Styles of
Christoph Schönborn |
|---|
 |
| Reference style | His Eminence |
|---|
| Spoken style | Your Eminence |
|---|
| Informal style | Cardinal |
|---|
Christoph Maria Michael Hugo Damian Peter Adalbert (Graf von) Schönborn, O.P. (born 22 January 1945), is a
Bohemian-born
Austrian Dominican friar and
theologian, who is a
cardinal of the Catholic Church. He serves as the
Archbishop of Vienna and President of the
Austrian Bishops' Conference. He was elevated to the
cardinalate in 1998. He is also the chaplain of the
Order of the Golden Fleece (Austrian branch), of which he has been a member since 1961. He is a member of the formerly
sovereign princely House of Schönborn, several members of which held high offices of the
Holy Roman Empire and the Catholic Church.
Schönborn was seen as a leading candidate for the
papacy because he is conservative, albeit a "balanced reformer" who is well liked by all factions of the church
[1] and noted for his tolerant views,
[2] diplomatic skills
[3] and openness to dialogue.
[4] In particular, he is recognized for his ability to mediate between the conservative and reformist wings of the Church.
[5] Schönborn has travelled widely and is well known in the Catholic Church globally for editing the
Catechism of the Catholic Church. He is a former student of
Pope Benedict XVI and a close confidant, ally and long-time friend,
[1] who has been called Benedict's "spiritual son."
[6] According to
John L. Allen, Schönborn was among the "
kingmakers" when Benedict was elected Pope in 2005.
[7] Born in
Skalken in Bohemia and growing up in
Schruns next to the Swiss border, he has German Bohemian, Czech, Austrian, Hungarian, Italian and Irish ancestry. He descends from many prominent families of Bohemia as well as royal families such as the
House of Savoy-Carignano. Schönborn studied in France, was a professor for several years in
Fribourg, Switzerland, and speaks seven languages.
[8]
[edit] Family and early life
His birthplace and ancestral castle, Skalka Castle in modern
Vlastislav
Schönborn was born at
Skalka Castle, west of
Litoměřice in
Bohemia (now part of the
Czech Republic), the second son of Count Maria Hugo Damian Adalbert Josef Hubertus von Schönborn and Baroness Eleonore Ottilie Hilda Maria von Doblhoff. He is a member of the
princely House of Schönborn whose members bear the title of Count and the
style of
Illustrious Highness. He descends from some of the leading aristocratic families of Bohemia and other lands of the
Habsburg Empire of both German Bohemian, Czech Bohemian and German Austrian origin, including
Lobkowicz,
Chotek,
Wurmbrand-Stuppach,
Kolowrat-Krakowski,
Schwarzenberg,
Thun und Hohenstein and
Clam-Martinic (
z Martinicz, supposed to be descended from the
Vršovci family and ultimately from the
Přemyslid dynasty in the male line). He also descends from Hungarian families such as
Széchenyi and
Batthyány, and from royal houses such as
Savoy-Carignano and
Hohenzollern-Hechingen. The counts of Schönborn became lords of the lordship of Skalken in Bohemia in 1796 and were owners of the lordship until a land reform in 1923. The Schönborn family continued to live in the local castle until 1945. His family spoke German as their primary language and Czech as a secondary language; in Skalken around half of the population were native German speakers and the other half native Czech speakers and most people spoke both languages. During the war, his father Hugo Damian was involved in the anti-Nazi resistance.
[9]
Following the German withdrawal from Czechoslovakia at the end of World War II, Bohemia's German-speaking population (especially the nobility) was persecuted by the new rulers, first by
Edvard Beneš' post-war nationalist government and then by the new
Stalinist regime, and the family fled to Austria when Christoph Schönborn was nine months old.
[9] His parents divorced in 1959. He has two brothers and one sister; his brother
Michael Schönborn is an actor. Several members of the Schönborn family held high offices in the Catholic Church and the
Holy Roman Empire from the 17th century, including several
prince-bishops,
cardinals and ecclesiastical
prince-electors.
[10] His legal birth name is Christoph (Maria Michael Hugo Damian Peter Adalbert) Graf von Schönborn, the name under which he is still often referred to, while Austrian authorities registered him under the name "Christoph Schönborn." He grew up in
Schruns in western Austria, close to the border of the Swiss canton of
Graubünden. Nevertheless, he has said that Bohemia is his home.
[9] Parts of his family live in France.
