| The Most Reverend Robert James Carlson |
|
|---|---|
| Archbishop of St. Louis | |
Archbishop Robert J. Carlson exits the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis - 2010. |
|
| See | St. Louis |
| Enthroned | June 10, 2009 |
| Predecessor | Raymond Leo Burke |
| Other posts | Auxiliary Bishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis (1983-1994) Bishop of Sioux Falls (1995-2004) Bishop of Saginaw (2004-2009) |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | May 23, 1970 |
| Consecration | January 11, 1984 by John Robert Roach |
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 30, 1944 Minneapolis, Minnesota |
Robert James Carlson (born June 30, 1944) is an American clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church. He is the ninth and current Archbishop of St. Louis. He previously served as Auxiliary Bishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis (1983–1994), Bishop of Sioux Falls (1995–2004), and Bishop of Saginaw (2004–2009).
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Robert Carlson was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to the late Robert and Jeanne Carlson. His father was serving in the U.S. Navy on a destroyer in Guam when his son was born, and later worked as a Prudential insurance salesman for 43 years.[1] The eldest of five children, Carlson has four younger sisters, two of whom died in childhood. During high school, he studied under the Christian Brothers and played football.[1] He studied at St. Paul Seminary, from where he obtained Bachelor's degree in philosophy in 1966.
Carlson was ordained to the priesthood on May 23, 1970. He earned a Master's in Divinity from St. Paul Seminary in 1976, and a Licentiate of Canon Law from the Catholic University of America in 1979. He served as a pastor, a judge on the archdiocesan tribunal, director of the Office of Vocations, and chancellor of the curia in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. He also served at the University of St. Thomas, where he was a chaplain to the hockey team.[1]
On November 19, 1983, Carlson was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis and Titular Bishop of Avioccala by Blessed Pope John Paul II. He received his episcopal consecration on January 11, 1984 from Archbishop John Roach, with Bishops John Kinney and Paul Dudley serving as co-consecrators. He selected as his episcopal motto: Ante Crucem Nihil Defensionis, that is, "Before the Cross There is No Defense."
Carlson was later named Coadjutor Bishop of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on January 13, 1994 by Pope John Paul II. He succeeded Paul Dudley as the seventh Bishop of Sioux Falls upon the latter's retirement on March 21, 1995. He served chairman of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Vocations from 1992 to 1994, and of the Subcommittee on Youth from 1993 to 1996.[2]
He was appointed the fifth Bishop of Saginaw, Michigan, on December 29, 2004, in one of the last episcopal appointments to the American Catholic Church made by Pope John Paul II. Succeeding the late Bishop Kenneth Untener, he was installed at St. Mary's Cathedral on February 24, 2005. During his tenure in Saginaw, Carlson focused on priestly vocations, Catholic schools, service to the poor, stewardship, and evangelization. He also published six pastoral letters; created the Saginaw Area Catholic Schools system; and established two charities, the Bishop's Charity Golf Classic and the Bishop's Charity Ball.
In demonstration of his dedication to vocations, Carlson filled the role of diocesan vocations director himself. In 2005 the number of seminarians increased from 4 to 12, and in 2006 the number of seminarians again increased to 19.[3] In August 2006 the first permanent deacon in 25 years was ordained for the diocese.[4] In June 2007, two men were ordained to the priesthood and five to the transitional diaconate.
Pope Benedict XVI named Carlson the ninth Archbishop of St. Louis, Missouri, on April 21, 2009.[5] He replaced Archbishop Raymond Burke, who was appointed Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura in the Roman Curia in June 2008. As Archbishop, Carlson is the spiritual leader of 566,000 Catholics in eastern Missouri.[6]
He received the pallium, a vestment worn by metropolitan bishops, from Benedict XVI on June 29, 2009, in a ceremony at St. Peter's Basilica.[7]
Archbishop Carlson was soon confronted with a crisis in the Archdiocese, as the pastor of a St. Louis parish was arrested and suspended from priestly duties for alleged sexual improprieties with minors. He made a point to visit and speak to the parish soon afterward at one of their Masses, and made sure that the previous parishes the priest had served at knew of the allegations. He was praised for the proper response he showed as archbishop in the matter to the parishioners of the church and the other parishes.
