Thomas Louis Heylen

OPraem The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular of the Catholic Church ...

(1856–1941) was a Belgian prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the twenty-sixth

bishop of Namur The Diocese of Namur is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Belgium. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels. The diocese is a suffragan in the ecclesiastical province in the metropoli ...

in Belgium (1899–1941). He also served as President of the

Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses The Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses is part of the Roman Curia of the Roman Catholic Church. It was erected in 1879 by Pope Leo XIII. Its statutes were last updated by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009. Aims The purpose o ...

Life

Heylen was born in

Kasterlee Kasterlee () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises the towns of Kasterlee proper, Lichtaart and Tielen. In 2021, Kasterlee had a total population of 19,052. The total area is 71.56 km2. Th ...

on 5 February 1856 and studied at the Jesuit college in nearby

Turnhout Turnhout () is a Belgian municipality and city located in the Flemish province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises only the city of Turnhout proper. In 2021, Turnhout had a total population of 45,874. The total area is . The agglomeration, ho ...

.A. Simon, "Heylen (Thomas-Louis)", ''

Biographie Nationale de Belgique The ''Biographie nationale de Belgique'' (French; "National Biography of Belgium") is a biographical dictionary of Belgium. It was published by the Royal Academy of Belgium in 44 volumes between 1866 and 1986. A continuation series, entitled the ' ...

''
vol. 32
(Brussels, 1964), 295-299. On 25 August 1875 he became a member of

Tongerlo Abbey Tongerlo Abbey is a Premonstratensian monastery at Tongerlo in Westerlo near Antwerp, Belgium. History It was founded in 1128 in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary, by Giselbert of Kasterlee, who not only gave the land, but also himself became a ...

, taking the name of Thomas of Canterbury. He was ordained to the priesthood on 11 January 1881 in Mechelen and was sent to Rome to study philosophy, theology, and canon law. He was elected abbot of Tongerlo in 1887. As abbot he founded Corpus Christi Priory in Manchester and a Premonstratensian mission post in Congo Free State. Heylen was named bishop of Namur on 23 October 1899 and was consecrated on 30 November. His emphasis was on encouraging religious devotion, promoting both mass pilgrimages and private retreats among the laity and emphasizing ongoing formation for the clergy. In 1901 he became president of the Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses, in succession to Victor Joseph Doutreloux, bishop of Liège.C. J. Kirkfleet, "International Eucharistic Congresses", ''

Catholic Historical Review ''The Catholic Historical Review'' (CHR) is the official organ of the American Catholic Historical Association. It was established at The Catholic University of America in 1915 by Thomas Joseph Shahan and Peter Guilday and is published quarterly by ...

'', 12:1 (1926), pp. 59–65. He hosted the 1902 Eucharistic Congress in his own diocese, and personally presided at the International Eucharistic Congresses in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

(1910),

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

(

28th International Eucharistic Congress The 28th International Eucharistic Congress was held in Chicago, Illinois, United States from June 20 to 24, 1926. The event, held by the Catholic Church, was a eucharistic congress, which is a large scale gathering of Catholics that foc ...

, 1926), Sydney (1928),

Carthage Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the cla ...

(1930),

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(1934) and

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

(1937). During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

he was appointed

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to French territory under German occupation. He maintained a "patriotic" line (refusing to host the King of Bavaria in his cathedral), and on two visits to Rome defended the outspokenness of

Cardinal Mercier Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...

from critics in the Roman Curia, although he was not himself so outspoken. He founded the diocesan schools of Saint-Michel in Neufchâteau (1909), Saint-Pierre in

Bouillon Bouillon can refer to: Food * Bouillon (broth), a simple broth ** Court-bouillon, a quick broth * Bouillon (soup), a Haitian soup * Bouillon (restaurant), a traditional type of French restaurant **Bouillon Chartier, a bouillon restaurant foun ...

(1910), and Sainte-Begge in Andenne (1925). He died in Namur on 27 October 1941.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heylen, Thomas Louis 1856 births 1941 deaths People from Kasterlee Bishops of Namur Premonstratensian bishops