RUTTEN, MARTIN-HUBERT. — Bishop of Liège (Belgium), b. at Geystingen (Limburg) on 18 Dec. 1841, d. at Liège on 17 July 1927.
Ordained a priest in 1867, he was a professor at the École Normale of St-Trond; in 1873, director of the minor seminary of St-Roch; in 1877, of the minor seminary of St-Trond; and in 1879, vicar general of the new bishop of Liège, whom he subsequently succeeded in 1901. During his episcopate, free education underwent considerable expansion through the establishment of new colleges and vocational or technical institutes, as did Catholic Action, which was then emerging. The last quarter of the nineteenth century had witnessed the emergence of the social question in a particularly vigorous form. From the beginning of his episcopate, R. found himself amid passionate struggles dividing democratic Catholics from conservative Catholics. He attempted, with little success, to mediate between the contenders, after having initially opposed energetically, perhaps excessively, the bold, though at times unclear, tendencies of the democratic camp. After the 1914–18 war, however, he supported very many social reforms. Another major problem he had to confront was the Flemish movement, which developed in Belgium at the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century.
This movement arose from the desire to give Flemish culture a place not unlike that occupied in Belgian life by French-inspired culture, and also from the desire to promote the rapprochement of the social classes through the use of the same language. From his youth, R. distinguished himself by his strong attachment to his mother tongue. He published several literary works in that language, particularly dramatic works, and supported all the institutions that aimed to promote II. When he became bishop, he was among the most ardent promoters of everything in the Flemish movement that embodied legitimate aspirations. He also firmly opposed all separatist attempts, especially those of the activists, during the First World War. After the German occupation of Belgium, R. was one of the most intrepid defenders of the people against the violence of the enemy: his letters and speeches, collected in a volume by Msgr. Simenon (Un évêque, défenseur de la cité), bear witness to this. Two of his books enjoyed great success at that time: Manuel d'apologétique and l'Eglise et les promesses divines.