John Bernard Fitzpatrick (November 1, 1812 – February 13, 1866) was an American
bishop of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as
Bishop of Boston from 1846 until his death in 1866.
Early life and education
Fitzpatrick was born in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
,
, to parents who came to the United States from
King's County (
County Offaly
County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hono ...
), Ireland, in 1805.
His father was a tailor and his maternal grandfather served in a Massachusetts
regiment
A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation.
In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...
during the
American Revolution
The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...
.
After attending local primary schools, he was a pupil at the
Boston Latin School
The Boston Latin School is a public exam school in Boston, Massachusetts. It was established on April 23, 1635, making it both the oldest public school in the British America and the oldest existing school in the United States. Its curriculum f ...
from 1826 to 1829, during which time he distinguished himself for his studies and virtue.
At the suggestion of Bishop
Benedict Joseph Fenwick
Benedict Joseph Fenwick (September 3, 1782 – August 11, 1846) was an American Catholic prelate, Jesuit, and educator who served as the Bishop of Boston from 1825 until his death in 1846. In 1843, he founded the College of the Holy Cross in ...
,
S.J., Fitzpatrick then enrolled at
Petit Seminaire, run by the
Sulpician Fathers
The Society of Priests of Saint-Sulpice (french: Compagnie des Prêtres de Saint-Sulpice), abbreviated PSS also known as the Sulpicians is a society of apostolic life of Pontifical Right for men, named after the Church of Saint-Sulpice, Paris ...
, in
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
, Quebec, Canada.
[ In addition to his studies, Fitzpatrick was named professor of ]rhetoric
Rhetoric () is the art of persuasion, which along with grammar and logic (or dialectic), is one of the three ancient arts of discourse. Rhetoric aims to study the techniques writers or speakers utilize to inform, persuade, or motivate parti ...
and ''belles-lettres
is a category of writing, originally meaning beautiful or fine writing. In the modern narrow sense, it is a label for literary works that do not fall into the major categories such as fiction, poetry, or drama. The phrase is sometimes used pejora ...
'' during his fourth year. He was also fluent in 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 ...
, Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
, and French by this time.[ After graduating from Montreal in 1837, he entered the Seminary of St. Sulpice in Paris, France, where he did his ]theological
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 ...
studies.[
]
Priesthood
While still in Paris, Fitzpatrick 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 on June 13, 1840. He returned to Boston the following November, and was assigned as a curate
A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...
at Holy Cross Cathedral
Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects ( ...
and St. Mary's Church in the North End.[ At that time, St. Mary's was troubled by two contending pastors and even placed under ]interdict
In Catholic canon law, an interdict () is an ecclesiastical censure, or ban that prohibits persons, certain active Church individuals or groups from participating in certain rites, or that the rites and services of the church are banished from ...
after one faction interrupted a Mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...
of the opposing priest.[ In 1842 he became pastor of ]East Cambridge
East Cambridge is a neighborhood of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Referred to in modern times as Area 1, East Cambridge is bounded by the Charles River and the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston on the east, the Somerville border on the north, Bro ...
, where he erected a church.[
]
Episcopacy
On November 21, 1843, Fitzpatrick was appointed 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 Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
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 ''Callipolis'' 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 h ...
.[ He received his ]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 March 24, 1844 from Bishop Fenwick, with Bishops Richard Vincent Whelan
Richard Vincent Whelan (January 28, 1809 – July 7, 1874) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Richmond, Diocese of Richmond in Virginia (1841–1850) and as bishop of t ...
and William Tyler 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 Georgetown.[ Fitzpatrick then assumed many of Fenwick's duties, including administering ]Confirmation
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. For adults, it is an affirmation of belief. It involves laying on ...
, conducting episcopal visitations, investigating parish affairs, and preaching at the cathedral.[ In 1844, he received philosopher and author ]Orestes Brownson
Orestes Augustus Brownson (September 16, 1803 – April 17, 1876) was an American intellectual and activist, preacher, labor organizer, and noted Catholic convert and writer.
Brownson was a publicist, a career which spanned his affiliation with ...
into the 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 ...
. He also attended the Sixth Provincial Council of Baltimore (1846) in Fenwick's absence.[
Fitzpatrick succeeded Fenwick as the third Bishop of Boston upon the latter's death on August 11, 1846.][ The native Bostonian was warmly received his parishioners, and became popularly known as "Bishop John."][ His visitations in 1847 extended over nearly all his diocese,][ which then included the states of Massachusetts, ]Vermont
Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...
, New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
, and Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...
. Following the outbreak of the Great Irish Famine
The Great Famine ( ga, an Gorta Mór ), also known within Ireland as the Great Hunger or simply the Famine and outside Ireland as the Irish Potato Famine, was a period of starvation and disease in Ireland from 1845 to 1852 that constituted a ...
