Joseph Lawson Howze
Encyclopedia
Joseph Lawson E. Howze is an African American
prelate
of the Roman Catholic Church
. He served as Bishop of Biloxi
from 1977 to 2001.
, Alabama
. He is the oldest of four children born to Albert Otis Howze Sr. and Helen Lawson Howze. His mother died when he was five. He has six siblings in total. He grew up with neighbors who were Catholic and attributes his Catholicism to that influence. He attended kindergarten
at Most Pure Heart of Mary School in Mobile
. He was later transferred to the segregated
public schools of Mobile, graduating from Mobile County Secondary School
in 1944. Howze originally aspired to become a doctor and studied chemistry
, biology
, and physics
. He graduated from Alabama State Branch Junior College
in 1946. In 1948, he earned a Bachelor of Arts
degree from Alabama State University
. He converted
to Catholicism
, being fully accepted at age twenty four, taking the name Joseph. He taught science in the public school system and was later hired to teach at St. Monica School in Tulsa
, Oklahoma
, in 1952.
at Christ the King Seminary at St. Bonaventure University
in New York
(receiving his Doctor of Divinity
in 1959), and was ordained
for the Diocese of Raleigh
, North Carolina
, on May 7, 1959. He served as a pastor
in Asheville
.
On November 8, 1972, Howze was appointed Auxiliary Bishop
of Natchez-Jackson
, Mississippi
, and Titular Bishop
of Maxita by Pope Paul VI
. He was consecrated to the episcopate
on January 28, 1973 from Archbishop Luigi Raimondi
, the Apostolic Delegate to the United States, with Bishops Harold Robert Perry, S.V.D.
, and Joseph Bernard Brunini serving as co-consecrators
. When the Diocese of Biloxi was created in 1977, Howze as appointed as its first bishop. He was the first black bishop in the 20th century to head a diocese in the United States. He retired June 6, 2001.
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
prelate
Prelate
A prelate is a high-ranking member of the clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin prælatus, the past participle of præferre, which means "carry before", "be set above or over" or "prefer"; hence, a prelate is one set over others.-Related...
of the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
. He served as Bishop of Biloxi
Roman Catholic Diocese of Biloxi
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Biloxi encompasses 17 counties in south Mississippi. It was erected on March 1, 1977, when it was split from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Jackson...
from 1977 to 2001.
Early life
Lawson E. Howze was born in DaphneDaphne, Alabama
Daphne is a city in Baldwin County, Alabama, United States, on the eastern shoreline of Mobile Bay. The city is located along I-10, 11 miles east of Mobile and 150 miles southwest of the state capital of Montgomery. The United States Census 2000 lists the population of the city as 16,581 making...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
. He is the oldest of four children born to Albert Otis Howze Sr. and Helen Lawson Howze. His mother died when he was five. He has six siblings in total. He grew up with neighbors who were Catholic and attributes his Catholicism to that influence. He attended kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
at Most Pure Heart of Mary School in Mobile
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
. He was later transferred to the segregated
Racial segregation in the United States
Racial segregation in the United States, as a general term, included the racial segregation or hypersegregation of facilities, services, and opportunities such as housing, medical care, education, employment, and transportation along racial lines...
public schools of Mobile, graduating from Mobile County Secondary School
Mobile County Public School System
Mobile County Public School System is a school district based in the Mobile County Public Schools Central Office Campus in an unincorporated area in Mobile County, Alabama United States....
in 1944. Howze originally aspired to become a doctor and studied chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
, biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, and physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
. He graduated from Alabama State Branch Junior College
Bishop State Community College
Bishop State Community College, founded 1927, is a state-supported, two-year, public, historically black college located in Mobile, Alabama U.S.A.- History :...
in 1946. In 1948, he earned a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree from Alabama State University
Alabama State University
Alabama State University, founded 1867, is a historically black university located in Montgomery, Alabama. ASU is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund.- History :...
. He converted
Religious conversion
Religious conversion is the adoption of a new religion that differs from the convert's previous religion. Changing from one denomination to another within the same religion is usually described as reaffiliation rather than conversion.People convert to a different religion for various reasons,...
to Catholicism
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
, being fully accepted at age twenty four, taking the name Joseph. He taught science in the public school system and was later hired to teach at St. Monica School in Tulsa
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 46th-largest city in the United States. With a population of 391,906 as of the 2010 census, it is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with 937,478 residents in the MSA and 988,454 in the CSA. Tulsa's...
, Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
, in 1952.
Catholic Priesthood
After expressing an interest in the Priesthood, Howze was accepted to study for the priesthoodPriesthood (Catholic Church)
The ministerial orders of the Catholic Church include the orders of bishops, deacons and presbyters, which in Latin is sacerdos. The ordained priesthood and common priesthood are different in function and essence....
at Christ the King Seminary at St. Bonaventure University
St. Bonaventure University
St. Bonaventure University is a private, Franciscan Catholic university, located in Allegany, Cattaraugus County, New York, United States. It has roughly 2,400 undergraduate and graduate students....
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
(receiving his Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity is an advanced academic degree in divinity. Historically, it identified one who had been licensed by a university to teach Christian theology or related religious subjects....
in 1959), and was ordained
Holy Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
for the Diocese of Raleigh
Roman Catholic Diocese of Raleigh
The Diocese of Raleigh is a Roman Catholic diocese that covers the eastern half of the U.S. state of North Carolina. The bishop is seated at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Raleigh, North Carolina.- Establishment :...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, on May 7, 1959. He served as a pastor
Pastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
in Asheville
Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville is a city in and the county seat of Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. It is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the 11th largest city in North Carolina. The City is home to the United States National Climatic Data Center , which is the world's largest active...
.
On November 8, 1972, Howze was appointed Auxiliary Bishop
Auxiliary bishop
An auxiliary bishop, in the Roman Catholic Church, is an additional bishop assigned to a diocese because the diocesan bishop is unable to perform his functions, the diocese is so extensive that it requires more than one bishop to administer, or the diocese is attached to a royal or imperial office...
of Natchez-Jackson
Roman Catholic Diocese of Jackson
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Jackson is a diocese in the ecclesiastical province of Mobile, in the southern United States of America. Its ecclesiastical jurisdiction includes the northern and central parts of the state of Mississippi, an area of . It is the largest diocese, by area, in the United...
, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, and Titular Bishop
Titular bishop
A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese.By definition a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop the tradition of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches is that he be ordained for a specific place...
of Maxita by Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI
Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
. He was consecrated to the episcopate
Bishop (Catholic Church)
In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders and is responsible for teaching the Catholic faith and ruling the Church....
on January 28, 1973 from Archbishop Luigi Raimondi
Luigi Raimondi
Luigi Raimondi was an Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Causes of Saints from 1973 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1973....
, the Apostolic Delegate to the United States, with Bishops Harold Robert Perry, S.V.D.
Divine Word Missionaries
The Society of the Divine Word , popularly called the Divine Word Missionaries, and sometimes the Steyler Missionaries, is a missionary religious congregation in the Latin Church, one of the 23 sui iuris churches which make up the Catholic Church. As of 2006 it consisted of 6,102 members composed...
, and Joseph Bernard Brunini serving as co-consecrators
Consecrator
Consecrator is a term used in the Roman Catholic Church to designate a bishop who ordains a priest to the episcopal state. The term is often used in Eastern Rite Churches and in Anglican communities. The term "Principal Consecrator" is used to designate the primary bishop who ordains a new bishop...
. When the Diocese of Biloxi was created in 1977, Howze as appointed as its first bishop. He was the first black bishop in the 20th century to head a diocese in the United States. He retired June 6, 2001.