James

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, ...

Gibbons (July 23, 1834 – March 24, 1921) was a senior-ranking 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 'pref ...

of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

who served as Apostolic Vicar of North Carolina from 1868 to 1872, Bishop of Richmond from 1872 to 1877, and as ninth

Archbishop of Baltimore The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Baltimore ( la, link=no, Archidiœcesis Baltimorensis) is the premier (or first) see of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church in the United States. The archdiocese comprises the City of Baltimore and nine of Ma ...

from 1877 until his death. He was elevated to the rank of

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, ...

in 1886. Gibbons was consecrated a bishop on August 16, 1868, at the Baltimore Cathedral. The principal consecrator was Archbishop Martin J. Spalding. He was 34 years of age, serving as the first Apostolic Vicar of

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia a ...

. He attended the

First Vatican Council The First Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the First Vatican Council or Vatican I was convoked by Pope Pius IX on 29 June 1868, after a period of planning and preparation that began on 6 December 1864. This, the twentieth e ...

, where he voted in favor of defining the dogma of

papal infallibility Papal infallibility is a dogma of the Catholic Church which states that, in virtue of the promise of Jesus to Peter, the Pope when he speaks '' ex cathedra'' is preserved from the possibility of error on doctrine "initially given to the apos ...

. In 1872, he was named Bishop of Richmond by Pope Pius IX. In 1877, Gibbons was appointed Archbishop of Baltimore, the premier episcopal see in the United States. During his 44 years as Baltimore's archbishop, Gibbons became one of the most recognizable Catholic figures in the country. He defended the rights of labor and helped convince

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 ...

to give his consent to

labor unions A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

. In 1886, he was appointed to the

College of Cardinals The College of Cardinals, or more formally the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. its current membership is , of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Cardinals are appo ...

, becoming only the second cardinal in the history of the United States, after

John Cardinal McCloskey John McCloskey (March 10, 1810 – October 10, 1885) was a senior-ranking American prelate of the Catholic Church. He was the first American born Archbishop of New York from 1864 until his death in 1885, having previously served as Bishop of ...

Archbishop of New York The Archbishop of New York is the head of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, who is responsible for looking after its spiritual and administrative needs. As the archdiocese is the metropolitan see of the ecclesiastical province encompass ...

Early life and education

The fourth of six children, James Gibbons was born in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, to Thomas and Bridget (née Walsh) Gibbons. His parents were from Tourmackeady,

County Mayo County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the yew trees") is a county in Ireland. In the West of Ireland, in the province of Connacht, it is named after the village of Mayo, now generally known as Mayo Abbey. Mayo County Coun ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, and settled in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

after moving to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

. After falling ill with

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in w ...

in 1839, his father moved the family to his native Ireland, where he believed the air would benefit him. There, Thomas operated a

grocery store A grocery store ( AE), grocery shop ( BE) or simply grocery is a store that primarily retails a general range of food products, which may be fresh or packaged. In everyday U.S. usage, however, "grocery store" is a synonym for supermarket, ...

Ballinrobe Ballinrobe () is a town in County Mayo in Ireland. It is located on the River Robe, which empties into Lough Mask two kilometres to the west. As of the 2016 census, the population was 2,786. History Foundation and development Ballinrobe is c ...

and young James received his early education. His father died in 1847, and his mother returned the family to the United States in 1853, settling in

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

Holy Orders after attending a sermon given by

Paulist Paulists, or Paulines, is the name used for Roman Catholic orders and congregations under the patronage of Paul of Thebes the First Hermit. From the time that the abode and virtues of Paul of Thebes were revealed to Antony the Abbot, various commu ...

co-founder,

Clarence A. Walworth Clarence Augustus Walworth (May 30, 1820 – September 19, 1900) was an American attorney, writer, ordained Roman Catholic priest and missionary. Walworth was a well regarded writer who published numerous works related to the Roman Catholic Ch ...

. In 1855, he entered St. Charles College in

Ellicott City Ellicott City is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in, and the county seat of, Howard County, Maryland, United States. Part of the Baltimore metropolitan area, its population was 65,834 at the 2010 census, making it the mo ...

