The
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
Diocese of Green Bay ( la, Diocesis Sinus Viridis) was established on March 3, 1868, by
Pope Pius IX
Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...
. It covers the city of
Green Bay, as well as
Brown
Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing or painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors orange and black. In the RGB color model used ...
,
Calumet
Calumet may refer to:
Places United States
*Calumet Region, in northern Illinois and Indiana
**Calumet River
**Calumet Trail, Indiana
** Calumet (East Chicago)
* Calumet, Colorado
*Calumet, Iowa
* Calumet, Michigan
*Calumet, Minnesota
* Calumet ...
,
Door
A door is a hinged or otherwise movable barrier that allows ingress (entry) into and egress (exit) from an enclosure. The created opening in the wall is a ''doorway'' or ''portal''. A door's essential and primary purpose is to provide security b ...
,
Florence
Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...
,
Forest
A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
,
Kewaunee
Kewaunee is a city in Kewaunee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,837 at the 2020 census. Located on the northwestern shore of Lake Michigan, the city is the county seat of Kewaunee County. Its Menominee name is ''Kewāneh'', ...
,
Langlade,
Manitowoc,
Marinette,
Menominee
The Menominee (; mez, omǣqnomenēwak meaning ''"Menominee People"'', also spelled Menomini, derived from the Ojibwe language word for "Wild Rice People"; known as ''Mamaceqtaw'', "the people", in the Menominee language) are a federally recog ...
,
Oconto,
Outagamie,
Shawano,
Waupaca,
Waushara and
Winnebago Winnebago can refer to:
* The exonym of the Ho-Chunk tribe of Native North Americans with reservations in Nebraska, Iowa, and Wisconsin
** Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, a federally recognized tribe group in the state
** The Winnebago language of the ...
counties in
Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
. It is a
suffragan diocese
A suffragan diocese is one of the dioceses other than the metropolitan archdiocese that constitute an ecclesiastical province. It exists in some Christian denominations, in particular the Catholic Church, the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria ...
of the
Archdiocese of Milwaukee
The Archdiocese of Milwaukee ( la, Archidiœcesis Milvauchiensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in the United States. It encompasses the City of Milwaukee, a ...
.
History
The earliest trace of the Catholic faith in the Green Bay area was in 1634. Jesuits followed
Jean Nicolet
Jean Nicolet (Nicollet), Sieur de Belleborne (October 1642) was a French '' coureur des bois'' noted for exploring Lake Michigan, Mackinac Island, Green Bay, and being the first European to set foot in what is now the U.S. state of Wisconsin.
...
to the area and started to spread the Gospel around the important rivers of the Green Bay area. This set a foundation for the creation of the Diocese of Green Bay, which was not officially formed until 1868. People of the area helped keep the faith until the framework of Christianity was finalized.
[Diocese of Green Bay]
"A History of the Diocese of Green Bay,"
2002, accessed September 4, 2021.
Father
Claude-Jean Allouez
Claude Jean Allouez (June 6, 1622 – August 28, 1689) was a Jesuit missionary and French explorer of North America. He established a number of missions among the indigenous people living near Lake Superior.
Biography
Allouez was born in Sai ...
, a Jesuit missionary, celebrated Mass with the Native Americans near the present site of Oconto on December 3, 1669, the feast of
St. Francis Xavier
Francis Xavier (born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta; Latin: ''Franciscus Xaverius''; Basque: ''Frantzisko Xabierkoa''; French: ''François Xavier''; Spanish: ''Francisco Javier''; Portuguese: ''Francisco Xavier''; 7 April 15063 December 15 ...
. There he established
St. Francis Xavier Mission
The mission of St. Francis Xavier was a seventeenth-century Jesuit mission located on the rapids of the Fox River near De Pere, Wisconsin.
It was founded in 1671 by Claude Allouez to proselytize the native peoples of the western Great Lakes. In ...
. The mission was moved to
Red Banks (northeast of Green Bay) for a short time in 1671, and then to De Pere, where it remained until 1687, when it was burned. The missionaries continued working with the
Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
,
Sauk, and
Winnebago Winnebago can refer to:
* The exonym of the Ho-Chunk tribe of Native North Americans with reservations in Nebraska, Iowa, and Wisconsin
** Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, a federally recognized tribe group in the state
** The Winnebago language of the ...
tribes under the protection of the French in newly constructed
Fort Francis
A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
(west of the present Green Bay) until Fort Francis was destroyed in 1728. Catholicism then lay dormant in the area for almost a century.
