Benedict Joseph Fenwick
Encyclopedia
Benedict Joseph Fenwick, S.J.
(September 3, 1782—August 11, 1846) was an American
prelate
of the Catholic Church. A Jesuit
, he served as Bishop of Boston
from 1825 until his death in 1846.
, Maryland
, to George and Margaret (née Medley) Fenwick. His ancestors were originally from Northumberland
in North East England
. Benedict's great-great-great grandfather, Cuthbert Fenwick, immigrated to the United States
in 1633 aboard the Ark
and the Dove
, and was one of the original Catholic settlers of Maryland
. He entered Georgetown College
in 1793, and graduated with high honors. He afterwards served as a professor
at Georgetown before deciding to study for the priesthood
, entering St. Mary's Seminary
in Baltimore
in 1805. Following the restoration of the Society of Jesus
, he joined its novitiate
in 1806.
a priest by Bishop Leonard Neale
on March 12, 1808. He then accompanied Father Anthony Kohlmann
to New York City
, where he remained for nine years. During that time, he served as pastor
of St. Peter's Church
(1815-16) and vicar general
of the Diocese of New York
(1816-17). He also helped erect St. Patrick's Cathedral and served as director of the New York Literary Institution.
In April 1817, Fenwick was named president of Georgetown College, as well as pastor of Holy Trinity Church. The following year, he was assigned to Charleston
, South Carolina
, where he successfully repaired divisions within the local Catholic community. In 1822, he returned to Georgetown for another term as president to succeed his brother Enoch, a fellow Jesuit.
, Massachusetts
, by Pope Leo XII
. He received his episcopal
consecration
on the following November 1 from Archbishop Ambrose Maréchal
, with Bishops John England and Henry Conwell
serving as co-consecrators
, at the Cathedral of Baltimore
.
In 1827, Bishop Fenwick opened Boston College
in the basement of his cathedral and took to the personal instruction of the city's youth. His efforts to attract other Jesuits to the faculty were hampered both by Boston's distance from the center of Jesuit activity at the time in Maryland
and by suspicion on the part of the city's Protestant elite
. Relations with Boston's civic leaders worsened such that, when a Jesuit faculty was finally secured in 1843, Fenwick decided to leave the Boston school and instead opened the College of the Holy Cross
45 miles west of the city in central Massachusetts
where he felt the Jesuits could operate with greater autonomy.
He died on August 11, 1846 at the age of 63.
Bishop Fenwick High School
in Peabody, Massachusetts
is named in his honor.
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
(September 3, 1782—August 11, 1846) was an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
prelate
Prelate
A prelate is a high-ranking member of the clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin prælatus, the past participle of præferre, which means "carry before", "be set above or over" or "prefer"; hence, a prelate is one set over others.-Related...
of the Catholic Church. A Jesuit
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
, he served as Bishop of Boston
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the New England region of the United States. It comprises several counties of the state of Massachusetts...
from 1825 until his death in 1846.
Early life and education
Benedict Fenwick was born in LeonardtownLeonardtown, Maryland
Leonardtown is a town in and the county seat of St. Mary's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,896 at the 2000 census. Leonardtown is perhaps most famous for the national oyster-shucking championship that occurs annually at the St...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, to George and Margaret (née Medley) Fenwick. His ancestors were originally from Northumberland
Northumberland
Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...
in North East England
North East England
North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...
. Benedict's great-great-great grandfather, Cuthbert Fenwick, immigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1633 aboard the Ark
The Ark (ship)
The Ark was a 17th century ship which carried passengers bound for the Maryland colony during the pioneering 1634 expedition. The settlers began a permanent settlement in a shared Indian village south of St. Clement's Island and named it St. Mary's...
and the Dove
Maryland Dove
The Maryland Dove is a re-creation of a late 17th-century trading ship. She was designed by the naval architect and naval historian William A. Baker....
, and was one of the original Catholic settlers of Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. He entered Georgetown College
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
in 1793, and graduated with high honors. He afterwards served as a professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
at Georgetown before deciding to study for the priesthood
Priesthood (Catholic Church)
The ministerial orders of the Catholic Church include the orders of bishops, deacons and presbyters, which in Latin is sacerdos. The ordained priesthood and common priesthood are different in function and essence....
, entering St. Mary's Seminary
St. Mary's Seminary and University
St. Mary's Seminary and University is a Roman Catholic seminary in Baltimore, Maryland; it was the first seminary founded in the United States of America.-History:...
in Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
in 1805. Following the restoration of the Society of Jesus
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
, he joined its novitiate
Novitiate
Novitiate, alt. noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a novice monastic or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether they are called to the religious life....
in 1806.
