Thomas Bonacum (January 29, 1847 – February 4, 1911) was an Irish-born American prelate of the
Catholic Church. He was the first bishop of the
Diocese of Lincoln
The Diocese of Lincoln forms part of the Province of Canterbury in England. The present diocese covers the ceremonial county of Lincolnshire.
History
The diocese traces its roots in an unbroken line to the Pre-Reformation Diocese of Leices ...
in Nebraska, serving from 1887 until his death in 1911.
Biography
Early life
Thomas Bonacum was born January 29, 1847, in Penane,
near
Thurles,
County Tipperary in Ireland, the youngest of four children of Edmund and Mary (née McGrath) Bonacum.
While he was still an infant, the family immigrated to the United States in 1848, settling in
St. Louis,
Missouri.
Bonacum received his early education in St. Louis before attending
Saint Francis de Sales Seminary, near
Milwaukee, from 1863 to 1867.
Returning to Missouri, he completed his studies for the priesthood at
St. Vincent's Seminary in Cape Girardeau.
Priesthood
Bonacum was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of St. Louis on June 18, 1870, at
St. Mary of Victories Church in St. Louis.
He was ordained by Bishop
Joseph Melcher
Joseph Melcher (March 18, 1807 – December 20, 1873) was an Austrian-born prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the first bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay in Wisconsin from 1868 until his death in 1873.
Biography Early life
Jose ...
, the
Bishop of Green Bay.
After serving for a few months as assistant pastor of St. Joseph's Parish in
Edina, Missouri, Bonacum served as pastor of St. Stephen's Parish in
Indian Creek, Missouri Indian Creek is an unincorporated community in northeastern Monroe County, in the U.S. state of Missouri.
The community is located on the banks of Indian Creek and along U.S. Route 24
U.S. Route 24 (US 24) is one of the original United Stat ...
, from 1871 to 1874.
He then served as pastor of St. Peter's Parish in
Kirkwood, Missouri (1874-1877).
Bonacum then furthered his studies in Europe, attending the
University of Würzburg in
Bavaria for two years. While there, he studied theology under
Franz Hettinger and canon law and church history under
Joseph Hergenröther.
After returning to the United States, Bonacum served as pastor of St. Patrick's Parish in
Rolla, Missouri, until 1880,
when he was transferred to
Immaculate Conception Parish in St. Louis.
He remained there for a year before serving as pastor of Holy Name Parish (1882-1887).
While pastor at Holy Name, Bonacum attended the third
Plenary Council of Baltimore
The Plenary Councils of Baltimore were three national meetings of Catholic bishops in the United States in 1852, 1866 and 1884 in Baltimore, Maryland.
During the early history of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States all of the diocese ...
from November to December 1884, as a theological consultant to Archbishop Kenrick.
He greatly impressed the bishops at the Council, who nominated Bonacum to be the first bishop of the proposed
Diocese of Belleville
The Diocese of Belleville ( la, Diœcesis Bellevillensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the southern Illinois region of the United States. It comprises the southern counties of the state of Ill ...
.
However, the establishment of the diocese was postponed for three years and Bonacum remained at St. Louis during that time.
Bishop of Lincoln
On July 7, 1887, a cablegram from Rome announced that
Pope Leo XIII appointed Bonacum to be the first bishop of the newly-erected
Diocese of Lincoln
The Diocese of Lincoln forms part of the Province of Canterbury in England. The present diocese covers the ceremonial county of Lincolnshire.
History
The diocese traces its roots in an unbroken line to the Pre-Reformation Diocese of Leices ...
.
The official papal document confirming his appointment was dated August 9, 1887,
arriving the following September.
Bonacum received his episcopal consecration on November 30, 1887, from Archbishop Kenrick, with Bishop
Louis Fink and Bishop
James O'Connor James O'Connor may refer to:
Politics and law
* James O'Connor (Louisiana politician) (1870–1941), U.S Representative from Louisiana
* James F. O'Connor (1878–1945), U.S Representative from Montana
* James Francis Thaddeus O'Connor (1886–1 ...
serving as co-consecrators, at St. John's Church in St. Louis.
Bonacum was installed on December 21, 1887, at St. Teresa's Pro-Cathedral.
In 1888, the first full year of his episcopate, the diocese contained a Catholic population of 23,000 with 32 priests, 29 parishes, and three parochial schools.
By the time of Bonacum's death in 1911, there was a Catholic population of 37,000 with 84 priests, 135 churches and 65 with resident pastors, and 28 parochial schools.