In 1825, a church school was constructed of the lumber taken from St. Francis Xavier Chapel, but was soon after burned. This church was inspired by the borough of
Fort Howard, which continued to expand with the settlement of the Catholic
French Canadian
French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fren ...
s. This group had lived in the area since the eighteenth century. The next church to go up in the area was called St. John the Evangelist. This church, founded by founded by Father
Samuel Mazzuchelli
Samuel Charles Mazzuchelli, O.P. (November 4, 1806 – February 23, 1864) was a pioneer Italian Dominican friar and Catholic missionary priest who helped bring the church to the Iowa-Illinois-Wisconsin tri-state area. He founded several parishes ...
O.P., is the longest surviving place of worship in Wisconsin today.
In the early 19th century, St. John's church members spoke mostly French. It eventually became the mother church for all the churches in the Diocese of Green Bay. These churches included St. John Nepomucene in
Little Chute
Little Chute is a village in Outagamie County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 10,449 at the 2010 census. It is immediately east of the city of Appleton, Wisconsin and runs along the Fox River.
The town was originally established ...
, 1836; Holy Maternity of Mary,
Manitowoc Rapids, 1848; St Edward,
Mackville, 1849; St. Luke,
Two Rivers, 1851; St. Anna,
St. Anna
According to Christian apocryphal and Islamic tradition, Saint Anne was the mother of Mary and the maternal grandmother of Jesus. Mary's mother is not named in the canonical gospels. In writing, Anne's name and that of her husband Joachim come on ...
, 1851; St. Peter,
Oshkosh, 1853; and St. Mary (now St. Francis Xavier Cathedral), Green Bay, 1854.
In the spring of 1868,
Pope Pius IX
Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...
created the Diocese of Green Bay. Although the area had many French-Canadian Catholics, their numbers shrank as new settlements were set up in other places and immigrants of other nationalities came to the area.
Throughout the mid- to late-19th century immigrants poured in, forming their own ethnic churches. In Green Bay, the Germans established St. Mary (now St. Francis Xavier Cathedral) in 1854; the Dutch St. Willebrord in 1864; the Irish St. Patrick in 1865; the Belgians Sts. Peter and Paul in 1875; and the Polish St. Mary of the Angels in 1898. Intermarriage with non-French speakers and the growth of the English language in the area gradually weakened the bonds of the ethnic churches.
Reports of sex abuse
In January 2019, the Diocese of Green Bay unveiled a list of 46 clergy who were credibly accused of committing acts of sex abuse while serving in the Diocese. By May 2019, two more names were added to this list. In August 2019, Green Bay Bishop
David Ricken came under scrutiny for reportedly shielding former Cheyenne Bishop and accused "predator priest"
Joseph Hart
Joseph Hart (1711/12 – 24 May 1768) was a Calvinist minister in London. His works include ''Hart's Hymns'', a much-loved hymn book amongst evangelical Christians throughout its lifetime of over 200 years, which includes the well-known hy ...
during a criminal investigation in 2002, when he was serving as the Bishop of the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne
The Diocese of Cheyenne ( la, Dioecesis Cheyennensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church that encompasses the entire U.S. state of Wyoming. It is suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the met ...
.
Cathedral and shrines
The
Cathedral of Saint Francis Xavier in Green Bay
St. Francis Xavier Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Green Bay in Green Bay, Wisconsin, United States. The cathedral was named in honor of St. Francis Xavier.
The cathedral was planned and erected between 1876 and ...
is the mother church of the Diocese of Green Bay. The
National Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help
The National Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help, also dedicated as the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help, is a Marian shrine, located within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Green Bay in the United States. The chapel is in the Champion section of Green B ...
, in
Champion
A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and world championships, an ...
, the
National Shrine of Saint Joseph, in
De Pere
De Pere ( ) is a city located in Brown County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 25,410 according to the 2020 Census. De Pere is part of the Green Bay Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
At the arrival of the first European, Je ...
, at Saint Norbert Abbey, and
Saint Patrick's Oratory, in Green Bay, are located in the diocese.
Bishops
Bishops of Green Bay
#
Joseph Melcher
Joseph Melcher (March 18, 1807 – December 20, 1873) was an Austrian-born prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the first bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay in Wisconsin from 1868 until his death in 1873.
Biography Early life
Jose ...
(1868–1873)
#
Francis Xavier Krautbauer
Francis Xavier Krautbauer (January 12, 1824 – December 17, 1885) was a German-born prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the second bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay in Wisconsin from 1875 until his death in 1885.
