Charles Victor Grahmann (July 15, 1931 – August 14, 2018) was an American prelate 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 ...

who served as bishop of the Diocese of Dallas in Texas from 1990 to 2007. He also served as bishop of the Diocese of Victoria in Texas from 1982 to 1989 and as auxiliary bishop of the

Archdiocese of San Antonio The Archdiocese of San Antonio () is a Latin Church archdiocese of the Catholic Church in the United States. It encompasses in the U.S. state of Texas. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio had a self-reported 2018 population of 796,954, ...

in Texas from 1981 to 1982.

Biography

Early life

Charles Grahmann was born in

Hallettsville, Texas Hallettsville is a city in Lavaca County, Texas, United States. Its population was 2,731 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Lavaca County. Hallettsville also has a sizable German-Texan population, as the town founders were mainly German ...

, on July 15, 1931. He was the fourth of 11 children born to Annie Grafe Grahmann and Nicholas Anthony Grahmann. The family worked a small farm with horse or mule-driven implements. Grahmann attended Sacred Heart School in Hallettsville from 1938 to 1945. During the seventh grade, he decided to join the priesthood. In 1945, he left school in Hallettsville to attend St. John's Seminary in San Antonio. Grahmann took philosophy and theology classes at Assumption Seminary in San Antonio.

Priesthood

On March 17, 1956, Grahmann was ordained into the priesthood by Archbishop Robert Lucey for the Archdiocese of San Antonio at the

Cathedral of San Fernando Cathedral of San Fernando or San Fernando Cathedral may refer to: * Basilca Cathedral of San Fernando del Valle de Catamarca, Argentina * Metropolitan Cathedral of San Fernando (Pampanga), Philippines * Metropolitan Cathedral of San Fernando (Re ...

in San Antonio. After his ordination, Grahmann's first pastoral assignment was at St. James Parish in San Antonio, moving later that year to St. Joseph's Parish in

Yoakum, Texas Yoakum is a city in Lavaca and DeWitt counties in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 5,908 at the 2020 census. History The area was sparsely settled until a townsite was laid out with the construction of the San Antonio and Aransas ...

. He stayed in Yoakum until 1961. During these assignments, he taught English and Spanish in the high schools, and coached basketball and football. In 1961, Grahmann was moved to St. Paul's Parish in San Antonio and in 1964 became priest-secretary to Archbishop Lucey. He attended business college to improve his ability to monitor the business office and computerize the operation. Grahmann also attended

Our Lady of the Lake University Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU), known locally as the Lake, is a private Catholic university in San Antonio, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1895 by the Sisters of Divine Providence, a religious institute originating in Lorraine, ...

, obtaining a Master of Education and Counseling degree. Grahmann was appointed diocesan director of

Catholic Relief Services Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is the international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. Founded in 1943 by the Bishops of the United States, the agency provides assistance to 130 million people in more than 110 ...

(CRS). In 1970, he started working as priest-secretary to the new archbishop, Francis Furey, a position he would hold until 1980. Grahmann helped found COPS (Communities Organized for Public Service), an organization to assist Hispanics in San Antonio. During his years as priest and bishop, Grahmann participated in numerous aid activities for other nations, These included building a pastoral center for the Diocese of Linares in Chile, constructing a new church for the

Diocese of Recife Diocese of Recife may refer to: * Archdiocese of Olinda and Recife, in northeast Brazil's Pernambuco state *Diocese of Recife, in the Anglican Church in Brazil, affiliated with the Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans *Diocese of Recife, in th ...

in Brazil, an elementary school in

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

and a hospital in

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

Auxiliary Bishop of San Antonio

Grahmann was named

auxiliary bishop An auxiliary bishop is a bishop assigned to assist the diocesan bishop in meeting the pastoral and administrative needs of the diocese. Auxiliary bishops can also be titular bishops of sees that no longer exist as territorial jurisdictions. ...

of the Archdiocese of San Antonio on June 30, 1981, by

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 ...

