Gregorius Thomas Ziegler

Bishop of Linz, born at Kirchheim near Augsburg, 7 March, 1770; died at Linz, 15 April, 1852. He joined the Benedictines at Wiblingen in 1788, was ordained priest, 25 May, 1793, teaching in various Benedicting institutions until 23 October, 1892, when he became prior of his monastery. After the suppression of Wiblingen in 1806 he removed with some of his confreres to Tiniec in Poland and taught theology at the neighbouring University of Cracow. When the Benedictines werer forced to leave Tiniec in 1809 he was engaged as professor of churhc history at the Lyceum of Linz, 1809-15, and of theology at Vienna, 1815-22. On 2 February, 1822, he became Bishop of the new Diocese of Tiniec, but transferrred his see to Tarnow, where he began the erection of a seminary and renovated the cathedral. On 13 April, 1827, he was promoted to the Diocese of Linz. He laboured succesfully for the emancipation of the Church from governmental encroachments, fostered the religious life of the clergy and laity by introducing clerical retreats and popular missions, and advanced the religious education of the laity by introducing religious orders. he is the author of "Die Feier der heil. Firmung in der Kath. Kirche" (Vienna, 1817); "Das Kath. Glaubensprincip" (Vienna, 1823); "Zuge und Schilderungern aus dem Leben des sel. Seb. Franz Job" (Linz, 1835) and various minor works, pastoral letters, occasional lectures, and sermons. He also re-edited Klypfel's "institutiones theologiae dogmaticae" (Vienna, 1819-21) and contributed various theological treatises to Frint's "Theologische Zeitschrift" (Vienna, 1813-16).

LINDNER in Studien und Mitteilungen aus dem Ben. und Cist. Orden, IV (Wurtzburg, 1883), i, 418-23; Scriptores O.S. B. qui 1750-1880 fuerunt in Imperio Austriaco-Hungarico (Vienna, 1831), 529-31; WURZBACH, Biog. Lexikon des Kaiserthums Osterreich, LX (Vienna, 1891), 50-2; HIPTMAIR, Geschichte des Bisthums Linz (Linz, 1885), 179-214.

MICHAEL OTT