Bishop Hammes (1960-1985)

Bishop of Superior who participated in Vatican II and implemented many of its reforms

• Introduction
• Early life and ordination to priesthood
• Appointment to Superior
  • Episcopal Ordination
  • Early Episcopal duties
  • New projects in first two years
• Second Vatican Council begins
• Liturgical changes
  • Mass in the vernacular
  • Mass on Saturday evening
  • Age of confirmation raised to age 16 or older
• The role of the laity
  • "The Bishop and the Layman"
  • Pastoral councils established
  • Diocesan sisters' council established
• Ecumenism
• Catholic school hardships
  • Declining school enrollment
  • Four diocesan high schools closed
  • Office of Religious Education formed
• Ordained ministry and parish leadership changes
  • Permanent Diaconate program
  • Parish cluster program instituted
  • Sr. Maria Lang, FSPA, appointed parish director
• Contemplative religious communities
• Final years
  • Bishop Raphael M. Fliss appointed coadjutor bishop
  • Bishop Hammes honored
  • Born to Eternal Life

Introduction

The winds of change were blowing when Pope John XXIII appointed Msgr. George Albert Hammes as bishop of Superior on March 28, 1960. Catholics around the world remember Pope John XXIII- nicknamed “the good pope”- as father of the Second Vatican Council. In the Superior Diocese, Bishop Hammes is remembered for his participation in the historical ecumenical council and for implementing the many church reforms that were introduced during Vatican II.

Bishop Hammes was born September 11, 1911, in St. Joseph Ridge, located near La Crosse. He was the fourth of 16 children born to August and Caroline (Schumacher) Hammes. After completing eighth grade at St. Joseph Ridge School in 1925, the young George Hammes told his father he wanted to enter the seminary. He enrolled at St. Lawrence Seminary in Mount Calvary, where he completed high school and junior college. He then attended St. Louis Preparatory Seminary in Missouri, studying Philosophy for two years. After spending one year at Kenrick Seminary in St. Louis, Bishop Hammes transferred to the Sulpician Seminary in Washington D.C. (now The Theological College of The Catholic University). He took graduate courses in education at Catholic University and received a Master of Arts degree in June 1937. Auxiliary Bishop William R. Griffin ordained Bishop Hammes to the priesthood on May 22, 1937, at St. Joseph the Workman Cathedral in La Crosse.

Rather than assign him to a parish, Bishop Alexander J. McGavick of La Crosse appointed the young Fr. Hammes as his secretary. At the same time he was named instructor of religion and Latin at Aquinas High School in La Crosse. In addition, Bishop Hammes served as instructor of religion and ethics at St. Francis School of Nursing from 1937 to 1946. In 1944, Bishop McGavick named Fr. Hammes chancellor of the La Crosse Diocese. He was elevated to the rank of domestic prelate (monsignor) on December 3, 1947. Msgr. Hammes received his first parish assignment in September 1957, becoming the founding pastor of St. Leo the Great Parish in West Salem. Three years later, while still preparing for the completion of the new West Salem church, Msgr. Hammes, 48, was named bishop of Superior. He was the first native priest of the La Crosse Diocese to become a bishop.

Episcopal Ordination

Because a new cathedral was being constructed in La Crosse, Bishop Hammes' episcopal ordination took place on May 24, 1960, in the Mary E. Sawyer Civic Auditorium in La Crosse. Archbishop Egidio Vagnozzi, apostolic delegate to the United States, was the main ordaining prelate and was assisted by La Crosse Bishop John R Treacy and Madison Bishop William R. O'Connor. Some 4,000 people, including 30 archbishops and bishops and over 500 priests and religious, witnessed the ordination. Two weeks later, on June 7, Milwaukee Archbishop William E. Cousins installed Bishop Hammes as eighth bishop of Superior at the Cathedral of Christ the King.

"I am following in the footsteps of illustrious bishops and churchmen," Bishop Hammes told the congregation. "Pray daily that God will bless the work in which I join you today."

Early Episcopal Duties

Within days of his installation, Bishop Hammes began exercising his episcopal duties.

