John Ireland (archbishop)
Encyclopedia
John Ireland was the third bishop and first archbishop of Saint Paul, Minnesota
(1888–1918). He became both a religious as well as civic leader in Saint Paul
during the turn of the century. Ireland was known for his progressive stance on education, immigration and relations between church and state
as well as his conservative stance towards drinking and political corruption. He is also remembered for his acrimonious relations with Greek Catholics. He created or helped to create many religious and educational institutions in Saint Paul and Washington, D.C.
, Ireland
, and was baptized on September 11, 1838. His family immigrated to the United States
in 1848 and eventually moved to Saint Paul
, Minnesota
in 1852. One year later Joseph Crétin
, first bishop of Saint Paul, sent Ireland to the preparatory seminary of Meximieux
in France. Ireland was consequently ordained in 1861 in Saint Paul. He served as a chaplain of the Fifth Minnesota Regiment
in the Civil War
until 1863 when he resigned.
He was appointed pastor at Saint Paul's cathedral
in 1867, a position which he held until to 1875. In 1875 he was made coadjutor bishop
of St. Paul and in 1884 he became bishop ordinary. In 1888 he became archbishop
with the elevation of his diocese and the erection of the ecclesiastical province of Saint Paul. Ireland retained this title for 30 years until his death in 1918. Before Ireland died he burned all of his personal papers.
John Ireland was personal friends with both Presidents William McKinley
and Theodore Roosevelt
. Ireland's funeral was attended by eight archbishops, thirty bishops, twelve monsignors, seven hundred priests and two hundred seminarians.
John Lancaster Spalding of the Diocese of Peoria, Illinois, founded the Irish Catholic Colonization Association. This organization bought land in rural areas to the west and south and helped resettle Irish Catholics from the urban slums.
Ireland helped establish many Irish Catholic colonies in Minnesota. He served as director of the National Colonization Association. From 1876 to 1881 Ireland organized and directed the most successful rural colonization program ever sponsored by the Catholic Church in the U.S. Ireland worked with the western railroads and with the Minnesota state government, he brought more than 4,000 Catholic families from the slums of eastern urban areas and settled them on more than 400,000 acres (1,600 km²) of farmland in rural Minnesota.
In 1880 he also assisted several hundred people from Connemara
in Ireland to emigrate to Minnesota. Unfortunately they arrived at the wrong time of the year and had to be assisted by local Freemasons, an organisation that disagrees with Roman Catholicism on many points. In the public debate that followed, the immigrants, being Gaelic
speakers, could not voice their opinions of Bishop Ireland's criticism of their acceptance of the masons' support during a harsh winter.
De Graff
and Clontarf
in Swift County
, Adrian
in Nobles County
, Avoca
, Iona
and Fulda
in Murray County
, Graceville
in Big Stone County
and Ghent
in Lyon County
were all colonies established by Ireland.
Ireland advocated state support and inspection of Catholic schools. After several parochial schools were in danger of closing Ireland sold them to the respective city's board of education. The schools continued to operate with nuns and priests teaching but no religious teaching was allowed. This plan, the Faribault-Stillwater Plan, or Poughkeepsie plan
, created enough controversy that Ireland was forced to travel to the Vatican City to successfully defend it. He also opposed the use of foreign languages in American Catholic churches and parochial school
s. Using foreign languages was not uncommon at the time because of the recent large influx of immigrants to the U.S. from European countries. Ireland influenced American society by actively promoting the use of the English language by large numbers of German immigrants. He was very politically outspoken and was a close friend to two presidents. He was the author of The Church and Modern Society (1897). He also founded St. Thomas Academy in Mendota Heights, Minnesota.
s of Greek-Catholic
priest
Alexis Toth, citing the decree that married priests of the Eastern Catholic Churches were not permitted to function in the Catholic Church in the United States, despite Toth being a widower. Ireland then forbade Toth to minister to his own parishioners, despite the fact that Toth had jurisdiction from his own Bishop, and did not depend on Ireland. Ireland was also involved in efforts to expel all Eastern Catholic clergy from the United States of America. Forced into an impasse, Toth went on to lead thousands of Greek-Catholics
to leave the Catholic Church to join the Russian Orthodox Church
. Because of this, Archbishop Ireland is sometimes referred to, ironically, as "The Father of the Orthodox Church in America
." Marvin R. O'Connell, author of a biography on Ireland, summarizes the situation by stating that "if Ireland's advocacy of the blacks displayed him at his best, his belligerence toward the Greek Catholics showed him at his bull-headed worst."
