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Samuel Stritch

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His Eminence

Samuel Alphonsius Stritch
Pro-Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for Propagation of the Faith
SeeChicago
AppointedDecember 27, 1939
InstalledJanuary 3, 1940
Term endedMay 27, 1958
PredecessorGeorge Mundelein
SuccessorAlbert Gregory Meyer
Other post(s)Cardinal-Priest of Sant'Agnese fuori le mura
Previous post(s)
Orders
OrdinationMay 21, 1910
by Pietro Respighi
ConsecrationNovember 30, 1921
by Henry K. Moeller
Created cardinalFebruary 18, 1946
by Pius XII
RankCardinal-Priest
Personal details
Born(1887-08-17)August 17, 1887
Nashville, Tennessee
DiedMay 27, 1958(1958-05-27) (aged 70)
Rome, Italy
MottoDeus meus adjutor meus
(God is my helper)
Styles of
Samuel Stritch
Reference styleHis Eminence
Spoken styleYour Eminence
Informal styleCardinal
SeeChicago (emeritus)

Samuel Alphonsius Stritch (August 17, 1887 – May 27, 1958) was an American Cardinal and prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago Illinois from 1940 to 1958 and as pro-prefect of the Sacred Congregation for Propagation of the Faith from March 1958 until his death two months later. He was elevated to the cardinalate by Pope Pius XII in 1946.

Stritch previously served as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee in Wisconsin from 1930 to 1939 and as bishop of the Diocese of Toledo in Ohio from 1921 to 1930.

Early life and education

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Samuel Stritch was born on August 17, 1887, in Nashville, Tennessee, to Garret (Gerard) (1839–1896) and Katherine (née O'Malley) Stritch.[1] The O'Malley family immigrated to the United States from Ireland when Katherine was a young child. They settled in Louisville, Kentucky, where the family opened a boarding house. Garret was born in Ballyheigue, Kerry, in Ireland, but immigrated to Louisville from Dublin in 1879.[2]

Once in Louisville, Garret boarded with the O'Malley family; he married Katherine in 1880. Garret later worked as the manager of Sycamore Mills, a subsidiary of DuPont, in Nashville.[3] The second youngest of eight children, Samuel had two brothers and five sisters. They all attended the Church of the Assumption in Nashville.[2]: 186 

Considered something of a child prodigy, Samuel Stritch finished primary school at age ten and high school at age 14.[4] Deciding to become a priest, Stritch in 1901 entered St. Gregory's Preparatory Seminary in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1903.[5]

Bishop Thomas Byrne then sent Stritch to study at the Pontifical Urbanian Athenaeum De Propaganda Fide in Rome, during which time he resided at the Pontifical North American College. He later earned his doctorates in philosophy and in theology.[2][page needed] While in Rome, Stritch befriended Monsignor Eugenio Pacelli, who later became Pope Pius XII.[5]

Priesthood

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Stritch was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Nashville by Cardinal Pietro Respighi on May 21, 1910, at the Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome.[1] At age 22, Stritch was below the age requirement for ordination, but was granted a dispensation by Pope Pius X. He remarked that, "[Stritch] is young in years but old in intelligence. Let him be ordained."[2]: 189 

Upon returning to the United States, he did pastoral work in the Diocese of Nashville. He served as pastor of St. Patrick's Church in Memphis from 1911 to 1913, whence he became private secretary to Bishop Byrne. Stritch was named diocesan chancellor in March 1917, and a Domestic Prelate of His Holiness on May 10, 1921.[1][2][page needed]

Episcopal career

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Bishop of Toledo

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On August 10, 1921, Stritch was appointed the second bishop of Toledo by Pope Benedict XV.[6] He received his episcopal consecration at the Cathedral of Saint Francis de Sales in Toledo on November 30, 1921, from Archbishop Henry K. Moeller, with Bishops John Morris and Thomas Molloy serving as co-consecrators.[6]

During his tenure in Toledo, Stritch established Mary Manse College, a women's college in Toledo in 1922. He incorporated the diocesan branch of Catholic Charities in 1923. Stritch also oversaw the beginning of the construction of Holy Rosary Cathedral in Toledo.[2][page needed]

While in Toledo, Stritch presided at the confirmation of the future comedian Danny Thomas. Stritch would mentor Thomas throughout his life and urged Thomas, a Tennessee native, to locate St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Thomas' main charity, in Memphis, Tennessee.[7][8]

Archbishop of Milwaukee

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Reverend Charles Coughlin (1938)

Following the death of Archbishop Sebastian Messmer, Stritch was named the fifth archbishop of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on August 26, 1930 by Pope Pius IX.[6] He suffered from periods of depression early in his tenure, but joined nationwide feelings of optimism with the 1932 election of US President Franklin D. Roosevelt.[2][page needed] Stritch was active in providing support to the victims of the Great Depression. Due to the economic downturn, he refused to spend money restoring the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, which was heavily damaged by fire in 1935, or St. Francis de Sales Seminary. Stritch once remarked "As long as two pennies are ours, one of them belongs to the poor.""[9][2]

Stritch was an advocate for Catholic Action an international movement of lay people, and the Catholic Youth Organization.[9] In November 1939, he was elected chairman of the National Catholic Welfare Conference, the predecessor of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops[4]. He also served as vice-chancellor of the Extension Society.[2][page needed]

Stritch was an opponent of the anti-Semitic radio broadcaster Reverend Charles Coughlin. Stritch in December 1939 wrote a letter to a Milwaukee rabbi that rebuked those who,

"...gain and hold a popular audience, degrade themselves and abuse the trust reposed in them by misquoting, half-quoting, and actually insinuating half-truths."[4]

