Maurice Francis Burke (May 5, 1845 – March 17, 1923) was an Irish-born 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 ...

. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Cheyenne in Wyoming (1887–1893) and as bishop of the Diocese of Saint Joseph in Missouri (1893–1923).

Biography

Early life

Maurice Burke was born on May 5, 1845, in Knockainy,

County Limerick County Limerick () is a western Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Reg ...

, in Ireland to Francis Noonan and Joanna (née Casey) Burke. When he was four years old, his family immigrated to the United States, settling 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 ...

. He received his education at the

University of Saint Mary of the Lake The University of Saint Mary of the Lake (USML) is a private Roman Catholic seminary in Mundelein, Illinois. It is the principal seminary and school of theology for the formation of priests in the Archdiocese of Chicago in Illinois. USML was ...

in Chicago and at the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

in Notre Dame, Indiana. Burke continued his studies at the

Pontifical North American College The Pontifical North American College (NAC) is a Catholic Church, Roman Catholic educational institution in Rome, Italy, that prepares seminarians to become priests in the United States and elsewhere. The NAC also provides a residence for Prie ...

in Rome.

Priesthood

Burke 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 Archdiocese of Chicago by Cardinal

Costantino Patrizi Naro Costantino Patrizi Naro JUD (4 September 1798 – 17 December 1876) was a long-serving Italian Cardinal who became Dean of the College of Cardinals. Biography Born in Siena, Patrizi Naro was the son of Giovanni Patrizi Naro Montoro, 8th Marqui ...

on May 22, 1875. On his return to Chicago, Burke was assigned to serve as a

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' () of souls of a parish. In this sense, ''curate'' means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy who are as ...

at St. Mary's Parish in that city. After three years, he was appointed pastor of St. Mary's Church in

Joliet, Illinois Joliet ( ) is a city in Will County, Illinois, Will and Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, located southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County, Illinois, Will County. It had a population of ...

Bishop of Cheyenne

On August 9, 1887, Burke was appointed 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 new Diocese of Cheyenne by

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII (; born Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2March 181020July 1903) was head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 until his death in July 1903. He had the fourth-longest reign of any pope, behind those of Peter the Ap ...

. Burke 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 October 28, 1887, from Archbishop

Patrick Feehan Patrick Augustine Feehan (August 28, 1829 – July 12, 1902), was an Irish-born American Catholic prelate who served as the first Archbishop of Chicago from 1880 until his death in 1902. He previously served as Bishop of Nashville from 1865 t ...

, with Bishops William McCloskey and Henry Cosgrove 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 Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago. By 1889, the diocese had five priests and 5,000 parishioners spread over a huge area. In addition, he faced attacks by the

American Protective Association The American Protective Association (APA) was an American anti-Catholic secret society established in 1887 by Protestants. The organization was the largest anti-Catholic movement in the United States during the later part of the 19th century, sho ...

, an anti-Catholic and anti-Irish hate group. The virulence forced the

Sisters of Charity Many religious communities have the term Sisters of Charity in their name. Some ''Sisters of Charity'' communities refer to the Vincentian tradition alone, or in America to the tradition of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton (whose sisters are also of ...

to abandon their institutions in the diocese. Burke travelled to Rome to petition the Vatican to attach the diocese to a more established one, citing the dire conditions in Wyoming. The pope denied his request. In a letter to Katherine Drexel, Burke described himself as a "bishop in name only" without parishioners or priests. In 1893,

attached the Diocese of Cheyenne to the

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian churches, including those of both Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity, that have traditional hierarchical structures. An ecclesiastical province consist ...

Dubuque Dubuque (, ) is a city in Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. The population was 59,667 at the 2020 United States census. The city lies along the Mississippi River at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a region ...

, and transferred Burke to another diocese.

Bishop of Saint Joseph

Pope Leo XIII appointed Burke as bishop of the Diocese of Saint Joseph on June 19, 1893. During his tenure in Saint Joseph, he liquidated the heavy debt incurred by the construction of its cathedral, built an episcopal residence and a school for the cathedral parish, and opened new missions and parishes. Burke was considered an authority on the Italian writer

Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri (; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri; – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante, was an Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer, and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called ...

and served as president of the American Dante Society.

Death and legacy

After three years of failing health, Maurice Burke died in

St. Joseph, Missouri St. Joseph is a city in and county seat of Buchanan County, Missouri, Buchanan County, Missouri, United States. A small portion of the city extends north into Andrew County, Missouri, Andrew County. Located on the Missouri River, it is the princ ...

, on May 12, 1923, at age 77. Burke's collection of 3,000 books was donated to the

Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily a ...

in Washington, D.C.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Burke, Maurice Francis 19th-century Irish people 1845 births 1923 deaths Irish emigrants to the United States American Roman Catholic clergy of Irish descent Roman Catholic bishops of Cheyenne Roman Catholic bishops of Saint Joseph 19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States University of Notre Dame alumni University of Saint Mary of the Lake alumni