# Roman Catholic Diocese of Speyer

The Diocese of Speyer (Latin: Dioecesis Spirensis) is a Latin diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. The diocese is located in the South of the Rhineland-Palatinate and comprises also the Saarpfalz district in the east of the Saarland. The bishop's see is in the Palatinate city of Speyer.
The current bishop is Karl-Heinz Wiesemann.
As of 31 December 2022, 32.3% of the population of the diocese was Catholic.

## History

In a slightly different hierarchic structure, it is one of the oldest Dioceses in Germany. A bishop of Speyer was first mentioned in a document in 346. Through grants by the Holy Roman Emperor, the prince-bishops of Speyer established themselves as worldly as well as spiritual rulers. The Diocese of Speyer in its current form was established within the borders of the former Rheinkreis, a district of the Kingdom of Bavaria in 1817 after the secularization and division of the former bishopric in 1803.
For these historical reasons, Speyer belongs to the Province of Bamberg in Bavaria now, even though its territory has no direct border to Bamberg or any other Bamberg suffragan, and is a member of the Episcopal Conference of Bavaria as well as (like all Bavarian bishops) that of Germany.

### 20th Century

The German Catholic Churches suffered greatly under persecution by the Nazi regime, and the Diocese of Speyer was among those freed in April 1945, which finally allowed the bishop of Speyer to attend a synod in Fulda after an involuntary, extended break. It is not known if and how many priests of the Diocese were among the 400 deacons, priests, bishops, and pastors imprisoned in Dachau.
In the early 20th Century, the Diocese was a net exporter of priests to other dioceses, including to the United States.
In 1985, Pope John Paul II elevated former Speyer bishop Friedrich Wetter to be a cardinal. This was one of the largest Consistories ever.

### 21st Century

In April 2020, a Nigerian priest in the Diocese of Speyer quit after “massive” racist threats and abuses were showered upon him. In early 2020, a German court took testimony that during the 1970s, nuns in the Diocese of Speyer had aided and abetted sexual abuse of children at a children’s home, after a legal complaint was filed; the Diocese settled the case in December of that year for €15,000.
In May 2022, Andreas Sturm, a past vicar general of the Diocese of Speyer, left the Roman Catholic Church to join the German Old Catholic Church, after admitting that he broke his vow of celibacy, and over doctrinal disputes.
As of 2023, the Diocese of Speyer authorizes same-sex blessings in the diocese, after a ruling by Bishop Weisemann.
The Diocese of Speyer hosted a meeting of the Synod on Synodality, in 2024, which garnered criticism from a Togolese theologian and priest, who advocated for small dioceses.

## Bishops

The current bishop is Karl-Heinz Wiesemann. See also Bishop of Speyer for lists of bishops of the diocese and auxiliary bishops.

## Administration

The diocese is directed by bishop Karl-Heinz Wiesemann.
The diocese is structured in the following deaneries, with borders that are almost the same as the local county borders:
| Deanery | City / County | Dean |
| Bad Dürkheim | City of Neustadt, district Bad Dürkheim | Priest Michael Paul, Neustadt |
| Donnersberg | District Donnersbergkreis | Priest Markus Horbach, Rockenhausen |
| Germersheim | District Germersheim | Priest Jörg Rubeck, Germersheim |
| Kaiserslautern | Kaiserslautern city, Kaiserslautern district | Priest Steffen Kühn, Kaiserslautern |
| Kusel | District Kusel | Priest Michael Kapolka, Schönenberg-Kübelberg |
| Landau | Landau city, district Südliche Weinstraße | Priest Axel Brecht, Landau |
| Ludwigshafen | City of Ludwigshafen | Priest Dominik Geiger, Ludwigshafen |
| Pirmasens | Pirmasens city, Zweibrücken city, district Südwestpfalz | Priest Johannes Pioth, Pirmasens |
| Saarpfalz | Saarpfalz district | Priest Eric Klein, Blieskastel-Lautzkirchen |
| Speyer | City of Speyer, Frankenthal city, district Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis | Priest Pfarrer Markus Hary, Bobenheim-Roxheim |