Jean Baptiste Pompallier
Encyclopedia
Jean Baptiste François Pompallier (11 December 1802 – 21 December 1871) was the first vicar apostolic
to visit New Zealand
. He was born in Lyon
, France. He became the first Roman Catholic Bishop of Auckland
.
created the Vicariate Apostolic of Western Oceania. The priests chosen for Western Oceania were the newly founded French order the Society of Mary (Marists)
formed by Father Jean-Claude Colin
in Lyon. In 1836, the Marists received papal approval and were given the mission of Western Oceania. Pompallier, who had been closely associated with them, was appointed on 13 May 1836 Vicar Apostolic, and consecrated Titular Bishop
of Maronea. Up to this time the Society of Mary had not been officially established and Pompallier as a bishop did not make his profession with the first priests of the new society, but in every other respect he was a Marist, and was so considered by Rome prior to his appointment.
On 24 December 1836, with 4 priests and a brother of the Society of Mary and 2 of Marcellin Champagnat
's Brothers, he sailed from Le Havre
, France for Western Oceania and New Zealand on the Delphine.
First landing was at Valparaiso
Chile
. Fr Claude Bret died on this leg of the journey. On 10 August 1837 Pompallier and the remaining priests and brothers embarked on the Europa for Tahiti
. Europa stopped at Gambier (Mangareva) Island (part of Tahiti) and Pompallier met Bishop Rouchouze, Vicar Apostolic for Eastern Oceania.
On 5 October 1837 he sailed for Tonga
on the schooner Raiatea. They were refused landing there. Fr (later Bishop) Pierre Bataillon and Br Joseph-Xavier began the mission at Uvea Wallis
Island on 1 November Fr Pierre Chanel
and Br Marie-Nizier started the mission at Futuna
. Pompallier travelled to Rotuma
but was unable to leave anyone there. On arrival in Sydney he was able to learn much of the New Zealand mission from Bishop John Polding
.
and arrived at the home of Thomas and Mary Poynton on 10 January 1838. Pompallier celebrated his first Mass
at Totara Point on 13 January 1838. He immediately set about establishing Catholic mission stations. By 1843 he had established stations in Hokianga, Kororareka, Mangakahia, Kaipara
, Tauranga
, Akaroa
, Matamata
, Opotiki
, Maketu
, Auckland
, Otago
, Wellington
, Otaki
, Rotorua
, Rangiaowhia and Whakatane
.
The mission station in Kororareka encompassed the area surrounding what is now known as Pompallier House, Russell
. A printing press was imported and, with other Catholic missionaries, Pompallier sponsored the printing of prayer booklets in Māori
, some of the earliest Māori publications. A tannery
was set up to produce leather with which the pamphlets and books were bound.
Marist reinforcements arrived on the Reine de Paix on 18 June 1839 - Fathers Baty, Epalle and Petit and Brothers Elie Regis, Augustin and Florentin. On 8 December, four more Marists arrived. They were Fathers (later Bishop) Viard, Petit-Jean, Comte and Chevron and Brother Attale.
Pompallier was present at Waitangi on the day before and the morning of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi
, which was held across the bay from Kororareka, on 6 February 1840. Pompallier left the gathering after the discussion and before the parties signed. Although he had advised some Catholic Maori chiefs, and was worried the treaty would hamper his mission, he is reported to have pushed for a fourth treaty article, in which the parties would be guaranteed freedom of religion. Having secured the promised freedom he did not stay. A separate Apostolic Vicariate of New Zealand was erected in 1842. Pompallier then became the Vicar Apostolic of New Zealand. In 1846, with Viard already appointed as his assistant bishop, Pompallier set off to Rome to give account of his mission.
This conflict was settled in 1848 when the vicariate was divided into the Dioceses of Auckland and Wellington, with Pompallier as the Bishop of Auckland and Philippe Viard
(SM) as the Bishop of Wellington. The Marists accompanied Viard to the new diocese. On 8 April 1850 Pompallier returned from Europe with 2 priests, 10 seminarians and 8 Irish Sisters of Mercy
. He became a British subject in 1851; New Zealand was, at that time, a colony of Britain. On 30 December 1860 he returned from Europe with 8 Franciscans, 8 seminarians, and 4 French women who were intended to start a new order, the Sisters of the Holy Family. The group included Suzanne Aubert
.
Amid Pompallier' difficulties there was another consolation. On 9 March 1852 James and Walter McDonald
arrived in Auckland from Ireland. The brothers gave Pompallier great service. They became his loyal lieutenants and good friends and especially assisted Pompallier as diocesan administrators and in attending to the Māori mission.
. A street in the suburb of Ponsonby
is named after him. In 1868, old and ill he returned to France. Pompallier died in Puteaux
, near Paris, on 21 December 1871, aged 69.
