Joseph John Fox (August 2, 1855 – March 14, 1915) was an American

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pre ...

of the

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who served as

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

of the

Diocese of Green Bay The Roman Catholic Diocese of Green Bay ( la, Diocesis Sinus Viridis) was established on March 3, 1868, by Pope Pius IX. It covers the city of Green Bay, as well as Brown, Calumet, Door, Florence, Forest, Kewaunee, Langlade, Manitowoc, Mar ...

in Wisconsin from 1904 until his death in 1914.

Biography

Early life

Joseph Fox was born in Green Bay,

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, to Paul and Frances (née Bartel) Fox, who were

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immigrants. He received his early education at the parochial school of the Cathedral of St. Francis Xavier in his native city. He made his classical studies at St. Francis Seminary in

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...

from 1870 to 1875. He then studied philosophy and theology at the American College of Louvain in Leuven, Belgium.

Priesthood

While in Belgium, Fox was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

to the priesthood for the Diocese of Green Bay on June 7, 1879. Fox's first assignment, following his return to Wisconsin, was as

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

of St. Kilian Parish in New Franken, where he remained for eight months. He afterwards served at St. John the Baptist Parish in Green Bay for three years, in addition to serving as secretary to Bishop Francis Krautbauer. In 1883, Fox became pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in

Marinette, Wisconsin Marinette is a city in and the county seat of Marinette County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located on the south bank of the Menominee River, at its mouth at Green Bay, part of Lake Michigan; to the north is Stephenson Island, part of th ...

, serving there for eleven years. He served as

vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop' ...

of the diocese from 1894 to 1904, and was named a domestic prelate by

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-old ...

in 1898.

Bishop of Green Bay

On May 27, 1904, Fox was appointed the fifth bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay by Pope Pius X. He received his episcopal consecration on June 25, 1904, from Archbishop Sebastian Messmer, with Bishops William Stang and

Frederick Eis Frederick Eis (January 20, 1843 – May 5, 1926) was a German-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Sault Sainte Marie-Marquette in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan from 1899 to 1922. Biography Ea ...

serving as co-consecrators. He was the first and only native son of the diocese to become its bishop. During his tenure, Fox built a new episcopal residence, which later became the diocesan chancery (now demolished), and displayed a strong interest in education and advancing the parochial school system. Fox was a contributor to the ''

Catholic Encyclopedia The ''Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church'' (also referred to as the ''Old Catholic Encyclopedia'' and the ''Original Catholic Encyclopedia'') i ...

''. On November 7, 1914,

Pope Benedict XV Pope Benedict XV (Latin: ''Benedictus XV''; it, Benedetto XV), born Giacomo Paolo Giovanni Battista della Chiesa, name=, group= (; 21 November 185422 January 1922), was head of the Catholic Church from 1914 until his death in January 1922. His ...

accepted Fox's resignation as bishop of Green Bay and appointed him as

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox ...

of ''Ionopolis''. Joseph Fox died in Chicago on March 14, 1915, at age 59.

Notes

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