William Stang

Background

William Stang was born at Langenbrücken in the Grand Duchy of Baden, Germany.

Education

He received his early education at the local gymnasium and then attended the minor seminary of Saint-Nicolas in Belgium. He entered the American College of Louvain in 1875, where he completed his theological studies.

Career

He served as the first Bishop of Fall River from 1904 until his death in 1907. He was ordained to the priesthood on June 15, 1878. Stang briefly taught at the Catholic University of Leuven before coming to the United States in September 1878 to work in the Diocese of Providence, Rhode Island.

He primarily ministered to the local German Catholic community while also serving as a curate at the Cathedral of Saints

Peter and Paul in Providence. He was named pastor of Saint Anne"s Church in Cranston in 1884.

He then served as rector of Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral until 1895, when he returned to the Catholic University of Leuven to serve as vice-rector and professor of moral theology.

He returned to Providence in 1899, becoming head of the diocesan mission band.

He was named pastor of Saint Edward"s Church in 1901 and also served as chancellor of the diocese. On March 12, 1904, Stang was appointed the first Bishop of the newly created Diocese of Fall River, Massachusetts, by Pope Pius X. He received his episcopal consecration on the following May 1 from Bishop Matthew Harkins, with Bishops Michael Tierney and John Brady serving as co-consecrators, at Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral.

During his tenure, he established eleven parishes and founded Saint Anne"s Hospital.

He once described divorce as a "pernicious practice..contrary to the moral order and the law of Christ," and condemned Saturday dances as "a source of scandal must be stopped at once."

Stang died at Saint Mary"s Hospital in Rochester, Minnesota, at age 52. Bishop Stang High School, located in North Dartmouth, is named in his honor.

Works

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  • Historiographia Ecclesiastica: Quam Historiae Seriam Solidamque Operam Navantibus... (Latin Edition)

    (This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. T...)