Theophile Meerschaert (24 August 1847 – 21 February 1924) was a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct language ...

-born

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

of the

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. He served as the

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

of the Diocese of Oklahoma (and its predecessor) in the

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from 1891 until his death in 1924.

Early life and education

Théophile Meerschaert was born on 24 August 1847 in Russeignies, a farming village near

Renaix Ronse (; french: Renaix, ) is a Belgian city and a municipality in the Flemish province of East Flanders. The municipality only encompasses the city of Ronse proper. History Early settlements to 14th century The hills around Ronse show clu ...

, in the province of

East Flanders , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Province of Belgium , image_flag = Flag of Oost-Vlaanderen.svg , flag_size = , image_shield = Wapen van O ...

in Belgium. He was the eighth of nine children of the peddler from Renaix, Pierre François Meerschaert, and his wife from Russeignies, Marie Therèse Gabreau. Théophile Meerscheart
Birth Certificate No. 12
filed 24 August 1847, Register of Births for the Year 1862, Russeignies, East Flanders, Belgium; in: ''FamilySearch'', "Belgium, Hainaut, Civil Registration,, 1600–1911"; Russeignies, ''Geboorten, huwelijken, overladen'' utch, "Births, Marriages, Deaths"1811–1870; Image 496, Left Page, Item 3. The titles and columns were in Dutch but the actual birth certificate was in French. In 1847, Russeignies still belonged to the province of East Flanders. It did not switch to the province of Hainaut until 1963. See "
Historie de la commune
'", ''Belgique – Russeignies (Rozenaken)'', at ''Geneawiki'' for more details. After studying at the College of Renaix (1859–1864) and the College of

Audenarde Oudenaarde (; french: Audenarde ; in English sometimes ''Oudenarde'') is a Belgian municipality in the Flemish province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Oudenaarde proper and the towns of Bevere, Edelare, Eine, Ename, H ...

(1864–1868), he entered the American College of Louvain in 1868, having been moved by word of the needs and opportunities in the

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missions.

Ordination and ministry

Meerschaert was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

to the priesthood on 23 December 1871 in

Mechelen Mechelen (; french: Malines ; traditional English name: MechlinMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical contex ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

. He left for the

in September 1872, arriving at

Natchez Natchez may refer to: Places * Natchez, Alabama, United States * Natchez, Indiana, United States * Natchez, Louisiana, United States * Natchez, Mississippi, a city in southwestern Mississippi, United States * Grand Village of the Natchez, a site o ...

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

in the following October. For the next 19 years he labored among the difficult circumstances of the

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Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *''Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Union ...

. He was appointed to

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and Harrison Counties in November 1872, and transferred to

Ocean Springs Ocean Springs is a city in Jackson County, Mississippi, United States, approximately east of Biloxi and west of Gautier. It is part of the Pascagoula, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 17,225 at the 2000 U.S. Census. ...

in August 1874. In October 1875, Meerschaert was felled by

yellow fever Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. In ...

and his case thought hopeless, but he eventually recovered. He worked in

Bay St. Louis Bay St. Louis is a city in and the county seat of Hancock County, Mississippi, Hancock County, Mississippi, in the United States. Located on the Gulf Coast on the west side of the Bay of St. Louis, it is part of the Gulfport, Mississippi, Gulfp ...

for a year before returning to Natchez in August 1880. He became

vicar general A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ...

of the Diocese of Natchez on 18 April 1887, and later

apostolic administrator An Apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...

(1888–1889) after Bishop

Francis Janssens Francis August Anthony Joseph Janssens (October 17, 1843 – June 9, 1897) was a Dutch-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Natchez in Mississippi (1881–1888) and as archbishop of the Archdiocese o ...

was promoted to

Archbishop of New Orleans The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans ( la, Archidioecesis Novae Aureliae, french: Archidiocèse de la Nouvelle-Orléans, es, Arquidiócesis de Nueva Orleans) is an ecclesiastical division of the Roman Catholic Church spanning Jefferson ...

in 1888. He also served as

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of St. Mary's Cathedral.

Vicar Apostolic in Oklahoma

On 2 June 1891, Meerschaert was appointed

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 pref ...

Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United St ...

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

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 ''

Sidyma Sidyma ( grc, Σίδυμα), was a town of ancient Lycia, at what is now the small village of Dudurga Asari in Muğla Province, Turkey. It lies on the southern slope of Mount Cragus, to the north-west of the mouth of the Xanthus. History Sidy ...

'' by

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-old ...

.Brown, Thomas Elton. "Review of Diary of a Frontier Bishop: The Journals of Theophile Meerschaert ed. by James D. White". ''The Catholic Historical Review'', vol. 83 no. 3, 1997, p. 522-522. Project MUSE
He received his

episcopal consecration A bishop is an ordained clergy member 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 of dioceses. The role or offic ...

on the following 8 September from Archbishop Janssens, with Bishops Edward Fitzgerald and

Thomas Heslin Thomas Heslin (April 17, 1847 – February 22, 1911) was an Irish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Natchez in Mississippi from 1889 until his death in 1911. Biography Early life One of seven ...

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 Churches, ...

, at St. Mary's Cathedral. En route to his new assignment, he celebrated the first

Pontifical High Mass A Pontifical High Mass, also called Solemn Pontifical Mass, is a Solemn or High Mass celebrated by a bishop using certain prescribed ceremonies. Although in modern English the word "pontifical" is almost exclusively associated with the pope, an ...

Oklahoma Territory The Territory of Oklahoma was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 2, 1890, until November 16, 1907, when it was joined with the Indian Territory under a new constitution and admitted to the Union as th ...

on 20 September 1891, at Guthrie. At the time of his arrival, the vicariate had three diocesan priests, 23

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

monks, 21 churches, seven

day schools A day school — as opposed to a boarding school — is an educational institution where children and adolescents are given instructions during the day, after which the students return to their homes. A day school has full-day programs when comp ...

, five

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boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exten ...

s, one

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

, one

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

, six

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

s and about 5,000 Catholics. By the time of his death, the Church in Oklahoma had an elevenfold increase in Catholics, and churches and schools multiplied by some seven and five times respectively. Meerschaert also dedicated about 100 new churches and recruited around a dozen American-born clergy during his tenure.

Bishop of Oklahoma

Meerschaert was named the first Bishop of Oklahoma on 23 August 1905, when

Pope Pius X Pope Pius X ( it, Pio 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 modernist interpretations of C ...

raised the vicariate to the rank of a

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, pro ...

. For thirty-two years as the Bishop, Meerschaert kept a detailed diary about his life and career in Oklahoma. It was edited and published as a book seventy years after his death. Meerschaert died on 21 February 1924 at St. Anthony's Hospital in

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...

, aged 76. Originally buried at Fairlawn Cemetery in Oklahoma City, his remains were transferred to the Bishops' Vault at Resurrection Cemetery, also in Oklahoma City.

Writings

Theophile Meerschaert, author, and James D. White, editor, ''Diary of a frontier bishop: The journals of Theophile Meerschaert'' (

Tulsa Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma and List of United States cities by population, 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

, Oklahoma: Sarto Press, 1994),

References

External links

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Oklahoma City
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meerschaert, Theophile 1847 births 1924 deaths People from East Flanders Belgian emigrants to the United States Belgian Roman Catholic missionaries 19th-century Belgian Roman Catholic priests 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States Catholic Church in Mississippi Roman Catholic bishops of Oklahoma City Catholic University of Leuven (1834–1968) alumni American College of the Immaculate Conception alumni Religious leaders from Mississippi Roman Catholic missionaries in the United States 19th-century American Roman Catholic priests