Donald Walter Trautman (June 24, 1936 – February 26, 2022) was an American prelate of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

who served as bishop of the Diocese of Erie in Western Pennsylvania from 1990 to 2011. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo in Upstate New York from 1985 to 1990.

Biography

Early life

Donald Trautman was born in Buffalo, New York, and attended

Niagara University Niagara University (NU) is a private Catholic university in the Vincentian tradition in Lewiston in Niagara County, New York. It is run by the Congregation of the Mission and has 3,300 undergraduate students in 50 academic programs. Appro ...

Lewiston, New York Lewiston is a town in Niagara County, New York, United States. The population was 15,944 at the 2020 census. The town and its contained village are named after Morgan Lewis, a governor of New York. The Town of Lewiston is on the western bord ...

. He studied theology under

Karl Rahner Karl Rahner (5 March 1904 – 30 March 1984) was a German Jesuit priest and theologian who, alongside Henri de Lubac, Hans Urs von Balthasar, and Yves Congar, is considered to be one of the most influential Roman Catholic theologians of ...

at the

University of Innsbruck The University of Innsbruck (german: Leopold-Franzens-Universität Innsbruck; la, Universitas Leopoldino Franciscea) is a public research university in Innsbruck, the capital of the Austrian federal state of Tyrol, founded on October 15, 1669. ...

in Austria, from where he obtained his

Licentiate of Sacred Theology Licentiate in Sacred Theology ( la, Sacrae Theologiae Licentiatus; abbreviated STL) is the second of three ecclesiastical degrees in theology (the first being the Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology and the third being the Doctorate in Sacred Theol ...

in 1962.

Priesthood

Trautman was ordained to the priesthood in

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; bar, Innschbruck, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian ) is the capital of Tyrol (state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the ...

on April 7, 1962, for the Diocese of Buffalo. On his return to New York, he was assigned as a parish administrator in

Collins, New York Collins is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. The town is on the south border of the county and is considered to be one of the "Southtowns" of Erie County. The population at the 2010 census was 6,601. History The area was first sett ...

, then associate pastor at a parish in Buffalo. Trautman studied biblical language for one year at

the Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private university, private Catholic church, Roman Catholic research university in Washington, D.C. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution ...

in Washington, D.C., continuing his post-graduate work in Rome at the

Pontifical Biblical Institute The Pontifical Biblical Institute (also known as Biblicum) is a research and postgraduate teaching institution specialised in biblical and ancient Near Eastern studies. It is an institution of the Holy See entrusted to the Society of Jesus. His ...

, earning his Licentiate in Scripture in 1965. During his studies in Rome, Trautman served as a ''

peritus ''Peritus'' (Latin for "expert") is the title given to Roman Catholic theologians attending an ecumenical council to give advice. At the Second Vatican Council, some ''periti'' (the plural form) accompanied individual bishops or groups of bisho ...

'', or theological expert, at the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st Catholic ecumenical councils, ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions) ...

. In 1966, he earned his

Doctor of Sacred Theology The Doctor of Sacred Theology ( la, Sacrae Theologiae Doctor, abbreviated STD), also sometimes known as Professor of Sacred Theology (, abbreviated STP), is the final theological degree in the pontifical university system of the Catholic Church, ...

degree from the

Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum) A pontifical ( la, pontificale) is a Christian liturgical book containing the liturgies that only a bishop may perform. Among the liturgies are those of the ordinal for the ordination and consecration of deacons, priests, and bishops to Holy O ...

. From 1966 to 1973, Trautman taught Scripture and theology at St. John Vianney Seminary in Buffalo, where he also served as dean of students. Trautman worked as a retreat master for

religious Religion is usually defined as a social system, social-cultural system of designated religious behaviour, behaviors and practices, morality, morals, beliefs, worldviews, religious text, texts, sacred site, sanctified places, prophecy, prophecie ...

communities, and vice-president and president of Buffalo's Pastoral Council. He was private secretary to Bishop Edward Head, and later named

chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

(1973) and

vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ...

(1974) of the diocese. He was raised to the rank of an

Honorary Prelate of His Holiness A Prelate of Honour of His Holiness is a Catholic prelate to whom the Pope has granted this title of honour. They are addressed as Monsignor and have certain privileges as regards clerical clothing.auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo and

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of Sassura by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

. He received

episcopal consecration A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...

on April 16, 1985, from Bishop Head, with bishops Bernard McLaughlin and Stanislaus Brzana serving as co-consecrators, at St. Joseph Cathedral in Buffalo. After a period of pastoral work, he became rector of Christ the King Seminary.

Bishop of Erie

Pope John Paul II appointed Trautman as bishop of the Diocese of Erie on June 2, 1990. As bishop, he improved the diocesan youth and vocational programs, renovated the interior of St. Peter Cathedral, and established a diocesan Deposit and Loan Fund and a retirement home for clergy dedicated in honor of his predecessor, Bishop

Michael Murphy Michael, Mick, or Mike Murphy may refer to: Artists and entertainers * Michael Murphy (actor) (born 1938), American actor * Mike Murphy (musician) (1946–2006), American drummer for the Bee Gees and Chicago * Michael Bryan Murphy, lead singer ...