, Fitzpatrick strongly encouraged Catholics to contribute to the relief effort in Ireland, declaring, "Apathy and indifference, on an occasion like this, are inseparable from crime!";[ he later sent $20,000 to Archbishop ]William Crolly
William Crolly (8 June 1780 – 8 April 1849) was the Bishop of Down and Connor from 1825 to 1835, and the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Armagh from 1835 to 1849.
Early life and education
A native of Ballykilbeg near Downpatrick, Crolly w ...
.
Fitzpatrick's tenure also coincided with anti-Catholic Know Nothing
The Know Nothing party was a nativist political party and movement in the United States in the mid-1850s. The party was officially known as the "Native American Party" prior to 1855 and thereafter, it was simply known as the "American Party". ...
movement. He petitioned Mayor Josiah Quincy, Jr.
Josiah Quincy IV (; January 17, 1802 – November 2, 1882) was an American politician. He was mayor of Boston (December 11, 1845 – January 1, 1849), as was his father Josiah Quincy III (mayor in 1823–1828) and grandson Josiah Quincy VI ...
to allow Catholic priests to visit dying inmates at Deer Island, and protested when Catholics were either forced to pay an extra tax or outright rejected when purchasing cemetery plots. When a Catholic child was beaten for refusing to recite a Protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
version of the Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments (Biblical Hebrew עשרת הדברים \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדְּבָרִים, ''aséret ha-dvarím'', lit. The Decalogue, The Ten Words, cf. Mishnaic Hebrew עשרת הדיברות \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדִּבְ ...
at a Boston public school
Public school may refer to:
* State school (known as a public school in many countries), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government
* Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging independent schools in England an ...
, the Bishop encouraged the child's parents to pursue a lawsuit
-
A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...
.[ Priests, such as ]Johannes Bapst
John Bapst (born Johannes Bapst at La Roche, Fribourg, Switzerland, 17 December 1815; died at Mount Hope, Maryland, United States, 2 November 1887) was a Swiss Jesuit missionary and educator who became the first president of Boston College.
Li ...
of Ellsworth, were tarred and feathered
Tarring and feathering is a form of public torture and punishment used to enforce unofficial justice or revenge. It was used in feudal Europe and its colonies in the early modern period, as well as the early American frontier, mostly as a t ...
, and churches were burned at Dorchester, Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
, and Bath
Bath may refer to:
* Bathing, immersion in a fluid
** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body
** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe
* Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities
Plac ...
.[ Fitzpatrick cautioned Catholics to take non-violent forms of opposition to this discrimination, lest they should add more fuel to the Know Nothing movement.][ In 1853 the Dioceses of Burlington and ]Portland
Portland most commonly refers to:
* Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States
* Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...
were carved out of the Diocese of Boston.
In June 1855 Fitzpatrick appointed Rev. James Augustine Healy
James Augustine Healy (April 6, 1830 – August 5, 1900) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He was the first African American to serve as a Catholic priest or bishop. With his predominantly European ancestry, Healy passed for a ...
, the first African American to be ordained a priest, as the first 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 ...
of the Boston Diocese.[ During the ]Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
(1861–1865), he supported President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
and the Union
Union commonly refers to:
* Trade union, an organization of workers
* Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets
Union may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
Music
* Union (band), an American rock group
** ''Un ...
, and made a special effort to provide Catholic chaplains for the Massachusetts regiments.[ He visited ]Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
in 1862 for what he claimed as health reasons;[ however, others (including ]Ambrose Dudley Mann
Ambrose Dudley Mann (April 26, 1801November 15, 1889) was the first United States Assistant Secretary of State and a commissioner for the Confederate States of America.
Early life
Mann was born on April 26, 1801, in Hanover Courthouse, Virginia. ...
and Henry Shelton Sanford
Henry Shelton Sanford (June 15, 1823 – May 21, 1891) was a wealthy American diplomat and businessman from Connecticut who served as United States Minister to Belgium from 1861 to 1869. He is also known for founding the city of Sanford, Florid ...
) believed he was working for the Union cause in Europe.[ The diocesan newspaper declared, "Boston participates in the joy that pervades the whole country" when General Robert E. Lee surrendered to ]Lt. General
Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...
at the Appomattox Court House.[
During his 20-year-long tenure, Fitzpatrick raised the number of both priests and churches from 40 to 300; established an ]orphanage
An orphanage is a Residential education, residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the Childcare, care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared for by their biological families. The parent ...
, hospital, college; and increased the number of religious communities
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 ...
fivefold.[ After his health began to fail, he received ]John Joseph Williams
John Joseph Williams was an American bishop of the Roman Catholic Church. He was the fourth Bishop and first Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Boston, serving between 1866 and his death in 1907.
Early life and education
Williams was born in Bosto ...
as his coadjutor and later died at age 53.[
]
References
External links
*
Episcopal succession
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fitzpatrick, John Bernard
1812 births
1866 deaths
Roman Catholic clergy from Boston
American Roman Catholic clergy of Irish descent
19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States
Roman Catholic bishops of Boston
Burials in Massachusetts