William Donald Borders (October 9, 1913 – April 19, 2010) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

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 ...

. He was the 13th

Archbishop of Baltimore The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Baltimore ( la, link=no, Archidiœcesis Baltimorensis) is the premier (or first) see of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church in the United States. The archdiocese comprises the City of Baltimore and nine of M ...

from 1974 to 1989, having previously served as the first Bishop of Orlando from 1968 to 1974.

Early life and education

Borders was born in

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

, the third of seven children of Thomas Martin and Zelpha Ann (née Queen) Borders. His birth came during a flood that lifted his family's house off its foundation and forced the physician to reach their house by boat. After attending Catholic elementary and high school, he began his studies for the priesthood at Saint Meinrad's Seminary in 1932. He transferred to the

Archdiocese of New Orleans The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans ( la, Archidioecesis Novae Aureliae, french: Archidiocèse de la Nouvelle-Orléans, es, Arquidiócesis de Nueva Orleans) is an ecclesiastical division of the Roman Catholic Church spanning Jefferson ...

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 ...

in 1936 after Archbishop Joseph Rummel made an appeal for priests and seminarians. He completed his studies at

Notre Dame Seminary Notre Dame Seminary is a Catholic seminary in New Orleans, Louisiana. It operates under the auspices of the Archdiocese of New Orleans. It serves the other six Catholic dioceses of the Ecclesiastical Province of New Orleans, six additional dioces ...

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

Priesthood

Borders 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 ...

a priest by Archbishop Rummel on May 18, 1940. He then served as an

associate 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 ...

at Sacred Heart Church in

Baton Rouge, Louisiana Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Located the eastern bank of the Mississippi River, it is the parish seat of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana's most populous parish—the equivalent of counties i ...

until 1943, when he enlisted in the U.S. Army Chaplain Corps during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He received a month's training at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

before becoming a

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a Minister (Christianity), minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a laity, lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secularity, secular institution (such as a hosp ...

with the 362nd Infantry Regiment of the 91st Infantry Division. His regiment trained in

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

for the Italian Campaign. During an attack on a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

position near

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

in 1944, Borders carried a wounded American soldier to safety while under

machine gun A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles) ar ...

fire, for which he was awarded the Bronze Star for Valor. In 1946, Borders left the military service with the rank of

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

and returned to Louisiana. He briefly served as an associate pastor at Our Lady of Prompt Succor Church in

Westwego, Louisiana Westwego is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, located in Jefferson Parish. It is a suburban community of New Orleans in the Greater New Orleans metropolitan area and lies along the west bank of the Mississippi River. The population of the ci ...

before pursuing a graduate degree at the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...

in his native Indiana. After earning a

Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

degree in Education in 1947, he resumed his pastoral ministry in Louisiana as associate pastor at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in New Orleans. He became an assistant chaplain of the

Newman Centre Newman Centers, Newman Houses, Newman Clubs, or Newman Communities are Catholic campus ministry centers at secular universities. The movement was inspired by the writings of Cardinal John Henry Newman encouraging societies for Catholic stude ...

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...

, eventually rising to become its chaplain. During his tenure at LSU, he spent a summer in

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

to better serve his

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

students. Borders served at LSU until 1964, except for a two-year period (1957–1959) when he served as

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 Holy Family Church in

Port Allen, Louisiana Port Allen is a city in, and the parish seat of, West Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, United States. Located on the west bank of the Mississippi River, it is bordered by Interstate 10 and US Highway 190. The population was 5,180 at the 2010 cens ...

. The assignment was his first pastorate, and he there demonstrated his concern for racial equality by ending

segregation Segregation may refer to: Separation of people * Geographical segregation, rates of two or more populations which are not homogenous throughout a defined space * School segregation * Housing segregation * Racial segregation, separation of humans ...

at the church. He burned the ropes that sectioned off the

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

parishioners, who gradually integrated throughout the church. In 1961, when the

Diocese of Baton Rouge The Roman Catholic Diocese of Baton Rouge (Latin ''Dioecesis Rubribaculensis''; French ''Diocèse de Bâton-Rouge''; Spanish: ''Diócesis de Baton Rouge'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church spanning Asc ...

was created out of the Archdiocese of New Orleans, Borders was attached to the new diocese. He was raised to the rank of Domestic Prelate by

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, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...

in 1963, and named

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of St. Joseph Catholic School the following year. He also served as a diocesan

consultor A consultor is one who gives counsel, i.e., a counselor. In the Catholic Church, it is a specific title for various advisory positions: *in the Roman Curia, a consultor is a specially appointed expert who may be called upon for advice desired by ...

