''The Catholic Spirit'' is the official

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

of the

Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associated ...

. Founded by

John Ireland John Benjamin Ireland (January 30, 1914 – March 21, 1992) was a Canadian-American actor and film director. Born in Vancouver, British Columbia and raised in New York City, he came to prominence with film audiences for his supporting roles i ...

in 1911 as an 8-page weekly named ''The Catholic Bulletin'' and with a subscription base of 2,500, it was renamed to ''The Catholic Spirit'' in 1996 and currently circulates to 54,000 households in the

Twin Cities Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in stat ...

area twice per month.

History

Background

In 1866, a small newspaper called ''The Northwestern Chronicle'' began to be published by John Crosby Devereux in

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, ...

. While not originally an official Catholic newspaper, it received the support of Bishop

Thomas Grace Thomas Grace may refer to: * Thomas Grace (Archdeacon of Ardfert) (1770–1848), Irish priest * Thomas Grace (Archdeacon of Marlborough) (fl. 1873–1890), Anglican priest in New Zealand, son of the above * Thomas Grace (bishop of Sacramento) (1 ...

, who used it to communicate to the clergy. Grace also granted the operation free rent in a building in St. Paul's Catholic block. However, facing financial difficulties a decade after its founding, Devereux sold the ''Chronicle'' to

coadjutor bishop A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) ("co-assister" in Latin) is a bishop in the Latin Catholic, Anglican and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in administering the diocese. The coa ...

of Saint Paul

for $2,000 . After settling his debts, Devereux netted a total of $1,800 from his ten years running the paper. The ''Chronicle'' under Bishop Ireland did not recover from its financial difficulties, incurring debts which he covered personally, and in 1900 he sold it to the ''Catholic Citizen'' newspaper in Milwaukee.

''The Catholic Bulletin''

In 1911, then-Archbishop

founded ''The Catholic Bulletin'' with Father

James Reardon James Reardon (1885–?) was a British stage and film actor of the silent era A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, ...

as its first editor. Reardon initially resisted the appointment, stating that he had no training in journalism. The first issue was published on January 7, 1911, with a run of 2,500 papers sent to paying subscribers. Archbishop Diomede Falconio, apostolic delegate to the United States, sent a congratulatory letter. The paper served not only as the official paper of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul, but of all the dioceses in the Province of Saint Paul save one. The 8-page paper was published weekly. Ireland insisted that the paper not be laudatory of his person and that it be non-political and non-controversial; he simply wanted an "interesting, well-written and well-edited Catholic newspaper". Due to Ireland's connections, the ''Bulletin'' had

scoop Scoop, Scoops or The Scoop may refer to: Artefacts * Scoop (machine part), a component of machinery to carry things * Scoop (tool), a shovel-like tool, particularly one deep and curved, used in digging * Scoop (theater), a type of wide area l ...

s on the erection of the Diocese of Spokane and the election of Benedict XV, publishing the stories before any other American newspapers. Reardon established a paid subscribership of 25,000 by the time he relinquished the top job at the paper in 1922. After Reardon was named pastor of the Basilica of Saint Mary in 1922, Father John Volz was appointed as editor. Volz served until 1925, when a layman, Bernard Vaughn, was named editor; he held the job until 1957, when he suffered a heart attack. In 1957, Bernard Casserly, a reporter for the ''

Minneapolis Star ''The Minnesota Star Tribune'', formerly the ''Minneapolis Star Tribune'', is an American daily newspaper based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. As of 2023, it is Minnesota's largest newspaper and the seventh-largest in the United States by circula ...

'', became the editor. During the turbulent times following 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 ...

, what Casserly chose to cover was often controversial. At one point in the 1960s, a priest cancelled 1,600 of his parishioners' subscriptions over a front-page photo of nuns dancing; in response, Casserly remarked that he considered it important to cover what was going on in the Church. In 1961, the paper had a circulation of 40,000. Casserly retired as editor in 1982. Robert Zyskowski became the editor in 1986.

''The Catholic Spirit''

The newspaper underwent a design and name change in 1996 to become ''The Catholic Spirit''. Then-editor Robert Zyskowski took on the role of associate publisher in 1998 and helped pull the newspaper out of $2.1 million in debt. In 1991, circulation had been 30,000; by 1998, it had increased to 86,000. Mike Krokos was editor from 1999 to 2004. Circulation in 2000 was around 88,000. Joe Towalski was editor from 2005 to 2014. By 2010, circulation had decreased slightly to 85,000. Jessica Trygstad was interim editor from 2014 to 2015. Circulation in 2015 was around 71,000. Maria Wiering was editor from 2015 to 2022, after which she left for

OSV News Our Sunday Visitor (OSV) is a Catholic publishing company in Huntington, Indiana, which prints the American national weekly newspaper of that name, as well as numerous Catholic periodicals, religious books, pamphlets, catechetical materials, ...

. Joe Ruff, a former reporter and editor with the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

, became editor in 2022. The ''Spirit'' has won numerous

Catholic Media Association The Catholic Media Association, formerly the Catholic Press Association of the United States and Canada, is an association of American and Canadian newspaper and media specialists specialized on reporting on the Catholic Church. Founded in 1911, it ...

awards.

Publication

''The Catholic Spirit'' publishes twice monthly. Readers may subscribe directly or receive a free subscription subsidized by their parish. As of 2024, circulation is around 54,000.

Notes

References

External links

*
The Catholic Bulletin (19111922) Archives
at the Minnesota History Society
The Catholic Bulletin
at the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Catholic Spirit Newspapers published in Minnesota Catholic newspapers published in the United States Newspapers established in 1911 Newspapers published in Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Minnesota 1911 establishments in Minnesota Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis