From the Archives
By Mary Woodward

JACKSON – Recently, I spent a few days in the Mobile area getting some spiritual guidance and refueling after some interesting months. As I sat in the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, I began to think about the historic connection our diocese has with Mobile.

To give a brief history of the region, I have taken the following from the Archdiocese of Mobile’s website history section.

The Archdiocese of Mobile was established as the Vicariate-Apostolic of Alabama and the Floridas in 1825 and became the Diocese of Mobile on May 15, 1829, with Bishop Michael Portier, D.D., as the First Bishop of Mobile. The newly created Diocese of Mobile encompassed the entire State of Alabama and the entire State of Florida.

In the 1850’s new dioceses were created in the State of Florida, nonetheless, the Diocese of Mobile still retained the panhandle of Florida until 1968 when the panhandle of Florida became part of the Diocese of St. Augustine and later the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee. On Oct. 8, 1969, the Diocese of Mobile-Birmingham was divided into two separate dioceses with the newly created diocese in the state known as the Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama.

In 1980 the Diocese of Mobile was raised to the status of an archdiocese and Archbishop Oscar H. Lipscomb was appointed the First Archbishop of the newly created Archdiocese of Mobile. Today the archdiocese encompasses 22,969 square miles and includes the lower 28 counties of the State of Alabama.

The arrival of Catholicism in the region traces its origins to the early Spanish and French explorations and permanent settlements at Pensacola, Florida in 1696, and in Mobile in 1702, where a parish was erected on July 20, 1703, with Henry Rolleaux de la Vente as first pastor. At the time of the creation of the new Diocese of Mobile in 1829, most Catholics were centered in the principal towns of Mobile, Pensacola and St. Augustine.

I have such fond memories of Archbishop Lipscomb who died July 15, 2020. He was a consummate man of the church who exuded priesthood and the office of bishop and had a deep, abiding love for the history and tradition of the Catholic faith in our region.

A man of gentle voice and spirit, he was the principal consecrator of Bishop Joseph N. Latino on March 7, 2003. After the ceremony, we were headed back to the bishops’ vesting area, where he asked me to summon the miter and crozier bearers who had served him that day. When brothers Garrett and Gordon McMullin arrived, the Archbishop presented each of them with two gold Sacagawea dollars stating it was an ancient tradition in the church for the bishop to present two gold coins to them because they were considered part of the bishop’s household.

That was such a special moment to witness, and it testified to the Archbishop’s love for history and the church’s rich traditions.

Oftentimes as Mississippi Catholics, we connect ourselves to New Orleans because we share the River with Louisiana. Our diocese originally was cut from the Archdiocese of Baltimore, which is the Mother See of the United States. In 1850, New Orleans was elevated to an archdiocese and became our longtime province and metropolitan see until 1980, when Mobile was elevated to an archdiocese. We then were reunited with our sister territory of Alabama into the Mobile province as mentioned in the last article.

So, in reflecting on our history as a combined U.S. territory with Alabama in the early days of America, we have a lot of extraordinary connections to Mobile not only ecclesially, but also through the air we breathe, the soil upon which we trod and the beaches we enjoy year-round. We are sisters and brothers in one of the most unique territories in the country – Spanish West Florida.

In another profound way we are linked to Mobile through the office of bishop. Both Bishop Richard O. Gerow (1924-1966) and Bishop William R. Houck (1984-2003) were Mobile natives and Bishop Joseph L. Howze (auxiliary of our diocese from 1972-1977) was from Daphne.
Bishop Houck had a unique connection to Archbishop Lipscomb in that the Archbishop’s uncle, Msgr. Hugh Lipscomb, was Bishop Houck’s first pastor to serve under as a newly ordained priest in 1951. Bishop Houck often remarked that the Monsignor was quite the mentor.
Therefore, as I sat in the Cathedral in Mobile, I pondered on the rich tradition of Catholicism in the region and offered a prayer for Archbishop Lipscomb, who is buried in the crypt below the altar there, and for Bishops Gerow and Houck – sons of Mobile. Then I prayed for the laity, religious and clergy of our diocese and the archdiocese along with our current bishops – Joseph Kopacz and Thomas Rodi, who carry on the ministry of those 19th-century bishops of the region – John Joseph Chanche and Michael Poitier.
May God continue to bless our region with strong faith and a deep connection to our mission to serve the Lord in this distinctive corner of God’s kingdom.
I pray you all have a blessed Christmas and a joyous New Year. See you from the archives in 2022.

