Jude Speyrer (April 14, 1929 – July 21, 2013)

D.D. A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ra ...

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 'pref ...

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 ...

who served as 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 Diocese of Lake Charles,

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 ...

.Jude Speyrer profile at Catholic Hierarchy website
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Biography

Born on April 14, 1929, in

Leonville, Louisiana Leonville is a town in St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 1,084 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Opelousas– Eunice Micropolitan Statistical Area. Geography Leonville is located at (30.470031, -91.98240 ...

, Speyrer 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 by Bishop

Maurice Schexnayder Maurice Schexnayder (August 13, 1895 – January 23, 1981) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana from 1956 to 1972. Biography Early life Maurice Schexnayder was ...

on July 25, 1953. He was appointed the first bishop of the Diocese of Lake Charles on January 29, 1980, by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

; he was consecrated by Bishop

Gerard Louis Frey Gerard Louis Frey (May 10, 1914 – August 16, 2007) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the bishop of the Diocese of Savannah in Georgia (1967–1972) and the Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana (1972–1989). Biog ...

on April 25, 1980. On December 12, 2000, John Paul II accepted Speyer's resignation as bishop of Lake Charles. Jude Speyrer died on July 21, 2013, in

Opelousas, Louisiana :''Opelousas is also a common name of the flathead catfish.'' Opelousas (french: Les Opélousas; Spanish: ''Los Opeluzás'') is a small city and the parish seat of St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, United States. Interstate 49 and U.S. Route 190 were ...

, aged 84.Lake Charles Bishop Jude Speyrer dies

Notes

1929 births 2013 deaths 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States People from St. Landry Parish, Louisiana Catholics from Louisiana {{US-RC-bishop-stub