Joseph Maximilian Mueller ( – August 9, 1981) was an American

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pre ...

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 ...

. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Sioux City in Iowa from 1948 to 1970.

Biography

Early life

Joseph Mueller was born on December 1, 1894, in

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

, to George Fritz and Barbara (née Ziegler) Mueller. After graduating from SS. Peter and Paul School at St. Louis in 1907, he studied at the Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio.

Priesthood

Mueller 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 ...

to the priesthood for the Diocese of Belleville on June 14, 1919. He then served as a curate at parishes in Carlyle, Mount Carmel,

East St. Louis East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the f ...

, and Belleville, all in Illinois. In 1926, Mueller was appointed the founding

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

of Blessed Sacrament Parish in Belleville. From 1930 to 1947, he served as rector of St. Peter's Cathedral Parish in Belleville. He was named a domestic prelate in 1939.

Coadjutor Bishop and Bishop of Sioux City

On August 20, 1947, Mueller was appointed coadjutor bishop of the Diocese of Sioux City 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 ...

of ''Sinda'' by Pope Pius XII. He received his episcopal consecration on October 16, 1947, from Archbishop

Amleto Cicognani Amleto Giovanni Cicognani (24 February 1883 – 17 December 1973) was an Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Vatican Secretary of State from 1961 to 1969, and Dean of the College of Cardinals from 1972 until his death. C ...

, with Bishops Joseph Schlarman and Edward Hunkeler serving as co-consecrators. On the death of Bishop Edmond Heelan on September 20, 1948, Mueller automatically succeeded him as the third bishop of Sioux City8. As bishop, Mueller built several new schools, churches, and other parish facilities. He also attended all four sessions of the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions), each lasting between 8 and ...

in Rome between 1962 and 1965.

Retirement and legacy

On October 20, 1970,

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his death in Augus ...

accepted Mueller's resignation as bishop of the Diocese of Sioux Falls and appointed him as titular bishop of Simitthu. He resigned his

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 ...

on January 13, 1971. Joseph Mueller died on August 9, 1981, in Sioux City at age 86.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mueller, Joseph Maximilian 1894 births 1981 deaths Pontifical College Josephinum alumni Clergy from St. Louis Roman Catholic Diocese of Belleville American people of German descent 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Participants in the Second Vatican Council Roman Catholic bishops of Sioux City