• Fr. Cyril Sirek was appointed chancellor and
• Msgr. William Kubelbeck as vicar general of the diocese.

That same week, he ordained six men to the priesthood at the cathedral. (During his 25 years as bishop, he ordained 78 priests.)

New projects in first two years

As shepherd of a flock that had grown to over 75,000 in 1960, Bishop Hammes kept a routine schedule his first two years, presiding over the usual activities of a bishop. He did, however, implement several new projects.

• In June 1961, the Pax Christi Award was initiated. Presented during the annual Diocesan Council of Catholic Women convention, the award recognizes a lay woman for outstanding service to her parish and community.
• In February 1962, the Diocesan Vocations Office was reorganized in February 1962, with Fr. Harold Dodge appointed as diocesan director and two assistant directors named for each of the diocese’s 16 counties.

Routine, however, would no longer be a word to describe the episcopacy of Bishop Hammes after 1962. It was the year, on October 11, that Pope John XXIII convened one of the most important gatherings in church history- the Second Vatican Council. The first half of the 20^th century had seen many cultural and technological changes, and John XXIII believed the church needed to evolve with these changes. The pontiff called upon bishops of the world to join him in Rome for the ecumenical council, and Bishop Hammes responded to the call. He attended every session of the council beginning in 1962 and concluding with its adjournment on December 8, 1965, and the experience had a profound influence on his life. Following the final session of Vatican II, Bishop Hammes began a concerted effort to bring about Christian renewal in his diocese. Using the approved documents of Vatican II as a roadmap, much of his reforms focused on three areas: liturgical changes, the role of the laity, and ecumenism.

Even before the Second Vatican Council ended, Bishop Hammes began implementing some of the decrees passed in earlier sessions.

Mass in the vernacular

In December 1963, after returning from the second council session (September 29- December 4, 1963), Bishop Hammes authorized a Program of Instruction and Training manual to prepare the faithful for Mass in the vernacular. Since Catholics, to that date, had not actively participated in the prayers of the Mass, it was necessary to explain why the change would be made and to offer time for practice. The program of instruction, prepared by the Diocesan Commission on the Sacred Liturgy, explained how to introduce this new practice:

“Just as hymns are sung in unison, so prayers are prayed by the faithful together. The priest sets the pace; by the strength of his voice and the clarity of his diction, he molds into one praying voice the voices of his flock.”

The first Masses with limited use of English took place in the diocese on Sunday, June 21, 1964. The entire celebration of the Mass in English would not occur until the first Sunday of Advent, November 29, 1964. Superior was the first diocese in the United States to allow the "Ordinary" parts of the Mass to be celebrated in English.

Mass on Saturday Evening

On July 7, 1967, Bishop Hammes approved the celebration of Saturday evening Mass to fulfill the Sunday obligation. He again was one of the first bishops in the country to allow this privilege.

Age of confirmation raised to age 16 or older

In 1974, he issued a directive, "Confirmation Policy for the Diocese of Superior," which required the usual age for reception of the Sacrament of Confirmation to be raised to age 16 or older. This policy was later initiated by other dioceses and served as a basis for their own policies.

"The Bishop and the Layman"

Bishop Hammes gained a reputation for his enthusiastic implementation of Vatican II directives. He was one of four bishops asked by "Continuum" magazine to contribute an article on "The Changing Role of the American Episcopate" in 1964. His topic, "The Bishop and the Layman," stressed the past history of lay involvement and pointed to the future as a result of Vatican II.

Pastoral councils established

In March 1966 he appointed a steering committee to study the best ways to implement the council teachings. He titled this effort “Project Christian Action.” One of the first results was the formation of a diocesan pastoral council consisting of lay members (including young adults), priests and sisters. The council’s first meeting was held January 20, 1967, and its formation proved to be a harbinger of things to come. In 1969, Bishop Hammes wrote a pastoral letter requesting that every parish form a parish council to allow more lay input in church governing affairs. To assist in their formation, he published guidelines for the function of parish councils.

