My welcome Bangor Daily News blog to Bishop James T. Ruggieri
Check out my blog on the Bangor Daily News Bangor Daily News here: https://francoamerican.bdnblogs.com/2024/05/31/franco-american-news-and-culture/maine-franco-american-catholics-and-church-history/
Cheverus High School in Portland Maine is named after him.
On January 13, 1823, Pope Leo XII appointed Cheverus as bishop of Montauban in France. Although the parishioners of Boston sent a petition to the pope asking him to rescind the appointment, it was no use. Before leaving Boston, Cheverus gave away all of his personal possessions. He left Boston for New York City in September 1823; over 300 carriages escorted him out of Boston. Eventually, he was elevated to become a Cardinal in France. He died in 1836, in France.
Only two auxiliary bishops with Franco-American heritage have been appointed to Maine.
Most Rev. Amedee W. Proulx (1975-1993) who was born in Sanford, Maine, and Most Rev. Michael R. Cote (1995-2003) was also born in Sanford and grew up in Springvale Maine. Bishop Cote is currently the Bishop in Norwich Connecticut.
Maine’s newly ordained Bishop James Ruggieri was born on January 12, 1968 and is a native of Providence, Rhode Island. He attended Barrington public schools and is a 1986 graduate of Barrington High School. He attended the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, then Providence College where he received a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies in 1990. Following his undergraduate education, he went on to receive a Master of Divinity from St. Mary’s Seminary and University in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1994. He was ordained a priest in 1995, in the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul in Providence.
In Portland, with more than 1,000 people watching from pews, and seats in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, and many more watching via livestream in parish halls, and homes, Bishop James Thomas Ruggieri, a priest from the Diocese of Providence, was installed as the 13th Bishop of Portland on May 7, 2024, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate. The ordination Mass was celebrated in the presence of Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, and was concelebrated by nearly 20 archbishops, and bishops as well as priests from both the Diocese of Portland and the Diocese of Providence.
Following an opening procession that lasted nearly 20 minutes, Msgr. Andrew Dubois, pastor of St. Paul the Apostle Parish in Bangor, asked Cardinal Seán Patrick O'Malley of Boston, on behalf of the Diocese of Portland, to "ordain this priest, James Thomas Ruggieri, to the responsibility of the episcopate."
Cardinal Pierre then read the apostolic mandate from Pope Francis that called then-Father Ruggieri to ordination as the Bishop of Portland.
Bienvenue Bishop James Ruggieri.
Pope Francis named the Most Rev. James T. Ruggieri, a Rhode Island native as the 13th Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland.
 |
| Saint John the Baptist Church Brunswick Maine May 29, 2024 |
Franco-Americans will appreciate remembering the history of Maine’s Roman Catholic leadership when French Bishop Jean Lefevre de Cheverus (1768-1836) was appointed in 1798, as the first bishop of Boston when this responsibility included Maine.
In a comprehensive biography by Annabelle M. Melville, “Jean Lefebve de Cheverus” published in 1958, the colonial era bishop is described as a man who was blessed with an irresistible personality an infections humor and an extraordinary amount of tact. He was able to transcend the bias against Catholics in Massachusetts in the early 1800s, and he won the love and respect of the most prominent New England Protestants like President John Quincy Adams and other political leaders.
In a comprehensive biography by Annabelle M. Melville, “Jean Lefebve de Cheverus” published in 1958, the colonial era bishop is described as a man who was blessed with an irresistible personality an infections humor and an extraordinary amount of tact. He was able to transcend the bias against Catholics in Massachusetts in the early 1800s, and he won the love and respect of the most prominent New England Protestants like President John Quincy Adams and other political leaders.
Grave side ceremony at the Saint John the Baptist cemetery in Brunswick Maine: YouTube to the grave side military honors are on my video channel: https://youtu.be/ATthwFc9spc
At age 22, Cheverus was ordained a priest in Parish for the Diocese of LeMans on December 18, 1790. During the French Revolution, he fled to France to avoid the violence against clergy. He first went to England and then responded to a request from Bishop John Carroll, of Baltimore, for preists to serve in the frontier missions. During the years he served as a priest and a bishop, Cheverus performed missionary services. He lived among the Native Americans in Maine. He traveled long distances on foot and on horseback, ministering to Catholics throughout New England. Among his trips to Maine included a visit to Damariscotta, Maine where he blessed the Saint Patrick Church, the oldest Catholic church in New England and is part of the All Saints parish cluster, in Mid Coast Maine.
 |
| Bishop James Ruggieri, at the funeral Mass celebrated at the Saint John the Baptist Church in Brunswick Maine on May 29, 2024. |
Cheverus High School in Portland Maine is named after him.
On January 13, 1823, Pope Leo XII appointed Cheverus as bishop of Montauban in France. Although the parishioners of Boston sent a petition to the pope asking him to rescind the appointment, it was no use. Before leaving Boston, Cheverus gave away all of his personal possessions. He left Boston for New York City in September 1823; over 300 carriages escorted him out of Boston. Eventually, he was elevated to become a Cardinal in France. He died in 1836, in France.
Only two auxiliary bishops with Franco-American heritage have been appointed to Maine.
Most Rev. Amedee W. Proulx (1975-1993) who was born in Sanford, Maine, and Most Rev. Michael R. Cote (1995-2003) was also born in Sanford and grew up in Springvale Maine. Bishop Cote is currently the Bishop in Norwich Connecticut.
Maine’s newly ordained Bishop James Ruggieri was born on January 12, 1968 and is a native of Providence, Rhode Island. He attended Barrington public schools and is a 1986 graduate of Barrington High School. He attended the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, then Providence College where he received a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies in 1990. Following his undergraduate education, he went on to receive a Master of Divinity from St. Mary’s Seminary and University in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1994. He was ordained a priest in 1995, in the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul in Providence.
In Portland, with more than 1,000 people watching from pews, and seats in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, and many more watching via livestream in parish halls, and homes, Bishop James Thomas Ruggieri, a priest from the Diocese of Providence, was installed as the 13th Bishop of Portland on May 7, 2024, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate. The ordination Mass was celebrated in the presence of Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, and was concelebrated by nearly 20 archbishops, and bishops as well as priests from both the Diocese of Portland and the Diocese of Providence.
Following an opening procession that lasted nearly 20 minutes, Msgr. Andrew Dubois, pastor of St. Paul the Apostle Parish in Bangor, asked Cardinal Seán Patrick O'Malley of Boston, on behalf of the Diocese of Portland, to "ordain this priest, James Thomas Ruggieri, to the responsibility of the episcopate."
Cardinal Pierre then read the apostolic mandate from Pope Francis that called then-Father Ruggieri to ordination as the Bishop of Portland.
Bienvenue Bishop James Ruggieri.
Comments
Post a Comment