. After graduating from St. Charles, he entered

St. Mary's Seminary St. Mary's Seminary and University is a Catholic Church, Catholic seminary located within the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore, Archdiocese of Baltimore in Baltimore, Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland; it was the first seminary founded in the ...

in Baltimore in 1857. He suffered a severe attack of

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or deat ...

during his time at St. Mary's, leaving his state of health so poor that his superiors almost considered him unsuitable for

ordination 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 v ...

. Slight of build and a little less than average height, from the early days of his priesthood he suffered from a sensitive stomach and consequent periods of nervous exhaustion. On June 30, 1861, Gibbons was ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop

Francis Kenrick Francis Patrick Kenrick (December 3, 1796 or 1797 – July 8, 1863) was an Irish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the third Bishop of the Diocese of Philadelphia (1842–1851) and the sixth Archbishop of the Archdiocese o ...

of Baltimore at the Baltimore Cathedral. He then served as a

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

at St. Patrick's Church in

Fells Point Fell's Point is a historic waterfront neighborhood in southeastern Baltimore, Maryland. It was established around 1763 along the north shore of the Baltimore Harbor and the Northwest Branch of the Patapsco River. The area has many antique, music, ...

for six weeks before becoming the first

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. Brigid's Church in

Canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ente ...

. In addition to his duties at St. Brigid's, he assumed charge of St. Lawrence Church (now called Our Lady of Good Counsel Church) in Locust Point and was a

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...

for

Fort McHenry Fort McHenry is a historical American coastal pentagonal bastion fort on Locust Point, now a neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland. It is best known for its role in the War of 1812, when it successfully defended Baltimore Harbor from an attack ...

in the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polic ...

. In 1865, Gibbons was made

private secretary A private secretary (PS) is a civil servant in a governmental department or ministry, responsible to a secretary of state or minister; or a public servant in a royal household, responsible to a member of the royal family. The role exists in t ...

to Archbishop

Martin John Spalding Martin John Spalding (May 23, 1810 – February 7, 1872) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Louisville (1850–1864) and Archbishop of Baltimore (1864–1872). He advocated aid for freed slaves follo ...

. He helped prepare for the

Second Plenary Council of Baltimore The Plenary Councils of Baltimore were three national meetings of Catholic bishops in the United States in 1852, 1866 and 1884 in Baltimore, Maryland. During the early history of the History of Roman Catholicism in the United States, Roman Cath ...

in October 1866. At Spalding's prompting, the Council fathers recommended both the creation of an apostolic vicariate for

and the nomination of Gibbons to head it.

Episcopal career

On March 3, 1868, Gibbons was appointed the first Apostolic Vicar of North Carolina and

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 a ...

of ''Adramyttium'' by Pope Pius IX. He received his

episcopal consecration 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 ca ...

on the following August 15 from Archbishop Spalding, with Bishops

Patrick Neeson Lynch Patrick Neeson Lynch (March 10, 1817 – February 26, 1882) was an Irish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Charleston in the Southeastern United States from 1857 until his death in 1882. Bi ...

and

Michael Domenec Michael Domenec, DD, C.M. ( ca, Miquel Domènech i Veciana; 1816–1878) full name Miquel Joan Josep Domènech i Veciana, was a Spanish prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the second bishop of the Diocese of Pittsburgh in Pennsyl ...

, CM, serving as

co-consecrators A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches ...

. This ordination, like his priestly ordination, also occurred at the Baltimore Cathedral. At age 34, he was one of the youngest Catholic bishops in the world and was known as "the boy bishop." His vicariate, the entire state of North Carolina, had fewer than seven hundred Catholics. In his first four weeks alone in North Carolina, Gibbons traveled almost a thousand miles, visiting towns and mission stations and administering the

sacraments A sacrament is a Christian rite that is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments to be a visible symbol of the rea ...