At the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore the establishment of a Catholic university was decided. In 1885 Ireland was appointed to a committee, along with, Bishop John Lancaster Spalding, Cardinal James Gibbons and then bishop John Joseph Keane
dedicated to developing and establishing the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.
. Ireland retained an active interest in the University for the rest of his life.
He founded the University of St. Thomas in 1885 that included a preparatory school now known as Saint Thomas Academy
. In 1894 he started the Saint Paul Seminary
with the help of Methodist James J. Hill
, whose wife, Mary Mehegan, was a devout Catholic. Both institutions are located on the bluffs overlooking the Mississippi River
. DeLaSalle High School
located on Nicollet Island
in Minneapolis was opened in October 1900 through a gift of $25,000 from Ireland. Fourteen years later Ireland purchased an adjacent property for the expanding Christian Brothers
school.
In 1904 Ireland secured the land for the building of the current Cathedral of Saint Paul located atop Summit Hill, the highest point in downtown Saint Paul. At the same time, on Christmas Day 1903 he also commissioned the construction of the almost equally as large Church of Saint Mary, for the local Immaculate Conception parish in the neighboring city of Minneapolis. It became the Pro-Cathedral of Minneapolis and was later to become the Basilica of Saint Mary, the first basilica in the United States in 1926. Both were designed and built under the direction of the French architect Emmanuel Louis Masqueray
.
John Ireland Boulevard, a Saint Paul street that runs from the Cathedral of Saint Paul, northeast, to the Minnesota State Capitol
, is named in his honor. It was named in 1961 at the encouragement of the Ancient Order of Hibernians
.
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the United States. It is led by the prelature of an archbishop which administers the archdiocese from the cities of Saint Paul and Minneapolis...
(1888–1918). He became both a religious as well as civic leader in Saint Paul
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...
during the turn of the century. Ireland was known for his progressive stance on education, immigration and relations between church and state
Separation of church and state
The concept of the separation of church and state refers to the distance in the relationship between organized religion and the nation state....
as well as his conservative stance towards drinking and political corruption. He is also remembered for his acrimonious relations with Greek Catholics. He created or helped to create many religious and educational institutions in Saint Paul and Washington, D.C.
History
He was born in Burnchurch, County KilkennyCounty Kilkenny
County Kilkenny is a county in Ireland. It is part of the South-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the city of Kilkenny. The territory of the county was the core part of the ancient Irish Kingdom of Osraige which in turn was the core of the Diocese of...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, and was baptized on September 11, 1838. His family immigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1848 and eventually moved to Saint Paul
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...
, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
in 1852. One year later Joseph Crétin
Joseph Crétin
Joseph Crétin was the first Roman Catholic Bishop of Saint Paul, Minnesota. Cretin Avenue in St. Paul, Cretin-Derham Hall High School, and Cretin Hall at the University of St. Thomas are named for him....
, first bishop of Saint Paul, sent Ireland to the preparatory seminary of Meximieux
Meximieux
Meximieux is a commune in the Ain department in eastern France.-Geography:Located 35 km north east of Lyon and 10 km from Ambérieu-en-Bugey, the town is where the Dombes plateau meets the plain of the Ain River. Historically, Meximieux was part of the former province of Bresse...
in France. Ireland was consequently ordained in 1861 in Saint Paul. He served as a chaplain of the Fifth Minnesota Regiment
5th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry Regiment
The 5th Minnesota Regiment Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army in the Western Theater of the American Civil War.-Service:...
in the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
until 1863 when he resigned.
