Charles Coleman Thompson (born April 11, 1961) is 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 ...

, serving as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis in Indiana since 2017. He previously served as the bishop of the

Diocese of Evansville The Diocese of Evansville ( la, Dioecesis Evansvicensis) is a diocese of the Catholic Church in Southwestern Indiana. On October 21, 1944, the then- Diocese of Indianapolis was split into the Archdiocese of Indianapolis and the Diocese of Evan ...

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 ...

from 2011 to 2017.

Career

Early life

Thompson was born in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

. He attended

Bellarmine College Bellarmine University (BU; ) is a private Catholic 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 ...

, graduating with a Bachelor of Accounting degree. Thompson earned a

Master Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans *Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...

Divinity Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine< ...

degree at

Saint Meinrad School of Theology The Saint Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology is a Roman Catholic seminary and school of theology in Saint Meinrad, Indiana. It is affiliated with the Saint Meinrad Archabbey in St. Meinrad, Indiana. The institution was named after Meinrad ...

in St. Meinrad, Indiana and a Licentiate of Canon Law at St. Paul University in Ottawa, Ontario.

Priesthood

On May 30, 1987, Thompson was ordained into the priesthood for the Diocese of Louisville by Archbishop Thomas Kelly. After his ordination, he served until 1990 as associate pastor at St. Joseph Pro-Cathedral Parish and as chaplain at Bethlehem High School, both in

Bardstown, Kentucky Bardstown is a home rule-class city in Nelson County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 11,700 in the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Nelson County. Bardstown is named for the pioneering Bard brothers. David Bard obtained a l ...

. In 1992, he resumed work part-time as an associate pastor at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Louisville. In 1993, Thompson was named metropolitan vicar and director of tribunals for the diocese. He administered St. Peter Claver Parish in Louisville from 1994 to 1996 and also served as a chaplain for the Presentation Academy in Louisville from 1995 to 1997. In 1996, Thompson was assigned as pastor at St. Augustine Parish in

Lebanon, Kentucky Lebanon is a list of Kentucky cities, home rule-class city and the county seat of Marion County, Kentucky, Marion County, Kentucky, in the United States. The population was 5,539 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. Lebanon is located in ...

. He was named defender of the bond and judge of the Diocesan Tribunal in 1998. Thompson was appointed pastor in 2002 of Holy Trinity Parish and chaplain of Sacred Heart Academy, both in Louisville. In addition to his pastoral work at Holy Trinity, Thompson was appointed

vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop' ...

in 2008.

Bishop of Evansville

Coat of arms of Charles Coleman Thompson

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the soverei ...

appointed Thompson as the fifth bishop of the Diocese of Evansville on April 26, 2011. He was consecrated by Archbishop Joseph Kurtz on June 29, 2011, at

Roberts Municipal Stadium Roberts Municipal Stadium was a multi-purpose arena in Evansville, Indiana, for sports, public events, and concerts. The arena was built in 1956. It seated up to 12,732 spectators and featured four locker rooms and a press room. On June 13, 1972, ...

in Evansville. The co-consecrators were Archbishop Daniel M. Buechlein, Archbishop

Thomas C. Kelly Thomas Cajetan Kelly (July 14, 1931 – December 14, 2011) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. A member of the Dominican Order, Kelley served as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Louisville in Kentucky from 1982 until his retire ...

, and Bishop Gerald Gettelfinger.

Archbishop of Indianapolis

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

appointed Thompson as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis on June 13, 2017. He was installed on July 28, 2017. Thompson was the youngest American archbishop at the time of his installation. Soon after his installation, Thompson ordered three Catholic high schools in the archdiocese to terminate three employees who had entered into

same-sex marriages Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...

: * Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School refused to fire Layton Payne-Elliot, a male teacher who married Joshua Payne-Elliot in 2017. After a period of fruitless negotiations, Thompson suspended the Catholic status of Brebeuf in June 2019.. The Jesuits appealed his decision to the

Congregation for Catholic Education , type = Congregation , seal = Coat of arms Holy See.svg , seal_size = 100px , seal_caption = Coat of arms of the Holy See , logo = , picture =Via della Conciliazione din Roma1.jpg , picture_caption = Palazzo delle Congregazioni in Piazza ...

in Rome, which temporarily rescinded Thompson's order. In 2020, the Holy See assigned Cardinal

Joseph Tobin Joseph Tobin (born 1950) is the Elizabeth Garrard Hall Professor of Education in the College of Education at the University of Georgia. Biography Tobin received his B.A. Degree from Earlham College and his PhD in Human Development at the Univer ...

to mediate the dispute. * Roncalli High School fired two guidance counselors, Shelly Fitzgerald and Lynn Starkey, both of whom had married other women. Fitzgerald and Starkey sued the archdiocese and Thompson in separate cases, alleging discrimination and retaliation. On August 11, 2021, the US Southern District of Indiana dismissed the Starkey lawsuit. * Cathedral High School fired Joshua Payne-Elliot, a teacher who married Layton Payne-Elliot in 2017. In a statement, Cathedral said that defying the archbishop could have meant losing its

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

tax status. Payne -Elliot ued the archdiocese, but the case was dismissed in Marion County Superior Court on May 20, 2021.

References

External links

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis Official Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Charles C. 1961 births Living people 21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in the United States Roman Catholic bishops of Evansville Bellarmine University alumni Saint Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology alumni University of Ottawa alumni Religious leaders from Louisville, Kentucky Catholics from Kentucky