Karl Pruter

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Karl Pruter is a former Congregationalist minister. He later became involved in the Free Catholic Movement of the 1940's. After the splintering which arose in the movement later, Pruter traveled to Europe where he met several leaders of the Old Catholic tradition. When he returned to the United States, he settled in Boston hoping to find an available church or bishop. Not finding any, he arranged with Archbishop Peter A. Zurawetsky to start a new church, in the Back Bay area of Boston, which stressed the contemplative life, mysticism, and a faith based on personal experience.^[1]

He was consecrated Bishop of the Diocese of Boston by Archbishops Zurawetsky and Uladyslau Ryzy-Ryski in 1967. The following year, Pruter designated his Diocese an independent communion. After a meeting the following year, the new Christ Catholic Church (Pruter) was recognized when its Constitution and Canons were given it by Archbishop Zurawetsky. ^[1]

Pruter has been a vigorous publisher and distributor of literature in his fields of interest. The press he founded, St. Willibrord's Press, has become the major distributor of literature about the Old Catholic church. He has written a number of tracts and pamphlets, as well as books such as The Teachings of the Great Mystics and A History of the Old Catholic Church. He has also operated the Tsali Bookstore, specializing in American Indian literature, and Cathedral Books which emphasizes literature about the topic of peace. ^[1]