He was appointed pastor at Saint Paul's cathedral
Cathedral
A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...
in 1867, a position which he held until to 1875. In 1875 he was made coadjutor bishop
Coadjutor bishop
A coadjutor bishop is a bishop in the Roman Catholic or Anglican churches who is designated to assist the diocesan bishop in the administration of the diocese, almost as co-bishop of the diocese...
of St. Paul and in 1884 he became bishop ordinary. In 1888 he became archbishop
Archbishop
An archbishop is a bishop of higher rank, but not of higher sacramental order above that of the three orders of deacon, priest , and bishop...
with the elevation of his diocese and the erection of the ecclesiastical province of Saint Paul. Ireland retained this title for 30 years until his death in 1918. Before Ireland died he burned all of his personal papers.
John Ireland was personal friends with both Presidents William McKinley
William McKinley
William McKinley, Jr. was the 25th President of the United States . He is best known for winning fiercely fought elections, while supporting the gold standard and high tariffs; he succeeded in forging a Republican coalition that for the most part dominated national politics until the 1930s...
and Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
. Ireland's funeral was attended by eight archbishops, thirty bishops, twelve monsignors, seven hundred priests and two hundred seminarians.
Legacy
The influence of his personality made Archbishop Ireland a commanding figure in many important movements, especially those for total abstinence, for colonization in the Northwest, and education. Ireland became a leading civic and religious leader during the late 19th and early 20th centuries in Saint Paul.Colonization
Disturbed by reports that Catholic immigrants in eastern cities were suffering from social and economic handicaps, Ireland and BishopBishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
John Lancaster Spalding of the Diocese of Peoria, Illinois, founded the Irish Catholic Colonization Association. This organization bought land in rural areas to the west and south and helped resettle Irish Catholics from the urban slums.
Ireland helped establish many Irish Catholic colonies in Minnesota. He served as director of the National Colonization Association. From 1876 to 1881 Ireland organized and directed the most successful rural colonization program ever sponsored by the Catholic Church in the U.S. Ireland worked with the western railroads and with the Minnesota state government, he brought more than 4,000 Catholic families from the slums of eastern urban areas and settled them on more than 400,000 acres (1,600 km²) of farmland in rural Minnesota.
In 1880 he also assisted several hundred people from Connemara
Connemara
Connemara is a district in the west of Ireland consisting of a broad peninsula between Killary Harbour and Kilkieran Bay in the west of County Galway.-Overview:...
in Ireland to emigrate to Minnesota. Unfortunately they arrived at the wrong time of the year and had to be assisted by local Freemasons, an organisation that disagrees with Roman Catholicism on many points. In the public debate that followed, the immigrants, being Gaelic
Gaelic
Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels", including language and culture. As a noun, it may refer to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually.-Gaelic languages:...
speakers, could not voice their opinions of Bishop Ireland's criticism of their acceptance of the masons' support during a harsh winter.
De Graff
De Graff, Minnesota
De Graff is a city in Swift County, Minnesota. The population was 115 at the 2010 census. It is also the home of The Negative Youths.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land.U.S...
and Clontarf
Clontarf, Minnesota
Clontarf is a city in Swift County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 164 at the 2010 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it is water....
in Swift County
Swift County, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 11,956 people, 4,353 households, and 2,881 families residing in the county. The population density was 16 people per square mile . There were 4,821 housing units at an average density of 6 per square mile...
, Adrian
Adrian, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,234 people, 493 households, and 330 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,111.5 people per square mile . There were 527 housing units at an average density of 474.7 per square mile...
in Nobles County
Nobles County, Minnesota
Nobles County is a county located in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of 2010, the population was 21,378. Its county seat is Worthington.-Geography:...
, Avoca
Avoca, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 146 people, 67 households, and 38 families residing in the city. The population density was 134.3 people per square mile . There were 73 housing units at an average density of 67.2 per square mile...
