Jean-Marie Odin, C.M., (February 25, 1800 – May 25, 1870) was a French-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the second archbishop of the Archdiocese of New Orleans from 1861 to 1870. Odin previously served as the first vicar apostolic of Texas from 1841 to 1847 and as the first bishop of the Diocese of Galveston in Texas from 1847 to 1861. He has been called the father of the Catholic Church in Texas.

Biography

Early life

The seventh of ten children, Jean-Marie Odin was born in Hauteville, an hamlet inside the city of Ambierle in the Department of Loire in France to Jean Odin and Claudine Marie (née Seyrol) Odin. After showing interest in Catholicism at age nine, Odin's parents sent him to study

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 ...

under his uncle, the pastor of Noailly.Randolph, Bartholomew. "John Mary Odin." ''The Catholic Encyclopedia''
Vol. 11. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. November 22, 2017 After his uncle die, he returned home to study on his own Odin eventually attended schools in Roanne in Verrières, then began his studies in

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

at L'Argentière and

Alix ''Alix'', or ''The Adventures of Alix'', is a Franco-Belgian comics series drawn in the ligne claire style by Jacques Martin. The stories revolve around a young Gallo-Roman man named Alix in the late Roman Republic. Although the series is re ...

. He finally ended up at the Sulpician

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

. In 1822, while still in seminary, Odin was recruited by a representative of Bishop Louis Dubourg to do mission work for the Archdiocese of New Orleans. That same year, Odin immigrated to the United States, After arriving in

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
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, the archbishop sent him to Perryville, Missouri, to complete his formation as a priest at St. Mary's of the Barrens Seminary in Perryville, Missouri. Odin professed his vows for the

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(also known as the Vincentians) on November 8, 1822

Priesthood

Odin 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 va ...

to the priesthood for the Vicentians by Bishop Dubourg on May 4, 1823. After his ordination, Dubourg performed missionary work in New Madrid, Missiouri, and with Native American tribes along the

Arkansas River The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in the western United Stat ...

. He also became a faculty member at St. Mary's Seminary, later being named president. Odin accompanied Bishop

Joseph Rosati Joseph Rosati (30 January 1789 – 25 September 1843) was an Italian-born Catholic missionary to the United States who served as the first bishop of the Diocese of Saint Louis between 1826 and 1843. A member of the Congregation of the Mission, ...

to the Second Provincial Council of Baltimore in 1833 as theologian. He briefly served as pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, opening a

Catholic school Catholic schools are pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered under the aegis or in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest religious, non-governmental school syste ...

there in 1838. On October 24, 1839, Pope Gregory XVI erected the Apostolic Prefecture of Texas, to cover the territory of the newly independent

Republic of Texas The Republic of Texas ( es, República de Tejas) was a sovereign state in North America that existed from March 2, 1836, to February 19, 1846, that bordered Mexico, the Republic of the Rio Grande in 1840 (another breakaway republic from Mex ...

. After Odin was assigned as vice-

prefect apostolic An apostolic prefect or prefect apostolic is a priest who heads what is known as an apostolic prefecture, a 'pre-diocesan' missionary jurisdiction where the Catholic Church is not yet sufficiently developed to have it made a diocese. Although it ...

under Reverend John Timon, he moved to Texas. Odin worked to bring Catholics back Catholics who had left the church during the Texas Revolution as well as to proselytize among Protestants and Native Americans. In December 1840, Gregory XVI appointed Odin as

coadjutor bishop A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) is a bishop in the Catholic, Anglican, and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in the administration of the diocese. The coadjutor (literally, "co ...

of what was then the

Diocese of Detroit The Archdiocese of Detroit ( la, Archidiœcesis Detroitensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church covering the Michigan counties of Lapeer, Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, St. Clair, and Wayne. It is ...

, but Odin declined the position.

Vicar Apostolic of Texas

On July 16, 1841, Gregory XVI appointed Odin as the first

vicar apostolic A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

of Texas and titular bishop of ''

Claudiopolis in Isauria Claudiopolis ( grc, Κλαυδιόπολις, Klaudiopolis, city of Claudius) is the name of a number of ancient cities named after Roman emperor Claudius or another person bearing that name (in the case of Cluj-Napoca), notably: ; in Turkey * Clau ...

'' . He received his episcopal consecration on March 6, 1842, from Bishop

Antoine Blanc Antoine Blanc (11 October 1792 – 20 June 1860) was the fifth Bishop and first Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans. His tenure, during which the diocese was elevated to an archdiocese, was at a time of growth in the city, ...