In 1984, Carlson was told of an accusation against parish priest Rev. Thomas Adamson. Adamson had already spent two weeks in an inpatient clinic after being accused with abuse four years earlier. Carlson confronted Adamson about the accusations. Adamson admitted sexual abuse against children, and "agreed that it probably would be first-degree criminal sexual contact".[8] Rather than going to the police with the information, Carlson recommended to Bishop Roach in a memo that "given the seriousness of our exposure that the Archdiocese posture itself in such a way that any publicity will be minimized."[9] Adamson later admitted to sexually abusing children in 10 of the 13 parishes he was assigned to. Carlson later defended his handling of the case, stating, "My job was to investigate and report back to the archbishop what I found out, and that's exactly what I did."[10] St. Paul lawyer Jeffrey Anderson deposed Carlson several times and stated that Carlson "was active in the concealment and the deception, and the deceit of the police, the public and the parishioners." By 2009, Carlson admitted that he should have done more to alert authorities to the priest's behavior.[11]
Carlson is considered theologically conservative,.[12] His appointment follows a pattern observed by John Allen, Jr., Vatican correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter, of Pope Benedict choosing prelates "who are basically conservative in both their politics and their theology, but also upbeat, pastoral figures given to dialogue."[13]
Archbishop Carlson has made it a point to try to reconcile with the board and parishioners of Saint Stanislaus Kostka Church, whose priest (Father Marek Bozek, originally from another Missouri diocese) and lay board were excommunicated by Archbishop Carlson's predecessor, Archbishop Burke, after they resisted Burke's directive to conform to the organizational structure which most St. Louis parishes now operate under (which gives more sway over some important issues to the archbishop and his appointed pastor, and where the assets of the parish are considered part of the wider archdiocese). Control over parish property, whether Archbishop Carlson will appoint another Polish or Polish-speaking pastor as Bozek's replacement, whether the parish will remain open and served by a Polish priest after Archbishop Carlson is no longer archbishop, who should count as a parishioner or board member (some went back and reconciled to the Church), and the terms of Bozek's status and compensation (all highly legalistic canonical and civil issues) will need to be worked out. The parish and archdiocese are still endeavoring to trust one another, and Archbishop Carlson has not yet visited the breakaway church. Carlson has been widely praised by both sides for trying to amicably resolve the tense situation. St. Stanislaus voted on an offer put forth by the Archbishop on Sunday, August 8, 2010, which could have begun to resolve the matter, but discrepancies and disagreements still remain to be worked out and the measure did not receive enough votes to pass.
Regarding withholding Holy Communion to Catholic politicians who support abortion rights, and who persist in doing so even after consultation with their Bishop, Archbishop Carlson has stressed the need for personal dialogue with them but also affirmed the validity of denying Holy Communion to such individuals as he said that "If I were to enter into dialogue with somebody, and after they reflect on the discussion and that person persisted, it could come to that point....Archbishop Burke, who is on the Supreme Apostolic Signatura, has combined in an interesting way, and I think he does it correctly. And he's not just speaking anymore as the Archbishop of St. Louis, he is the prefect of the Signatura. It appears that's the direction the church consensus is moving towards. ... Could we get into that situation? Yes. But at least in my own time in St. Louis, I'd like to have a crack at the dialogue first."[14]
During his tenure, Carlson was a frequent critic of U.S. Senator Tom Daschle (D-SD), who held certain positions contrary to Catholic teachings.[15] In 1997, before a Senate vote on partial-birth abortion legislation, Carlson denounced a compromise proposed by Daschle that would ban the procedure but allow exemptions for women claiming mental or physical health reasons, calling the proposition a "smokescreen" designed to "provide cover for pro-abortion senators and President Clinton, who wanted to avoid a veto confrontation."[15] In response, Daschle described the Bishops as being "more identified with the radical right than with thoughtful religious leadership."[15]
In 2003, Carlson privately urged Daschle to no longer identify himself as a Catholic because of his support for abortion.[15][16] Daschle refused to disclose any details of his communication with Carlson, saying, "I am not going to participate in a debate that is intended to politicize anyone's religious beliefs..."[16] The Bishop later added, "I would never break off dialogue or a pastoral relationship with anyone."[16][17]
In an August 2004 statement, Carlson reportedly "stopped short" of saying that it was a sin for a Catholic to vote for a Democrat.[18]
During the 2008 presidential election, Carlson stated, "A Catholic can, in good conscience, vote for a pro-choice candidate only if other issues outweigh this one in number and in kind."[1] The day following Barack Obama's victory, he said, "This election has shown that any child who is born in America has the opportunity to ascend to the highest political office in the land. We must continue to work and pray tirelessly for the day when every child who is conceived will have the right to live."[19]
On May 15, 2009, Carlson expressed his disappointment over the University of Notre Dame's decision to have President Obama deliver its commencement speech and receive an honorary degree, and said, "Notre Dame has to figure out who they are—are they of the culture, or are they of the Church?"[20]
Carlson survived stage-four bladder cancer in the 1990s, having once been told by his doctor to arrange his will in order to prepare for an imminent death.[21] He has undergone a total of seven cancer-related procedures, and partly credited a trip to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Fátima in Portugal for his recovery.[21]
Bishop Carlson serves as:
| Catholic Church titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Paul Vincent Dudley |
Bishop of Sioux Falls 1994–2005 |
Succeeded by Paul J. Swain |
| Preceded by Kenneth Edward Untener |
Bishop of Saginaw 2005–2009 |
Succeeded by Joseph R. Cistone |
| Preceded by Raymond Leo Burke |
Archbishop of Saint Louis 2009-present |
Succeeded by incumbent |