Diocesan sisters' council established

In 1968, Bishop Hammes established the diocesan sisters’ council to give women religious a voice in the work of the local church. In 1980, he wrote a letter to pastors encouraging them to consider sisters for parish ministry positions.

In May of 1966, Bishop Hammes established a Diocesan Commission for Ecumenical Affairs and named Fr. George Gleason as its chairman. Bishop Hammes' groundbreaking initiatives in the ecumenical arena led Fr. Gleason to nickname him "The Grand Man of Ecumenism."

• In 1967, in anticipation of Church Unity Octave week, Bishop Hammes issued a booklet on "Guidelines for Ecumenism." He was the first bishop in Wisconsin to issue such guidelines - which offered norms for common worship and regulations for liturgical participation with Protestants - and he gained national acclaim for his ecumenical efforts.
• In 1967, an Ecumenical Institute was held in Ladysmith and attracted about 400 people. In 1973, Bishop Hammes promulgated a decree whereby non-Catholic Christians were permitted to receive the Eucharist under specific conditions.
• In 1970, the Tri-state Interfaith Development Enterprises, Inc., an ecumenical committee of church leaders in northern Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota, was established.

Declining school enrollment

Parish schools faced reduced enrollment. In 1960 there were 38 Catholic elementary schools with 7,675 students. By the time Bishop Hammes retired in 1985 there were 21 schools with 3,622 students. At the first-ever Fall Teachers' Convention, held in Ladysmith November 7 and 8, 1968, Bishop Hammes addressed this issue.

"Our Catholic schools will not serve us as they did in the past," he told the educators. "Our schools and system of education have to fit into the spirit of education given to us by the Second Vatican Council. Otherwise, we would have to agree with those who say our school system has outlived its usefulness. Whereas, in my estimation, schools share importantly in the whole renewal of the church."

Four diocesan high schools closed

While the diocese was renewed after Vatican II, it soon began experiencing hardships. Due to dwindling enrollment, four high schools closed their doors within a three-year span:

• DePadua High School in Ashland, 1967;
• Servite High School in Ladysmith, 1968
• Holy Cross High School in Merrill, 1968; and
• Cathedral High School in Superior, 1969

Office of Religious Education formed

As Catholic schools closed, parish religious education programs grew. Bishop Hammes responded to this need by establishing the Christian Renewal Centers in September 1968, which operated out of separate offices in Woodruff and Cameron. The centers later merged and became the Office of Religious Education. Services were expanded to offer educational opportunities for young adults, such as Teens Encounter Christ, and adults, such as Marriage Encounter.

Ordained ministry and parish leadership underwent a variety of changes during Bishop Hammes' episcopacy. In 1969, in response to the growing shortage of priests, the bishop established a Planning and Research Committee to study the situation and propose solutions for the future. Discussions continued throughout the 1970s.

Permanent Diaconate program

Another fruit of Vatican II was the reintroduction of the permanent diaconate, an ordained ministry open to all Catholic men, married and single. The Holy See granted permission to the U.S. bishops to establish this ministry in 1968. In 1975, Bishop Hammes asked the Planning and Research Committee to study the program. On Jan. 22, 1980, the bishop gave his approval to the Permanent Diaconate Program, appointing Fr. Dennis Mullen as executive director. The growth of this ordained ministry over the years has allowed parishes to continue their ministries in spite of the priest shortage.

Parish Cluster program instituted

In April 1982, the planning commission issued the first draft of its seminal document, "2000 Here We Come," which offered suggestions for parish clustering. In June 1983, the parish cluster program, where one priest cares for several parishes, was instituted. While priestless parishes (known as missions, stations and chapels) had been part of the church landscape even before the diocese was established, the parish cluster program took a methodical approach to assigning priests to parishes based on several criteria.

Sr. Maria Lang, FSPA, appointed parish director

An innovative move responding to the clergy shortage occurred in 1981 when Bishop Hammes appointed Sr. Maria Lang, a Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration, as full-time director of

• St. John the Baptist Parish in Bloomville and
• St. Augustine Parish in Harrison.

