Carl Frederick Mengeling S.T.D (born October 22, 1930) is an American

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Minister (Christianity), Christian clergy who is an Ordinary (church officer), ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which me ...

of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. He served as bishop of the

Diocese of Lansing The Diocese of Lansing () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory – or diocese – of the Catholic Church located in the south-central portion of Michigan in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of metr ...

in Michigan from 1996 to 2008.

Biography

Mengeling was born on October 22, 1930, in

Hammond, Indiana Hammond ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. Located along Lake Michigan, it is part of the Chicago metropolitan area and the only city in Indiana to border Chicago. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the Li ...

, to Carl H. and Augusta Huke Mengeling. Raised in a

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

family, Mengeling converted to Catholicism at age nine. He attended St. Mary Elementary School in

Griffith, Indiana Griffith is a town in North and St. John townships in Lake County, Indiana, United States. It is a part of the Chicago metropolitan area. The population was 16,420 in 2020. The town's population is currently declining at a rate of 0.69% annuall ...

, and graduated from Griffith High School in 1948. Mengeling then entered St. Meinrad College and Seminary in Saint Meinrad, Indiana.

Priesthood

On May 25, 1957, Mengeling was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

to the priesthood for the new Diocese of Gary by Bishop Andrew Grutka at the Cathedral of the Holy Angels in Gary, Indiana. After his ordination, Mengeling became associate pastor of St. Mark's Parish in Gary. In 1961, Mengeling entered the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome, obtaining his

Licentiate of Sacred Theology Licentiate in Sacred Theology (; abbreviated LTh or STL) is the second of three ecclesiastical degrees in theology (the first being the Baccalaureate in Sacred Theology and the third being the Doctorate in Sacred Theology) which are conferred ...

. He also attended the

Alphonsian Academy 150px, Alphonsus Liguori, whose teachings inspired the establishment of the Academy. The Pontifical Alphonsian Academy (; ), also commonly known as the Alphonsianum, is a pontifical institution of higher education founded in 1949 by the Redempt ...

in Rome, earning a

Doctor of Sacred Theology The Doctor of Sacred Theology (, abbreviated STD), also sometimes known as Professor of Sacred Theology (, abbreviated STP), is the final theological degree in the pontifical university system of the Catholic Church, being the ecclesiastical equ ...

degree. Mengeling acted as a page during some sessions of the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the or , was the 21st and most recent ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. The council met each autumn from 1962 to 1965 in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City for session ...

. After returning to Indiana in 1964, Mengeling began teaching at Bishop Noll High School in Hammond, Indiana, St. Joseph Calumet College in East Chicago, Indiana, and St. Procopius Seminary in Lisle, Illinois. In 1968, Mengeling became pastor of All Saints Parish in

, then in 1970 was transferred to Holy Name Parish in

Cedar Lake, Indiana Cedar Lake is a town in Hanover Township, Lake County, Indiana, Hanover and Center Township, Lake County, Indiana, Center townships, Lake County, Indiana, United States. It is near the Illinois state line. Its population was 14,106 at the 2020 ce ...

. In 1971, Mengeling was named pastor of Nativity of Our Savior Parish in

Portage, Indiana Portage ( ) is a city in Portage and Westchester townships, Porter County, in the U.S. state of Indiana, on the border with Lake County. The population was 37,926 as of the 2020 census. It is the largest city in Porter County, and third large ...

, serving there until 1985. Raised by the Vatican to the title of

monsignor Monsignor (; ) is a form of address or title for certain members of the clergy in the Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" can be abbreviated as Mons.... or Msgr. In some ...

in June 1984, Mengeling chaired the Diocesan Worship Commission and the Vocations Committee in Gary. He also founded the diocesan Institute of Religion and chaired it for 14 years. Mengeling also served on the Presbyteral Council, the

Ecumenical Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...

Commission and the Permanent

Diaconate A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Catholi ...

Formation team. In 1985, Mengeling was appointed pastor of St. Thomas More Parish in

Munster, Indiana Munster is a suburban town in North Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. It is in the Chicago metropolitan area, approximately southeast of the Chicago Loop, and shares municipal boundaries with Hammond to the north, Highland to the ...

Bishop of Lansing

On November 7, 1995,

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

appointed Mengeling as the fourth bishop of Lansing, He received his

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

on January 25, 1996, from Cardinal

Adam Maida Adam Joseph Maida (born March 18, 1930) is an American Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Detroit from 1990 to 2009, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1994. He previously served as Bishop of Green Bay from 1984 to 1990. Biogr ...

, with Bishops Kenneth Povish and Dale Melczek serving as co-consecrators, in St. Mary Cathedral in Lansing, Michigan. Mengeling selected as his episcopal

motto A motto (derived from the Latin language, Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian language, Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a Sentence (linguistics), sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of a ...

: "He must increase", from John 3:30. During his tenure, Mengeling opened several parochial schools and churches. He also involved himself with the activities of

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

, Vietnamese, and

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

Catholics in his diocese. In 2002, Mengeling removed from ministry Reverend Vincent DeLorenzo from a

Flint, Michigan Flint is the largest city in Genesee County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. Located along the Flint River (Michigan), Flint River northwest of Detroit, it is a principal city within the Central Michigan, Mid Michigan region. Flin ...

parish. A young man had accused DeLorenzo of sexually abusing him when he was a minor and DeLorenzo had admitted his guilt. The diocese forwarded the accusation to the Genesee County Michigan district attorney and asked the Vatican to

defrock Defrocking, unfrocking, degradation, or laicization of clergy is the removal of their rights to exercise the functions of the ordained ministry. It may be grounded on criminal convictions, disciplinary problems, or disagreements over doctrine or ...

DeLorenzo. In 2003, In response to sexual misconduct scandals among the clergy, Mengeling instituted the Virtus program and visited

retreats The meaning of a spiritual retreat can be different for different religious communities. Spiritual retreats are an integral part of many Buddhist, Christian and Sufi communities. There are many different types of spiritual retreats such as welln ...

for victims of sexual abuse. Also in 2003, he issued a statement on the

war in Iraq This is a list of wars involving the Republic of Iraq and its predecessor states. , style="background:#F88" , Coalition of Gulf War, Coalition victory * Kuwait, State of Kuwait resumes self-governance over all Kuwaiti sovereign territory * Esta ...

, calling for "...a swift end to hostilities and commitment to reconciliation."

Retirement and legacy

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

accepted Mengeling's retirement as bishop of Lansing on February 27, 2008. He was succeeded by Bishop Earl Boyea.

References

External links

Diocese of LansingVirtus program

Episcopal succession

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mengeling, Carl Frederick 1930 births Living people Converts to Roman Catholicism from Lutheranism Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas alumni Alphonsian Academy alumni Benedictine University faculty Saint Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology alumni People from Hammond, Indiana Roman Catholic Diocese of Gary Roman Catholic bishops of Lansing 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Participants in the Second Vatican Council People from Munster, Indiana People from Griffith, Indiana Religious leaders from Indiana Catholics from Indiana