Mark Francis Schmitt (February 14, 1923 – December 14, 2011) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the tenth bishop of the
Diocese of Marquette in Michigan from 1978 to 1992.
Biography
Early life
Mark Schmitt was born in
Algoma, Wisconsin
Algoma is a city in Kewaunee County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 3,167 at the 2010 census. Algoma is part of the Green Bay Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
The Ahnapee settlement, which eventually became known as Al ...
, on February 14, 1923.
After attending St. Mary School in Algoma, Schmitt entered the Salvatorian Minor Seminary in
St. Nazianz, Wisconsin. He later attended
St. John’s Seminary and University in Collegeville, Minnesota.
Priesthood
Schmitt was ordained by Bishop
Stanislaus Vincent Bona to the priesthood on May 22, 1948, for the
Diocese of Green Bay. After his ordination, Schmitt served as associate pastor at St. Rose Parish in
Clintonville, Wisconsin
Clintonville is a city in Waupaca County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 4,591 at the 2020 census. The area that became Clintonville was first settled in March, 1855.
History
Clintonville lies within ancestral Menominee territor ...
.
Schmitt in 1954 was appointed director of the Manitowoc Apostolate, the diocese branch of
Catholic Charities
The Catholic Church operates numerous charitable organizations.
Catholic spiritual teaching includes spreading the Gospel, while Catholic social teaching emphasises support for the sick, the poor and the afflicted through the corporal and spi ...
. He also served as director of the diocesan hospitals. In 1960, Schmitt was appointed pastor of Ss. Peter and Paul Parish of
Weyauwega, Wisconsin and St. Bernard Parish in
Green Bay, Wisconsin.
Auxiliary Bishop of Green Bay
On April 30, 1970,
Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his death in Augus ...
appointed Schmitt 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 ''
Ceanannus Mór'' and
auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay; he was consecrated by Bishop
Aloysius John Wycislo in Green Bay on June 24, 1970.
Bishop of Marquette
On March 21, 1978, Pope Paul VI appointed Schmitt to the Diocese of Marquette. He was installed on May 8, 1978.
As bishop, Schmitt founded the Lay Ministries Leadership School to prepare lay parishioners for leadership roles in parishes. He also create bachelor’s and master’s degree programs in pastoral studies.
On October 6, 1992, Pope Paul II accepted Schmitt's resignation as bishop of Marquette.
Mark Schmitt died on December 14, 2011, at a hospice in
De Pere, Wisconsin
De Pere ( ) is a city located in Brown County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 25,410 according to the 2020 Census. De Pere is part of the Green Bay Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
At the arrival of the first European, J ...
.
Notes
1923 births
2011 deaths
Roman Catholic bishops of Marquette
People from Green Bay, Wisconsin
People from Algoma, Wisconsin
People from Marquette, Michigan
Christianity in Michigan
Religious leaders from Wisconsin
American Roman Catholic bishops by contiguous area of the United States
Catholics from Wisconsin
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