. He also befriended many

Protestants Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

, who greatly outnumbered Catholics in the state, and preached at their churches. Gibbons made a number of converts, but finding the apologetical works available inadequate for their needs, he determined to write his own; ''Faith of Our Fathers'' would prove the most popular apologetical work written by an American Catholic. Gibbons became a popular American religious figure, gathering crowds for his sermons on diverse topics that could apply to Christianity as a whole. He was an acquaintance of every president from

Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. He assumed the presidency as he was vice president at the time of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a D ...

Warren G. Harding Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2, 1865 – August 2, 1923) was the 29th president of the United States, serving from 1921 until his death in 1923. A member of the Republican Party, he was one of the most popular sitting U.S. presidents. A ...

and an adviser to several of them. In 1869 and 1870 Gibbons attended the

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. Aged 35 years and 4 months when the Council opened, he was the youngest American bishop present by a mere six days (the second youngest was Jeremiah Francis Shanahan, Bishop of Harrisburg) and the second youngest in all (Basilio Nasser, Melkite Bishop of Baalbek, Lebanon, was more than five years his junior, aged just 30 years and 3 months at opening). Gibbons voted in favor of the doctrine of

. He assumed the additional duties of

Apostolic Administrator An Apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...

for the

Diocese of Richmond The Diocese of Richmond ( la, Diœcesis Richmondiensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or diocese of the Catholic Church in the United States. Its current territory encompasses all of central and southern Virginia, Hampton Roads, ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the East Coast of the United States, Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography an ...

, in January 1872. Gibbons was later named the fourth Bishop of Richmond on July 30, 1872. He was installed as Bishop on October 20, and served there until May 1877, when he was named Coadjutor Archbishop of Baltimore. He succeeded as Archbishop that October on the death of Archbishop

James Roosevelt Bayley James Roosevelt Bayley (August 23, 1814 – October 3, 1877) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as the first Bishop of Newark (1853–1872) and the eighth Archbishop of Baltimore (1872–1877). Early life and edu ...

. For the first twenty years of his administration he had no auxiliary bishop, and thus through the repeated confirmation tours to all parts of his jurisdiction he came to know the priests and people very well. Coat of arms of James Gibbons

On 7 June 1886 Gibbons was created a

Cardinal Priest A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

and on 17 March 1887 he was assigned the titular church of

Santa Maria in Trastevere The Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere ( it, Basilica di Santa Maria in Trastevere); en, Our Lady in Trastevere) is a titular minor basilica in the Trastevere district of Rome, and one of the oldest churches of Rome. The basic floor plan an ...

. He was the second American cardinal after

John McCloskey John McCloskey (March 10, 1810 – October 10, 1885) was a senior-ranking American prelate of the Catholic Church. He was the first American born Archbishop of New York from 1864 until his death in 1885, having previously served as Bishop o ...

. Gibbons advocated the creation of

The Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Roman Catholic research university in Washington, D.C. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by U. ...

and served as its first Chancellor upon its creation in 1887. He was the first American cardinal to participate in a

papal conclave A papal conclave is a gathering of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a bishop of Rome, also known as the pope. Catholics consider the pope to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and the earthly head of the Catholic Church. C ...

, in

1903 Events January * January 1 – Edward VII is proclaimed Emperor of India. * January 19 – The first west–east transatlantic radio broadcast is made from the United States to England (the first east–west broadcast having been ...

. He would have participated in the

1914 conclave The 1914 papal conclave was held to choose a successor to Pope Pius X, who had died in the Vatican on 20 August 1914. Political context Europe was already at war and the new pope would face the question of maintaining neutrality or assume moral ...

but he arrived late. In 1899

sent Gibbons an encyclical, known by its first words in Latin ''

Testem benevolentiae nostrae ''Testem benevolentiae nostrae'' is an apostolic letter written by Pope Leo XIII to Cardinal James Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore, dated January 22, 1899. In it, the pope addressed a heresy that he called Americanism and expressed his conce ...

'' ("Concerning New Opinions, Virtue, Nature and Grace, with Regard to Americanism"), condemning what was termed "Americanism".Smith, Michael Paul. "Isaac Thomas Hecker." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 4 October 2015 This was prompted by the preface of the French translation of the ''Life of

Isaac Hecker Isaac Thomas Hecker (December 18, 1819 – December 22, 1888) was an American Catholic priest and founder of the Paulist Fathers, a North American religious society of men. Hecker was originally ordained a Redemptorist priest in 1849. With ...

