Jean-Marie Odin, C.M. (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

: John Mary; February 25, 1800 – May 25, 1870) was a French-born prelate of the

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 ...

and a member of the

Congregation of the Mission The Congregation of the Mission (), abbreviated CM and commonly called the Vincentians or Lazarists, is a Catholic Church, Catholic society of apostolic life of pontifical right for men founded by Vincent de Paul. It is associated with the Vin ...

. He served as the second

Archbishop of New Orleans The Archdiocese of New Orleans (; ; ) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical division of the Catholic Church spanning Jefferson (except Grand Isle), Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. John the Baptist, St. Tammany, and Washingto ...

from 1861 to 1870. Odin previously served as the first Vicar Apostolic of Texas from 1841 to 1847 and as the first Bishop of Galveston from 1847 to 1861. He has been called the father of the Catholic Church in

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

Biography

Early life

The seventh of ten children, Jean-Marie Odin was born in Hauteville, an hamlet inside the city of Ambierle in the Department of Loire in France to Jean Odin and Claudine Marie (née Seyrol) Odin. After showing interest in Catholicism at age nine, Odin's parents sent him to study

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

under his uncle, the pastor of

Noailly Noailly () is a commune in the Loire department in central France. Population See also *Communes of the Loire department The following is a list of the 320 communes of the Loire department of France. The communes cooperate in the follo ...

.Randolph, Bartholomew. "John Mary Odin." ''The Catholic Encyclopedia''
Vol. 11. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. November 22, 2017 After his uncle died, he returned home to study on his own Odin eventually attended schools in

Roanne Roanne (; ; ) is a commune in the Loire department, central France. It is located northwest of Lyon on the river Loire. It has an important Museum, the ''Musée des Beaux-arts et d'Archéologie Joseph-Déchelette'' (French), with many Egypt ...

in Verrières, then began his studies in

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

at L'Argentière and

Alix ''Alix'', or ''The Adventures of Alix'', is a Franco-Belgian comics series drawn in the ligne claire style by Jacques Martin. The stories revolve around a young Gallo-Roman man named Alix in the late Roman Republic. Although the series is ren ...

. He finally ended up at the

Sulpician The Society of Priests of Saint-Sulpice (; PSS), also known as the Sulpicians, is a society of apostolic life of Pontifical Right for men, named after the Church of Saint-Sulpice, Paris, where it was founded. The members of the Society add the ...

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

. In 1822, while still in seminary, Odin was recruited by a representative of Bishop Louis Dubourg to do mission work for the Archdiocese of New Orleans. That same year, Odin immigrated to the United States, After arriving in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, the archbishop sent him to Perryville, Missouri, to complete his formation as a priest at St. Mary's of the Barrens Seminary in Perryville, Missouri. Odin professed his vows for the

(also known as the Vincentians) on November 8, 1822

Priesthood

Odin 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 Vicentians by Bishop Dubourg on May 4, 1823. After his ordination, Dubourg performed missionary work in New Madrid, Missiouri, and with Native American tribes along the

Arkansas River The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in Colorado, specifically ...

. He also became a faculty member at St. Mary's Seminary, later being named president. Odin accompanied Bishop

Joseph Rosati Joseph Rosati, CM (30 January 1789 – 25 September 1843) was an Italian-born Catholic missionary to the United States who served as the first bishop of the Diocese of Saint Louis in the Missouri Territory from 1826 to 1843. He built the first ...

to the

Second Provincial Council of Baltimore The Provincial Councils of Baltimore were councils of Roman Catholic bishops that set the pattern for Catholic organisation in the United States. They took place in Baltimore. They were seen as having a unique importance for the Church in the Uni ...

in 1833 as theologian. He briefly served as pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Parish in

Cape Girardeau, Missouri Cape Girardeau ( , ; colloquially referred to as "Cape") is a city in Cape Girardeau County, Missouri, Cape Girardeau and Scott County, Missouri, Scott Counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the ...