[11]
Schönborn also descends from the astronomers
Joseph Johann Littrow and
Karl L. Littrow, and the feminist pioneer
Auguste von Littrow. He also has an Irish great-great-great-grandmother, Lady Selina Meade (1797–1872), the daughter of Richard Meade, 2nd
Earl of Clanwilliam (1766–1805), married Countess of
Clam-Martinic. Christoph Schönborn is a great-grandson of the niece (Marie
Chotek) of
Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg. He also descends from the Bohemian branch of the
Colonna family, a mediaeval papal family.
[12] He descends from Princess Gabrielle of
Savoy-Carignano (1748–1828), a daughter of
Louis Victor, Prince of Carignano and a member of the family which in 1861 became the Italian royal house.
Growing up in
Vorarlberg, Schönborn speaks the
Vorarlberg dialect as well as
Swiss German in addition to
Standard German.
[13] In addition to his native German, Schönborn is fluent in French and Italian, and proficient in English, Spanish and
Latin.
[14] He also speaks Czech.
[8] He lived for several years in France and French-speaking Switzerland, and speaks French at a near-native level.
[edit] Early church career
In September 1945, his family was forced to flee from Bohemia. Schönborn took his
Matura 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.
Schönborn 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.
[edit] Archbishop of Vienna
Schönborn was appointed
Coadjutor 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 conclaves that begin before his 80th birthday on 22 January 2025.
Schönborn 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.
[15]
Cardinal Schönborn also serves as the chaplain to the Austrian
Order of the Golden Fleece. Schönborn's
episcopal motto is
Vos autem dixi amicos (I have called you friends) from
John 15:15.
Acting as Pope Benedict XVI's personal representative as well as in his own capacity as archbishop, Schönborn presided over the
Funeral of Otto von Habsburg, former Crown Prince of
Austria-Hungary, in
St. Stephen's Cathedral on 16 July 2011.
[16]
On Tuesday, 18 September 2012, Schönborn was named by Pope Benedict XVI as a Synod Father for the October 2012 13th Ordinary General Assembly of the
Synod of Bishops on the New Evangelization.
[17]
Schönborn is the highest-ranked Catholic Church official to visit Iran after the 1980–88
Iran-Iraq War.
[18]
Schönborn has been described as an accomplished
crisis manager.
[19] He has a close relationship with
Pope Benedict XVI, whom he has known for decades, and has been referred to as Benedict's "spiritual son."
[6]
[edit] Response to the sex abuse scandal
In May 2010 Schönborn told the 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," while praising
Pope Benedict XVI for having pushed for sex abuse inquiries when he was a Cardinal. Schönborn has earned much recognition
[20] for his handling of the abuse scandal surrounding former Vienna Archbishop
Hans Hermann Groër, who was removed from office in 1995. In 1998, Schönborn publicly confirmed that he believed in the allegations against Groër.
[14] In 2010, he explained that the future Pope Benedict XVI had long pressed for a full investigation of the case, but met resistance in the Vatican at the time.
[21] A sex abuse victims group named him as one of two promising cardinals they see as good candidates for the papacy in 2013.
[22]
[edit] Gerhard Wagner controversy
In January 2009,
Gerhard Maria Wagner was appointed by the Vatican, without consultation with the Austrian bishops’ conference, as an
auxiliary bishop of
Linz, Austria. Wagner was known for highly conservative views, in particular for blaming the
Hurricane Katrina on the sins of the
New Orleans' homosexuals and abortionists. Wagner's appointment has generated widespread protests in Austria and a boycott by many priests of the Linz diocese. Schönborn quickly joined the public criticism of the appointment.
[23] Schönborn made an emergency trip to Rome and in mid-February 2009 Wagner was persuaded to resign his post at Linz.
[24]
[edit] Response to dissident priest movement
As the Archbishop of Vienna and the head of the Catholic Church in Austria, Schönborn has faced an open and highly publicized rebellion by a movement of Austrian dissident clergy known as the
Pfarrer Initiative or
Priests' Initiative. The group, formed in 2005, and comprising about 10% of the Austrian clergy, has been publicly advocating a number of radical religious reforms, such as ordination of women, allowing priests to marry, allowing divorced Catholics and non-Catholic christians to receive communion, and others.
[25] In 2011 the Pfarrer Initiative attracted considerable attention with the publication of the group's manifesto called "Call to Disobedience".
[25] Archbishop Schönborn met with the supporters of the Pfarrer Initiative but, in June 2012 he publicly reaffirmed the official position of the Vatican on the issues raised by the dissident group and directed that no priest expressing support for the "Call to Disobedience" be allowed to hold any administrative post in the Austrian Catholic Church.
