Vincent Stanislaus Waters
| The Most Reverend Vincent Stanislaus Waters | |
|---|---|
| Roman Catholic Diocese of Raleigh | |
| Diocese | Roman Catholic Diocese of Raleigh |
| See | Atlanta |
| Installed | March 15, 1945 |
| Term ended | December 3, 1974 |
| Predecessor | Eugene J. McGuinness |
| Successor | Francis Joseph Gossman |
| Other posts | Chancellor of the Diocese of Richmond |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | December 8, 1931 |
| Consecration | May 15, 1945 |
| Personal details | |
| Birth name | Vincent Stanislaus Waters |
| Born |
August 15, 1904 Roanoke, Virginia |
| Died |
December 3, 1974 Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Nationality | American |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Alma mater | Belmont Abbey College |
| Ordination history of Vincent Stanislaus Waters | |
|---|---|
| Episcopal consecration | |
| Principal consecrator | Peter Leo Ireton (Richmond) |
| Date of consecration | May 15, 1945 |
| Bishops consecrated by Vincent Stanislaus Waters as principal consecrator | |
| Charles Borromeo McLaughlin | April 15, 1964 |
| George Edward Lynch | January 6, 1970 |
Vincent Stanislaus Waters (August 15, 1904—December 3, 1974) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Raleigh from 1945 until his death in 1974.
Biography
Vincent Waters was born in Roanoke, Virginia, to Michael Bernard and Mary Frances (née Crowley) Waters.[1] He attended Belmont Abbey College in North Carolina from 1920 to 1925, and then went to Maryland and studied at St. Charles College in Ellicott City (1925-1926) and St. Mary's Seminary in Baltimore (1926-1928).[1] He furthered his studies at the Pontifical North American College in Rome, where he was ordained to the priesthood on December 8, 1931.[2] Following his return to Virginia in 1932, he served as a curate at Holy Cross Church in Lynchburg until 1936, when he was transferred to Sacred Heart Cathedral in Richmond.[1] He was chancellor of the Diocese of Richmond from 1936 to 1943, and director of the Diocesan Mission Fathers from 1943 to 1945.[1]
On March 15, 1945, Waters was appointed the sixth Bishop of Raleigh, North Carolina, by Pope Pius XII.[2] He received his episcopal consecration on the following May 15 from Bishop Peter Leo Ireton, with Bishops Gerald O'Hara and Emmet M. Walsh serving as co-consecrators.[2] A year before Brown v. Board of Education, Waters ordered the desegregation of all Catholic churches and schools in North Carolina in 1953.[3][4] He described segregation as a product of "darkness," and declared that "the time has come for it to end."[5] He also said, "I am not unmindful, as a Southerner, of the force of this virus of prejudice among some persons in the South, as well as in the North. I know, however, that there is a cure for this virus, and that is our faith."[6]
He attended all four sessions of the Second Vatican Council between 1962 and 1965. Waters was later accused by some of the diocesan clergy of holding on to idle church property worth millions of dollars while some parishes were in debt.[3] He also denied requests for the creation of a priests' senate, and had his resignation requested by around twenty percent of the clergy.[3] In 1972 he expelled five Sisters of Providence from the diocese for not wearing their religious habit while teaching.[3]
Waters later died from a heart attack at his residence, aged 70.[3]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Curtis, Georgina Pell (1961). The American Catholic Who's Who XIV. Grosse Pointe, Michigan: Walter Romig.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Bishop Vincent Stanislaus Waters". Catholic-Hierarchy.org.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 "Bishop Waters, Led Raleigh Diocese". The New York Times. 1974-12-05.
- ↑ "Bishop Vincent S. Waters (1904-1974)". North Carolina History Project.
- ↑ "Light in Newton Grove". TIME Magazine. 1953-06-08.
- ↑ "Cure for the Virus". TIME Magazine. 1953-06-29.
| Catholic Church titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Eugene J. McGuinness |
Bishop of Raleigh 1945—1974 |
Succeeded by Francis Joseph Gossman |
|