John J. Glennon

John Joseph Cardinal Glennon (June 14, 1862-March 9, 1946) was the Roman Catholic Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Saint Louis, from 1903 to his death in 1946. He was named a Cardinal by Pope Pius XII several months before his death. He was raised to the cardinalate on February 22, 1946 in Rome. Enroute from Rome back to St. Louis, he vacationed in his native Ireland, where he died.

Early life

He was born in Hardwood, in County Meath, Ireland. In 1878, he enrolled at All Hallows College of what is now Dublin City University to study for the priesthood. In 1882, Bishop John Joseph Hogan of Kansas City to recruit priests for his newly created diocese. In 1884, Hogan ordained Glennon to the priesthood, after receiving instructions from Rome that Glennon could be ordained at that age.

Glennon spent two years in St. Patrick's Parish in Kansas City, then returned to Europe to further his studies. After studies several months at the University of Bonn, he asked permission of his bishop to enroll in a Roman theology school, but was instead told to come home and become the rector of the cathedral and vicar general of the diocese. In 1896 Pope Leo XIII appointed Glennon as coadjutor bishop of Kansas City, and he was consecrated by Archbishop John Joseph Kain. At age 34, he became one of the youngest bishops in the world.

Glennon as St. Louis Archbishop

In 1904, Glennon was appointed by Pope Leo to succeed Archbishop John Joseph Kain in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Louis, making him the youngest archbishop in the world. Glennon came to St. Louis during the time of the 1904 World's Fair, and integrated himself in so well with the community that he was included in every important project the city started.

In 1907, he broke ground for the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, which would become the new cathedral for the Archdiocese. In 1915, when the new cathedral was structurally completed, the new Kenrick Seminary (now Kenrick-Glennon Seminary) took in its first students.

Until his health began to fail in the mid-1930s, Archbishop Glennon was one of the premier preachers of the Catholic Church in the United States. He was also significantly involved with the other American archbishops in the group of clergy who made decisions regarding national church matters.

The only diocesan hospital for children, Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital, affiliated with St Louis University Medical Center, was created in his name.

Integration controversy

Glennon's greatest shortcoming as an archbishop was his failure to foster racial integration of the city's Catholic parochial schools, colleges, and universities.

During the early 1940s, many local priests, especially Jesuits, challenged the segregationist policies at the city's Catholic colleges and parochial schools. The St. Louis chapter of the Midwest Clergy Conference on Negro Welfare, formed locally in 1938, pushed the all-female Webster College to integrate first. However, in 1943, Glennon blocked the enrollment of a young black woman at the college by speaking privately with the Kentucky-based superior of the Sisters of Loretto, which staffed the college. When approached directly by pro-integration priests, Glennon called the integration plan a "Jesuit ploy," and quickly transferred one of the complaining priests away from his mission at an African-American parish. The "Pittsburgh Courier", an African-American newspaper with national circulation, discovered Glennon's intervention and ran a front-page feature on the Webster incident. In response, Father Claude Heithaus, professor of Classical Archaeology at the Catholic Saint Louis University, delivered an angry sermon accusing his own institution of immoral behavior in its segregation policies. Saint Louis University began admitting African American students that summer when its president, Father Patrick Holloran, managed to secure approval from the reluctant Archbishop Glennon. [Donald J. Kemper, "Catholic Integration in St. Louis, 1935-1947," "Missouri Historical Review", Oct. 1978, pp. 1-13.]

After Glennon’s 1946 death, his successor, Archbishop Joseph E. Ritter, moved quickly on integration, sending a letter to St. Louis pastors in August 1947 that directed the integration of Catholic parochial schools. Ritter threatened to excommunicate dissident white parents who were contemplating seeking a court injunction against racial integration. [Donald J. Kemper, "Catholic Integration in St. Louis, 1935-1947," "Missouri Historical Review", Oct. 1978, pp. 1-13.]

Appointment as Cardinal and death

In December, 1945, when Glennon was 83 years old, Pope Pius XII named him a cardinal. Glennon initially questioned whether he should go to Rome to take part in the ceremony, but ultimately chose to go to Rome by way of Ireland. After the completion of the ceremonies in Rome, complicated by a cold he had not been able to recover from since leaving St. Louis, he died in Ireland. His body was returned to St. Louis, and is now buried in the Cathedral.

Cardinal Glennon's final resting place is in one of the crypts contained within the episcopal mausoleum at the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis, St. Louis, Missouri.

Notes

References

*Christensen, Lawrence O., et al. "Dictionary of Missouri Biography". Columbia, MO:University of Missouri Press, 1997. ISBN 0-8262-1222-0

Episcopal_Succession
date of consecration=June 29 1896
consecrated by=John Joseph Kain
bishopconsecrated1 = bishopconsecrated1
bishop 1=Thomas Francis Lillis
consecration date 1=March 14 1910
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bishop 2=Christopher Edward Byrne
consecration date 2=November 10 1918
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bishop 3=Francis Gilfillan
consecration date 3=November 8 1922
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bishop 4=Christian Herman Winkelmann
consecration date 4=November 30 1933
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bishop 5=Paul Clarence Schulte
consecration date 5=September 21 1937
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bishop 6=George Joseph Donnelly
consecration date 6=April 23 1940
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