The
Roman Catholic Diocese of Metz is a
Diocese of the
Latin Rite of the
Roman Catholic church in
France. In the Middle Ages it was in effect an independent state, part of the
Holy Roman Empire, ruled by the bishop who had the ex officio title of count. It was annexed to France by King
Henry II in 1552; this was recognized by the Holy Roman Empire in the
Peace of Westphalia of 1648. It then was part of the province of the
Three Bishoprics.
History
Metz was definitely a bishopric by 535, but may date from earlier than that.
Originally the diocese was under the metropolitan of
Trier. After the French Revolution, the last prince bishop,
Cardinal Louis de Montmorency-Laval (1761-1802) fled and the old organization of the diocese was broken up. With the
Concordat of 1801 the diocese was re-established covering the departments of Moselle, Ardennes, and Forêts, and was put under the
Archdiocese of Besançon. In 1817 the parts of the diocese which became Prussian territory were transferred. In 1871 the whole diocese became part of Germany, and in 1874 became immediately subject to the Holy See. After World War I it was returned to France. In
1940, after the French defeat, it became German again till
1944 when it became French again. The bishop of this see is nominated by the French government.
As of 1910 there were about 533,000 Catholics living in the diocese of Metz.
Bishops
According to the traditional list of bishops, the current bishop Pierre René Ferdinand Raffin is the 105th bishop of Metz. According to this list, the first bishop was
Saint Clement, supposedly sent by
Saint Peter himself to Metz. The first fully authenticated bishop however is Sperus or Hesperus, who was bishop in
535. Many of the bishops were declared holy or blessed, like Saint
Arnulf (611-627), Saint
Chrodegang (742-766) or Saint
Agilram (768-791).
Adelbero was bishop of Metz in
933 AD.
Bishops since 1900
thumb|right|Diocesan Arms- Pierre René Ferdinand Raffin, O.P., since 1987
