Joseph Ritter Explained

Type:Cardinal
Honorific-Prefix:His Eminence
Joseph Elmer Ritter
Cardinal, Archbishop of St. Louis
See:St. Louis
Appointed:July 20, 1946
Ended:June 10, 1967
Predecessor:John J. Glennon
Successor:John Carberry
Ordination:May 30, 1917
Ordained By:Joseph Chartrand
Consecration:March 28, 1933
Consecrated By:Joseph Chartrand
Cardinal:January 16, 1961
Created Cardinal By:John XXIII
Rank:Cardinal-Priest
Other Post:Cardinal-Priest of Santissimo Redentore e Sant'Alfonso in Via Merulan
Birth Date:July 20, 1892
Birth Place:New Albany, Indiana, US
Death Place:St. Louis, Missouri, US
Motto:Ipsa duce non fatigaris
(The leader has not wearied)
Miles es Christi sum
(I am a soldier of Christ)

Joseph Elmer Ritter (July 20, 1892 – June 10, 1967) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of St. Louis from 1946 until his death in 1967, and was created a cardinal in 1961. He previously served as auxiliary bishop (1933–1934) and bishop (later archbishop) (1934–1946) of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. Ritter was one of the cardinals elector who participated at the papal conclave in 1963.

Ritter is noted for ending racial discrimination in church schools in both of his archdioceses long before it became mandatory in the United States. He also ended hospital segregation in the Archdiocese of St. Louis and supported the education of African-American students.

Early life and education

Born July 20, 1892, in New Albany, Indiana, Elmer Joseph Ritter was the fourth of Nicholas (1859–1944) and Bertha (née Luette) (1865–1941) Ritter's six children.[1] His father owned and operated the Ritter Bakery (where the family also lived). Both of Ritter's parents were of German descent.[2] As a 1946 newspaper article said "It was one of those shops, now rare, in which the whole family, the mother, father and the whole family had to help, either in the store part, which was in the front, or in the bakery which was in the rear."[3]

Ritter said his father had a great reverence of education, saying, "Dad gave us all a chance to go to college, but only if we applied ourselves."[3] Ritter received his early education at the parochial school of St. Mary of the Annunciation Church in New Albany where he was called "Apple-Pie Ritter".[4]

Religious calling

During the seventh grade, Ritter decided to enter the priesthood. Ritter said "There was no vision, no voice from heaven. I simply wanted to be a priest."[5] In 1907, he enrolled at St. Meinrad's Seminary in Saint Meinrad, Indiana, where he completed his studies in 1917.[1]

Priesthood

Ritter was ordained to the priesthood at the St. Meinrad Seminary's Abbey Church on May 30, 1917, by Bishop Joseph Chartrand. His first assignment was as a curate at St. Patrick's Parish in Indianapolis.[4] Shortly afterwards, he was transferred to Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral Parish, also in Indianapolis[5] where he served as assistant to the bishop in 1920 and rector of the cathedral in 1925 to 1933.[3] [1] In 1922, Ritter received an honorary doctorate of theology from Pope Pius XI.[1]

Indianapolis years

On February 3, 1933, Ritter was appointed as auxiliary bishop of what was then the Diocese of Indianapolis and titular bishop of Hippos by Pius XI. He received his episcopal consecration on March 28, 1933, from Bishop Chartrand, with Bishops Alphonse Smith and Emmanuel Ledvina serving as co-consecrators. As an auxiliary bishop, he also served as vicar general of the diocese from 1933 to 1934.[2] At age 40, Ritter was one of the youngest Catholic bishops in the United States.[5]

Following the death of Bishop Chartrand, Ritter was appointed the seventh bishop of the Diocese of Indianapolis on March 24, 1934. In 1938, he directed an end to racial segregation in all Catholic schools in the diocese.[6] His decision, made 16 years before Brown v. Board of Education, was met with opposition by the Ku Klux Klan, whose members protested outside of SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral, and even by his fellow members of the clergy.[7] Ritter also reorganized the diocesan Catholic Charities, introduced the Catholic Youth Organization, and completed the construction of SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral.[8] He reduced the diocese's debt by $3 million, .[4] Ritter also reorganized the Catholic Charities in the diocese.

In 1941, Ritter opened St. John's Parish in Evansville, Indiana, the first Black Catholic parish in the city.[9] The Diocese of Indianapolis was elevated to the status of an archdiocese by Pope Pius XII on October 21, 1944, and Ritter was installed as its first archbishop on December 19, 1944.[10]

St. Louis years

Ritter was appointed the fourth archbishop of the Archdiocese of St. Louis by Pius XII on July 20, 1946, succeeding the late Cardinal John J. Glennon.