. Trautman was a participant of the

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...

, having served as chairman of the committees on doctrine, USCCB financial audit, and liturgy. Trautman also served as the episcopal moderator of the

Apostleship of the Sea The Apostleship of the Sea is an agency of the Catholic Church. It is also sometimes known as ''Stella Maris'' (Star of the Sea), and its patron is the Virgin Mary as Our Lady, Star of the Sea. Founded in Glasgow, Scotland in the early 20th centur ...

and of the Diocesan Fiscal Management Conference. The edition of April 4, 2007, of ''

L'Osservatore Romano ''L'Osservatore Romano'' (, 'The Roman Observer') is the daily newspaper of Vatican City State which reports on the activities of the Holy See and events taking place in the Catholic Church and the world. It is owned by the Holy See but is not a ...

'' accidentally announced Bishop Trautman had died when he was confused with former bishop Michael Murphy, who had died April 2. The mistake was also noted by a cartoon in ''

The Tablet ''The Tablet'' is a Catholic international weekly review published in London. Brendan Walsh, previously literary editor and then acting editor, was appointed editor in July 2017. History ''The Tablet'' was launched in 1840 by a Quaker convert ...

''. Trautman was critical of the ''

motu proprio In law, ''motu proprio'' (Latin for "on his own impulse") describes an official act taken without a formal request from another party. Some jurisdictions use the term ''sua sponte'' for the same concept. In Catholic canon law, it refers to a do ...

'' ''

Summorum Pontificum ''Summorum Pontificum'' (English: "Of the Supreme Pontiffs") is an apostolic letter of Pope Benedict XVI, issued in July 2007. This letter specifies the circumstances in which priests of the Latin Church could celebrate mass according to what Ben ...

'' and indicated that those priests who celebrate such a Mass would first need to show that they have the requisite knowledge of its rubrics and of

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

Retirement

In June 2011, Trautman turned 75, at which point

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

requests that a bishop tender his resignation to the Pope. Trautman's successor, Monsignor

Lawrence T. Persico Lawrence Thomas Persico (born November 21, 1950, Monessen, Pennsylvania) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of the Diocese of Erie in Pennsylvania since 2012. Biography Early life Lawrence Persico ...

, was appointed on July 31, 2012, at which point the Pope accepted Trautman's resignation.

Handling of sex abuse cases

On August 14, 2018, Pennsylvania Attorney General

Josh Shapiro Joshua David Shapiro (born June 20, 1973) is an American politician and attorney who has served as the Pennsylvania Attorney General since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he is the governor-elect of Pennsylvania. Raised in Montgomery ...

published a

grand jury A grand jury is a jury—a group of citizens—empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a pe ...

report concerning sex abuse in six Pennsylvania dioceses, including Erie. In the report, Trautman was criticized alongside former Bishop Murphy for allowing "predator priest" Chester Gawronski to remain in the Diocese despite numerous allegations of sexual abuse. Trautman afterwards released a statement criticizing Shapiro's portrayal of him in the report and noted that he had established guidelines in 1993 concerning how to deal with

sexual abuse Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assa ...

and later established the Diocesan Office for the Protection of Children and Youth in 2003 to protect children from sex abuse. Nevertheless, it was acknowledged that both Murphy and Trautman reassigned Gawronski multiple times between 1987 and 2002 and that Trautman renewed Gawronski's five-year term as a chaplain in St Mary's Home in Erie in 2001. Two secret memos which were published by Erie priest and future Bishop of Altoona-Johnstown

Mark Bartchak Mark Leonard Bartchak (born January 1, 1955) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church serving as bishop of the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown in Pennsylvania since 2011. Biography Early life and education Mark Bartchak was born on J ...

in August 2005 also revealed that Bartchak had told Trautman he had become aware of more witnesses to past sex abuse cases while investigating a sex abuse case against former Erie priest William Presley and that Trautman afterwards ordered that "additional witnesses should not be contacted, especially given the fact that it is not likely that they will lead to information" about crimes against minors. A male accuser had previously disclosed his allegations of sexual abuse against Presley to the Erie Diocese in 1982, 1987, and 2002. Presley had also transferred to the Diocese of Harrisburg in 1986. In June 2019, James Bottlinger, who was suing the Diocese of Buffalo, accused Trautman of protecting his abuser Rev. Michael Freeman from potential prosecution when Trautman served as vicar general in the 1980s. Trautman denied seeing Bottlinger in Freeman's private quarters. Bottlinger, who claims that Freeman started abusing him in 1984 later stated that Trautman told him "You should have never put yourself in that position" when he met with Trautman to report the abuse. Two other men accused Freeman of molesting them when they were boys and complaints against Freeman surfaced as early as 1981. Freeman died in 2010.

Death

Trautman died on February 26, 2022, at the age of 85.

References

External links

Roman Catholic Diocese of Erie Official Site

Episcopal succession

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Trautman, Donald Walter 1936 births 2022 deaths Participants in the Second Vatican Council Roman Catholic bishops of Erie Religious leaders from Buffalo, New York Niagara University alumni University of Innsbruck alumni Catholic University of America alumni Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas alumni Pontifical Biblical Institute alumni