Edward Francis Hoban (June 27, 1878 – September 22, 1966) was 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 Cleveland in Ohio from 1945 to 1966. He previously served as bishop of the Diocese of Rockford in Illinois from 1928 to 1942 and as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago in Illinois from 1921 to 1928. In 1952, Pope Pius XII gave Hoban the personal title of

archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Biography

Early life

Edward Hoban was born on June 27, 1878, in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

, to William and Bridget (née O'Malley) Hoban, both Irish immigrants. William Hoban was a shoemaker. Edward Hoban attended St. Columbkille parochial school and then St. Ignatius High School in Chicago."The Most Reverend Edward F. Hoban, D.D.", Diocese of Rockford
/ref> Hoban then entered St. Ignatius College in Chicago, earning a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree (1899) and a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

degree (1900). He then studied at St. Mary's Seminary in Baltimore, Maryland.

Priesthood

Hoban was ordained to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Chicago by Archbishop James Quigley on July 11, 1903. After his ordination, Hoban was assigned briefly as curate at St. Agnes Parish in Chicago. He then traveled to Rome to attended

Pontifical Gregorian University Pontifical Gregorian University (; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana), is a private university, private pontifical university in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as a part of the Roman College, founded in 1551 by Ignatius of Loyo ...

, 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 in 1906. Returning to Chicago in 1906, Hoban was named as the assistant chancellor to Monsignor Edmund Dunne, the chancellor of the archdiocese. When Dunne was named bishop of the Diocese of Peoria in 1910, Hoban replaced him as chancellor. He also served as professor and treasurer of

Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary Archbishop Quigley Preparatory Seminary was an American seminary preparatory school administered by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago for Single-sex education, young men considering the Priesthood (Catholic Church), priesthood. It closed ...

in Chicago. As chancellor, Hoban supervised the establishment of Associated Catholic Charities of Chicago. In November 1916,

Pope Benedict XV Pope Benedict XV (; ; born Giacomo Paolo Giovanni Battista della Chiesa, ; 21 November 1854 – 22 January 1922) was head of the Catholic Church from 1914 until his death in January 1922. His pontificate was largely overshadowed by World War I a ...

named him a

papal chamberlain A papal gentleman, formally a Gentleman of His Holiness, is a lay attendant of the pope and his papal household in Vatican City. Papal gentlemen serve in the Apostolic Palace near St. Peter's Basilica in ceremonial positions, such as escorting d ...

Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago

On November 21, 1921, Hoban was appointed as an

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 Chicago 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 an ...

of Colonia in Armenia by Pope Benedict XV. He received his

episcopal Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese *Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United States ...

consecration Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects ( ...

on December 21, 1921, from Cardinal

George Mundelein George William Mundelein (July 2, 1872 – October 2, 1939) was an Catholic Church in the United States, American Catholic who served as Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago, Archbishop of Chicago from 1915 until his death in 1939. He was elevat ...

, with Bishops Alexander McGavick and Thomas Molloy 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 Churche ...

. As auxiliary bishop he served in several administrative posts, including as

vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop or archbishop of a diocese or an archdiocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vica ...

in 1924. In 1926 Hoban served as the president of the International Eucharistic Congress. This was the first Congress held outside of Europe, attracting over one million attendees. Its success was attributed, in large part, to Hoban's administrative skill and his ability to marshal and organize the efforts of clergy, religious and laity.

Bishop of Rockford

Hoban was named the second bishop of the Diocese of Rockford by

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI (; born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, ; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939) was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 until his death in February 1939. He was also the first sovereign of the Vatican City State u ...

on February 21, 1928; he was installed on May 15, 1928. In 1931, Hoban received the Commander of the Order of the Crown award from the Fascist Government of Italy. During his tenure, Hoban opened many elementary and high schools in the diocese, modernized charitable institutions, and established a diocesan newspaper. Hoban was named as an

assistant at the pontifical throne The Bishops-Assistant at the Pontifical Throne were ecclesiastical titles in the Catholic Church. It designated prelates belonging to the Papal Chapel, who stood near the throne of the Pope at solemn functions. They ranked immediately below the ...

on November 25, 1937.

Coadjutor Bishop and Bishop of Cleveland

On November 14, 1942, Hoban 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 Cleveland and

Lystra Lystra () was a city in central Anatolia, now part of present-day Turkey. It is mentioned six times in the New Testament. Lystra was visited several times by Paul the Apostle, along with Barnabas or Silas. There Paul met a young disciple, Timoth ...

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII (; born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli; 2 March 18769 October 1958) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death on 9 October 1958. He is the most recent p ...

. After the death of Bishop

Joseph Schrembs Joseph Schrembs (March 12, 1866 – November 2, 1945) was a German-born prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Grand Rapids in Michigan for five months in 1911, as bishop of the Diocese of Toledo i ...

on November 2, 1945, Hoban automatically succeeded him as the sixth bishop of Cleveland. As bishop, Hoban encouraged refugees displaced by

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

to settle in

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

. He also established national and ethnic

parishes A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

, but insisted that their

parochial school A parochial school is a private school, private Primary school, primary or secondary school affiliated with a religious organization, and whose curriculum includes general religious education in addition to secular subjects, such as science, mathem ...

s only teach in English. He helped rebuild and remodel St. John's Cathedral, and enlarged St. John's College, both in Cleveland. Hoban centralized Parmadale Family Services, constructed additional nursing homes, and opened Holy Family Cancer Home in

Parma, Ohio Parma is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. It is a suburb south of Cleveland. The population was 81,146 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Parma is the List of municipalities in Ohio, seventh-most populous city in Ohio, ...

, a hospice for

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

patients. Hoban opened a

minor seminary A minor seminary or high school seminary is a secondary day or boarding school created for the specific purpose of enrolling teenage boys who have expressed interest in becoming Priesthood (Catholic Church), Catholic priests. They are generally ...

and expanded the Newman Apostolate for Catholic students attending public universities and colleges. Hoban received the personal title of archbishop on July 23, 1951. He attended all four 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 ...

in Rome between 1962 and 1965. During Hoban's 21-year-long tenure, the number of Catholics in the diocese increased from 546,000 to 870,000, even though the diocese lost six counties with the erection of the

Diocese of Youngstown The Diocese of Youngstown () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in northeastern Ohio in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Cin ...

in 1943. Hoban also established 61 parishes, 47 elementary schools, and a dozen high schools. Edward Hoban died in Cleveland on September 22, 1966, at age 88. He is buried in the

crypt A crypt (from Greek κρύπτη (kryptē) ''wikt:crypta#Latin, crypta'' "Burial vault (tomb), vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, Sarcophagus, sarcophagi, or Relic, religiou ...

of St. John's Cathedral.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoban, Edward Francis 1878 births 1966 deaths Clergy from Chicago Participants in the Second Vatican Council Roman Catholic bishops of Cleveland Roman Catholic bishops of Rockford 20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in the United States