, Iona
Iona, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 173 people, 80 households, and 44 families residing in the city. The population density was 219.9 people per square mile . There were 91 housing units at an average density of 115.6 per square mile . The racial makeup of the city was 95.95% White, 1.16% Asian,...
and Fulda
Fulda, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,283 people, 528 households, and 328 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,328.3 people per square mile . There were 568 housing units at an average density of 588.1 per square mile...
in Murray County
Murray County, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,165 people, 3,722 households, and 2,601 families residing in the county. The population density was 13 people per square mile . There were 4,357 housing units at an average density of 6 per square mile...
, Graceville
Graceville, Minnesota
At the 2000 census, there were 605 people, 257 households and 149 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,007.7 per square mile . There were 283 housing units at an average density of 471.4 per square mile . The racial makeup of the city was 99.50% White, 0.17% Native...
in Big Stone County
Big Stone County, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 5,820 people, 2,377 households, and 1,611 families residing in the county. The population density was 12 people per square mile . There were 3,171 housing units at an average density of 6 per square mile...
and Ghent
Ghent, Minnesota
Ghent is a city in Lyon County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 370 at the 2010 census. It was named after the Flemish city of Gent.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....
in Lyon County
Lyon County, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 25,425 people, 9,715 households, and 6,334 families residing in the county. The population density was 36 people per square mile . There were 10,298 housing units at an average density of 14 per square mile...
were all colonies established by Ireland.
Education
Poughkeepsie plan
The Poughkeepsie plan or Faribault-Stillwater Plan was an arrangement contrived in 1873 in Poughkeepsie, New York to satisfy both the desire of American Catholics to educate their children in a Catholic environment, and their preference to have schooling paid for with public funds.- Plan :The...
, created enough controversy that Ireland was forced to travel to the Vatican City to successfully defend it. He also opposed the use of foreign languages in American Catholic churches and parochial school
Parochial school
A parochial school is a school that provides religious education in addition to conventional education. In a narrower sense, a parochial school is a Christian grammar school or high school which is part of, and run by, a parish.-United Kingdom:...
s. Using foreign languages was not uncommon at the time because of the recent large influx of immigrants to the U.S. from European countries. Ireland influenced American society by actively promoting the use of the English language by large numbers of German immigrants. He was very politically outspoken and was a close friend to two presidents. He was the author of The Church and Modern Society (1897). He also founded St. Thomas Academy in Mendota Heights, Minnesota.
Relations with the Greek-Catholics
In 1891, Ireland refused to accept the credentialCredential
A credential is an attestation of qualification, competence, or authority issued to an individual by a third party with a relevant or de facto authority or assumed competence to do so....
s of Greek-Catholic
Ruthenian Catholic Church
The Ruthenian Catholic Church is a sui iuris Eastern Catholic Church , which uses the Divine Liturgy of the Constantinopolitan Byzantine Eastern Rite. Its roots are among the Rusyns who lived in the region called Carpathian Ruthenia, in and around the Carpathian Mountains...
priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
Alexis Toth, citing the decree that married priests of the Eastern Catholic Churches were not permitted to function in the Catholic Church in the United States, despite Toth being a widower. Ireland then forbade Toth to minister to his own parishioners, despite the fact that Toth had jurisdiction from his own Bishop, and did not depend on Ireland. Ireland was also involved in efforts to expel all Eastern Catholic clergy from the United States of America. Forced into an impasse, Toth went on to lead thousands of Greek-Catholics
Ruthenian Catholic Church
The Ruthenian Catholic Church is a sui iuris Eastern Catholic Church , which uses the Divine Liturgy of the Constantinopolitan Byzantine Eastern Rite. Its roots are among the Rusyns who lived in the region called Carpathian Ruthenia, in and around the Carpathian Mountains...
to leave the Catholic Church to join the Russian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
. Because of this, Archbishop Ireland is sometimes referred to, ironically, as "The Father of the Orthodox Church in America
Orthodox Church in America
The Orthodox Church in America is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in North America. Its primate is Metropolitan Jonah , who was elected on November 12, 2008, and was formally installed on December 28, 2008...