Archbishop of Chicago

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Despite Stritch's protests,[2][page needed] Pope Pius XII appointed him the fourth archbishop of Chicago, Illinois, on December 27, 1939. Succeeding the late Cardinal George Mundelein, Stritch was formally installed on January 3, 1940.[6] He was the personal choice of Apostolic Delegate Amleto Giovanni Cicognani for the post, although Roosevelt was reputed to have wanted Bishop Bernard Sheil instead.[4]

In 1943, during World War II, Stritch signed a peace program developed by American Protestant, Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Jewish leaders.[10]

Pius XII created him cardinal-priest of the Basilica of Sant'Agnese fuori le mura in Rome during the consistory of February 18, 1946.[1] As archbishop, Stritch oversaw the establishment of the first American chapter of the organization Opus Dei, the launching of the Christian Family Movement, and an outreach to the Puerto Rican community.[11]

On July 21, 1952, Stritch delivered the invocation at the opening session of the 1952 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, saying "Today we face a crisis as grave as that of Valley Forge." Referring to communists and secularists, Stritch asked for divine protection against ;

"the aggression of those within and without of Godless enslaving political systems and of those who wittingly or unwittingly seek to take away our freedoms by their advocacy of materialism and Godless humanism."[12]

In July 1954, Stritch issued a pastoral letter exhorting Catholics in his archdiocese to not attend the assembly of the World Council of Churches at Evanston, Illinois, writing,

"The Catholic Church does not...enter into any organization in which the delegates of many sects sit down in council or conference as equals...She does not allow her children to engage in any activity...based on the false assumption that Roman Catholics, too, are still searching for the truth of Christ,"

Stritch's pastoral letter dismayed several Protestant and ecumenical figures.[13]

Pro-Prefect of the Congregation for the Propagation of Faith

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On March 1, 1958,[14] he was appointed pro-prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of Faith in Rome.[15]

Death

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In May 1958, while in Rome, Stritch suffered a blood clot on his right arm. Surgeons at the Sanatrix Clinic in that city were forced to amputate the arm above the elbow.[16] On May 19th, Stritch suffered a stroke. He died eight days later, at age 70.[17]

After lying in state at the Pontifical North American College in Rome and then at the Cathedral of the Holy Name in Chicago,[5] Stritch was interred in the Bishops' Mausoleum at Mount Carmel Cemetery in Hillside, Illinois, on June 3rd.[18]

Legacy

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Cardinal Stritch University in Milwaukee was named for him,[19] as are Cardinal Stritch High School in Oregon, Ohio,[20] a former junior and senior high school in Keokuk, Iowa,[21] and the Stritch School of Medicine at Loyola University Chicago.[22]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Miranda, Salvador. "Stritch, Samuel Alphonse". The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church. Archived from the original on February 25, 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Thornton, Francis. "Samuel Cardinal Stritch". Our American Princes. pp. 186–200.
  3. ^ The Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture. Samuel Alphonsus Stritch 1887–1958
  4. ^ a b c d "Stritch to Chicago". Time Magazine. January 15, 1940. Archived from the original on October 14, 2010.
  5. ^ a b c "The Bishop of Charity". Time Magazine. June 9, 1958. Archived from the original on January 31, 2011.
  6. ^ a b c d "Samual Alphonsius Cardinal Stritch". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. Archived from the original on July 25, 2008.
  7. ^ Sanderson, Jane (April 30, 1979). "St. Jude Children's Hospital Was Danny Thomas' Dream, but Dr. Alvin Mauer Makes It Come True". People. Archived from the original on August 20, 2017. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
  8. ^ "How St. Jude began". St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Archived from the original on January 25, 2018. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
  9. ^ a b "Former Archbishops: Archbishop Samuel Alphonsus Stritch". Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee. Archived from the original on May 18, 2008.
  10. ^ "Seven Points for Peace". Time Magazine. October 11, 1943. Archived from the original on April 7, 2008.
  11. ^ "Cardinal to Rome". Time Magazine. March 10, 1958. Archived from the original on January 31, 2011.
  12. ^ Official Report of the Proceedings of the Democratic National Convention, published by the Democratic National Committee (1952), pp. 1–2
  13. ^ "Catholics Barred". Time Magazine. July 19, 1954. Archived from the original on November 16, 2010.
  14. ^ Dodge, John (November 18, 2014). "List of Chicago's Nine archbishops". CBS Chicago. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  15. ^ "Meet the previous leaders of the church in Chicago". Chicago Catholic. November 28, 2016. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  16. ^ "Religion: The Cardinal's Ordeal". TIME.com. Archived from the original on August 27, 2013. Retrieved February 4, 2025.
  17. ^ Clausen, Rebecca (2016). "Chalice acquired by Archives reveals little-known story of Samuel Cardinal Stritch's final days". Stritch Magazine. Cardinal Stritch University. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  18. ^ "Stritch Burial Service Today". The Decatur Herald. June 3, 1958. Retrieved February 28, 2018.(subscription required)
  19. ^ "About Cardinal Stritch University". Cardinal Stritch University. Archived from the original on January 21, 2018. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  20. ^ "About Us". Cardinal Stritch High School. Archived from the original on February 28, 2018. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  21. ^ Vance, Diane (December 1, 2005). "Cardinal Stritch H.S. to close". Daily Gate City. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  22. ^ "Stritch School of Medicine History by Era". Stritch School of Medicine. Archived from the original on March 8, 2015.
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Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Pro-Prefect of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith
1958 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Cardinal Priest of Sant'Agnese fuori le mura
1946–1958 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Archbishop of Chicago
1940–1958 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Archbishop of Milwaukee
1930–1940 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Bishop of Toledo
1921–1930 		Succeeded by
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