Paul Peter Rhode (; September 18, 1871 – March 3, 1945) was a

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 Western Slavic (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

) origin 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 ...

in USA. He served as

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 Diocese of Green Bay in Wisconsin from 1915 until his death in 1945. Rhode was the first Pole and Kashubian to be elevated to an American bishopric.

Biography

Early life and education

Paul Rhode was born in Neustadt in the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...

German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...

(now part of Poland) to Augustin and Krystyna Rhode. Augustin died in Prussia while Paul Rhode was a young boy. When he was age nine, his family immigrated to the United States in the

Kashubian diaspora The Kashubian diaspora resulted from the emigration of Kashubians mainly in two waves occurring in the second half of the 19th century. The majority of Kashubian emigrants settled in the United States; others emigrated to Canada and Brazil. An onlin ...

, 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 ...

. Rhode was first educated at St. Mary's College in Hardin's Creek, Kentucky. He then attended St. Ignatius College in Chicago, where he completed his classical and philosophical studies. Rhode completed his theological studies at St. Francis Seminary in St. Francis, Wisconsin.

Ordination and ministry

Rhode 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 Bishop

Frederick Katzer Frederick Xavier Katzer (February 7, 1844 – July 20, 1903) was an Austrians, Austrian-born Catholic Church in the United States, American Catholic prelate who served as Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee, Archbishop of Milwaukee from 1891 t ...

on June 17, 1894. His first assignment was 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. Adalbert Parish in Chicago, where he remained for two years. In 1896, Rhode was appointed as the first

pastor A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...

of SS. Peter and Paul, a

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

for Polish Catholics in the McKinley Park section of Chicago. He was named pastor of St. Michael Parish in

South Chicago South Chicago, formerly known as Ainsworth, is one of the 77 community areas of Chicago, Illinois. This chevron-shaped community is one of Chicago's 16 lakefront neighborhoods near the southern rim of Lake Michigan 10 miles south of downtow ...

in 1897.

Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago

By the early 1900s, waves of immigrants from

Partitioned Poland Partition may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Partition'' (1987 film), directed by Ken McMullen * ''Partition'' (2007 film), directed by Vic Sarin * '' Partition: 1947'', or ''Viceroy's House'', a 2017 film Music * Par ...

had created notable demand for a Polish bishop, and the issue was acknowledged by church officials in the United States. After the matter was eventually raised to

Pope Pius X Pope Pius X (; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing Modernism in the Catholic Church, modern ...

, Archbishop Quigley finally managed to convinced Rome of the need, and an election was held.Trisco, R. F., & Catholic Church National Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee for the Bicentennial. (1976). ''Catholics in America, 1776-1976.'' National Conference of Catholic Bishops, Committee for the Bicentennial. p. 91. On May 22, 1908, Rhode was appointed

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 ''Barca'' by

. Since he was the first Pole in America to be named a bishop, this occasion was celebrated with special joy by the

Polish American Polish Americans () are Americans who either have total or partial Polish ancestry, or are citizens of the Republic of Poland. There are an estimated 8.81 million self-identified Polish Americans, representing about 2.67% of the U.S. population, ...

community. 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 July 29, 1908, from Archbishop

James Edward Quigley James Edward Quigley (October 15, 1854 – July 10, 1915) was a Canadian-born American Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Chicago from 1903 to 1915. He previously served as Bishop of Buffalo from 1897 to 1903. Biography Early life a ...

, with Bishops

Peter Muldoon Peter J. Muldoon (October 10, 1863 – October 8, 1927) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the first bishop of the new Diocese of Rockford in Illinois from 1908 until his death in 1927. He previously served as ...

and Joseph Koudelka 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 ...

. He served 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 ...

of the archdiocesae from 1909 to 1915.

Bishop of Green Bay

Following the resignation of Bishop Joseph J. Fox, Rhode was appointed the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay by

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 ...

on July 15, 1915. During his tenure, he established 10 parishes and 19 parochial schools, and organized the diocesan

Catholic Charities The Catholic Church operates numerous charitable organizations. Catholic spiritual teaching includes spreading the Gospel, while Catholic social teaching emphasises support for the sick, the poor and the afflicted through the corporal and spir ...

and a department of education. Paul Rhode died at Mercy Hospital in

Oshkosh, Wisconsin Oshkosh () is a city in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is located on the western shore of Lake Winnebago and had a population of 66,816 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List o ...

, on March 3, 1945, at age 73.

Notes

External links

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago

Roman Catholic Diocese of Green Bay
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rhode, Paul Peter 1871 births 1945 deaths People from Wejherowo People from the Province of Prussia German emigrants to the United States American people of Kashubian descent Roman Catholic bishops of Green Bay 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Kashubian clergy Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago St. Francis Seminary (Wisconsin) alumni Loyola University Chicago alumni