, with Bishops Michael Portier and John J. Chanche serving as

co-consecrators A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches, ...

, at New Orleans. With the assistance of the French ''

chargé d'affaires A ''chargé d'affaires'' (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador ...

'', Alphonse Dubois de Saligny, Odin successfully negotiated the Texas government's confirmation of the church's title to fifteen acres in

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. During his tenure, the Texan Congress returned several several churches that had been secularized by the Mexican Government. He opened several schools and invited the Ursuline nuns as the first

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in Texas to operate them.Meehan, Thomas. "Galveston." ''The Catholic Encyclopedia''
Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. November 22, 2017 In December 1845, the Republic of Texas was accepted into the United States as the State of Texas.

Bishop of Galveston

On May 21, 1847, Odin was named the first

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 ca ...

of the newly erected Diocese of Galveston, which include all of Texas. He recruited the

Brothers of Mary A brother is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to non-familia ...

and Oblates of Mary to operate of St. Mary's University at Galveston, which he established in 1854. He also completed arduous visitations into the more remote parts of Texas, and twice visited Europe to secure priests and material help for the diocese. By the end of his tenure, he had increased the number of priests to 84 and the number of churches to 50; for his many efforts he has been called the father of the modern Catholic Church in Texas.

Archbishop of New Orleans

Odin was appointed the second archbishop of New Orleans 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 ...

on February 15, 1861. When Odin arrived in New Orleans,

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

had seceded from the United States and the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

had started. Like many other Catholic clergy in the

American South The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

, Odin was a

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between ...

sympathizer. He was one of Pope Pius IX's contacts in his unsuccessful attempts to mediate a peace agreement to end to the war. Odin allowed priests from the diocese to serve as chaplains in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

and nuns from the diocese served in

field hospital A field hospital is a temporary hospital or mobile medical unit that takes care of casualties on-site before they can be safely transported to more permanent facilities. This term was initially used in military medicine (such as the Mobile A ...

s across the southern states. New Orleans was occupied by the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

in May 1862. Union Army troops used several church buildings for offices, hospitals and barracks. With the finances of the archdiocese impacted by the war, Odin issued austerity measures in January 1863 that met with significant opposition. That winter, he went to Rome to obtain papal approval for his financial plan. While in Europe, he recruited 30 seminarians and five

Ursulines The Ursulines, also known as the Order of Saint Ursula (post-nominals: OSU), is an enclosed religious order of consecrated women that branched off from the Angelines, also known as the Company of Saint Ursula, in 1572. Like the Angelines, they t ...

nuns to move to New Orleans in early 1863.Points, Marie Louise. "New Orleans." ''The Catholic Encyclopedia''
Vol. 11. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. November 22, 2017 In April 1863, Odin returned to New Orleans. Odin soon ran into conflict with Father Claude Paschal Maistre, a French priest who was a strong advocate of the abolition of slavery. Odin put Maistre's parish under an interdict in May 1863, accusing Maistre of "preaching the love of liberty and independence" to slaves and "exciting insurrection against their masters". When Maistre officiated the funeral of

André Cailloux André Cailloux (August 25, 1825May 27, 1863) was an African American army captain, one of the first black officers of any North American military unit. He was also one of the first black soldiers to die in combat during the American Civil War. ...

, a mixed-race soldier in the Union Army who died heroically, Odin expressed his condemnation. Odin discovered that Maistre had left France under a cloud of accusations of financial impropriety; he used this as a pretext to restrict Maistre. Maistre was only accepted back in good standing to the priesthood after Odin's death. Odin incorporated the archdiocese in 1866 and closed the diocesan

in 1867 due to lack of funds. He founded the diocesan newspaper, ''The Morning Star'' in February 1868. Odin went to Rome to attend the

First Vatican Council The First Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the First Vatican Council or Vatican I was convoked by Pope Pius IX on 29 June 1868, after a period of planning and preparation that began on 6 December 1864. This, the twentieth ecu ...

in 1869, but left the city early due to health reasons. Suffering from neuralgia and in overall poor health, Odin went home to Saint-Georges-Haute-Ville to convalesce. He would never return to the United States

Death and legacy

Jean-Marie Odie died in Ambierle (Department of Loire) on May 25, 1870, at age 70. File:TombeJMOdin.jpg, alt=Jean-Marie Odin's tombstone, church of Ambierle, Archbishop Odin's tombstone, church of Ambierle File:EpitapheJMOdin.jpg, alt=Epitaph of Jean-Marie Odin's tombstone, church of Ambierle, Epitaph on Odin's tombstone