[26] In September 2012 Schönborn again "backed celibacy for priests, limiting ordination to men and preserving marriage as a life-long commitment" and reiterated a warning to the dissident clergy that they faced serious consequences if they continued to advocate disobedience to the Vatican.
[27]
Schönborn has been described as a "conciliatory pragmatist who is open to dialogue."
[28]
[edit] Islam and Catholicism
Schönborn favours dialogue between Catholicism and Islam.
[18]
[edit] Catholic-Orthodox dialogue
Schönborn has said that theological differences between the Catholic Church and the
Eastern Orthodox churches can be resolved, if the two faiths can overcome the burden of history.
[29]
[edit] HIV/AIDS and condoms
In 1996, Schönborn told an Austrian television audience that someone suffering from AIDS 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."
[30]
[edit] Mozart, Catholicism and Freemasonry
According to Eric Leitenberger, Schönborn's spokesman, the cardinal's position is that
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a
Freemason, but that he was also fully Catholic.
[31]
[edit] Evolution and the Catholic Church
In an opinion piece that appeared in the
New York Times on 7 July 2005
[32] Schönborn accepted the possibility of
evolution but criticised certain
"neo-Darwinian" theories as incompatible with Catholic teaching:
Evolution in the sense of common ancestry might be true, but evolution in the neo-Darwinian sense – an unguided, unplanned process of
random variation and
natural selection – is not. Any system of thought that denies or seeks to explain away the overwhelming evidence for design in biology is ideology, not science.
This statement created considerable controversy, including public criticism of Schönborn's views by the director of the
Vatican Observatory,
George Coyne, SJ, who pointed out that Pope
John Paul II’s declaration that "evolution is no longer a mere hypothesis" is now “a fundamental church teaching”
[33] and a response by Catholic physicist
Stephen Barr in the Catholic periodical
First Things,
[34] to which Schönborn in turn replied.
[35]
[edit] Gay pastoral council member
In April 2012, the election of a young gay man who was living in a registered same-sex partnership to a
Pastoral Council in Vienna was vetoed by the
parish priest. After meeting with the couple, Schönborn reinstated him. He later advised in a sermon that priests must apply a pastoral approach that is "neither rigorist nor lax" in counseling Catholics who "don't live according to [God's] master plan".
[36]
[edit] Coat of arms
Schönborn's
coat of arms as an archbishop and cardinal includes in its upper
sinister field the family arms of the
House of Schönborn.
[edit] Titles and styles
[edit] Ancestry
| [show]Ancestors of Christoph Schönborn |
|---|
[37][38]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 16. Count Karl von Schönborn |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 8. Count Johann von Schönborn |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 17. Princess Johanna Lobkowicz |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 4. Count Karl Johann von Schönborn |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 18. Count Heinrich von Wurmbrand-Stuppach |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 9. Countess Anna von Wurmbrand-Stuppach |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 19. Countess Eugenie von Schönborn-Buchheim |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 2. Count Hugo Damian von Schönborn |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 20. Count Hugo von Nostitz-Rieneck |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 10. Count Heinrich von Nostitz-Rieneck |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 21. Countess Maria Clam-Martinic |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 5. Countess Elisabeth von Nostitz-Rieneck |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 22. Count Antonín Chotek z Chotkova a Vojnína |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 11. Countess Marie Chotková z Chotkova a Vojnína |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 23. Olga von Moltke |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 1. Christoph Schönborn |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 24. Baron Joseph von Doblhoff-Dierr |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 12. Baron Rudolf von Doblhoff |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 25. Ida Lenkey de Lenke |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 6. Baron Herbert von Doblhoff |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 26. Karl Ludwig Edler von Littrow |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 13. Dorothea Edle von Littrow |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 27. Auguste von Bischoff-Altenstern |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 3. Baroness Eleonore von Doblhoff |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 28. Wilhelm Skutetzky |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 14. Hubert von Skutetzky |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 7. Gertud von Skutetzky |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 15. Anna Amalia Berwer |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b Schönborn als neuer Papst in "Poleposition", Kurier
- ^ http://www.france24.com/fr/20130219-vatican-pape-conclave-cardinal-schonborn-proche-benoit-xvi-
- ^ http://www.vienna.at/diplomatisches-geschick-koennte-schoenborn-bei-der-papst-wahl-nutzen/3509918
- ^ http://www.catholicsun.org/2013/02/24/austrian-cardinal-theologian-known-for-patient-pastoral-approach/
- ^ http://www.primapress.it/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=7776:bregantini-conclave-christoph-schonborn&Itemid=285&lang=it
- ^ a b http://www.jolpress.com/christoph-schonborn-pape-conclave-benoit-xvi-papabile-article-817718.html
- ^ http://ncronline.org/blogs/all-things-catholic/quick-course-conclave-101
- ^ a b http://www.herald-dispatch.com/opinions/x2070317937/We-are-soon-to-have-an-ex-pope
- ^ a b c http://www.volksblatt.at/politik/boehmisches_dorf_hofft_auf_schoenborns_wahl_zum_papst_15022013/
- ^ Graf/Gräfin von Schöborn. An Online Gotha. Retrieved 22 March 2010.