Egan dispute
In 1888, Bonacum sued
Patrick Egan, a prominent Lincoln citizen and later
U.S. Ambassador to Chile
The following is a list of ambassadors that the United States has sent to Chile. The current title given by the United States State Department to this position is Ambassador Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary.
See also
* Ambassadors ...
, for failing to pay a pledge he had made for the improvement of St. Teresa's Pro-Cathedral.
It was rumored that Egan, a staunch
Republican, was unhappy that Bonacum attended a
Democratic reception.
The case went to the
Nebraska Supreme Court, which ruled in Bonacum's favor and ordered Egan to pay the pledge.
Corbett dispute
In 1891, Bonacum brought Rev. Martin Corbett of
Palmyra, Nebraska
Palmyra is a village in Otoe County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 545 at the 2010 census.
History
Palmyra was platted in 1870. Its name commemorates the ancient city of Palmyra. 1925 editionis available for download aUniversity of ...
, with whom he had many quarrels, before a diocesan court that consisted of five other priests.
The charges against Corbett were dismissed, but Bonacum tried to remove Corbett from his position in 1894. Corbett refused and sued Bonacum for
libel
Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...
after Bonacum wrote a letter announcing Corbett's suspension to his congregation.
Bonacum gained a victory when the libel suit was dismissed,
but it was still the first time a Catholic bishop had been brought to criminal court in the United States.
Murphy dispute
A group of priests submitted a list of complaints against Bonacum to
Francesco Satolli
Francesco Satolli (21 July 1839 – 8 January 1910) was an Italian theologian, professor, cardinal, and the first Apostolic Delegate to the United States.
Biography
He was born on 21 July 1839, at Marsciano near Perugia. He was educated at ...
, the U.S.
Apostolic Delegate, in 1893.
In retaliation, Bonacum tried in 1895 to expel one of those priests, William Murphy, who had also presided over the diocesan trial that originally ruled in Corbett's favor.
Murphy appealed to church authorities and in 1896 an
ecclesiastical court
An ecclesiastical court, also called court Christian or court spiritual, is any of certain courts having jurisdiction mainly in spiritual or religious matters. In the Middle Ages, these courts had much wider powers in many areas of Europe than be ...
of the
metropolitan
Metropolitan may refer to:
* Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories
* Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England
* Metropolitan county, a typ ...
Archdiocese of Dubuque
The Archdiocese of Dubuque ( la, Archidiœcesis Dubuquensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in the northeastern quarter of the state of Iowa in the United States.
It includes all the Iowa counti ...
reversed Bonacum's decision and ordered him to pay a fine as well as Murphy's legal fees.
In 1900, Bonacum tried to remove Murphy from his position as pastor of St. Vincent's Church in
Seward, Nebraska
Seward is a city and county seat of Seward County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 6,964 at the 2010 census. Seward is part of the Lincoln, Nebraska Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is known for its large Fourth of July (Independ ...
, which also included charge of Immaculate Conception Church in
Ulysses, Nebraska.
When Murphy refused to step down, Bonacum
excommunicated him and brought action in court to have him removed from the church property.
This litigation would last for more than ten years, moving through both secular and ecclesiastical courts and even coming to the personal attention of
Pope Pius X
Pope Pius X ( it, Pio X; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing modernist interpretations of C ...
.
On June 18, 1909, when Bonacum came to Ulysses to remove Murphy from Immaculate Conception Church.
However, Murphy had strong support from the congregation and a mob of more than 200 people forced Bonacum to leave.
Even when the bishop tried to take a taxi out of town, the mob followed him and forced him to get out of the car and walk several miles to the next town.
That battle only ended in 1911, when both Bonacum and Murphy died; the bishop from natural causes and the priest from a car accident.
[ As a result of their feud, Pius X issued a new rule prohibiting priests or bishops from suing a fellow clergyman in secular court.]
Death and legacy
Thomas Bonacum died from complications of pneumonia and Bright's disease on February 4, 1911, aged 64. Upon his death, Lincoln mayor Don Love issued the following proclamation: "By this sad event we have lost not only a great prelate but a distinguished and public-spirited citizen as well...It would be a fitting tribute to display emblems of mourning along our public streets and to close our offices and places of business during the hour of his funeral."
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bonacum, Thomas
1847 births
1911 deaths
People from Thurles
Irish emigrants to the United States (before 1923)
Roman Catholic bishops of Lincoln
19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States
20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States