Roman Catholic Diocese of Saginaw

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Diocese of Saginaw Dioecesis Saginavensis
Cathedral of Mary of the Assumption
Location
Country	United States
Territory	Counties of Arenac, Bay, Clare, Gladwin, Gratiot, Huron, Isabella, Midland, Saginaw, Sanilac and Tuscola.
Ecclesiastical province	Detroit
Statistics
Area	6,955 sq mi (18,010 km2)
Population - Total - Catholics (including non-members)	(as of 2017) 804,885 153,260 (19%)
Parishes	56
Information
Denomination	Catholic
Sui iuris church	Latin Church
Rite	Roman Rite
Established	February 26, 1938 (83 years ago)
Cathedral	Cathedral of Mary of the Assumption
Current leadership
Pope	Francis
Bishop	Robert Dwayne Gruss
Map
Website
saginaw.org

The Diocese of Saginaw (Latin: Dioecesis Saginavensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church covering eleven counties in Michigan. It was founded on February 26, 1938; the first bishop was William Francis Murphy.

As of 2013 the diocese of Saginaw had 113 priests, 19 permanent deacons, 122 religious, 18 pastoral administrator, 261 commissioned lay ministers, and 24 seminarians. There are 26 Catholic schools in the diocese with a total enrollment of 4,033 students in 3 high schools, 1 middle school, and 22 elementary schools. There are 101,000 Catholics (19.3% of the total population of 724,142) in 56 parishes. The Diocese of Saginaw is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Detroit.

Map of the present diocesan boundaries with parishes indicated

Geography[]

The Saginaw Diocese is located in Central Michigan and The Thumb and consists of eleven counties, covering 6,955 square miles (18,010 km²). Overall, the population is roughly an even split between urban and rural. The three major urban centers are Saginaw, Bay City, and Midland.

History[]

In 1831, Alexis de Tocqueville visited Saginaw. The United States was a young nation—about 50 years old—and he had come to record his impressions of America, its people, and their way of life. Saginaw was the northernmost point of his travels. At the time of his visit, Saginaw was considered a wilderness. A small community of about 30 people lived here, compared to Detroit which had 3,000 inhabitants. Pius VIII was pope, and Saginaw was part of the Diocese of Cincinnati. There were no parishes within the area that comprises the Diocese of Saginaw today. Pope Pius XI formed the Diocese of Saginaw in 1938 in 16 counties in the Thumb and Forefinger of Michigan, that he separated from the Diocese of Grand Rapids and the Archdiocese of Detroit.

Early years[]

Upon creating the diocese, Pope Pius appointed Msgr. William F. Murphy, pastor of St. David Parish in Detroit, as the first bishop. The 1938 P.J. Kenedy Official Catholic Directory notes that the new Saginaw Diocese had a Catholic population of 77,705, 81 parishes, 31 missions, 112 priests, 41 parishes with schools (of which 17 were high schools), two hospitals, a children's home and a residence for working girls.

To Bishop Murphy fell the task of organizing this new diocese. He purchased an episcopal residence and a chancery office, and appointed officials needed for the administration of the diocese: Vicar-general, chancellor, deans of the four districts, secretary, marriage tribunal personnel.

Early on the agenda was the formation of a Catholic Charities department, which was initially sponsored by a new League of Catholic Women. He also began a special seminary collection for the education of future priests, as well as a Clergy Benefit society to provide for retired and disabled priests.

For the large migrant and resident Spanish-speaking population, the bishop established the Guadalupe Clinic and the Mexican Apostolate, and for the aging, the St. Francis Home. On February 7, 1950, Bishop Murphy died. Pope Pius XII appointed Bishop Stephen S. Woznicki as head of the diocese on March 28, 1950.

Post-war Growth[]

In these years following World War II, the church of Saginaw (like most U.S. dioceses) underwent tremendous growth, with new parishes and missions. In 1956, the Capuchin Fathers agreed to erect Queen of Angels Retreat House to serve the spiritual needs of lay residents and priests of the area.

Since the establishment of the Saginaw Diocese, the education of seminarians was a major concern of its bishops. In 1956, Bishop Woznicki's advisors voted to establish a six-year boarding school for the high school and junior college years of seminarians. The official founding of St. Paul's Seminary took place in 1957, the same year that Fr. James A. Hickey was appointed its rector. In 1961, the seminary opened, however lack of vocations forced it to close in 1970. The building is now the diocesan headquarters and home to Nouvel Catholic Central High School. Bishop Woznicki died in 1968, and was succeeded by Bishop Francis Frederick Reh from the Diocese of Charleston in South Carolina. Bishop Reh began to implement changes mandated by the Second Vatican Council in the Saginaw Diocese and established a Clergy Personnel Board to aid him in clergy assignments. A tenure policy limited priests' assignments to a nine-year maximum.