(Mary Woodward is Chancellor and Archivist for the Diocese of Jackson)

From the Archives
By Mary Woodward
JACKSON – Since we focused on Bishop John Gunn’s surviving the arsenic attack in 1916, I thought I would share some more details about the bishop from the early pages of his diary.

Bishop Gunn was born on March 15, 1863, in County Tyrone, Ireland. He was the oldest of 11 children. His family originally came from Scotland to County Tyrone as descendants of Olaf the Black, a Viking ruler of the Isles off the coast of Scotland in the 13th century.

Hence, they called themselves the “Black Gunns of Caithness” and the family motto was aut pax aut bellum (either peace or war).

Bishop Gunn honors this heritage on his coat of arms with a Viking ship, but wisely chose not to use the family motto for his episcopal motto. He instead chose Monstra Te Esse Matrem (show thyself to be our mother) which comes from his formation as Marist priest.

He studied at the Gregorian University in Rome and was professed in 1884 and ordained a priest in 1890. He was ordained a bishop on August 29, 1911, at Sacred Heart Church in Atlanta where he had been serving for 13 years. Fellow Marist and Archbishop of New Orleans, James Hubert Herbert Blenk, was the principal consecrator.

In reading through the early entries of Bishop Gunn’s diary, it is evident that Archbishop Blenk was a great friend and mentor to him.

From Sept. 11, 1911, we read: “I went to Archbishop Blenk where the only misunderstanding I ever had with him was explained. I knew that I had been proposed for San Antonio and I made Archbishop Blenk promise he would oppose any and every effort to have me appointed a Bishop anywhere. When my appointment came, I accused him a breaking his promise and he showed me letters from Cardinal Gibbons which explained my appointment to Natchez and cleared Blenk. The Archbishop brought me to his friends in New Orleans and tried to give me the necessary courage to face Mississippi.”

His next entry from Sept. 14, supports the previous: “Started for Natchez with Father Larkin and my brother, Father Ed. I wanted Blenk to come – he refused, telling me that I was old enough to face the music without a chaperone and that the Natchez spotlight was not brilliant enough for two. I think his advice was correct.”

A few months later on March 21, 1912, Bishop Gunn gives us an interesting insight into his ministry as Bishop in describing a meeting of the Bishops of the Province of New Orleans. In 1912, the then Diocese of Natchez was part of the Province of New Orleans. Dioceses are structurally arranged according to provinces and then regions. Provinces center around an archdiocese and archbishop, known as the metropolitan.

Currently the Diocese of Jackson is part of the Province of Mobile that was established in 1980 when Mobile was elevated to an archdiocese. The dioceses of Jackson, Biloxi and Birmingham are suffragan sees under the archdiocese of Mobile. Coincidentally, our own Bishop, Joseph Kopacz, is the senior suffragan of the province led by Archbishop Thomas Rodi.

Back to 1912 where we were a suffragan see of New Orleans. Bishop Gunn describes the March 21 meeting in this manner: “That was my first introduction to the Bishops of the Province of New Orleans and a more congenial lovable lot of men I never met.

“I was born afraid of Bishops. I ran and hid from them when I could, feared them, and never met any of them that I thought worth knowing until I met the Bishops of the New Orleans Province. Such men as Gallagher of Galveston, Meerschaert of Oklahoma, Morris of Little Rock, Allen of Mobile and the younger crowd – Shaw of San Antonio and Lynch of Dallas, and of course, the greatest Roman of them all – the Archbishop of New Orleans [Blenk].”

“The meeting was a serious one and a useful one, but it did not prevent Meerschaert and Van de Ven from initiating Lynch and myself with some third degree work, especially suited to the Mutt and Jeff of the Bishops of the Province. I met most of these Bishops at my consecration, but I got to know them on the 21st and if knowing is akin to loving, I see my finish.”

