Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison
Encyclopedia
The Diocese of Madison, Wisconsin, is the Roman Catholic Diocese
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...

 for the southwest corner of Wisconsin. It comprises Columbia
Columbia County, Wisconsin
-Unincorporated communities:*Anacker*Belle Fountain*Durwards Glen*East Friesland*Harmony Grove*Ingle*Keyeser*Lake Wisconsin*Leeds*Lowville*Marcellon*North Leeds*Okee*Otsego-External links:***...

, Dane
Dane County, Wisconsin
As of the census of 2000, there were 426,526 people, 173,484 households, and 100,794 families residing in the county. The population density was 355 people per square mile . There were 180,398 housing units at an average density of 150 per square mile...

, Grant
Grant County, Wisconsin
Grant County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 49,597. Its county seat is Lancaster. Estimates for 2008 show a population of 49,238...

, Green
Green County, Wisconsin
Green County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 33,647. Its county seat is Monroe.-Geography:According to the U.S...

, Green Lake
Green Lake County, Wisconsin
Green Lake County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 19,105. Its county seat is Green Lake. The center of population of Wisconsin is located in Green Lake County in the city of Markesan.-Geography:...

, Iowa
Iowa County, Wisconsin
Iowa County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 22,780. Its county seat and largest city is Dodgeville.Iowa County is part of the Madison Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:According to the U.S...

, Jefferson
Jefferson County, Wisconsin
Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 74,021. Its county seat is Jefferson.-Geography:According to the U.S...

, LaFayette
Lafayette County, Wisconsin
Lafayette County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 16,137. Its county seat is Darlington.-Geography:According to the U.S...

, Marquette
Marquette County, Wisconsin
Marquette County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 15,832. Its county seat is Montello.-Geography:...

, Rock
Rock County, Wisconsin
-Unincorporated communities:-Further reading:* . Chicago: Western Historical Company, 1879.* Brown, William F. , Chicago: Cooper, 1908.* Brown, William F. , Chicago: Cooper, 1908....

 and Sauk
Sauk County, Wisconsin
Sauk County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 55,225. Its county seat and largest city is Baraboo. Sauk County is included in the Baraboo Micropolitan Statistical Area and in the Madison Combined Statistical Area....

 counties. The area of the diocese is approximately 8070 square miles (20,901.2 km²). There are about 270,000 Catholics in the Diocese.

There are currently 134 parishes in the Diocese with approximately 95 priests in active ministry. The current Bishop of this diocese is Bishop Robert C. Morlino
Robert C. Morlino
Robert Charles Morlino is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He is the fourth and current Bishop of Madison, having previously served as Bishop of Helena.-Early life and education:...

. Saint Raphael's Cathedral in Madison, destroyed by fire in 2005, had been the cathedral for the diocese. The diocese currently has no cathedral. Members of the Cathedral Parish worship at St. Patrick's and Holy Redeemer in Downtown Madison. The Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 title of the Diocese is Dioecesis Madisonensis. The Metropolitan for the Diocese is the Archbishop of Milwaukee. Camp Gray
Camp Gray
Camp Gray is a Catholic summer camp and retreat center located in Reedsburg, Wisconsin. It is a ministry of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison, Wisconsin, and is accredited by the American Camp Association...

, a summer camp and retreat center, is one of the ministries of the Diocese of Madison.

History

The Madison Diocese was established on January 9, 1946, by Pope Pius XII
Pope Pius XII
The Venerable Pope Pius XII , born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli , reigned as Pope, head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City State, from 2 March 1939 until his death in 1958....

, in a decree dated December 22, 1945. The diocese was created out of territory from the Archdiocese of Milwaukee
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee
The Archdiocese of Milwaukee is a Roman Catholic archdiocese headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in the United States. It encompasses the City of Milwaukee, as well as the counties of Dodge, Fond du Lac, Kenosha, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Racine, Sheboygan, Walworth, Washington and Waukesha, all...

 and the Diocese of La Crosse
Roman Catholic Diocese of La Crosse
The Roman Catholic Diocese of La Crosse covers an area of west-central Wisconsin, including the city of La Crosse and 19 counties: Adams, Buffalo, Chippewa, Clark, Crawford, Dunn, Eau Claire, Jackson, Juneau, La Crosse, Marathon, Monroe, Pepin, Pierce, Portage, Richland, Trempealeau, Vernon, and...

 and the Diocese of Green Bay
Roman Catholic Diocese of Green Bay
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Green Bay was established on March 3, 1868 by Pope Pius IX. It covers the city of Green Bay as well as Brown, Calumet, Door, Florence, Forest, Kewaunee, Langlade, Manitowoc, Marinette, Menominee, Oconto, Outagamie, Shawano, Waupaca, Waushara, and Winnebago counties,...

.

