Joseph Sarsfield Glass, C.M. (March 13, 1874 – January 26, 1926) was 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

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. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Salt Lake in Utah from 1915 until his death in 1926.

Biography

Early life

Glass was born in Bushnell,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

, to James and Mary Edith (née Kelly) Glass. After receiving his early education in Sedalia,

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

, he entered St. Vincent's College at

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 ...

, in 1887. He returned to Missouri in 1891 and then enrolled at St. Mary's Seminary in Perryville. From there he joined the Congregation of the Mission, also known as the Lazarists or Vincentians.

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 ...

to the priesthood by Bishop George Montgomery on August 15, 1897. He then furthered his studies at the

College of the Propaganda A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a University system, constituent part of one. A college may be a academic degree, degree-awarding Tertiary education, tertiary educational institution, a part of a coll ...

in Rome, where he earned his Doctor of Divinity in 1899. Upon his return to the United States, Glass taught

dogmatic theology Dogmatic theology, also called dogmatics, is the part of theology dealing with the theoretical truths of faith concerning God and God's works, especially the official theology recognized by an organized Church body, such as the Roman Catholic Ch ...

at St. Mary's Seminary until 1900, when he became professor of

moral theology Ethics involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior.''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy''"Ethics"/ref> A central aspect of ethics is "the good life", the life worth living or life that is simply sati ...

and director of the

seminarians A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

. In June 1901 he was named

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of St. Vincent's College 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 ...

of St. Vincent's Parish in Los Angeles. During his 10-year-long presidency, he broadened the curriculum to a full

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

course and made it one of the most prominent educational institutions in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...

Bishop of Salt Lake

On June 1, 1915, Glass was appointed the second bishop of the Diocese of Salt Lake by

Pope Benedict XV Pope Benedict XV (Latin: ''Benedictus XV''; it, Benedetto XV), born Giacomo Paolo Giovanni Battista della Chiesa, name=, group= (; 21 November 185422 January 1922), was head of the Catholic Church from 1914 until his death in January 1922. His ...

. He received his

episcopal consecration 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 ...

on August 24, 1915, from Archbishop Edward Hanna, with Bishops Thomas Lillis and

Thomas Grace Thomas Grace may refer to: * Thomas Grace (Archdeacon of Ardfert) (1770–1848), Irish priest * Thomas Grace (Archdeacon of Marlborough) (fl. 1873–1890), Anglican priest in New Zealand, son of the above * Thomas Grace (bishop of Sacramento) (1846 ...

serving as co-consecrators. Glass added

mural A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spani ...

s to the

Cathedral of the Madeleine The Cathedral of the Madeleine is a Roman Catholic church in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It was completed in 1909 and currently serves as the cathedral, or mother church, of the Diocese of Salt Lake City. It is the only cathedral in the ...

in Salt Lake that display distinctly Catholic beliefs; some claimed that he wanted to confront members of the

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The c ...

(LDS Church), but others said he simply "wanted to teach Utah Catholics basic tenets of their faith." Glass once played a poker game with LDS President

Heber J. Grant Heber Jeddy Grant (November 22, 1856 – May 14, 1945) was an American religious leader who served as the seventh president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Grant worked as a bookkeeper and a cashier, then wa ...

and Elmer Goshen of the First Congregational Church in Salt Lake.

Death and legacy

Joseph Glass died in Los Angeles on January 26, 1926, at age 51.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Glass, Joseph Sarsfield 1874 births 1926 deaths People from Bushnell, Illinois Vincentians Roman Catholic bishops of Salt Lake City 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Loyola Marymount University alumni Vincentian bishops Catholics from Illinois Contributors to the Catholic Encyclopedia