Although just months before Sr. Lang's appointment, two other sisters in Minnesota were named parish directors, Sr. Lang was the first non-ordained Catholic in the country to direct two parishes. Her duties included overseeing all aspects of parish life, except those reserved for ordained ministers. She served as parish director until 1993.

Contemplative religious communities

While most religious communities serve the church and the community through outreach ministries, two communities in the Superior Diocese carry out their chosen ministry through prayer. The Carmelite Nuns of Hudson and the Hermits of Mount Carmel of Amery are contemplative communities whose sole ministry is to provide continual prayer. Their prayers and sacrifices are offered on behalf of the needs of the church and world.

In 1963, Bishop George A. Hammes welcomed four nuns and one candidate from the Carmel of the Little Flower in Allentown, PA, into the diocese. Through a family connection with Fr. Raymond Schoone, they established a monastery, Carmel of the Sacred Heart, in Hudson. The former family residence provided a perfect setting for the solitude and seclusion necessary for a contemplative life. The Carmelites serve the community by accepting prayer requests and offering visitors a chance to spend time in solitary prayer at their guesthouse.

In 1980, Bishop Hammes formally established "The Pious Union of the Carmelite Hermit Sisters of Superior." While the hermitage has seen a number of changes over the years, the commitment to solitude, prayer and penance has remained. On July 20, 1995, Sr. Kristine Haugen, one member of the original group, took vows of poverty, chastity and obedience according to Canon 603.

Bishop Raphael M. Fliss appointed coadjutor bishop

Nearly 20 years after his appointment in Superior, Bishop Hammes welcomed another change in the diocese: the appointment of a coadjutor bishop. Bishop Raphael M. Fliss was appointed to this position on November 6, 1979. As coadjutor bishop, he would automatically succeed Bishop Hammes upon the bishop's retirement.

Bishom Hammes honored

Bishop Hammes retired on June 27, 1985. During his first four years of retirement, he lived in Superior. In 1989 he returned to his home diocese of La Crosse.

• In 1985, in a commemorative edition of the Catholic Herald published one week before his retirement, Bishop Hammes was recognized for his quarter-century of service.
• In 1988, the Diocesan Principals' Association established the Bishop Hammes Award, given each fall to an individual who emulates the special leadership and support for Catholic schools provided by Bishop Hammes.
• In 1990, Bishop Hammes was the honored guest at a dedication ceremony in Haugen. On that day, the diocese named its Religious Education Center, located in the former rectory of Holy Trinity Church, after the longtime bishop: Bishop George A. Hammes Center.

Born to eternal life

Bishop Hammes died on Easter Sunday, April 11, 1993, at St. Joseph's Nursing Home in La Crosse. A memorial Mass was concelebrated April 14 at St. Joseph the Workman Cathedral by La Crosse Bishop John Paul, a cousin of Bishop Hammes, Bishop Fliss and retired La Crosse Bishop Frederick Freking.

The following day, a vigil service was held at the Cathedral of Christ the King in Superior, during which priests of the diocese shared their memories of Bishop Hammes. Fr. James Hoffman, who served as the bishop's secretary from 1971 said Bishop Hammes had a great respect for the priesthood and those who served it.

"He gave them a tremendous amount of freedom and so many were able to flourish because of that."

On April 16, the diocese paid its final respects to Bishop Hammes at a funeral Mass at the cathedral. Five bishops and some 60 priests joined Bishop Fliss for the liturgy.

"As we bid farewell to this good priest who became a great bishop, we think of the (Gospel) line that says: 'For the measure you measure with will be measured back to you,'" said Bishop Fliss. "I believe that the reward prepared for Bishop George Albert will indeed be great. ... May his memory remain with us indelibly and may the Lord see him soon in his eternal joy."

Bishop Hammes was buried at Calvary Cemetery, next to Bishop Theodore Reverman and
Bishop Joseph Annabring.


__________________________________________

Source: Our Journey through Faith: A History of the Diocese of Superior, by Sam Lucero, 2005.