'', wherein the translator attributed certain opinions to the late Father Isaac Hecker. Members of the hierarchy in the United States assured the Pope that the opinions expressed were not those of Father Hecker, who had never countenanced any deviation from, or minimizing of, Catholic doctrines. During World War I Cardinal Gibbons was instrumental in the establishment of the

National Catholic War Council The National Catholic Welfare Council (NCWC) was the annual meeting of the American Catholic hierarchy and its standing secretariat; it was established in 1919 as the successor to the emergency organization, the National Catholic War Council. It co ...

, and afterwards supported the

League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide Intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by ...

. He allowed the newly ordained William A Hemmick to serve the troops during the war. Hemmick became known as the Patriot priest of Picardy. Although initially opposed to women's suffrage, when the nineteenth amendment passed Gibbons urged women to exercise their right to vote "...not only as a right but as a strict social duty." James Cardinal Gibbons died on March 24, 1921, at the age of 86.

Labor advocate

Gibbons advocated for the protection of labor, an issue of particular concern because of the many Catholics who were being exploited by the industrial expansion of America's urban

East Coast East Coast may refer to: Entertainment * East Coast hip hop, a subgenre of hip hop * "East Coast" (ASAP Ferg song), 2017 * "East Coast" (Saves the Day song), 2004 * East Coast FM, a radio station in Co. Wicklow, Ireland * East Coast Swing, a f ...

at the turn of the century. He was once quoted as saying, "It is the right of laboring classes to protect themselves, and the duty of the whole people to find a remedy against avarice, oppression, and corruption." Gibbons had a key role in the granting of papal permission for Catholics to join labor unions. Gibbons successfully defended the

Knights of Labor Knights of Labor (K of L), officially Noble and Holy Order of the Knights of Labor, was an American labor federation active in the late 19th century, especially the 1880s. It operated in the United States as well in Canada, and had chapters also ...

, which had a significant Catholic membership, from papal censure, thereby winning a reputation as labor's friend. In fact, he deplored class consciousness and condemned

industrial violence Industrial violence refers to acts of violence which occur within the context of industrial relations. These disputes can involve employers and employees, unions, employer organisations and the state. There is not a singular theory which can expla ...

Belgian Controversy

The Congo Reform Association was founded in England for the purpose of raising opinion against the regime of

Leopold II of Belgium * german: link=no, Leopold Ludwig Philipp Maria Viktor , house = Saxe-Coburg and Gotha , father = Leopold I of Belgium , mother = Louise of Orléans , birth_date = , birth_place = Brussels, Belgium , death_date ...

and to compel reform of conditions. The matter was scheduled to be discussed in October at the thirteenth International Peace Congress in Boston. Since the king had not been invited to send a representative, his government asked Gibbons to help keep the question off the agenda. The cardinal wrote a letter saying that it would be unfair since no representative of the Belgian government had been invited to present the king's case. His effort failed to prevent a discussion of the question and he did not escape criticism for his intervention. Gibbons responded "I fear, that this agitation against King Leopold's administration is animated partly by religious jealousy and partly by commercial rivalry." His largely defensive stance on Leopold II gained the recognition of then-Pope

Pius X Pope Pius X ( it, Pio X; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing modernist interpretations of C ...

. According to the historian

John Tracy Ellis John Tracy Ellis (July 30, 1905 – October 16, 1992) was a Catholic Church historian and priest, born and raised in Seneca, Illinois, USA. Ellis was ordained a priest and received a doctorate in history from Catholic University of America in Wa ...

