Emmanuel Boleslaus Ledvina
Emmanuel Boleslaus Ledvina | |
|---|---|
| Bishop of Corpus Christi Titular Bishop of Pitanae | |
| Church | Roman Catholic Church |
| See | Diocese of Corpus Christi |
| Predecessor | Paul Joseph Nussbaum |
| Successor | Mariano Simon Garriga |
| Other post(s) | Titular Bishop of Pitanae |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | March 18, 1893 by Silas Chatard |
| Consecration | June 14, 1921 by Joseph Chartrand |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 28, 1868 |
| Died | December 15, 1952 (aged 84) |
| Education | St. Meinrad's College |
Emmanuel Boleslaus Ledvina (October 28, 1868 – December 15, 1952) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Corpus Christi in Texas from 1921 to 1949.
Biography
[edit]Early life
[edit]Emmanuel Ledvina was born on October 28, 1868, in Evansville, Indiana, to George Emmanuel and Mary (née Kiefer) Ledvina.[1] His father was a native of Bohemia, and worked as an architect and construction engineer.[2] After attending parochial schools in Evansville and St. Louis, Missouri, Emmanuel Ledvina returned to Indiana and entered St. Meinrad's College in 1883.[3]
Ledvina was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Indianapolis by Bishop Silas Chatard on March 18, 1893.[4] Ledvina then served as a curate at Holy Trinity Parish in Evansville and afterwards at St. John's Pro-Cathedral in Indianapolis.[5] From 1895 to 1907, he was pastor of St. Joseph's Parish in Princeton, Indiana.[1] Ledvina became vice-president and general secretary of the Catholic Church Extension Society in 1907.[5] He was later named a domestic prelate in 1918, and an honorary canon of the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City in 1919.[1]
Bishop of Corpus Christi
[edit]On April 30, 1921, Ledvina was appointed the second bishop of the Diocese of Corpus Christi by Pope Benedict XV.[4] He received his episcopal consecration on June 14, 1921, from Bishop Joseph Chartrand, with Bishops Cornelius Van de Ven and Joseph Lynch serving as co-consecrators.[4] He was installed at Corpus Christi on July 12, 1921.[4]
During his tenure, Ledvina increased the number of priests from 32 to 160, and erected over 50 churches, 53 mission chapels, and 47 rectories.[3] He was named an assistant at the pontifical throne in 1931.[1] He constructed Corpus Christi Cathedral in 1940, and a chancery office in 1947.[6] He invited the Benedictine monks of Subiaco Abbey to establish a community in the diocese and staff a new high school.[6] He also became known for his efforts among Mexican-American Catholics in South Texas and for his opposition to the Ku Klux Klan.[3]
On March 15, 1949, Pope Pius XII accepted Ledvina's resignation as bishop of Corpus Christi for health reasons and appointed him as titular bishop of Pitanae.[4] Emmanuel Ledvina died on December 15, 1952, at age 84. He is buried in a crypt under the main altar of Corpus Christi Cathedral.[3]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Curtis, Georgina Pell (1947). The American Catholic Who's Who. Vol. VII. Grosse Pointe, Michigan: Walter Romig.
- ^ Moore, James Talmadge (2002). Acts of Faith: The Catholic Church in Texas, 1900-1950. Texas A&M University Press.
- ^ a b c d "GARRIGA, MARIANO SIMON (1886-1965)". Handbook of Texas Online.
- ^ a b c d e "Bishop Emmanuel Boleslaus Ledvina". Catholic-Hierarchy.org.
- ^ a b O'Donnell, John Hugh (1922). "The Catholic Hierarchy of the United States, 1790-1922". The Catholic University of America Studies in American Church History. IV. Washington, D.C. hdl:2027/uc2.ark:/13960/t5r786c77.
- ^ a b "Bishop Emmanuel Boleslaus Ledvina". Roman Catholic Diocese of Corpus Christi. Archived from the original on 2010-05-05.
External links
[edit]Episcopal succession
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