After Vatican II[]

The former four-deanery division of the diocese was multiplied into 12 vicariates. The time-honored tax quota system for diocesan support (employed by many dioceses) transformed into a Catholic Services Appeal directly to the people for their voluntary contributions. In 1975, Bishop Reh renovated and liturgically updated his Cathedral Church of St. Mary. He also established a Diocesan Pastoral Council of lay advisors to himself, as well as an advisory Senate of Priests. Also developed was a Liturgy office, a Finance Board, Latin American Affairs department, Black Catholic Concerns department, and a Human Services Council.

In 1971, the Diocese of Saginaw underwent another change when Pope Paul VI formed the new Diocese of Gaylord from the northern part of the Saginaw Diocese. Although Clare County and Isabella County were added to Saginaw diocesan territory, the re-alignment reduced the diocese from 16 counties to 11 spread across mid-Michigan into the Thumb area.

Over the years, three men from the Saginaw Diocese have gone on to serve the Church as bishops: Cardinal James A. Hickey (retired archbishop of the Washington, D.C. Archdiocese), Kenneth Joseph Povish (retired bishop of the Lansing Diocese), and Bishop Joseph Victor Adamec of Altoona-Johnstown Diocese.

Into the New Millennium[]

In 1980, Pope John Paul II appointed Kenneth E. Untener, rector of St. John's Provincial Seminary in Plymouth, Michigan, as the fourth bishop of Saginaw. In 1982, Bishop Untener initiated a Come Home program at Christmas time to invite alienated Catholics back to the Church. He has also worked to re-establish the traditional practices of Lent. In the 1990s, he established a commission for women, a diocesan Office for Stewardship and Development, a Catholic Schools Foundation, and a new Center for Ministry which is located next to the diocesan offices. Bishop Untener died of leukemia March 27, 2004.^[1]

In late 2004, Pope John Paul II appointed Bishop Robert J. Carlson of the Diocese of Sioux Falls as the fifth bishop of Saginaw. Since his installation in early 2005, Bishop Carlson has emphasized vocations, liturgical renewal, and evangelization within the Saginaw Diocese. The number of seminarians increased from 4 in 2004, to 12 in 2005, and in 2006 to 19 men studying for the priesthood.^[2] The first permanent deacon in over 25 years was ordained in August 2006,^[3] and two men were ordained to the transitional diaconate in November 2006. Several events sponsored by the Knights of Columbus, the Serra Club, and the bishop's office have been held raise funds for seminarians and to increase vocations awareness. The diocese has also implemented a series of Saint Andrew dinners to invite young men to an informal meal and discussion on vocations.

In the summer of 2006 Bishop Carlson promulgated the letter "We Have Come to Worship Him" outlining liturgical directives and norms for the renewal of worship in the Saginaw Diocese. A month later, the Ablaze Youth Conference was held in Standish with several hundred young people in attendance. In 2007 the diocese began an evangelization initiative to reach out to all families in the diocese through the Faith Saginaw magazine,^[4] sent a group of 230 people to the March for Life in Washington, D.C.,^[5] and held a four-day Eucharistic Congress that summer which included the ordination of two men to the priesthood, and five to the transitional diaconate.

On Tuesday, April 21, 2009, it was announced that Bishop Carlson would succeed Raymond Leo Burke, now the Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura (Catholicism's highest court), as Archbishop of Saint Louis. On May 20, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI named Bishop Joseph Robert Cistone, auxiliary bishop and vicar general of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and titular bishop of Casae Medianae, as the sixth Bishop of the Diocese of Saginaw.^[6] Bishop Cistone was installed on July 28, 2009, and served until his death from lung cancer, which was announced on October 16, 2018.^[7] After his passing, the new bishop, Robert Dwayne Gruss, was installed in 2019 with his ordination held at Holy Spirit Catholic Church instead of the cathedral.

