Catholic Chicago

1
Catholic Chicago
2
French Roots

• Discovery of modern day Chicago
• Fr. Jacques Marquette, S.J. Louis Jolliet
  discovered the land between the Des Plaines and
  Chicago Rivers, September 1673
• 1674-75 Marquette spent the winter
• Died on his return to St. Ignace, MI
• Guardian Angel Mission in 1696 founded by Fr.
  Francois Pinet, S.J.
• Lasted until 1703 abandoned due to Indian raids
• Jean Baptiste Point de Sable built a log cabin
  near the mouth of the Chicago River in 1784
• Regarded as Chicagos first non-native, long-term
  settler
• French-speaking settlers established homes near
  Ft. Dearborn in the beginning of the 19th century

3
Parish Diocese

• Bishop Rosati of St. Louis sent Fr. St. Cyr to be
  the first resident priest
• Built St. Marys parish in 1833
• By 1843 Chicago became a separate diocese
• William Quarter became the first bishop of
  Chicago
• Made an important decision to invite religious
  orders of men and women to establish schools
• Foundation for the largest Catholic school system
  in the county

4
Rough Beginnings

• Early Chicago bishops did not fare too well
• Bishop Quarter died of exhaustion at 42
• Bishop Van de Velde left Chicago after 3 years
• Bishop OReagan retired after 4 years
• Bishop Duggan was removed and placed in an asylum
• Great Fire of 1871
• Wide sweeping destruction and loss of life
• Immigration Challenge
• Influx of hundreds of thousands of immigrants
  from a variety of countries

5
Catholic Schools

• Ethnic parishes quickly established schools to
  educate immigrant children
• Unifying force of the parish
• 85 schools built by the end of the 19th century
• Parochial Schools
• Operated and controlled by the pastor of the
  local parish
• Almost exclusively staffed by various communities
  of religious women
• Children often educated in ethnic languages

6
Leagues of Nations

• Major Leagues
• Irish, Germans, and Polish
• Minor Leagues
• Bohemians, Slovaks, Italians, Eastern Europeans
• Ethnic communities self-sufficient
• No need to interact with other nationalities
• Exception workplace
• Neighborhoods organized along ethnic lines
• Parishes understood in context of ethnic pride
• Virtually sub-dioceses

7
Expansion and Solidification

• As Chicago continue to expand and gain importance
  as an American city, so too did the Church in
  Chicago
• 1880 Chicago elevated to an archdiocese
• Symbol of respect and recognition of importance
• 1916 Archbishop George Mundelein elevated to the
  College of Cardinals
• First U.S. bishop to be made a Cardinal west of
  the Appalachian Mountains
• 1926 International Eucharistic Congress
• First U.S. city to host the event welcoming over
  1 million pilgrims

8
Americanization

• Being of German descent, Mundelein wanted to show
  that he was loyal to the Church and the nation
• The people of the United States must be
  Americans or something else. They cannot serve
  two masters.
• Mundelein wanted to unite the archdiocese while
  maintaining the variety of cultural benefits
• Established a school board to oversee all of the
  schools in Chicago to help regulate instruction
• University of St. Mary of the Lake
• Major seminary established to train priests in
  Chicago

9
Chicago After Mundelein

• After Mundeleins death in 1939, the Archdiocese
  of Chicago has remained an influential center of
  Catholic life in America
• Cardinal Stritch 1939-1958
• Post war expansion and growth
• Cardinal Meyer 1958-1965
• Vatican II and Civil Rights Movement
• Cardinal Cody 1965-1982
• Controversial leader implementing Vatican II
• Cardinal Bernardin 1982-1996
• Gift of Peace Consistent Ethic of Life
• Cardinal George 1997-present
• Task of spiritual renewal in the archdiocese