, director of seminarians, and moderator for the diocesan councils of Catholic Men and Women, and co-founded of St. Joseph Cathedral Preparatory School. He attended the last two sessions of the

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

as a ''

peritus ''Peritus'' (Latin for "expert") is the title given to Roman Catholic theologians attending an ecumenical council to give advice. At the Second Vatican Council, some ''periti'' (the plural form) accompanied individual bishops or groups of bisho ...

'', or theological expert, on the priesthood and

ecumenical Ecumenism (), also spelled oecumenism, is the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships among their churches and promote Christian unity. The adjec ...

relations.

Episcopacy

Orlando

On May 2, 1968, Borders was appointed 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 newly erected

Diocese of Orlando The Diocese of Orlando ( la, Dioecesis Orlandensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Florida. It encompasses about spanning Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Marion, Lake, Volusia, Brevard, Polk, and S ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. He received his episcopal

consecration Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

on the following June 14 from Archbishop Luigi Raimondi, with Bishops

Robert Emmet Tracy Robert Emmet Tracy (September 14, 1909—April 4, 1980) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Baton Rouge in Louisiana from 1961 to 1974. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of t ...

and Louis Abel Caillouet serving as co-consecrators. He selected as his episcopal

motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...

: ''"Auscultabo ut Serviam"'' (

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 ...

: "I listen that I may serve"). During his tenure in Orlando, Borders laid the foundations for the new diocese while also implementing the directives of the Second Vatican Council. He oversaw the creation of parish councils and education boards, allowed the

laity In religious organizations, the laity () consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother. In both religious and wider secular usage, a layperson ...

to serve as extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, and formed a Sisters' Council for the

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...

s of the diocese. He created a Social Services Board to correlate the work of already-existing agencies, and developed a comprehensive educational program aimed at coordinating efforts in Catholics schools, campus ministry, and religious education. He also initiated social outreach centers to minister to

migrant worker A migrant worker is a person who Human migration, migrates within a home country or outside it to pursue work. Migrant workers usually do not have the intention to stay permanently in the country or region in which they work. Migrant worker ...

s and the poor. Borders once described himself as the "Bishop of the

Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...

" since the Diocese of Orlando encompassed

Cape Canaveral , image = cape canaveral.jpg , image_size = 300 , caption = View of Cape Canaveral from space in 1991 , map = Florida#USA , map_width = 300 , type =Cape , map_caption = Location in Florida , location ...

, from where

Apollo 11 Apollo 11 (July 16–24, 1969) was the American spaceflight that first landed humans on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module ''Eagle'' on July 20, 1969, at 20:17 UTC, an ...

launched in 1969. According to the Code of Canon Law in effect at the time, any newly discovered territory fell under the jurisdiction of the diocese whence the expedition left.

Baltimore

Following the retirement of Cardinal

Lawrence Shehan Lawrence Joseph Shehan (March 18, 1898 – August 26, 1984) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Baltimore from 1961 to 1974 and was made a cardinal in 1965. Shehan was an advocate for civil rights ...

, Borders was appointed the 13th Archbishop of Baltimore,

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, on March 25, 1974. He was formally installed at the

Cathedral of Mary Our Queen The Cathedral of Mary Our Queen is a Catholic cathedral located in northern Baltimore, Maryland. The structure, remarkable in size, was completed in 1959. The cathedral is the seat of the Archbishop of Baltimore, joining the Basilica of the Nati ...

on June 26 of that year. He received the

pallium The pallium (derived from the Roman ''pallium'' or ''palla'', a woolen cloak; : ''pallia'') is an ecclesiastical vestment in the Catholic Church, originally peculiar to the pope, but for many centuries bestowed by the Holy See upon metropol ...