, as Gibbons suggested, religious jealousy and commercial rivalry played a part in the movement for reform, but the evidence still weighed heavily against the Belgian government as having been guilty of serious exploitation of the native population. Gibbons relied too much on the word of the king's government and intermittent reports from missionaries. "For one of the few times in Gibbons' long life, his normally keen judgment went astray and exposed him to the charge of partisanship and of ignorance of the facts governing an issue. The cardinal should have steered clear of the case."Ellis, John Tracy. ''Life of James Cardinal Gibbons''
(abridged by Francis L. Broderick), The Bruce Publishing Company, 1963 A less flattering account of Cardinal Gibbons' involvement is given in

Adam Hochschild Adam Hochschild (; born October 5, 1942) is an American author, journalist, historian and lecturer. His best-known works include ''King Leopold's Ghost'' (1998), '' To End All Wars: A Story of Loyalty and Rebellion, 1914–1918'' (2011), '' Bu ...

’s ''

King Leopold’s Ghost King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen regnant, queen, which title is also given to the queen consort, consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contempora ...

'': "

ing Leopold’s Ing, ING or ing may refer to: Art and media * '' ...ing'', a 2003 Korean film * i.n.g, a Taiwanese girl group * The Ing, a race of dark creatures in the 2004 video game '' Metroid Prime 2: Echoes'' * "Ing", the first song on The Roches' 1992 ...

representatives in

successfully convinced the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...

that this

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

king was being set upon by unscrupulous Protestant missionaries. A stream of messages in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

flowed from the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

across the Atlantic to the designated Catholic point-man for Leopold in the United States, James Cardinal Gibbons of

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

. Cardinal Gibbons believed that the Congo reform crusade was the work of “only a handful of discontented men... depending largely upon the untrustworthy hearsay of the natives.” He spoke out loudly for Leopold, who awarded him the Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown.p. 224

Works

Part of Gibbons' popularity derived from the works he authored. Among his widely read works were: ''Our Christian Heritage'' (1889), ''The Ambassador of Christ'' (1896), ''Discourses and Sermons'' (1908), and ''A Retrospect of Fifty Years'' (1916). He contributed a number of essays to much-read journals such as the ''North American Review'' and ''Putnams' Monthly''. He was also a contributor to the ''Catholic Encyclopedia''. His style was simple but compelling. Protestant Americans looked often to Gibbons for an explanation of the Catholic position on contentious issues. In 1876, Gibbons published his most famous and highly regarded (even among Protestants) book, ''

The Faith of Our Fathers ''The Faith of Our Fathers: a Plain Exposition and Vindication of the Church Founded by Our Lord Jesus Christ'' is a book by archbishop James Gibbons which was published in Baltimore in 1876, which became a best-selling conversion manual in the Un ...

'': A Plain Exposition and Vindication of the Church Founded by Our Lord Jesus Christ'

'.

References

External links

*
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore

Works

* * * * via

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical ...

* via

* * * via

Pastoral Letter of 1919
* Gibbons (August 1920): Preface fo
American Catholics in the war; National Catholic war council, 1917-1921
*

Biographies

* (in the one‑volume abridgment by Francis L. Broderick) * * * *

Movie footage

Conversation with Theodore Roosevelt at Liberty Loan Drive (MPEG 8 mb.)Another angle on the same event at Sagamore Hill (QuickTime 3mb)

Photographs

Cardinal Gibbons (Maryland Historical Society)Cardinal Gibbons Day October 16, 1911 (MHS)Cardinal Gibbons & Theodore Roosevelt (MHS)Golden Jubilee Celebration at Basilica of the Assumption (MHS)Service in progress at Basilica (MHS)Cardinal Gibbons' Cortege passes Washington Monument (MHS)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gibbons, James 1834 births 1921 deaths 19th-century Irish people 19th-century American cardinals 20th-century American cardinals Roman Catholic archbishops of Baltimore Roman Catholic bishops of Richmond American Roman Catholic clergy of Irish descent Religious leaders from Baltimore Religious leaders from County Mayo Roman Catholic Diocese of Raleigh Catholic University of America people Pope Leo XIII Cardinals created by Pope Leo XIII Burials at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary St. Charles College alumni St. Mary's Seminary and University alumni American military chaplains Contributors to the Catholic Encyclopedia

Early life and education

Episcopal career

Labor advocate

Belgian Controversy

Works

See also

References

Further reading

External links

Works

Biographies

Movie footage

Photographs