Biography Early life
K ...
(1875–1885)
#
Frederick F.X. Katzer (1886–1891), appointed
Archbishop of Milwaukee
#
Sebastian G. Messmer (1891–1903), appointed
Archbishop of Milwaukee
#
Joseph John Fox
Joseph John Fox (August 2, 1855 – March 14, 1915) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay in Wisconsin from 1904 until his death in 1914.
Biography
Early life
Joseph Fox was b ...
(1904–1914)
#
Paul Peter Rhode
Paul Peter Rhode ( csb, Paweł Pioter Rhode; September 18, 1871 – March 3, 1945) was a German-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay in Wisconsin from 1915 until his death in 1945.
Rhode wa ...
(1915–1945)
#
Stanislaus Vincent Bona (1945–1967)
#
Aloysius John Wycisło (1968–1983)
#
Adam Maida
Adam Joseph Maida (born March 18, 1930) is an American cardinal prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. Maida served as the archbishop of the Archdiocese of Detroit in Michigan from 1990 to 2009, and was elevated to cardinal in 1994. Maida previo ...
(1983–1990), appointed
Archbishop of Detroit
In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...
(elevated to
Cardinal
Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to:
Animals
* Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds
**''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae
**''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...
in 1994)
#
Robert Joseph Banks
Robert Joseph Banks (born February 26, 1928) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, serving as bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Green Bay, Diocese of Green Bay in Wisconsin from 1990 to 2003. He also served as an auxiliary ...
(1990–2003)
#
David Zubik
David Allen Zubik ( ; born September 4, 1949) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, Diocese of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania since 2007. Zubik previously was the bisho ...
(2003–2007), appointed
Bishop of Pittsburgh
#
David Laurin Ricken
David Laurin Ricken (born November 9, 1952) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, serving as the bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay in Wisconsin since 2008. Ricken previously served as bishop of the Diocese of Cheyenne in Wyoming ...
(2008–present)
Former auxiliary bishops
*
John Benjamin Grellinger (1949–1974)
*
Mark Francis Schmitt (1970–1978), appointed
Bishop of Marquette
*
Robert F. Morneau (1978–2013)
Other priests of this diocese who became bishops
*
Frank Joseph Dewane
Frank Joseph Dewane (born March 9, 1950) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Venice in Florida since 2007.
Biography Early life and education
Frank Dewane was born in Green Ba ...
, appointed Coadjutor Bishop (in 2006) and later
Bishop of Venice
The Patriarch of Venice ( la, Patriarcha Venetiarum; it, Patriarca di Venezia) is the ordinary bishop of the Archdiocese of Venice. The bishop is one of the few patriarchs in the Latin Church of the Catholic Church (currently three other Latin ...
.
*
John Francis Doerfler
John Francis Doerfler (born November 2, 1964) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Marquette in Michigan since 2014.
Biography
Early life and education
John Doerfler was born on ...
, appointed
Bishop of Marquette in 2013.
*
Daniel J. Felton, appointed
Bishop of Duluth in 2021.
Education
Holy Family College and
St. Norbert College
St. Norbert College (SNC) is a private Norbertine liberal arts college in De Pere, Wisconsin. Founded in October 1898 by Abbot Bernard Pennings, a Norbertine priest and educator, the school was named after Saint Norbert of Xanten. In 1952, the c ...
are both located within the Diocese. The Diocese also oversees 6 high school and 56 primary schools located throughout the sixteen county region.
See also
*
List of the Catholic dioceses of the United States
This is the list of the Catholic dioceses and archdioceses of the United States which includes both the dioceses of the Latin Church, which employ the Roman Rite and other Latin liturgical rites, and various other dioceses, primarily the eparchi ...
*
List of Roman Catholic dioceses (alphabetical)
This is a growing list of territorial Catholic Church, Catholic dioceses and ordinariates in communion with the Holy See. There are approximately 3,000 actual (i.e., non-titular) dioceses in the Catholic Church (including the eparchies of the Ea ...
*
List of Roman Catholic dioceses (structured view)
As of October 5, 2021, the Catholic Church in its entirety comprises 3,171 ecclesiastical jurisdictions, including over 652 archdioceses and 2,248 dioceses, as well as apostolic vicariates, apostolic exarchates, apostolic administrations, apost ...
References
External links
Roman Catholic Diocese of Green Bay Official SiteSt. Michael Keshena Wisconsin
{{authority control
Green Bay
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Religious organizations established in 1868
Green Bay
1868 establishments in Wisconsin