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Henry’s Random Thoughts
Bishop Henry Joseph
Grimmelsman
First Bishop of Evansville,
Indiana, Educator, Bible Scholar and World Traveler.
Milestones
Date Age Event Title
22 Dec 1890 Born Cincinnati
15 Aug 1915 24.6 Ordained Priest Priest
11 Nov 1944 53.9 Appointed Bishop of Evansville, Indiana, USA
21 Dec 1944 54.0 Ordained Bishop Bishop of Evansville, Indiana, USA
18 Oct 1965 74.8 Retired Bishop of Evansville, Indiana, USA
18 Oct 1965 74.8 Appointed Titular Bishop of Tabla
26 Jun 1972 81.5 Died Bishop Emeritus of Evansville, Indiana, USA
Source: www.catholic-heirarchy.org
Early Life
He was born into a deeply religious family in Cincinnati in 1890. He was one of ten siblings, seven of whom made it to adulthood. He was one of five siblings called to a life in the clergy. Three sisters became nuns and one of his brothers, John A. Grimmelsman, became a priest, working early on as a chaplain at Mt. St. Joseph College before founding St. Dominic parish (suburban Cincinnati) and serving as its pastor until retirement.
Education
Henry attended Holy Family School in Lower Price Hill, where his grades were outstanding. He was called to the priesthood early on, and after studying at Ohio seminaries, St. Joseph’s College (Indiana), and the University of Innsbruck in the old Austro-Hungarian Empire, he was ordained in his old parish church at the age of 24.
After ordination, he studied at Catholic University (Washington, DC) and had another stint at Innsbruck where he received a doctorate in Sacred Scripture. He was well-prepared to serve God as a Bible scholar.
Educator and Author
In 1920, he was appointed Professor of Scripture and Hebrew at Mt. St. Mary’s Seminary in Cincinnati. In 1932, he was named rector of the Josephinum in Worthington, Ohio.
Being an expert in Scripture, he wrote two Old Testament Books, one on the Book of Exodus and one on the Book of Ruth. These slender volumes were textbooks for those studying to be priests. A typical page consisted of a few lines of commentary at the top and an extended commentary on that snippet below. He also gave the all-important “Nihil Obstat” approval of the 1941 official Catholic version of the New Testament in American English.
He also wrote some smaller pamphlets, including one about a trip to the Holy Land he took on the 25th anniversary of his ordination. There were many other publications and essays in addition to the above.
Bishop of Evansville
In 1944, at the peak of World War II, he was appointed bishop of the brand new diocese of Evansville, Indiana. Previously part of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, you couldn’t find a spot in the Archdiocese farther away from Indianapolis than Evansville. The area was therefore a bit of a backwater as far as the Church was concerned. He set to work building infrastructure, establishing parishes and, perhaps most important to him, educating and encouraging new priests.
He had the reputation as a no-nonsense taskmaster, as you might expect of someone who had a mission of building up a new diocese. Late in his tenure as bishop, he was summoned to Rome to participate in the famous Second Vatican Council. His expertise was relied on in matters pertaining to Scripture.
Retirement
In 1965, he retired from his duties as bishop. He remained in Evansville for nearly seven years until his death in the summer of 1972. He set up a small chapel in the bishop’s house and continued to say a daily Mass until weeks before his death, when physical impairment made him unable to do so.
References:
The important dates and milestones were obtained from the website www.catholic-heirarchy.org. Many specifics regarding his ministry were obtained from the June 30, 1972 issue of “The Message,” a periodical published by the Diocese of Evansville. Information about early life, as well as the photo, were obtained from the Grimmelsman family. The publications authored by Bishop Grimmelsman are available in many of the larger American Catholic libraries.