, a vestment worn by

metropolitan bishop In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan (alternative obsolete form: metropolite), pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis. Originally, the term referred to the b ...

s, from Pope Paul VI at

St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a church built in the Renaissance style located in Vatican City, the papal e ...

on March 24, 1975. As head of the nation's oldest Catholic diocese, he held the status of '' primus inter pares'' among the American Catholic bishops. During his 15-year tenure in Baltimore, Borders divided the archdiocese into three

vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

iates and appointed his auxiliary bishops as vicars over them. He reorganized the Archdiocesan Central Services, naming cabinet-level secretaries to carry out the administrative work of the archdiocese. He clarified and strengthened the role of the Archdiocesan Pastoral Council, and combined the Board of Consultors and the Senate of Priests to form the Priests' Council. He initiated a Department of Pastoral Planning and Management looking to the future needs of the archdiocese, an Office of Fund Development to carry out an effective stewardship program, and an evangelization effort to reach the "

unchurched "Unchurched" (alternatively, "The Unchurched" or "unchurched people") means, in the broad sense, people who are Christians but not connected with a church. In research on religious participation, it refers more specifically to people who do not att ...

" in the Archdiocese. Instead of living at the residence at the Basilica of the Assumption, he lived alone at the former sexton's lodge, which is now the gift shop of the basilica. Borders became what ''Baltimore Magazine'' called the "king of the soup kitchens". Under his leadership in Baltimore, the budget for

Catholic Charities The Catholic Church operates numerous charitable organizations. Catholic spiritual teaching includes spreading the Gospel, while Catholic social teaching emphasises support for the sick, the poor and the afflicted through the corporal and spi ...

grew from $2.5 million a year to $33 million a year, and its staff grew from 200 to more than 1,000. He regularly lobbied members of

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

and other government officials on behalf of the disadvantaged. In the fall of 1981, in company with other leading Catholic educators, he made a three-week tour of the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

to investigate the possibilities for an exchange of cultural and educational programs between that nation and the United States. Borders was among those named in two lawsuits involving clergy sexual abuse, one in Baltimore in 1993 and another in Orlando in 2003. In both cases, he was accused of knowing about alleged abuse by priests in his dioceses but avoiding action against them. The conditions of the Baltimore settlement remain confidential; the Orlando case was settled without Borders' admitting any wrongdoing. As a member of the

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) and United States Catholic Conference (US ...

, he chaired the Committee on Education and served on the Committee on Human Values, the Administrative Board of the U.S. Catholic Conference, and the Administrative Committee of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops. He also chaired the Ad Hoc Committee for the Bicentennial of the U.S. Hierarchy.

Later life and death

After reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75, Borders submitted his letter of resignation to

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 ...

, who accepted his resignation on April 6, 1989. His successor was

William H. Keeler William Henry Keeler (March 4, 1931 – March 23, 2017) was an American cardinal of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Baltimore, Maryland, from 1989 to 2007 and was elevated to the College of Cardinals in 1994. He previously ser ...

, then serving as Bishop of Harrisburg,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. In 2003, Borders moved to the Mercy Ridge Retirement Community in

Lutherville, Maryland Lutherville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 6,504. Prior to 2010 the area was part of the Lutherville-Timonium CDP. Within its borders lies the Lutherv ...

. He later moved to Stella Maris Hospice in nearby

Timonium, Maryland Timonium is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 9,926. Prior to 2010 the area was part of the Lutherville-Timonium CDP. The Maryland State Fair is held in ...

, after being diagnosed with colon cancer. He died at Stella Maris at age 96 — the fourth-oldest living Catholic bishop in the United States, and the longest-surviving of the bishops of both Orlando and Baltimore.

References

External links

Most Rev. William D. Borders, 13th Archbishop of Baltimore (Ordinaries Detail) – Archdiocese of Baltimore.

Coat of Arms of His Excellency The Most Reverend William Donald Borders, D.D. Archbishop of Baltimore – Archdiocese of Baltimore.

Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Cathedral of Mary Our Queen

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore

Roman Catholic Diocese of Orlando

Episcopal succession

{{DEFAULTSORT:Borders, William Donald 1913 births 2010 deaths People from Washington, Indiana Participants in the Second Vatican Council Roman Catholic archbishops of Baltimore People from New Orleans Roman Catholic bishops of Orlando University of Notre Dame alumni 20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in the United States World War II chaplains United States Army chaplains People from Lutherville, Maryland Louisiana State University people United States Army personnel of World War II Catholics from Louisiana Catholics from Indiana