6 November 1789 A.D. John Carroll Confirmed 1st Roman Bishop in the USA by a bishop of Rome, Mr. Pius VI
Graves, Dan. “John Carroll American 1st.” Christianity.com. Apr 2007. http://www.christianity.com/church/church-history/timeline/1701-1800/john-carroll-american-1st-11630310.html. Accessed 7 Jun 2014.
The greatest blessing which in my estimation I
could receive from God, would be immediate death." So wrote John Carroll
to his mother in 1773. Word had just reached him that the Society of Jesus
(Jesuits), to which he belonged, had been suppressed by Pope Clement XIV.
Fortunately for the Roman Church in the United States, God blessed Carroll in a
different manner than his sorrow suggested. He not only lived, but became the
first bishop of the United States.
John Carroll was born in
Maryland on January 8, 1736. He studied in France and was ordained as a Jesuit
priest. When the Jesuit order was shut down, what was he to do?
He came back to the United
States and preached, building a chapel on his mother's farm in Maryland.
Supporting himself, he worked as a missionary and wrote letters pleading for an
end to anti-Catholic legislation. Carroll won so much respect that he was asked
to join a committee sent by the Continental Congress to seek the neutrality of
Canada in the Revolutionary War. It was unsuccessful.
After the war, Carroll took the
lead in organizing the new nation's Catholics. In 1784 the Vatican made him
superior of the "American mission," -- putting him in charge of all
thirteen states!
Carroll was American to the
core. He realized that American Catholicism must acknowledge democratic forms.
Bishops should be elected by a select body of clergy. "Otherwise we shall
never be viewed kindly by our government here, and discontent, even amongst our
own clergy, will break out." Rome agreed, but "for the first time
only." The clergy chose Carroll.
On this day, November 6, 1789, the election of the Rt. Rev. John Carroll was confirmed by Pope Pius
VI. Carroll became the first Roman Catholic bishop in the United States.
Fearing that Protestant
Americans would view his oath of office as a violation of religious freedom,
Carroll asked Rome for permission to delete the line that said "I will to
the utmost of my power seek out and oppose schismatics, heretics, and the
enemies of our Sovereign Lord and his successors." That simply would not
be swallowed by Americans. The Vatican agreed.
Bishop Carroll's new diocese was
"just" three million miles square. He needed trained priests. To
equip men for the ministry, he invited the Sulpicians to work with him. They
were noted for their educational prowess. This move was successful.
Carroll died on December 3,
1815, having blazed a trail for Catholics by his hard work and commonsense.
Bibliography:
1. "Carroll, John." Dictionary of American Biography. New
York: Scribner, 1958 - 1964.
2. Lossing, Benson J. Eminent Americans. New York: Mason
Bros., 1857. Source of the image.
3. O'Donovan, Louis. "John Carroll." The Catholic Encyclopedia.
New York: Robert Appleton, 1914.
Last updated April,
2007.
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