Vernon James Weisgerber (born May 1, 1938) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

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 is the retired sixth Archbishop of Winnipeg, serving from August 2000 until October 2013.

Early life and education

Weisgerber was born in Vibank,

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

, to Jack and Catherine Weisgerber. Following his schooling at Vibank, he attended St. Peter's College at

Muenster Muenster may refer to: * Münster, Germany * Muenster, Saskatchewan * Muenster, Texas * Muenster cheese Muenster ( or ) or munster is a semi-soft cheese from the United States. It is thought to be an imitation of the Alsatian washed-rind Muns ...

and then St. Paul's University in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, where he obtained licence degrees in

Philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

and

Theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

Priesthood

He 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 ...

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 particu ...

at Holy Rosary Cathedral in Regina on June 1, 1963, and named a

Prelate of Honour A Prelate of Honour of His Holiness is a Catholic prelate to whom the Pope has granted this title of honour. They are addressed as Monsignor and have certain privileges as regards clerical clothing.Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

Arts The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both hi ...

Notre Dame College Notre Dame College (Notre Dame College of Ohio or NDC) is a private Roman Catholic college in South Euclid, Ohio. Established in 1922 as a women's college, it has been coeducational since January 2001. Notre Dame College offers 30 majors and i ...

Wilcox Wilcox may refer to: Places ;Canada *Wilcox, Saskatchewan ;United States *Wilcox, Florida, an unincorporated community in Gilchrist County, Florida *Wilcox, Missouri *Wilcox, Nebraska * Wilcox, Pennsylvania *Wilcox, Washington * Wilcox, Wisconsin * ...

, where he taught philosophy, religious studies, and French. He worked several years in the

Archbishop of Regina The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Regina ( la, Archidioecesis Reginatensis) is a Roman Catholic archdiocese comprising the southern part of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan, as far north as the 30th townsh ...

office An office is a space where an Organization, organization's employees perform Business administration, administrative Work (human activity), work in order to support and realize objects and Goals, plans, action theory, goals of the organizati ...

serving as the director of the pastoral and social justice offices. He served as

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 Holy Rosary Cathedral and

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 ...

o
Holy Trinity Parish
both in Regina, as well as in

Fort Qu'Appelle Fort Qu'Appelle is a town in Canadian province of Saskatchewan located in the Qu'Appelle River valley north-east of Regina, between Echo and Mission Lakes of the Fishing Lakes. It is not to be confused with the once-significant nearby t ...

, which included pastoral ministry with neighboring aboriginal communities. In 1990 he was elected General Secretary of the

Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB; french: Conférence des évêques catholiques du Canada) is the national assembly of the bishops of the Catholic Church in Canada. It was founded in 1943, and was officially recognized by the Holy ...

Episcopal career

On March 7, 1996, Weisgerber was appointed the fifth Bishop of Saskatoon by

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 ...

. He received his

episcopal consecration A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...

on the following May 3 from Archbishop

Peter Mallon Peter Joseph Mallon (December 5, 1929 – February 3, 2007) was an archbishop in the Archdiocese of Regina from June 9, 1995, until his retirement on March 30, 2005. He retired in 2005, at the age of 75, due to the Roman Catholic church's man ...

, with Archbishop Joseph MacNeil and Bishop

Joseph MacDonald Joseph Patrick MacDonald, A.S.C. (December 15, 1906 - May 26, 1968) was a Mexico-born American cinematographer. An assistant cameraman from the early 1920s, he became a cinematographer in the 1940s and soon was working on Hollywood production ...

serving as

co-consecrators A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches, ...

. Weisgerber was later named the sixth Archbishop of Winnipeg on June 7, 2000. He succeeded Leonard James Wall, and was installed at St. Mary’s Cathedral on August 24, 2000. In 2005, he received the

Saskatchewan Order of Merit The Saskatchewan Order of Merit (french: Ordre du Mérite de la Saskatchewan) is a civilian Award, honour for merit in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. Instituted in 1985 by Lieutenant Governor of Saska ...

. In 2013, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada "for his work as a champion of reconciliation and social justice, promoting deeper understanding between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people".

References

Catholic-Hierarchy.orgArchdiocese of Winnipeg
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weisgerber, James 1938 births Living people 21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Canada Members of the Saskatchewan Order of Merit Officers of the Order of Canada People from Vibank, Saskatchewan Roman Catholic archbishops of Winnipeg Roman Catholic bishops of Saskatoon