, opening a

Catholic school Catholic schools are Parochial school, parochial pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest parochial schools, religious, no ...

there in 1838. On October 24, 1839,

Pope Gregory XVI Pope Gregory XVI (; ; born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari; 18 September 1765 – 1 June 1846) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1831 to his death in June 1846. He had adopted the name Mauro upon enteri ...

erected the

Apostolic Prefecture An apostolic prefect or prefect apostolic is a priest who heads what is known as an apostolic prefecture, a 'pre-diocesan' missionary jurisdiction where the Catholic Church is not yet sufficiently developed to have it made a diocese. Although it ...

of Texas, to cover the territory of the newly independent

Republic of Texas The Republic of Texas (), or simply Texas, was a country in North America that existed for close to 10 years, from March 2, 1836, to February 19, 1846. Texas shared borders with Centralist Republic of Mexico, the Republic of the Rio Grande, an ...

. After Odin was assigned as vice-

prefect apostolic An apostolic prefect or prefect apostolic is a priest who heads what is known as an apostolic prefecture, a 'pre-diocesan' missionary jurisdiction where the Catholic Church is not yet sufficiently developed to have it made a diocese. Although it ...

under Reverend

John Timon John Timon, CM (February 12, 1797 – April 16, 1867) was an American Catholic prelate who served as the first Bishop of Buffalo and founded the Brothers of the Holy Infancy. He was a member of the Vincentians. Biography Early life John Tim ...

, he moved to Texas. Odin worked to bring Catholics back Catholics who had left the church during the

Texas Revolution The Texas Revolution (October 2, 1835 – April 21, 1836) was a rebellion of colonists from the United States and Tejanos (Hispanic Texans) against the Centralist Republic of Mexico, centralist government of Mexico in the Mexican state of ...

as well as to proselytize among Protestants and Native Americans. In December 1840, Gregory XVI appointed Odin as

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 what was then the

Diocese of Detroit The Archdiocese of Detroit () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or archdiocese, of the Catholic Church covering the south-east portion of Michigan in the United States. The archdiocese consists counties of Lapeer County, Michigan, Lap ...

, but Odin declined the position.

Vicar Apostolic of Texas

On July 16, 1841, Gregory XVI appointed Odin as the first

vicar apostolic A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...

of Texas and titular bishop of ''

Claudiopolis in Isauria Claudiopolis () is the name of a number of ancient cities named after Roman emperor Claudius or another person bearing that name (in the case of Cluj-Napoca), notably: ; in Turkey * Claudiopolis (Bithynia) or Bithynium * Claudiopolis (Bolu) * Cla ...

'' . 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 March 6, 1842, from Bishop

Antoine Blanc Antoine Blanc (11 October 1792 – 20 June 1860) was the fifth Bishop and first Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans. His tenure, during which the diocese was elevated to an archdiocese, was at a time of growth in the city ...

, with Bishops

Michael Portier Michael Portier (September 7, 1795, Montbrison, France – May 14, 1859, Mobile, Alabama) was an American Catholic bishop who served as the first Bishop of Mobile from 1829 until his death in 1859. Portier emigrated from France in 1817, a ...

and John J. Chanche 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 ...

, at New Orleans. With the assistance of the French ''

chargé d'affaires A (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador. The term is Frenc ...

'', Alphonse Dubois de Saligny, Odin successfully negotiated the Texas government's confirmation of the church's title to fifteen acres in

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

. During his tenure, the Texan Congress returned several churches that had been secularized by the Mexican Government. He opened several schools and invited the Ursuline nuns as the first

religious community Religious community may refer to: * Church (congregation), a religious organization or congregation that meets in a particular location * Confessional community, a group of people with similar religious beliefs * Institute of consecrated life, a ...

in Texas to operate them.Meehan, Thomas. "Galveston." ''The Catholic Encyclopedia''
Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. November 22, 2017 In December 1845, the Republic of Texas was accepted into the United States as the

State of Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

Bishop of Galveston

On May 21, 1847, Odin was named the first

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the newly erected Diocese of Galveston, which include all of Texas. He recruited the Brothers of Mary and Oblates of Mary to operate St. Mary's University at Galveston, which he established in 1854. He also completed arduous visitations into the more remote parts of Texas, and twice visited Europe to secure priests and material help for the diocese. By the end of his tenure, he had increased the number of priests to 84 and the number of churches to 50; for his many efforts he has been called the father of the modern Catholic Church in Texas.

