Just a little catch-up… December is passing quickly and I wanted to include some items from the calendar for this month.
First, December 6th marked the death of Herman Joseph Alerding, the man who wrote the last full history of the (Arch)diocese. He published A History of the Catholic Church inthe Diocese of Vincennes back in 1883. He was killed in an automobile accident. At the time, he was the Bishop of Fort Wayne. You can read his books, including a history of the Diocese of Fort Wayne, by following this link. Here is the Wikipedia entry for Bishop Alerding.
December 8th marks the anniversary of the death of Bishop Joseph Chartrand. He was born in Saint Louis, studied at St. Meinrad and joined the Diocese of Vincennes. He was noticed by Bishop Chatard and succeeded him. He is a very complex individual. He was named Archbishop of Cincinnati, but he declined it, choosing to remain in Indianapolis. There has been a lot of speculation as to ‘why’, but no one seems to know for sure. The best explanation came from the late Msgr. John Doyle, firmer archivist of the Archdiocese, who said it was because of his love for Indianapolis and because of the financial situation of the diocese.
December 13th marks the birthday of Bishop Francis Silas Marean Chatard. His baptismal name was Silas and he changed it to Francis upon his becoming a bishop. Marean was his mother’s maiden name. Chatard began as the Bishop of Vincennes and he was responsible for moving the see to Indianapolis. He was born in Baltimore, maryland and his family had connections with Elizabeth Seton. His sister, Juliana was a member of the Sisters of Charity at Emmitsburg.
