James Sharples (1797–1850) was an English

Roman Catholic bishop In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of holy orders and is responsible for teaching doctrine, governing Catholics in his jurisdiction, sanctifying the world and representing the Ch ...

. He served as coadjutor to the

Vicar Apostolic of the Lancashire District The Apostolic Vicariate of the Lancashire District was an ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in England. It was led by a vicar apostolic who was a titular bishop. The apostolic vicariate was created in 1840 and was replaced by t ...

from 1843 until his death in 1850.

Early life and ministry

James Sharples was born in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

on 19 October 1797, the son of Thomas and Elizabeth Sharples., ''The English Vicars Apostolic'', p. 191. He began training for the priesthood at

Ushaw College Ushaw College (formally St Cuthbert's College, Ushaw), is a former Catholic seminary near the village of Ushaw Moor, County Durham, England, which is now a heritage and cultural tourist attraction. The college is known for its Georgian and Vict ...

in County Durham on 27 January 1809. James left Ushaw on 21 September 1818, and continued with his studies at the

English College, Rome The Venerable English College (), commonly referred to as the English College, is a Catholic seminary in Rome, Italy, for the training of priests for England and Wales. It was founded in 1579 by William Allen on the model of the English Colleg ...

, arriving there on 18 December 1818. He became a distinguished student, winning prizes in

Theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

and

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

. While at the English College, he was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

a subdeacon on 21 December 1822, a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

on 20 May 1823, and a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...

on 30 November 1823. He left Rome in July 1824 to join the

mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...

in the north of England., ''The Episcopal Succession, volume 3'', p. 339. At first he took temporary appointments at

Lea Lea or LEA may refer to: Places Australia * Lea River, Tasmania, Australia * Lake Lea, Tasmania, from which the Lea River flows * RAAF Base Learmonth, IATA airport code "LEA" England * Lea, Cheshire, a civil parish * Lea, Derbyshire, a set ...

and Kirkham before taking charge of the mission of St Alban's in

Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-n ...

. He caused controversy when he placed a brass plaque with the word "Rectory" at the entrance of the clergy house in Blackburn, which offended

Anglicans Anglicanism is a Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia ...

and lead to questions being asked in

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

. However, the brass plaque remained for over a hundred years. After fourteen years at Blackburn, he was appointed to St Marie's Church,

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire a ...

in 1839, which later became the

Cathedral Church of St Marie The Cathedral Church of St Marie is the Roman Catholic cathedral in Sheffield, England. It lies in a slightly hidden location, just off Fargate shopping street, but signals its presence with a tall spire. It is an especially fine example of an En ...

for the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Hallam The Diocese of Hallam is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in England. The diocese comprises the whole of the City of Sheffield, and the surrounding towns of Rotherham, Doncaster, Barnsley, Chesterfield, t ...

Episcopal career

He was appointed coadjutor, with rights of succession, to Bishop

George Hilary Brown George Hilary Brown (1784 – 1856) was an English prelate who served as the first Roman Catholic Bishop of Liverpool from 1850 to 1856. Early life George Hilary Brown was born in Clifton, Lancashire on 15 January 1784, the son of William Br ...

, by the

Propaganda Fide Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...

on 7 August 1843. The appointment was approved by

Pope Gregory XVI Pope Gregory XVI ( la, Gregorius XVI; it, Gregorio XVI; born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari; 18 September 1765 – 1 June 1846) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1831 to his death in 1 June 1846. He ...

on the same day, and dispatched on 8 August 1843. His

brief Brief, briefs, or briefing may refer to: Documents * A letter * A briefing note * Papal brief, a papal letter less formal than a bull, sealed with the pope's signet ring or stamped with the device borne on this ring * Design brief, a type of ed ...

to the

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbis ...

of ''

Samaria Samaria (; he, שֹׁמְרוֹן, translit=Šōmrōn, ar, السامرة, translit=as-Sāmirah) is the historic and biblical name used for the central region of Palestine, bordered by Judea to the south and Galilee to the north. The first ...

'' was dated 11 August 1843, and he was consecrated

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 ...

of ''Samaria'' at the Church of Sant'Agata dei Goti in Rome by Cardinal

Giacomo Filippo Fransoni Giacomo Filippo Fransoni (10 December 1775 – 20 April 1856) was an Italian prelate and cardinal who served from 1834 to 1856 as prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith. He was the cardinal priest of the Church of Sa ...

on 15 August 1843."Lancaster District", ''The Catholic Directory and Annual Register for the Year 1845'', Volumes 8-9, London. C. Dolman, p. 52
/ref> On his return to England, one of his first acts as a

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

was to bless the foundation stone of St. John's Church in

Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...

on 30 May 1844; which was opened in 1848, and subsequently became

Salford Cathedral The Cathedral Church of St. John the Evangelist, usually known as Salford Cathedral, is a Catholic cathedral on Chapel Street in Salford, Greater Manchester, England. It is the seat of the Bishop of Salford and mother church of the Diocese of Sal ...

., ''The English Vicars Apostolic'', p. 192. In July 1847, he returned to Rome as part of a deputation for talks on the restoration of the hierarchy in England and Wales, which included

Nicholas Wiseman Nicholas Patrick Stephen Wiseman (3 August 1802 – 15 February 1865) was a Cardinal of the Catholic Church who became the first Archbishop of Westminster upon the re-establishment of the Catholic hierarchy in England and Wales in 1850. Born ...

, the future Archbishop of Westminster. On the death of Bishop Thomas Griffiths, Wiseman had to return to London, leaving Sharples to remain in Rome until October 1847. Around that time his health took a turn for the worse., ''The Episcopal Succession, volume 3'', p. 340. He brought back to England the proposal that the eight vicariates to be divided into twelve

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...

s. In 1850, he withdrew to

Singleton, Lancashire Singleton is a village and civil parish in Lancashire, England. It is situated on the coastal plain called the Fylde. It is located south-east of Poulton-le-Fylde, and at the 2001 census had a population of 877, increasing to 889 at the 2011 C ...

for recuperation, but in June his doctors pronounced that any recovery of his condition was hopeless. He died in

Eccleston, Lancashire Eccleston is a village and civil parish of the Borough of Chorley in Lancashire, England. It is beside the River Yarrow, and was formerly an agricultural and later a weaving settlement. History Its name came from the Celtic word ''"eglēs"' ...

on 11 August 1850, aged 52, just weeks before the hierarchy was restored. His remains are buried in St Mary's Churchyard in

Great Eccleston Great Eccleston is a village and civil parish in the English county of Lancashire, situated on a coastal plain called the Fylde. The village lies to the south of the River Wyre and the A586 road, approximately upstream from the port of Fleetw ...

., ''The English Vicars Apostolic'', p. 193.

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sharples, James 1797 births 1850 deaths Alumni of Ushaw College English College, Rome alumni Clergy from Liverpool 19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in England Apostolic vicars of England and Wales