On 9 January 2001, his remains were exhumed. A contingent of New Zealanders organised a pilgrimage trip in the style of a hikoi
, to return his remains to New Zealand. The ossuary
of Pompallier's remains were accompanied 24 hours a day, as they travelled from Otago
to Hokianga
, where they were re-interred under the altar at St Mary's, Motuti, in 2002.
Apostolic vicariate
An apostolic vicariate is a form of territorial jurisdiction of the Roman Catholic Church established in missionary regions and countries that do not have a diocese. It is essentially provisional, though it may last for a century or more...
to visit New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. He was born in Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, France. He became the first Roman Catholic Bishop of Auckland
Roman Catholic Diocese of Auckland
The Latin Rite Catholic Diocese of Auckland is one of the two original dioceses in New Zealand. Although formally a suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of Wellington, both were erected on 20 June 1848...
.
Appointment and voyage
On Trinity Sunday 1835, Pope Gregory XVIPope Gregory XVI
Pope Gregory XVI , born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari, named Mauro as a member of the religious order of the Camaldolese, was Pope of the Catholic Church from 1831 to 1846...
created the Vicariate Apostolic of Western Oceania. The priests chosen for Western Oceania were the newly founded French order the Society of Mary (Marists)
Society of Mary (Marists)
The Society of Mary , is a Roman Catholic religious congregation or order, founded by Father Jean-Claude Colin and a group of other seminarians in France in 1816...
formed by Father Jean-Claude Colin
Jean-Claude Colin
The Venerable Jean-Claude Colin, S.M. was a French priest who became the founder of the Society of Mary ....
in Lyon. In 1836, the Marists received papal approval and were given the mission of Western Oceania. Pompallier, who had been closely associated with them, was appointed on 13 May 1836 Vicar Apostolic, and consecrated Titular Bishop
Titular bishop
A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese.By definition a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop the tradition of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches is that he be ordained for a specific place...
of Maronea. Up to this time the Society of Mary had not been officially established and Pompallier as a bishop did not make his profession with the first priests of the new society, but in every other respect he was a Marist, and was so considered by Rome prior to his appointment.
On 24 December 1836, with 4 priests and a brother of the Society of Mary and 2 of Marcellin Champagnat
Marcellin Champagnat
Saint Marcellin Joseph Benedict Champagnat was born in Rozet, village of Marlhes, near St. Etienne , France...
's Brothers, he sailed from Le Havre
Le Havre
Le Havre is a city in the Seine-Maritime department of the Haute-Normandie region in France. It is situated in north-western France, on the right bank of the mouth of the river Seine on the English Channel. Le Havre is the most populous commune in the Haute-Normandie region, although the total...
, France for Western Oceania and New Zealand on the Delphine.
First landing was at Valparaiso
Valparaíso
Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...
Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
. Fr Claude Bret died on this leg of the journey. On 10 August 1837 Pompallier and the remaining priests and brothers embarked on the Europa for Tahiti
Tahiti
Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
. Europa stopped at Gambier (Mangareva) Island (part of Tahiti) and Pompallier met Bishop Rouchouze, Vicar Apostolic for Eastern Oceania.
On 5 October 1837 he sailed for Tonga
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
on the schooner Raiatea. They were refused landing there. Fr (later Bishop) Pierre Bataillon and Br Joseph-Xavier began the mission at Uvea Wallis
Wallis
- Places :* Valais, a Swiss canton with the German name "Wallis"* Walliswil bei Niederbipp* Walliswil bei Wangen* Wallis Islands- Others :* Wallis , a British clothing retailer* Wallis Theatres, an Australian cinema franchise- See also :...
Island on 1 November Fr Pierre Chanel
Peter Chanel
Pierre Louis Marie Chanel, known in English as Saint Peter Chanel was a Catholic priest, missionary, and martyr.-Early years:Chanel was born in La Potière near Cuet in the area of Belley, Ain département, France....
and Br Marie-Nizier started the mission at Futuna
Futuna Island, Wallis and Futuna
Futuna is an island in the Pacific Ocean belonging to the French overseas collectivity of Wallis and Futuna. It is one of the Hoorn Islands or Îles Horne, nearby Alofi being the other...
. Pompallier travelled to Rotuma
Rotuma
Rotuma is a Fijian dependency, consisting of Rotuma Island and nearby islets. The island group is home to a small but unique indigenous ethnic group which constitutes a recognizable minority within the population of Fiji, known as "Rotumans"...
but was unable to leave anyone there. On arrival in Sydney he was able to learn much of the New Zealand mission from Bishop John Polding
John Polding
John Bede Polding OSB was the first Roman Catholic bishop and archbishop of Sydney, Australia.-Early life:Polding's father was of Dutch descent; his mother died when he was eight. He was placed in the care of his uncle, Father Bede Brewer, president-general of the English Benedictine Congregation...
.