- ^ http://www.lepoint.fr/monde/vatican-schonborn-n-est-pas-prophete-en-son-pays-09-03-2013-1637986_24.php
- ^ A. Nowak: Die Reichsgrafen Colonna, Freiherrn von Fels, auf Groß-Strehlitz, Tost und Tworog in Ober-Schlesien . – Groß-Strehlitz : Wilpert, 1902
- ^ http://www.format.at/articles/1310/931/354267/papst-konklave-die-kandidaten
- ^ a b http://www.kathweb.at/site/nachrichten/database/52626.html
- ^ DI MEMBRI DEL PONTIFICIO CONSIGLIO PER LA PROMOZIONE DELLA NUOVA EVANGELIZZAZIONE
- ^ "Otto Habsburg: Beisetzung am 16. Juli in Wien". Wien.orf.at. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
- ^ http://www.microsofttranslator.com/BV.aspx?ref=IE8Activity&a=http%3A%2F%2Fpress.catholica.va%2Fnews_services%2Fbulletin%2Fnews%2F29673.php%3Findex%3D29673%26lang%3Den
- ^ a b http://www.bloomberg.com/slideshow/2013-02-12/conclave-meets-portraits-of-the-cardinals-who-would-be-pope.html#slide3
- ^ http://www.news.at/a/papst-nachfolger-schoenborn-konklave-wahl
- ^ http://www.oe24.at/papst/Unser-Kardinal-wird-in-Rom-sehr-geschaetzt/94642451
- ^ http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/damianthompson/100031816/pope-john-paul-ii-ignored-ratzingers-pleas-to-pursue-sex-abuse-cardinal/
- ^ http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/443480/20130308/new-pope-2013-sex-abuse-victims-group.htm#.UTjR-rvdV2Y
- ^ Austria’s perilous journey, The Tablet, 21 February 2009. Accessed 9 March 2013.
- ^ The men who could be pope: Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, Catholic Herald, 6 March 2013. Accessed 9 March 2013
- ^ a b Austria: “Cold war” between rebel priests and the Vatican, Vatican Insider, 30 November 2012. Accessed 9 March 2013
- ^ Austrian cardinal cracks down on rebel priests, Reuters, 27 June 2012. Accessed 9 March 2013
- ^ Vienna cardinal takes tough line on priest revolt, Reuters, 17 September 2012. Accessed 9 March 2013
- ^ http://www.heute.at/news/welt/art23661,850765
- ^ Austrian cardinal optimistic on Catholic-Orthodox accord
- ^ Condom use as lesser evil, but still an evil
- ^ Mozart: Catholic, Master Mason, favorite of the pope
- ^ "Finding Design in Nature", The New York Times, 7 July 2005.
- ^ "Intelligent Design belittles God, Vatican director says", Catholic Online, 30 Jan 2006
- ^ S. Barr, "The Design of Evolution", First Things, Oct 2005
- ^ C. Schönborn, "The designs of science", First Things, January 2006
- ^ Mann, Benjamin (13 April 2012). "Vatican consultant defends Cardinal Schönborn in parish council flap". Catholic News Agency. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
- ^ http://www.genealogics.org/pedigree.php?personID=I00206032&tree=LEO&parentset=0&display=standard&generations=5
- ^ http://www.biographien.ac.at/oebl/oebl_S/Skutetzky_Wilhelm_1828_1889.xml
[edit] External links
| Persondata |
|---|
| Name | Schoenborn, Christoph |
| Alternative names | |
| Short description | Dominican friar and Catholic cardinal |
| Date of birth | 22 January 1945 |
| Place of birth | Skalken Castle, Bohemia (now Czech Republic) |
| Date of death | |
| Place of death | |
Апрель 10th, 2012 
Johnny 
11 марта 2013 Елизавета II подписала Хартию о недопустимости любых форм
дискриминации, в том числе по признаку сексуальной ориентации, в
странах британского Содружества наций. 
.jpg)
