Monsignor Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...

Francis J. Weber (born January 22, 1933) is an American

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

and

archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can consis ...

. He is a noted Catholic scholar, an Honorary Chaplain to His Holiness, and archivist for the

Archdiocese of Los Angeles The Archdiocese of Los Angeles ( la, Archidiœcesis Angelorum in California, es, Arquidiócesis de Los Ángeles) is an ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church (Catholic particular churches and liturgical rites, particularly ...

since 1962.

Biography

Msgr. Weber was born Frank J. Weber in Indianapolis,

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 ...

to Frank J. and Katherine E. Thompson Weber. He has one sister, Mary Alice Weber. In December of 1945 the family moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

where he entered Los Angeles College, a Catholic junior seminary, in 1946. Later he attended St. John’s College and St. John’s Seminary in

Camarillo Camarillo ( ) is a city in Ventura County in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 70,741, an increase of 5,540 from the 65,201 counted in the 2010 Census. Camarillo is named for brothers Juan an ...

. While on the seminary campus, he worked at the Edward Laurence Doheny Memorial Library. He was ordained a Catholic priest April 30, 1959. From 1959 to 1961 he served as Assistant Pastor of St. Vincent Catholic Church in

West Hollywood West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. It is considered one of the most prominent gay villages ...

and Assistant Director of the

National Legion of Decency The National Legion of Decency, also known as the Catholic Legion of Decency, was a Catholic group founded in 1934 by Archbishop of Cincinnati, John T. McNicholas, as an organization dedicated to identifying objectionable content in motion pictur ...

. Father Weber was sent to

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

to do post-graduate studies at Catholic University of America. He also earned a certificate in Records Management from American University. In 1962 Father Weber was selected to be the founding archivist for the Archives of the

where he continues to serve. Also in 1962, Msgr. Patrick Roche, the editor, asked Father Weber to write a regular column on California history in '' The Tidings,'' the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Thus was launched “California’s Catholic Heritage,” which became, before it ended in 1995, the longest-running column in the newspaper’s 121-year history. Msgr. Weber contributed 1,874 consecutive weekly columns over the course of 33 years. On May 7, 1974, His Holiness

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 State from 21 June 1963 to his death in Augus ...

designated Father Weber as a “

Chaplain of His Holiness A Chaplain of His Holiness is a priest to whom the Pope has granted this title. They are addressed as Monsignor and have certain privileges with respect to ecclesiastical dress and vestments.Monsignor Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...

, customarily abbreviated Msgr.

Honors

Msgr. Weber received the Award of Merit from the

California Historical Society The California Historical Society (CHS) is the official historical society of California. It was founded in 1871, by a group of prominent Californian intellectuals at Santa Clara University. It was officially designated as the Californian state ...

in 1972. In 1993 Msgr. Weber was awarded the Grand Cross of the

Order of Isabella the Catholic The Order of Isabella the Catholic ( es, Orden de Isabel la Católica) is a Spanish civil order and honor granted to persons and institutions in recognition of extraordinary services to the homeland or the promotion of international relations a ...

by King Juan Carlos I of Spain in recognition of his numerous books and articles on California’s Spanish heritage. A member and past president of the Los Angeles Corral, Msgr. Weber was honored as Westerners International Living Legend No. 60 in 2016. In 1996 the Glasgow Cup was awarded Msgr. Weber by the President of the Miniature Book Society "To a member who has shown a special dedication and above all, friendship to the membership, and who keeps that special spirit so evident at our founding in 1983." He was a charter member of the Miniature Book Society and served as President from 1985-1987. In 2013 he was honored by the Miniature Book Society again when he was presented with the Norman W. Forgue Award from for his outstanding contribution to the world of miniature books.

Published works

As author or editor of 175 volumes, Msgr. Weber is one of the most published priests in the Catholic annals of the United States. He has been a columnist, and an author of both books and articles as well as a book reviewer. Msgr. Weber's diverse literary topics range from ''Buffalo Bills Baptism'' to ''Toiletry at the California Missions''. Msgr. Weber has written or edited miniature books for nearly all the top publishers of miniature books over several decades. He has also published many books under his own imprints, Junipero Serra Press and El Camino Real Press.

Selected books

*1965: ''Documents of California Catholic History (1784-1963) '' *1977: ''A history of San Buenaventura Mission'' *1985: ''Mission in the valley of the bears: a documentary history of San Luis, Obispo de Tolosa'' *1992: '' Past is Prologue: Some Historical Reflections, 1961-1991'' *1998: '' Magnificat: the Life and Times of Timothy Cardinal Manning'' *2000: ''Memories of an Old Country Priest'' *2000: ''Encyclopedia of California’s Catholic Heritage 1769-1999'' *2002: ''Past is Prologue: Some Historical Reflections, 1992-2002'' *2003: ''A legacy of healing:the story of Catholic health care in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles'' *2005: ''The California Missions''

Selected miniature books

*1971: ''Earthquake Memoir'' *1975: ''California on United States Postage Stamps'' *1978: ''El Pueblo de San Jose de Guadalupe'' *1983: ''The XXIII Olympiad'' *1990: ''Gaspar de Portola'' *2004: ''The Veil of Veronica'' *2016: ''The Feast of the Nativity'' *2017: ''Gregory Peck'' *2019: ''Voice of the Hollywood Bowl: Thomas Cassidy 1917-2012'' *2021: ''Saint Brendan: legend vs. history''

References

External links

Monsignor Francis J. Weber: Apostolate for Holy Relics
1933 births Living people Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles History of Catholicism in the United States Catholic University of America alumni {{US-reli-bio-stub