Archbishop of New Orleans

Odin was appointed the second archbishop of New Orleans by

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...

on February 15, 1861. When Odin arrived in New Orleans,

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

had seceded from the United States and the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

had started. Like many other Catholic clergy in the

American South The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, Dixieland, or simply the South) is census regions United States Census Bureau. It is between the Atlantic Ocean and the ...

, Odin was a

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

sympathizer. He was one of Pope Pius IX's contacts in his unsuccessful attempts to mediate a peace agreement to end the war. Odin allowed priests from the diocese to serve as chaplains in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...

and nuns from the diocese served in

field hospital A field hospital is a temporary hospital or mobile medical unit that takes care of casualties on-site before they can be safely transported to more permanent facilities. This term was initially used in military medicine (such as the Mobile ...

s across the southern states. New Orleans was occupied by the Union Army in May 1862. Union Army troops used several church buildings for offices, hospitals and barracks. With the finances of the archdiocese impacted by the war, Odin issued austerity measures in January 1863 that met with significant opposition. That winter, he went to Rome to obtain papal approval for his financial plan. While in Europe, he recruited 30 seminarians and five

Ursulines The Ursulines, also known as the Order of Saint Ursula (post-nominals: OSU), is an enclosed religious order of women that in 1572 branched off from the Angelines, also known as the Company of Saint Ursula. The Ursulines trace their origins to th ...

nuns to move to New Orleans in early 1863.Points, Marie Louise. "New Orleans." ''The Catholic Encyclopedia''
Vol. 11. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. November 22, 2017 In April 1863, Odin returned to New Orleans. Odin soon ran into conflict with Father Claude Paschal Maistre, a French priest who was a strong advocate of the abolition of slavery. Odin put Maistre's parish under an interdict in May 1863, accusing Maistre of "preaching the love of liberty and independence" to slaves and "exciting insurrection against their masters". When Maistre officiated the funeral of André Cailloux, a mixed-race soldier in the Union Army who died heroically, Odin expressed his condemnation. Odin discovered that Maistre had left France under a cloud of accusations of financial impropriety; he used this as a pretext to restrict Maistre. Maistre was only accepted back in good standing to the priesthood after Odin's death. Odin incorporated the archdiocese in 1866 and closed the diocesan

in 1867 due to lack of funds. He founded the diocesan newspaper, ''The Morning Star'' in February 1868. Odin went to Rome to attend the

First Vatican Council The First Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the First Vatican Council or Vatican I, was the 20th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church, held three centuries after the preceding Council of Trent which was adjourned in 156 ...

in 1869, but left the city early for health reasons. Suffering from neuralgia and in overall poor health, Odin went home to Saint-Georges-Haute-Ville to convalesce. He would never return to the United States

Death and legacy

Jean-Marie Odie died in Ambierle (Department of Loire) on May 25, 1870, at age 70. File:TombeJMOdin.jpg, alt=Jean-Marie Odin's tombstone, church of Ambierle, Archbishop Odin's tombstone, church of Ambierle File:EpitapheJMOdin.jpg, alt=Epitaph of Jean-Marie Odin's tombstone, church of Ambierle, Epitaph on Odin's tombstone

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Odin, Jean-Marie 1802 births 1847 deaths People from Loire (department) Vincentians French expatriates in the United States French Roman Catholic missionaries American military chaplains Vincentian bishops 19th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in the United States Roman Catholic archbishops of New Orleans Catholic Church in Texas Foreign Confederate military personnel Roman Catholic Ecclesiastical Province of Galveston–Houston Roman Catholic missionaries in the United States Roman Catholic bishops of Galveston–Houston French proslavery activists