New Zealand
On 30 December Pompallier, Fr Louis-Catherin Servant SM and Brother Michel (Antoine) Colombon sailed for the HokiangaHokianga
Hokianga is an area surrounding the Hokianga Harbour, also known as The Hokianga River, a long estuarine drowned valley on the west coast in the north of the North Island of New Zealand....
and arrived at the home of Thomas and Mary Poynton on 10 January 1838. Pompallier celebrated his first Mass
Mass
Mass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...
at Totara Point on 13 January 1838. He immediately set about establishing Catholic mission stations. By 1843 he had established stations in Hokianga, Kororareka, Mangakahia, Kaipara
Kaipara
Kaipara can refer to:*Kaipara Harbour, a bay in northern New Zealand**Kaipara River, a river draining into the harbour**Kaipara District, an administrative division centred around the harbour*Kaipara a former Parliamentary electorate...
, Tauranga
Tauranga
Tauranga is the most populous city in the Bay of Plenty region, in the North Island of New Zealand.It was settled by Europeans in the early 19th century and was constituted as a city in 1963...
, Akaroa
Akaroa
Akaroa is a village on Banks Peninsula in the Canterbury region of the South Island of New Zealand, situated within a harbour of the same name—the name Akaroa is Kāi Tahu Māori for 'Long Harbour'.- Overview :...
, Matamata
Matamata
Matamata is a rural Waikato town in New Zealand with a population of around 12,000 . It is located near the base of the Kaimai Ranges, and is a thriving farming area known for Thoroughbred horse breeding and training pursuits...
, Opotiki
Opotiki
Opotiki is a town in the eastern Bay of Plenty in the North Island of New Zealand. It houses the headquarters of the Opotiki District Council and comes under the Bay of Plenty Regional Council.-Population:* of the town: 4176 - Male 1,989, Female 2,187...
, Maketu
Maketu
Maketu is a small town on the Bay of Plenty Coast in New Zealand. It is located on Okurei point and has an estuary from which the Kaituna River used to flow out of, it is also adjacent to Newdicks Beach located on the south eastern side of Okurei point. The name is sometimes informally abbreviated...
, Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, Otago
Otago
Otago is a region of New Zealand in the south of the South Island. The region covers an area of approximately making it the country's second largest region. The population of Otago is...
, Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
, Otaki
Otaki
Otaki may refer to:*Ōtaki , a parliamentary electorate in New Zealand*Otaki, New Zealand, a town in New Zealand*Otaki River, a river in New Zealand*Ōtaki, Chiba, a town in Japan*Ōtaki, Saitama, a former village in Japan...
, Rotorua
Rotorua
Rotorua is a city on the southern shores of the lake of the same name, in the Bay of Plenty region of the North Island of New Zealand. The city is the seat of the Rotorua District, a territorial authority encompassing the city and several other nearby towns...
, Rangiaowhia and Whakatane
Whakatane
Whakatane is a town in the eastern Bay of Plenty Region, in the North Island of New Zealand, and is the seat of the Bay of Plenty Regional Council. Whakatane is 90 km east of Tauranga and 89 km north-east of Rotorua, at the mouth of the Whakatane River.The town has a population of , with...
.
The mission station in Kororareka encompassed the area surrounding what is now known as Pompallier House, Russell
Russell, New Zealand
Russell, formerly known as Kororareka, was the first permanent European settlement and sea port in New Zealand. It is situated in the Bay of Islands, in the far north of the North Island. As at the 2006 census it had a resident population of 816, an increase of 12 from 2001...
. A printing press was imported and, with other Catholic missionaries, Pompallier sponsored the printing of prayer booklets in Māori
Maori language
Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
, some of the earliest Māori publications. A tannery
Tanning
Tanning is the making of leather from the skins of animals which does not easily decompose. Traditionally, tanning used tannin, an acidic chemical compound from which the tanning process draws its name . Coloring may occur during tanning...
was set up to produce leather with which the pamphlets and books were bound.
Marist reinforcements arrived on the Reine de Paix on 18 June 1839 - Fathers Baty, Epalle and Petit and Brothers Elie Regis, Augustin and Florentin. On 8 December, four more Marists arrived. They were Fathers (later Bishop) Viard, Petit-Jean, Comte and Chevron and Brother Attale.
Pompallier was present at Waitangi on the day before and the morning of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi
Treaty of Waitangi
The Treaty of Waitangi is a treaty first signed on 6 February 1840 by representatives of the British Crown and various Māori chiefs from the North Island of New Zealand....
, which was held across the bay from Kororareka, on 6 February 1840. Pompallier left the gathering after the discussion and before the parties signed. Although he had advised some Catholic Maori chiefs, and was worried the treaty would hamper his mission, he is reported to have pushed for a fourth treaty article, in which the parties would be guaranteed freedom of religion. Having secured the promised freedom he did not stay. A separate Apostolic Vicariate of New Zealand was erected in 1842. Pompallier then became the Vicar Apostolic of New Zealand. In 1846, with Viard already appointed as his assistant bishop, Pompallier set off to Rome to give account of his mission.