, with the

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbi ...

of Equilium. Grahmann was consecrated on August 20, 1981, by Archbishop

Patrick Flores Patricio Fernández Flores (July 26, 1929 – January 9, 2017) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served from 1979 to 2004 as archbishop of the Archdiocese of San Antonio in Texas, bishop of the Diocese of El Paso in Texas f ...

Grahmann chose as his episcopal motto "Walk Humbly with Your God” (

Micah 6 The Book of Micah is the sixth of the Twelve Minor Prophets, twelve minor prophets in the Hebrew Bible. The book has seven chapters. Ostensibly, it records the sayings of Micah (prophet), Micah, whose name is ''Mikayahu'' (), meaning "Who is like ...

:8)

Bishop of Victoria

John Paul II appointed Grahmann as the first bishop of the Diocese of Victoria on April 13, 1982. He was installed on May 29, 1982. As bishop, he created a consultation process that included clergy, members of

religious order A religious order is a subgroup within a larger confessional community with a distinctive high-religiosity lifestyle and clear membership. Religious orders often trace their lineage from revered teachers, venerate their Organizational founder, ...

s, and lay people to assist in diocese planning.

Bishop of Dallas

On December 9, 1989, Grahmann was appointed

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 the Diocese of Dallas to assist Bishop Thomas Tschoepe. He automatically became the sixth bishop of the diocese on July 14, 1990, when Tschoepe retired. As bishop, Grahmann created new parishes for Hispanic,

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overseas Vietnamese, Vietnamese people living outside Vietna ...

and other Catholics moving into the diocese. He also opened the John Paul II High School in Plano, Texas. On July 10, 1998, the Diocese of Dallas settled a

sexual abuse Sexual abuse or sex abuse is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using physical force, or by taking advantage of another. It often consists of a persistent pattern of sexual assaults. The offender is re ...

case involving eight men who had been victimized as altar boys by

Rudolph Kos Rudolph Edward Kos (born April 29, 1945) is a former Roman Catholic priest who was found guilty of sex crimes in the Diocese of Dallas in the U.S. state of Texas. In 1998, Kos was convicted of three counts of aggravated sexual assault and senten ...

, a diocese priest. In a summation for the original trial, the judge said that the diocese was guilty of

gross negligence Gross negligence is the "lack of slight diligence or care" or "a conscious, voluntary act or omission in reckless disregard of a legal duty and of the consequences to another party." In some jurisdictions a person injured as a result of gross neg ...

, malice, conspiracy and fraud in its handling of Kos. The diocese had appealed the original jury award of $120 million, but the victims and their families decided to settle for $23.4 million because they knew the diocese could not afford more. Kos was convicted of sexual assault and sentenced to life in prison in 1998. Grahmann issued an apology to the Kos victims when this settlement was announced, saying,

"To the victims and their families, I once again want to apologize on behalf of the diocese. Based on what we know now, the decisions made concerning Rudy Kos were errors in human judgment. I regret very much what happened, and I am deeply sorry for your pain".

Retirement and legacy

On July 15, 2006, his 75th birthday, Grahmann offered

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 ...

his letter of resignation as bishop of the Diocese of Dallas, as required under

canon law Canon law (from , , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical jurisdiction, ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its membe ...

. The pope accepted his resignation on March 6, 2006. Grahmann spent several years in Dallas, then moved to a retirement facility in San Antonio in 2012 when his health began to falter. Several hours after saying mass on the morning of August 14, 2018, Grahmann was transported to St. Luke Baptist Hospital in San Antonio, where he died during surgery.

References

External links

Diocese of Dallas
– Official Website

Episcopal succession

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grahmann, Charles Victor 1931 births 2018 deaths 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Roman Catholic bishops of Dallas Roman Catholic bishops of Victoria in Texas People from Hallettsville, Texas Our Lady of the Lake University alumni Bishops appointed by Pope John Paul II Members of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre