John Francis Noll (January 25, 1875 – July 31, 1956) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Fort Wayne from 1925 until his death in 1956. Noll was active in national church organizations. In 1912, he founded the weekly newspaper ''

Our Sunday Visitor Our Sunday Visitor (OSV) is a Catholic publishing company in Huntington, Indiana, which prints the American national weekly newspaper of that name, as well as numerous Catholic periodicals, religious books, pamphlets, catechetical materials, i ...

.'' Noll was called one of the most influential Catholics of his day."Archbishop John Francis Noll — founder OSV", ''Todays Catholic'', Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend
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Biography

Early life

John Noll was born on January 25, 1875, in

Fort Wayne, Indiana Fort Wayne is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Indiana, United States. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 as of the 2020 Censu ...

, one of nineteen children. He attended St. Lawrence Seminary in Mt. Calvary, Wisconsin, from 1888 to 1893.

Priesthood

Noll was ordained 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 particu ...

on June 4, 1898, for the Diocese of Fort Wayne by Bishop Joseph Rademacher. After his ordination, Noll was assigned to a pastoral position at St. Patrick Parish in

Ligonier, Indiana Ligonier is a city in Perry Township, Noble County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 4,405 at the 2010 census. History Ligonier was platted in 1835. The city was named after the Pennsylvanian borough of the same name. A post of ...

. As a young priest, he frequently challenged

anti-Catholicism Anti-Catholicism is hostility towards Catholics or opposition to the Catholic Church, its clergy, and/or its adherents. At various points after the Reformation, some majority Protestant states, including England, Prussia, Scotland, and the Uni ...

in the area. He sometimes confronted people claiming to be former priests or nuns with tales of evil practices within the Church. Noll would ask them to prove their identify by asking the name of their

religious order A religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious practi ...

or by requesting the recitation of a specific prayer. Sometimes he would pose his questions 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 ...

. These tactics frequently exposed the speaker as a fraud. In 1910, Noll was named pastor of St. Mary's Catholic Parish in

Huntington, Indiana Huntington, known as the "Lime City", is the largest city in and the county seat of Huntington County, Indiana, Huntington County, Indiana, United States. It is in Huntington Township, Huntington County, Indiana, Huntington and Union Township, Hun ...

. Noll bought a printing press and in 1912 founded the weekly newspaper ''

(OSV)'' It became widely distributed at many parishes as a supplement or in coordination with the local paper. For a time, it became a popular Catholic newsweekly nationwide. All OSV profits went to religious, educational and charitable causes. He embraced the communication tools of his day — print, radio and television. Noll served on the boards of the

Catholic Press Association The Catholic Media Association, formerly the Catholic Press Association of the United States and Canada, is an association of American and Canadian newspaper and media specialists specialized on reporting on the Catholic Church. Founded in 1911, it ...

and the

Catholic Church Extension Society Catholic Extension (also known as the Catholic Church Extension Society) is a national fundraising 501(c)(3) organization which supports and strengthens poor mission dioceses across the United States. They provide funding and resources to diocese ...

. He was named a

monsignor Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...

in 1921.

Bishop of Fort Wayne

Noll was appointed fifth bishop of the Diocese of Fort Wayne by

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI ( it, Pio XI), born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti (; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939), was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 to his death in February 1939. He was the first sovereign of Vatican City fro ...

on May 12, 1925. Noll was consecrated on July 30, 1925, by Archbishop

George Mundelein George William Mundelein (July 2, 1872 – October 2, 1939) was an American cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Chicago from 1915 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1924. Early life and ministry ...

. As a bishop, he built a preparatory seminary, several high schools, and an orphanage, and during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

reorganized the system of Catholic charities. He was active as an organizer the national level, and chaired the Department of Lay Organizations of the

National Catholic Welfare Conference The National Catholic Welfare Council (NCWC) was the annual meeting of the American Catholic hierarchy and its standing secretariat; it was established in 1919 as the successor to the emergency organization, the National Catholic War Council. It co ...

. Noll was instrumental in generating support for construction of the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. Before his e ...

elevated Noll to archbishop ''ad personam'' on September 2, 1953, meaning that the title was personal to Noll and not passed on to his successors. Noll wrote ''Father Smith Instructs Jackson''.

Political activism

Noll was strongly associated with conservative elements of the Church during his career as a journalist and churchman, linking arms with the more rabid end of the

anti-communist Anti-communism is Political movement, political and Ideology, ideological opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in the Russian Empire, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, w ...

movement in the United States and elsewhere. This included condemnation of many

labor unions A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

—much to the chagrin several fellow bishops—and collaboration with the infamous radio priest

Charles Coughlin Charles Edward Coughlin ( ; October 25, 1891 – October 27, 1979), commonly known as Father Coughlin, was a Canadian-American Catholic priest based in the United States near Detroit. He was the founding priest of the National Shrine of the ...

Death and legacy

John Noll died on July 31, 1956, and is buried in the Victory Noll Cemetery in

. Sister Maria Stanisia painted a portrait of Noll and the

Bishop Noll Institute Bishop Noll Institute is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Hammond, Indiana. It is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Gary. History The school opened as Catholic Central High School on September 16, 1921. It was founded by the Sisters ...

is named in his honor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Noll, John F. 1875 births 1956 deaths 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States American Roman Catholic religious writers People from Fort Wayne, Indiana Roman Catholic bishops of Fort Wayne Writers from Indiana People from Huntington, Indiana Catholics from Indiana