Venerable Father Samuel Charles Mazzuchelli
Samuel Charles Mazzuchelli
Father Samuel Charles Mazzuchelli, O.P. was a pioneer Italian Catholic missionary who helped bring the church to the Iowa-Illinois-Wisconsin tri-state area. He founded a number of parishes in the area, and was the architect for a number of parish buildings.-Background:Father Mazzuchelli was born...

 was actively involved in the southwestern part of Wisconsin during the mid 19th century. He established 25 parishes in Wisconsin, 11 of which are in the Madison Diocese. Fr. Mazzuchelli is buried in Benton, Wisconsin
Benton, Wisconsin
Benton is a village in Lafayette County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 976 at the 2000 census. The village is located within the Town of Benton.-History:...

, which is in the diocese. Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...

 declared him venerable
Venerable
The Venerable is used as a style or epithet in several Christian churches. It is also the common English-language translation of a number of Buddhist titles.-Roman Catholic:...

 in 1993. The case for Fr. Mazzuchelli's elevation to the Sainthood is still pending.

In 2009 the Diocese tried direct appeal to raise operating funds. This only brought in 47% of its goal and the Diocese had to lay off 65 employees.

Cathedral fire

On March 14, 2005. St. Raphael's Cathedral was heavily damaged in a fire that caused extensive damage to the church. The fire affected not only the families who attended the church, but also the entire diocese. In the days following the fire, it was found that William J. "Billy" Connell had set the fire. Connell was charged with burglary, arson, and bail jumping, but was deemed incompetent to stand trial due to paranoid schizophrenia. He was committed to an institution on August 29, 2005, pending a change in his mental health
Mental health
Mental health describes either a level of cognitive or emotional well-being or an absence of a mental disorder. From perspectives of the discipline of positive psychology or holism mental health may include an individual's ability to enjoy life and procure a balance between life activities and...

 status, and in June 2007, was sentenced to 15 years in prison followed by 15 years of close supervision.

Following the fire, the options regarding the future of the Cathedral included:
  • Rebuild the Cathedral at the current site. Those in favor of that plan cited the historical significance of the parish as a reason for rebuilding the structure.
  • Build a new Cathedral at another location in Madison, such as on the city's west side. People in favor of that cited the fact that St. Raphael's was not intended to be a Cathedral when built. Previous Bishops had considering building a new Cathedral elsewhere in Madison, as there was no room downtown to build a larger Cathedral church.


In June 2007, a decision was reached to erect a new building on the site of the old Cathedral, replacing the structure that was damaged in the fire. The new building will have a different floorplan than the previous building and be capable of seating approximately 1,000 people. It will reuse the steeple and other items that can be salvaged from the original building.

Bishops

The following is a list of Bishops of the Diocese of Madison and their terms of service:
  • Bishop William Patrick O'Connor
    William Patrick O'Connor
    William Patrick O'Connor was an American William Patrick O'Connor was an [[United States|American]]...

     (1946–1967)
  • Bishop Cletus F. O'Donnell
    Cletus F. O'Donnell
    Cletus Francis O'Donnell was the second bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison, in Madison, Wisconsin.Born in Waukon, Iowa, he was ordained to the priesthood on May 3, 1941, for the Archdiocese of Chicago...

     (1967–1992)
  • Bishop William H. Bullock (1993–2003)
  • Bishop Robert C. Morlino
    Robert C. Morlino
    Robert Charles Morlino is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He is the fourth and current Bishop of Madison, having previously served as Bishop of Helena.-Early life and education:...

     (2003–present)

Auxiliary Bishops

  • Bishop Jerome J. Hastrich
    Jerome J. Hastrich
    Jerome Joseph Hastrich was the second bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Gallup, in Gallup, New Mexico....

     (1963–1969) auxiliary bishop and later Bishop of the Gallup, New Mexico Diocese
  • Bishop George Otto Wirz
    George Otto Wirz
    George Otto Wirz was the Roman Catholic titular bishop of Municipa and auxiliary bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Madison, Wisconsin....

     (1977–2004) auxiliary bishop

Affliated Bishops

  • Bishop Paul J. Swain
    Paul J. Swain
    Paul Joseph Swain is the current bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sioux Falls.- Early life :Swain was a convert from Methodism and attended law school at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He was born in Newark, New York. He served in Vietnam and, after his return home, was legal counsel...

     was ordained priest for the Madison Diocese and later became Bishop of the Sioux Falls, South Dakota Diocese

Parishes in the diocese

High schools

  • Edgewood High School of the Sacred Heart
    Edgewood High School of the Sacred Heart
    Edgewood High School of the Sacred Heart is a Catholic high school located in Madison, Wisconsin. Edgewood has been sponsored since its inception by the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa, WI...

    , Madisonhttp://www.edgewoodhs.org/
  • St. Ambrose Academy
    St. Ambrose Academy
    St. Ambrose Academy is a Roman Catholic middle school and high school located in Madison, Wisconsin. The school's stated purpose is to offer "a classical education rooted in the Catholic faith."...

    , Madisonhttp://www.ambroseacademy.org/

External links

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