Conflict and resolution
As has been stated the missionaries with Pompallier were Marists as he himself had nearly been. The Marist founder and superior Jean-Claude Colin believed that the Marists in New Zealand were as much subject to him as the Marists in France and could be visited by him and that he could receive reports from them on the state of the mission. Pompallier believed that the only task of the superior of the order was to look into the state of the missionary's soul. Colin could not accept that once his men reached New Zealand they were no longer to be treated as Marists. This attitude gave rise to Pompallier's accusations of constant interference in the life of the mission from Lyon, headquarters of the Marists. Both Pompallier and Colin tended to see the problem from their own point of view. This difference was further aggravated because Pompallier believed that Colin was holding up his allocations of funds in France.This conflict was settled in 1848 when the vicariate was divided into the Dioceses of Auckland and Wellington, with Pompallier as the Bishop of Auckland and Philippe Viard
Philippe Viard
Philippe Joseph Viard was the first Roman Catholic Bishop of Wellington, New Zealand.Born to Claude and Pierette Charlotte , he attended the parish school of Saint-Nizier and then entered the minor seminary at Argentière about 1827, proceeding to the major seminary of Saint-Irénée at Lyon in 1831...
(SM) as the Bishop of Wellington. The Marists accompanied Viard to the new diocese. On 8 April 1850 Pompallier returned from Europe with 2 priests, 10 seminarians and 8 Irish Sisters of Mercy
Sisters of Mercy
The Religious Order of the Sisters of Mercy is an order of Catholic women founded by Catherine McAuley in Dublin, Ireland, in 1831. , the order has about 10,000 members worldwide, organized into a number of independent congregations....
. He became a British subject in 1851; New Zealand was, at that time, a colony of Britain. On 30 December 1860 he returned from Europe with 8 Franciscans, 8 seminarians, and 4 French women who were intended to start a new order, the Sisters of the Holy Family. The group included Suzanne Aubert
Suzanne Aubert
Suzanne Aubert , better known to many by her name of Sister Mary Joseph or Mother Aubert, was a Catholic sister who started a home for orphans and the under-privileged in Jerusalem, New Zealand on the Whanganui River in 1885. She first came to New Zealand in 1860 and formed Congregation of the Holy...
.
Amid Pompallier' difficulties there was another consolation. On 9 March 1852 James and Walter McDonald
McDonald brothers (priests)
The brothers James McDonald and Walter McDonald were Catholic missionary priests and ecclesiatical administrators in early Auckland.-Early life:...
arrived in Auckland from Ireland. The brothers gave Pompallier great service. They became his loyal lieutenants and good friends and especially assisted Pompallier as diocesan administrators and in attending to the Māori mission.
Death
Through the 1850s, Pompallier was based in AucklandAuckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
. A street in the suburb of Ponsonby
Ponsonby, New Zealand
Ponsonby is an inner-city suburb of Auckland City located 2 km west of the Auckland CBD, in the North Island of New Zealand. The suburb is oriented along a ridge running north-south, which is followed by the main street of the suburb, Ponsonby Road....
is named after him. In 1868, old and ill he returned to France. Pompallier died in Puteaux
Puteaux
Puteaux is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located in the heart of the Hauts-de-Seine department from the center of Paris....
, near Paris, on 21 December 1871, aged 69.
On 9 January 2001, his remains were exhumed. A contingent of New Zealanders organised a pilgrimage trip in the style of a hikoi
Hikoi
Hikoi is a term of the Maori language of New Zealand generally meaning a protest march or parade, usually implying a long journey taking days or weeks....
, to return his remains to New Zealand. The ossuary
Ossuary
An ossuary is a chest, building, well, or site made to serve as the final resting place of human skeletal remains. They are frequently used where burial space is scarce. A body is first buried in a temporary grave, then after some years the skeletal remains are removed and placed in an ossuary...
of Pompallier's remains were accompanied 24 hours a day, as they travelled from Otago
Otago
Otago is a region of New Zealand in the south of the South Island. The region covers an area of approximately making it the country's second largest region. The population of Otago is...
to Hokianga
Hokianga
Hokianga is an area surrounding the Hokianga Harbour, also known as The Hokianga River, a long estuarine drowned valley on the west coast in the north of the North Island of New Zealand....
, where they were re-interred under the altar at St Mary's, Motuti, in 2002.
- Archbishop Jean-Baptiste-François Pompallier, Catholic Hierarchy website (retrieved 12 February 2011)
External links
- Bishop Pompallier, The Catholic Church in Aotearoa New Zealand website (retrieved 2 March 2011).