St. Louis grew quickly during the post-World War II economic boom. Ritter opened an average of three parishes per year in St. Louis city and county.[11] An able administrator, without the authority to tax or compel, Ritter nevertheless raised more than $125,000,000 to build sixty new parishes, sixteen high schools, and the Cardinal Glennon Memorial Hospital for Children in St. Louis during his tenure there.[12]

Desegregation efforts

As one of his first acts as archbishop, Ritter announced that Webster College would accept black students, endorsing the Sisters of Loretto's wish to enroll black women (which Ritter's predecessor, Archbishop Glennon, had ruled impossible).[13] He also allowed the senior class of St. Joseph's High School, then the city's only black Catholic high school, to graduate for the first time at the Cathedral alongside white Catholic high school students.[14]

Desegregated diocesan schools and hospitals

On August 9, 1947, Ritter announced an end to racial segregation in all five St. Louis diocesan high schools before the fall term.[15] [8] He declared, "The cross on top of our schools must mean something," and expressed his belief in "the equality of every soul before Almighty God".[16] Ritter sent a memo to all parish school superintendents, saying they must begin to "accept all children into parish schools without regard to race". In one stroke, Ritter had desegregated the Catholic St. Louis area schools, seven years before the 1954 US Supreme Court's Brown vs Board of Education decision. The parochial schools represented one-quarter of all St. Louis area students.[14]

In response to Ritter's desegregation order, a group of over 700 white Catholics from 49 St. Louis area parishes,[17] calling themselves the "Catholic Parents Association of Saint Louis and Saint Louis County",[18] threatened to sue him. The association claimed that his order violated Missouri state law.[19] Association Co-Chair William T. Rone said "We do not want Negro children alongside our children in the schools." Ritter refused to meet with the association leaders, his spokesman saying, "He is the father of the whole flock and must care for all, regardless of race."[20] Ritter then issued a pastoral letter in which he warned of possible excommunication for "interfering with ecclesiastical office authority by having recourse to authority outside of the church".[21]

While the association rejected any civil action, it did send a letter of protest to the apostolic delegate to the United States, Amleto Giovanni Cicognani.[19] [22] Cicognani responded to the letter by saying "I am confident that everyone will readily comply with what has been so clearly proposed by the ecclesiastical authority of the Archdiocese".[14] Ritter also desegregated all Catholic hospitals in the St. Louis archdiocese.

Fundraising

Ritter also developed what is now known as the Annual Catholic Appeal, which remains a primary source of financial support for many archdiocesan educational and charitable activities.[11]

Ecumenism

On August 24, 1964, at Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis, Ritter celebrated the world's first authorized Mass in English.[11]

Ritter also forbade Catholics to see the 1954 film The French Line under danger of serious sin. The film featured actor Jane Russell dancing in a scanty outfit in what was then considered a sexually-suggestive scene.[23] He declared that Catholic students must get written permission from the archdiocese to attend secular or non-Catholic colleges.[24] Ritter was one of the first bishops to create a diocesan mission, specifically in La Paz, Bolivia. Until that time, most Catholic missions had been run by religious institutes or societies of apostolic life. Parishioners in St. Louis regularly contributed more money to these foreign missions than any archdiocese of its size. Ritter served as president of the National Catholic Educational Association from 1955 to 1956, and was named an assistant at the pontifical throne on October 5, 1956.[1]

Cardinal

Ritter was created cardinal priest of SS. Redentore e S. Alfonso in Via Merulana by Pope John XXIII in the consistory of January 16, 1961. Between 1962 and 1965, he participated in all four sessions of the Second Vatican Council in Rome.[2] Ritter was viewed as a liberal.[25] [26] He also protested against the Roman Curia's oppressive actions[26] and Cardinal Alfredo Ottaviani's draft on the sources of revelation at the Council.[27]

Death, funeral and burial

Ritter died on June 10, 1967, at DePaul Hospital in St. Louis after suffering two heart attacks earlier in the week.[28] His body lay in state at the Cathedral.

Funeral

Ritter's requiem mass was celebrated on June 15, 1967, at St. Louis cathedral. At his request, it was a "Low Funeral Mass". Cardinal-designate John Patrick Cody, archbishop of Chicago, formerly an auxiliary bishop under the late cardinal in St. Louis, was the main celebrant. Cardinals Richard Cushing, James Francis McIntyre, Lawrence Shehan, and Francis Spellman attended, together with cardinals-designate John Krol and Patrick O'Boyle. Ten archbishops, forty-eight bishops, and four abbots were also in attendance. Some fifty Protestant, Jewish, and Orthodox Christina leaders were present, representing the Episcopal Church, Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, United Church of Christ, Greek Orthodox, Baptist, Disciples of Christ, Methodists, Presbyterians, and Salvation Army. In his sermon, Kansas City Bishop Charles Helmsing, another auxiliary bishop who had served under Ritter, spoke of Ritter's liturgical leadership, particularly "his concern for a liturgy of the Word that would truly inform and enlighten the people of God."