Having served in the diocesan structure for more than 30 years, and in a particularly close way having served the office of bishop, I have observed a lot about the office and the men in it. I think often we forget that these are men, not statues, and they have very real fears and trepidations in accepting the office. Heavy is the head that wears the miter.
During this Advent, I am aiming some extra prayers for the bishops with whom I serve and have served. I encourage you to do the same. They need it.

(Mary Woodward is Chancellor and Archivist for the Diocese of Jackson)

From the Archives
By Mary Woodward

JACKSON – After last week’s article on the death of our bishops, I received a few inquiries about the arsenic poisoning of Bishop John Edward Gunn, which actually occurred in February 1916 in Chicago instead of 1915 Detroit as previously reported.

The event honored Archbishop George Mundelein who was recently appointed as Chicago’s top prelate. Most of Chicago’s “who’s who’s” were there. Bishop Gunn’s description of the event is so vivid that I will let his words paint the scene.

“On February 10th there was a meeting of the Catholic Church Extension Society followed by a dinner at the Archbishop’s house. Everybody was invited to wait over in Chicago for the big blow-out that was to take place on the night of February 10th when the city of Chicago was to banquet the new Archbishop. This banquet was engineered by Msgr. [Francis] Kelley of Catholic Extension.

“It took place in the banquet hall of the University Club and had among its guests forty Bishops, the head of the Army, the government officials, Governor of the State, Mayor of the City and everybody else worthwhile in Chicago.”

“It was at that banquet that the nearest approach to the wholesale poisoning of the hierarchy and the Chicago millionaires was attempted. After the oysters came the soup and while only a small cupful was served to each guest, before the last guest was served with soup, one hundred men were on the floor or were being carried out. There was a panic in the dining room and as no one knew its cause, everybody was frightened.”

“The University Club was turned into an emergency hospital and I was able to get to the elevator. I was brought down to one of the big reception rooms and gently deposited at full length on the floor. I was beside an Army Officer in full regimentals, a civic authority with a generous abundance of shirt waist, a Bishop from somewhere, and we were all in a very undignified scramble to reach the same spittoon.”

“The celebrated Doctor Murphy had charge of our room and while medical hygiene may be all right in the abstract there was very little time for the niceties or ethics of medicine on that occasion. A bell boy from the hotel went ‘round with a pitcher and a glass and insisted on giving everyone a dose of mustard and tepid water.”

“The man who did not take it was made to take it and the results were instantaneous, but the heavily cushioned upholstered University Club carried for a long time the marks of the banquet.”

“Of course, the thing broke up the banquet and about 100 hundred men just barely escaped death by poisoning. There were about 100 who did not take soup and they remained in the banquet hall to make and hear the speeches.”

“About one o’clock I managed to get to my hotel room more dead than alive and the feeling was the usual feeling after a bad attack of sea-sickness. I left as soon as possible for the Pass [Christian] but nothing could induce me to even look into the dining room on the way between Chicago and New Orleans.”

“The papers of the country and the detectives of every country got busy to find the poisoner. He was a socialist from Alsace-Lorraine, who was in charge of making the soup. It seems he studied poisoning as a sideline to Socialism and he knew with German accuracy the exact amount of soup to be served to each guest.”

“The soup was made a day or two in advance; the poison was added; and Jacques Crones took French leave. On the night of the banquet there were more guests than soup portions, with the result that the soup had to be watered and smaller portions served. It seems that this saved the entire banqueting party from having to attend their own funeral.”

“I was glad to get back to the Pass on Feb 12th where I stayed under a doctor’s orders close to a stomach pump until the end of the month.”

So that is the real story about the arsenic poisoning from the diary of Bishop Gunn. The diaries of bishops provide much history that never shows up in history books or news media. They are priceless treasures of diocesan life and the development of the church in our state, region and country.

We will share much more as time goes on from these unique perspectives of history from the very real men who held the office of bishop.

(Mary Woodward is Chancellor and Archivist for the Diocese of Jackson)