This dissertation was conducted under the direction of the Right Reverend Msgr. Peter Guilday as Major Professor, and was approved by Dr. Richard J. Purcell and Dr. Leo F. Stock, as readers. STUDIES IN AMERICAN CHURCH HISTORY UNDER THE DIRECTION OF RT. REV. MSGR. PETER GUILDAY VOL. XXXIII THE LIFE OF RT. REV. JOSEPH ROSATI, C. M. FIRST BISHOP OF ST. LOUIS, 1789-1843 A Dissertation series SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF ARTS AND BY REVEREND FREDERICK JOHN EASTERLY, M. A. PREFACE 8 X 4705 R59€5 The primary purpose of this dissertation is to present a biographical account of the life of Bishop Joseph Rosati, C. M. As a pioneer Bishop of the Middle West, Bishop Rosati played a very important role in American Catholic History since at one time he was the sole ecclesiastical authority west of the Mississippi, in a territory extending from the Canadian border to the Gulf of Mexico and from the Mississippi river to the Rocky Mountains. A great part of this territory was unsettled during his administration, but what settlements did exist were usually separated by great distances which added to the Bishop's task of providing the benefits of religion to Catholics living in these places. It is to the praise of this indefatigable Bishop that he personally visited every mission from the state of Missouri to the Gulf; many missions outside of this area received either personal visits from the Bishop or were visited by priests whom he sent to distant places to the east and west of the Mississippi Valley. Many of the events in the life of Bishop Rosati have been touched upon in various works and periodicals pertaining to the history of the diocese of St. Louis. In this dissertation an attempt has been made to expand upon these incidents and to place them in their proper correlation, thereby giving an estimation of the Bishop's influence upon the growth and development of the American Catholic Church in general, and, in particular, that portion of the Church specifically confided to his custody. In this regard an effort has been made to present an account which is not an isolated history of a single individual but rather an account which portrays Bishop Rosati in his relations with the other members of the hierarchy of his time and the institutions which account for the growth and expansion of the Catholic Church in the United States. As may be seen in the bibliography, this work has been compiled entirely upon primary sources. The writer of this dissertation owes a debt of gratitude to the persons who assisted in the preparation of this work. To my community, the Congregation of the Mission, and the Very Rever M550071 |