Early in 2020, as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, Bishop Gruss suspended Mass throughout the diocese as a precaution to prevent parishioners from becoming infected with the virus and spreading it. Masses would resume in early April depending on the status of the coronavirus pandemic, possibly on Palm Sunday at the end of the Lent season, but many diocese around the United States have decided that Mass may not resume until some time after Easter Sunday. As a result of suspending Mass until further notice, Bishop Gruss switched over to broadcasting Mass from the Cathedral of Mary of the Assumption via WNEM TV 5 and other Saginaw news outlets so parishioners could still pray with him on Sundays from home until the stay-at-home lockdown issued by Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer against the COVID-19 pandemic is lifted. However, as months passed, Gruss permitted Mass to resume across the diocese, but precautions were still implemented to prevent spread of the virus, such as some areas of the pews being off-limits to maintain social distancing, the baptismal font was disabled except for when baptism is celebrated, and Communion stations reduced to minimize exposure, along with face masks being mandatory and hand sanitizer located at various spots around the churches.

By the summer of 2021, with new regulations released by the Center for Disease Control and Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, parishioners having been given the COVID-19 vaccination were permitted to attend Mass without masks, the baptismal font was restarted, pews were opened up, with social distancing still being suggested, but several restrictions were still kept in place, such as disabled drinking fountains, mandatory hand sanitizer stations, masks for the non-vaccinated, and the pastor not being assisted by altar boys or girls for the time being. The start of autumn 2021 would see altar servers being permitted to assist the pastor again, Communion stations would be returned to their original pre-pandemic settings, minus the serving of the chalices containing the Blood of Christ for the time being, and pews still cordoned off would be opened up again. Masks would still be considered optional for both the vaccinated and non-vaccinated.

Bishops[]

Bishops of the Diocese of Saginaw

Bishops of Saginaw[]

1. William Francis Murphy (1938-1950†)
2. Stephen Stanislaus Woznicki (1950-1968, retired †)
3. Francis Frederick Reh (1968-1980, retired †)
4. Kenneth Edward Untener (1980-2004†)
5. Robert James Carlson (2005-2009), appointed Archbishop of Saint Louis
6. Joseph Robert Cistone (2009-2018†)
7. Robert Dwayne Gruss (2019-)

Former auxiliary bishop of Saginaw[]

• James Aloysius Hickey (1967-1974), appointed Bishop of Cleveland and later Archbishop of Washington (elevated to Cardinal in 1988) †

Other priest of this diocese who became bishop[]

• Kenneth Joseph Povish, appointed Bishop of Crookston in 1970 and later Bishop of Lansing †

Coat of arms[]

The coat of arms for the Diocese of Saginaw shows a cross in red on a silver field. There are four flames which symbolize the tongues of fire of Pentecost. The name "Saginaw" means the "Place of the Sauk," who were known to the first Europeans as "Gens de Feu" (People of the Fire). Also, because the cathedral is dedicated to St. Mary and her Assumption, in the center of the cross is a six-pointed star. In addition to symbolizing that the Virgin Mary is the House of David, the six pointed star is also one of the heraldic attributes used to indicate the Assumption of Mary.

Churches[]

Religious institutes[]

The Diocese of Saginaw is home to three Motherhouses: the Franciscan Poor Clare Nuns (Sisters of St. Clare); the Mission Sisters of the Holy Spirit; and the Religious Sisters of Mercy. It also hosts 15 women's religious institutes working in various apostolates: the Bernardine Sisters of St. Francis; Consolata Mission Sisters; Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul; Dominican Sisters; Felician Sisters; Servants of Jesus; Sisters of Charity; Sisters of Mercy of the Americas; Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, Sisters of St Joseph of Chambrey; Sisters of St. Joseph; Sisters of the Precious Blood; Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary; Sisters for Christian Community; and the School Sisters of Notre Dame. Four religious institutes of men are represented in the diocese: the Capuchin Fathers, Franciscan Friars, Society of Jesus (Jesuits), and the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales.

High schools[]

• All Saints Central High School, Bay City
• Nouvel Catholic Central High School, Saginaw
• Sacred Heart Academy High School, Mt. Pleasant

See also[]

• Catholic Church by country
• Catholic Church hierarchy
• Historical list of the Catholic bishops of the United States
• List of the Catholic dioceses of the United States
• Lists of patriarchs, archbishops, and bishops

References[]

External links[]

• Roman Catholic Diocese of Saginaw Official Site
• Catholic Hierarchy page on Diocese of Saginaw
• Bishops of the Diocese of Saginaw page
• Diocese of Saginaw Vocations page
• Article about Saginaw Vocations
• Faith Saginaw Magazine website
• Michigan Knights of Columbus website
• Saginaw Serra Club website
• Serra International USA Council website

Coordinates: 43°25′31″N 83°56′12″W / 43.42528°N 83.93667°W / 43.42528; -83.93667