See, therefore, must have been founded about the middle of the fourth century.
In 1179, Hugh III, Duke of Burgundy gave the city of Langres to his uncle, Gautier of Burgundy, then bishop, making him a prince-bishop. Later, Langres was made a duchy, which gave the Duke-Bishop of Langres the right of secular precedence over his Metropolitan, the Archbishop of Lyon, at the consecration of the kings of France.
The chief patron saint of the diocese is the martyr Mammes of Caesarea (third century), to whom the cathedral, a monument of the late twelfth century, is dedicated. The diocese of Langres honors as saints some martyrs who, according to legend, died in the persecution of Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius. They are the triplets Speusippus, Eleusippus, and Melapsippus; Neo, the author of their Acts; Leonilla, their grandmother; and Junilla, their mother. Other saints honored there include:
The latter three were natives of the diocese and celebrated for their apostolic labors in Canada.
The diocese was also the birthplace of the theologian Nicolas de Clémenges (fourteenth or fifteenth century), who was canon and treasurer of the Church of Langres; of the Gallican canonist Edmond Richer (1560–1631); of the Jesuit Pierre Lemoine , author of an epic poem on St. Louis and of the work La dévotion aisée (1602–71); and of the philosopher Diderot (1713–84). The historian Raoul Glaber, monk of Cluny Abbey who died in 1050, was at the priory of St. Léger in this diocese when he experienced an apparition.
The Benedictine Poulangy Abbey was founded in the eleventh century. Morimond Abbey, the fourth foundation of Cîteaux, was established in 1125 by Odolric, lord of Aigremont, and Simon, Count of Bassigny. The Augustinian priory of the Val des Écoliers was founded in 1212 at Luzy, near Chaumont, by four doctors of the Paris University who were led into solitude by a love of retreat.
Otho, son of Leopold of Austria and Abbot of Morimond, became Bishop of Freising in Bavaria and returned in 1154 to die a simple monk in Morimond.
The "Scourging of the Alleluia," now no longer observed, was quite celebrated in this diocese in the Middle Ages. On the day when, according to tradition, the Alleluia was omitted from the liturgy, a top on which the word "Alleluia" was written was whipped out of the church, to the singing of psalms by the choirboys, who wished it bon voyage till Easter.
The "Pardon of Chaumont" is very celebrated. In 1475, Jean de Montmirail, a native of Chaumont and a particular friend of Pope Sixtus IV, obtained from him that each time the feast of St. John the Baptist fell on a Sunday, the faithful, who confessed their sins and visited the church of Chaumont, should enjoy the jubilee indulgence. Such was the origin of the great "Pardon" of Chaumont, celebrated sixty-one times between 1476 and 1905. At the end of the Middle Ages, this "Pardon" gave rise to certain festivities. Fifteen mysteries of the life of St. John the Baptist were represented on stages erected throughout the town on the Sunday preceding the "Pardon." The display drew multitudes to the festivities, which were finally called the "deviltries" of Chaumont.[by whom?] In the eighteenth century, the "Pardon" became a purely religious ceremony.
In the Diocese of Langres is Vassy, where, in 1562, riots took place between Catholics and Protestants that gave rise to the wars of religion (see Huguenots).
Numerous diocesan synods were held at Langres. The most important were those of 1404, 1421, 1621, 1628, 1679, 1725, 1733, 1741, 1783 and six successive annual synods held by Pierre Louis Parisis, from 1841 to 1846. These held a view to the re-establishment of the synodal organization, and also to impose on the clergy the use of the Roman Breviary (see Prosper Guéranger).
Principal pilgrimages are Our Lady of Montrol near Arc-en-Barrois (dating from the seventeenth century); Our Lady of the Hermits at Cuves; Our Lady of Victories at Bourmont; and St. Joseph, Protector of the Souls in Purgatory, at Maranville.
Suppressed by the Napoleonic Concordat of 1801, Langres was later united to the Diocese of Dijon. The bishop bore the title of Dijon and Langres, but the union was never quite complete. There was a pro-vicar-general for the Haute-Marne and two seminaries at Langres, the petit séminaire from 1809 and the grand séminaire from 1817. The See of Langres was re-established in 1817 by Pope Pius VII and King Louis XVIII. César Guillaume de La Luzerne, its pre-Revolution bishop, was to be re-appointed, but the parliament did not ratify this agreement and the bishops of Dijon remained administrators of the Diocese of Langres until 6 October 1822, when the Papal Bull "Paternae charitatis" definitely re-established the See. The new Bishop of Langres governed 360 parishes of the old Diocese of Langres, 70 of the old Diocese of Châlons, 13 of the old Diocese of Besançon, 13 of the old Diocese of Troyes and 94 of the old Diocese of Toul. For the legends concerning the Apostolic origin of the See of Langres and the mission of St. Benignus see Dijon.
The bishops, until 1016, resided at Dijon and until 1731, exercised spiritual jurisdiction over the territory of the present-day Diocese of Dijon. Following is a list of bishops of Langres.
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