Bolesław Hieronim Kłopotowski (13 March 1848 – 24 February 1903) was a Roman Catholic Archbishop of Mohilev from 1901 until his death in 1903.

Biography

Kłopotowski was born near

Sharhorod Sharhorod (, ) is a small List of cities in Ukraine, city located within the Vinnytsia Oblast, Ukraine. It served as the administrative center of the former Sharhorod Raion until its dissolution in 2020. Population: Sharhorod also has a number o ...

. He was first educated in Zlatopil and

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

. He began attending the diocesan seminary in

Zhytomyr Zhytomyr ( ; see #Names, below for other names) is a city in the north of the western half of Ukraine. It is the Capital city, administrative center of Zhytomyr Oblast (Oblast, province), as well as the administrative center of the surrounding ...

in 1865; he was

confirmed In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. The ceremony typically involves laying on of hands. Catholicis ...

while in Zhytomyr on 25 February 1866. He received a

tonsure Tonsure () is the practice of cutting or shaving some or all of the hair on the scalp as a sign of religious devotion or humility. The term originates from the Latin word ' (meaning "clipping" or "shearing") and referred to a specific practice in ...

and was ordained to

minor orders In Christianity, minor orders are ranks of church ministry. In the Catholic Church, the predominating Latin Church formerly distinguished between the major orders—priest (including bishop), deacon and subdeacon—and four minor orders— acolyt ...

on 11 March 1867, followed by his ordination to the subdiaconate on 15 March 1869. In the same year, he was sent to the

Saint Petersburg Roman Catholic Theological Academy The Imperial Roman Catholic Theological Academy () was an institution of higher education preparing Roman Catholic theologians in the Russian Empire. The academy granted master's and doctorate degrees in theology and was designed to prepare clergy ...

, graduating with a

magister's degree A magister degree (also magistar, female form: magistra; from , "teacher") is an academic degree used in various systems of higher education. The magister degree arose in medieval universities in Europe and was originally equal to the doctorate; ...

in theology on 19 January 1874. During this period, he was ordained to the deaconate on 26 June 1872 and was also ordained as a priest on 15 July 1872. In 1874, Kłopotowski was appointed a professor of the diocesan seminary of Zhytomyr, where he taught the Latin language as well as

moral theology Ethics involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior.''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy''"Ethics" A central aspect of ethics is "the good life", the life worth living or life that is simply satisfyin ...

and

church history Church history or ecclesiastical history as an academic discipline studies the history of Christianity and the way the Christian Church has developed since its inception. Henry Melvill Gwatkin defined church history as "the spiritual side of t ...

. He was later appointed a professor of the

on 17 December 1877, where he taught church history and

canon law Canon law (from , , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical jurisdiction, ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its membe ...

for 20 years. Kłopotowski was awarded the

Order of Saint Stanislaus The Order of Saint Stanislaus (, ), also spelled Stanislas, was a Polish order of knighthood founded in 1765 by King Stanisław August Poniatowski of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. It remained under the Congress Poland, Kingdom of Pola ...

, 3rd class, in May 1883, and was appointed inspector for the Academy on 23 August 1884. After the exile of Franciszek Albin Symon to Odessa, Kłopotowski was appointed rector of the Academy on 23 August 1897; he served as rector until 24 November of the same year. While working at the Academy, he published the ''Compendium Historicae Ecclesiae'', a three-volume work inspired by the work of

G. Henry Wouters G. Henry Wouters was a Flemish church historian who regarded ecclesiastical history as an auxiliary science to theology. Biography He was born in Oostham in Belgian Limburg on 3 May 1802; died on 5 January 1872. In 1829 he became professor of mo ...

that covered the first 7 centuries of

. In 1885, Kłopotowski was appointed a titular canon of the cathedral chapter of the Diocese of Lutsk and Zhytomyr. In the same year, he became a

Doctor of Canon Law Doctor of Canon Law (, JCD) is the doctoral-level terminal degree in the studies of canon law of the Roman Catholic Church. It can also be an honorary degree awarded by Anglican colleges. It may also be abbreviated ICD or dr.iur.can. (''Iuris Can ...

. He was appointed auxiliary bishop of Lutsk and Zhytomyr, as well as titular bishop of Eleutheropolis, by

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII (; born Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2March 181020July 1903) was head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 until his death in July 1903. He had the fourth-longest reign of any pope, behind those of Peter the Ap ...

on 2 August 1897; he was consecrated on 21 November 1897 in the Catholic Church of St. Catherine of Alexandria by Mečislovas Leonardas Paliulionis, co-consecrated by

Antanas Baranauskas Antanas Baranauskas (; 17 January 1835 – 26 November 1902) was a Lithuanian poet, mathematician and Catholic bishop of Sejny. Baranauskas is best known as the author of the Lithuanian poem '' Anykščių šilelis''. He used various pen names ...

and Kazimierz Ruszkiewicz. He was made vicar capitular of the Diocese of Lutsk and Zhytomyr on 14 June 1898 and was also appointed apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Kamianets in 1899. In early 1900, Kłopotowski was appointed bishop of Lutsk and Zhytomyr. He was appointed archbishop of Mohilev on 15 April 1901, receiving his

pallium The pallium (derived from the Roman ''pallium'' or ''palla'', a woolen cloak; : pallia) is an ecclesiastical vestment in the Catholic Church, originally peculiar to the pope, but for many centuries bestowed by the Holy See upon metropolitan bish ...

in the Church of St. Catherine in Saint Petersburg on 23 June of the same year. He died on 24 February 1903 in

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

from pneumonia; his funeral took place on 28 February 1903.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* *{{Cite book, chapter = Bolesław Hieronim Kłopotowski, url=https://sbc.org.pl/Content/428645/Sylwetki%20biskup%C3%B3w%20%C5%82uckich.pdf, title=Sylwetki biskupów łuckich, first=Krzysztof, last=Prokop, date=2001, language=pl, pages=189–191 1848 births 1903 deaths Roman Catholic archbishops 19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the Russian Empire Bishops appointed by Pope Leo XIII