12 Facts About Karl Lehmann

Karl Lehmann was a German prelate and cardinal of the Catholic Church.

Karl Lehmann served as Bishop of Mainz from 1983 to 2016, being elevated to the cardinalate in 2001.

Karl Lehmann served as chairman of the Conference of the German Bishops from 1987 to 2008, being considered one of the most influential prelates in Germany in those years and a leading proponent of liberal stances within the Church.

Karl Lehmann's father was a local teacher and his mother educated as a bookseller.

Karl Lehmann was ordained to the priesthood on 10 October 1963 in Rome by Cardinal Julius Dopfner.

Karl Lehmann was for ten years, from 1974 to 1984, a member of the International Theological Commission.

Karl Lehmann served as member of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith from 1986 to 1998 and served as vice-president of the Council of the Bishops' Conferences of Europe from 1993 to 2001.

Karl Lehmann mentioned the 1998 Katholikentag in Mainz as one of the highlights his years as bishop of the diocese.

Karl Lehmann was raised to the rank of cardinal by Pope John Paul II at the consistory of 21 February 2001.

Former Chancellor of Germany Helmut Kohl, who was a friend of Karl Lehmann, had lobbied the Vatican for the appointment.

Karl Lehmann was one of the electors who participated in the papal conclaves of 2005 and 2013 that selected Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis.

In September 2017, Karl Lehmann suffered a stroke and cerebral hemorrhage which left him in need of care, first at hospital and later at home.