Priesthood
Fenwick was ordainedHoly Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
a priest by Bishop Leonard Neale
Leonard Neale
Leonard Neale, S.J. became, in 1800, the first Roman Catholic bishop ordained in the United States, and the second Archbishop of Baltimore...
on March 12, 1808. He then accompanied Father Anthony Kohlmann
Anthony Kohlmann
Anthony Kohlmann was a German Jesuit. He is known for his part in the establishment of confessional privilege in United States law. He spent nearly a quarter of a century in the USA as an educator.-Life:...
to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where he remained for nine years. During that time, he served as pastor
Pastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
of St. Peter's Church
St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church, New York
St Peter's Church is the oldest Roman Catholic parish in New York City and part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York. The church was designated a landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1965. The original church's cornerstone was laid in 1785 and the first...
(1815-16) and vicar general
Vicar general
A vicar general is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ordinary executive power over the entire diocese and, thus, is the highest official in a diocese or other particular...
of the Diocese of New York
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York covers New York, Bronx, and Richmond counties in New York City , as well as Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster, and Westchester counties in New York state. There are 480 parishes...
(1816-17). He also helped erect St. Patrick's Cathedral and served as director of the New York Literary Institution.
In April 1817, Fenwick was named president of Georgetown College, as well as pastor of Holy Trinity Church. The following year, he was assigned to Charleston
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
, South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, where he successfully repaired divisions within the local Catholic community. In 1822, he returned to Georgetown for another term as president to succeed his brother Enoch, a fellow Jesuit.
Episcopacy
On May 10, 1825, Fenwick was appointed the second Bishop of BostonRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the New England region of the United States. It comprises several counties of the state of Massachusetts...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, by Pope Leo XII
Pope Leo XII
Pope Leo XII , born Annibale Francesco Clemente Melchiore Girolamo Nicola Sermattei della Genga, was Pope from 1823 to 1829.-Life:...
. He received his episcopal
Bishop (Catholic Church)
In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders and is responsible for teaching the Catholic faith and ruling the Church....
consecration
Consecration
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service, usually religious. The word "consecration" literally means "to associate with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different groups...
on the following November 1 from Archbishop Ambrose Maréchal
Ambrose Maréchal
Most Reverend Ambrose Maréchal, S.S. was the third Archbishop of Baltimore, Maryland.Motto: Auspice Maria; "Under the protection of Mary."Ambrose Maréchal was born at Ingré near Orléans, France, on August 28, 1764...
, with Bishops John England and Henry Conwell
Henry Conwell
Henry Conwell was a Roman Catholic clergyman. A priest in Ireland for over forty years, he served as Bishop of Philadelphia between Henry Conwell was born in Moneymore, County Londonderry, and studied at the Irish College in Paris, where his family had founded a burse. He was ordained to the...
serving as co-consecrators
Consecrator
Consecrator is a term used in the Roman Catholic Church to designate a bishop who ordains a priest to the episcopal state. The term is often used in Eastern Rite Churches and in Anglican communities. The term "Principal Consecrator" is used to designate the primary bishop who ordains a new bishop...
, at the Cathedral of Baltimore
Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, also called the Baltimore Basilica, was the first Roman Catholic cathedral built in the United States, and was the first major religious building constructed in the nation after the adoption of the U.S. Constitution...
.
In 1827, Bishop Fenwick opened Boston College
Boston College
Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...
in the basement of his cathedral and took to the personal instruction of the city's youth. His efforts to attract other Jesuits to the faculty were hampered both by Boston's distance from the center of Jesuit activity at the time in Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
and by suspicion on the part of the city's Protestant elite
White Anglo-Saxon Protestant
White Anglo-Saxon Protestant or WASP is an informal term, often derogatory or disparaging, for a closed group of high-status Americans mostly of British Protestant ancestry. The group supposedly wields disproportionate financial and social power. When it appears in writing, it is usually used to...
. Relations with Boston's civic leaders worsened such that, when a Jesuit faculty was finally secured in 1843, Fenwick decided to leave the Boston school and instead opened the College of the Holy Cross
College of the Holy Cross
The College of the Holy Cross is an undergraduate Roman Catholic liberal arts college located in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA...
45 miles west of the city in central Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
where he felt the Jesuits could operate with greater autonomy.
He died on August 11, 1846 at the age of 63.
Bishop Fenwick High School
Bishop Fenwick High School (Peabody, Massachusetts)
Bishop Fenwick High School is a private Roman Catholic high school in Peabody, Massachusetts. While located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston, the school is operated independently and with the blessing of the Archdiocese...
in Peabody, Massachusetts
Peabody, Massachusetts
Peabody is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population is about 53,000. Peabody is located in Boston's North Shore suburban area.- History :...
is named in his honor.