Burial and re-interment

Ritter was buried in the priest's lot at Calvary Cemetery in St. Louis. He had said he did not want to be buried in the cathedral.On November 2, 1994, Archbishop Justin Rigali of St. Louis had Ritter's remains removed from Calvary Cemetery and re-interred in the crypt of the new cathedral, now the cathedral basilica of St. Louis.[29]

Legacy

Honors

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Curtis, Georgina Pell. The American Catholic Who's Who. XIV. 1961. Walter Romig. Grosse Pointe, Michigan.
  2. News: The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church. RITTER, Joseph Elmer (1892-1967). Miranda. Salvador.
  3. News: . A Deep Sense of Humility. The St. Louis Star and Times . St. Louis, Missouri . July 29, 1946. August 28, 2020 .
  4. Web site: The Cardinal – Cardinal Ritter Birthplace Foundation Inc . 2023-10-09 . en-US.
  5. News: June 11, 1967. The New York Times. Joseph Cardinal Ritter, 74, Dies; Liberal Archbishop of St. Louis.
  6. News: Marian University. Cardinal Joseph E. Ritter. 2010-05-17. https://web.archive.org/web/20100527182704/http://www.marian.edu/CardinalRitterScholarship/Pages/CARDINALJOSEPHERITTER.aspx. 2010-05-27. dead.
  7. News: 2010-02-12. WISH-TV 8. Cardinal Joseph Ritter: A trailblazer for desegregation in Indianapolis Catholic schools. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20110927141638/http://www.wishtv.com/dpp/news/local/marion_county/ritter-a-trailblazer-for-desegregation. 2011-09-27.
  8. Book: Christensen. Lawrence O.. Dictionary of Missouri Biography. 1999. University of Missouri Press. Columbia.
  9. News: 1941-05-09. Bishop Officiate at Opening of St. John's Catholic Church. Evansville Argus. 2021-03-12.
  10. News: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis. General history.
  11. Fausz, Ph.D. . J. Frederick . 2014 . HISTORIC ST. LOUIS 250 Years Exploring New Frontiers . University of Missouri St. Louis. 187–188. August 31, 2020.
  12. Web site: Joseph Cardinal Ritter. . Arch City Religion . August 29, 2020 .
  13. Web site: 100 People Who Shaped St. Louis. . December 27, 2007 . St. Louis Magazine . August 29, 2020 .
  14. News: Shinkle. Florence. Go Write Your Little Letters . St. Louis Post-Dispatch . St. Louis, Missouri . June 22, 1997 . August 28, 2020.
  15. News: . 5 Catholic High Schools Open to Negro Students . St. Louis Post-Dispatch . St. Louis, Missouri . August 10, 1947 . August 28, 2020.
  16. 1960-12-26. TIME Magazine. Religion: Four New Hats. https://web.archive.org/web/20101008103717/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,895171,00.html. dead. October 8, 2010.
  17. News: . Pope's Aide to get Negro Question. Tampa Times. Tampa, Florida . September 22, 1947 . August 28, 2020.
  18. Landers . Misty . January 2017 . Just Discrimination: Arkansas Parochial Schools and the Defense of Segregation . University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.
  19. 1947-09-29. TIME Magazine. RACES: Caution!. https://web.archive.org/web/20070621214047/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,804234,00.html. dead. June 21, 2007.
  20. News: . Parents protest after St. Louis Catholic schools are integrated. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. St. Louis, Missouri . September 21, 2019 . August 31, 2020.
  21. Web site: Joseph Cardinal Ritter . 2023-10-09 . Arch City Religion . en-US.
  22. News: . In Church Row. Clarion-Ledger. Jackson, Mississippi . September 26, 1947 . August 28, 2020.
  23. TIME Magazine. The Censors January 11, 1954
  24. TIME Magazine. The Letter June 20, 1960
  25. TIME Magazine. Cum Magno Dolore October 23, 1964
  26. TIME Magazine. The Unlikely Cardinal August 21, 1964
  27. TIME Magazine. The Cardinal's Setback November 23, 1962
  28. TIME Magazine Milestones
  29. Web site: Ritter, Joseph Elmer. . The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church . August 29, 2020 .
  30. TIME Magazine. https://web.archive.org/web/20110524055014/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,826791-2,00.html January 27, 1961
  31. TIME Magazine.Toward Easier Mixed Marriage July 17, 1964
  32. TIME Magazine. Waking Up to Race October 4, 1963
  33. TIME Magazine. Crisis at Catholic U. March 29, 1963
  34. http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20130308/ZONE/303080103/Birthplace-museum-will-honor-New-Albany-born-cardinal
  35. http://www.news-tribune.net/homepage/local_story_204175601.html Plaque marks Cardinal Ritter's birthplace in New Albany
  36. News: . Cardinal Ritter Declines Award for Ecumenism. The Courier-Journal . Louisville, Kentucky . January 24, 1965 . August 31, 2020.
  37. News: . Cardinal Ritter to get Eden Degree Tonight . St. Louis Post-Dispatch . St. Louis, Missouri . June 4, 1965 . August 28, 2020.