." Marvin R. O'Connell, author of a biography on Ireland, summarizes the situation by stating that "if Ireland's advocacy of the blacks displayed him at his best, his belligerence toward the Greek Catholics showed him at his bull-headed worst."
Establishments
John Joseph Keane
John Joseph Keane was an American Roman Catholic archbishop in the late 19th and early 20th century.-Early Life & Ministry:...
dedicated to developing and establishing the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
. Ireland retained an active interest in the University for the rest of his life.
He founded the University of St. Thomas in 1885 that included a preparatory school now known as Saint Thomas Academy
Saint Thomas Academy
Saint Thomas Academy , originally known as Saint Thomas Aquinas Seminary, and formerly known as Saint Thomas Military Academy is the only all male, Roman Catholic, college-preparatory, military high school in Minnesota. It is located in Mendota Heights near Saint Paul...
. In 1894 he started the Saint Paul Seminary
Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity
The Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity, located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, was founded by Archbishop John Ireland in 1894, to provide ordained priests for the ever-increasing Catholic population of the Upper Midwest. The seminary now sits on the south campus of the University of St. Thomas,...
with the help of Methodist James J. Hill
James J. Hill
James Jerome Hill , was a Canadian-American railroad executive. He was the chief executive officer of a family of lines headed by the Great Northern Railway, which served a substantial area of the Upper Midwest, the northern Great Plains, and Pacific Northwest...
, whose wife, Mary Mehegan, was a devout Catholic. Both institutions are located on the bluffs overlooking the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
. DeLaSalle High School
DeLaSalle High School (Minneapolis)
DeLaSalle High School is a Catholic, college preparatory high school located for its entire 111-year history on Nicollet Island, adjacent to downtown Minneapolis, USA. Then-Archbishop John Ireland helped raise money to build the new Catholic secondary school in Minneapolis. Only a few months...
located on Nicollet Island
Nicollet Island
Nicollet Island is an island in the Mississippi River just north of downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, named for cartographer, Joseph Nicollet. DeLaSalle High School and the Nicollet Island Inn are located there, as well as three multi-family residential buildings and twenty-two restored...
in Minneapolis was opened in October 1900 through a gift of $25,000 from Ireland. Fourteen years later Ireland purchased an adjacent property for the expanding Christian Brothers
Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools
The Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools is a Roman Catholic religious teaching congregation, founded in France by Saint Jean-Baptiste de la Salle and now based in Rome...
school.
In 1904 Ireland secured the land for the building of the current Cathedral of Saint Paul located atop Summit Hill, the highest point in downtown Saint Paul. At the same time, on Christmas Day 1903 he also commissioned the construction of the almost equally as large Church of Saint Mary, for the local Immaculate Conception parish in the neighboring city of Minneapolis. It became the Pro-Cathedral of Minneapolis and was later to become the Basilica of Saint Mary, the first basilica in the United States in 1926. Both were designed and built under the direction of the French architect Emmanuel Louis Masqueray
Emmanuel Louis Masqueray
Emmanuel Louis Masqueray was a Franco-American preeminent figure in the history of American architecture, both as a gifted designer of landmark buildings and as an influential teacher of the profession of architecture.-Biography:...
.
John Ireland Boulevard, a Saint Paul street that runs from the Cathedral of Saint Paul, northeast, to the Minnesota State Capitol
Minnesota State Capitol
The Minnesota State Capitol is located in Minnesota's capital city, Saint Paul, and houses the Minnesota Senate, Minnesota House of Representatives, the Office of the Attorney General and the Office of the Governor...
, is named in his honor. It was named in 1961 at the encouragement of the Ancient Order of Hibernians
Ancient Order of Hibernians
The Ancient Order of Hibernians is an Irish Catholic fraternal organization. Members must be Catholic and either Irish born or of Irish descent. Its largest membership is now in the United States, where it was founded in New York City in 1836...
.
External links
- The Church and Modern Society on Google Book Search