Bp. Miles: A Forgotten Missionary

 

To My Readers: This week's post is about the illustrious Bishop Richard Pius Miles, one of the great missionaries of the 1800s. My deepest thanks to my guest poster Lee for having written it. Feel free to comment as usual. If anyone has a question or comment specifically for me, I will answer as I always do, but it may take me a bit longer to respond this week.

God bless you all, my dear readers---Introibo

Bishop Richard Pius Miles: A Forgotten Missionary of the 1800's

By Lee

Proselytism is solemn nonsense. Proselytism leads to a cul-de-sac. Proselytism is pagan.  Therefore, the most serious sin that a missionary can have [commit] is proselytism. Catholicism is not proselytizing. These are the words of Jorge Bergoglio (A.K.A "Pope" Francis). How does this translate to the average person today? The answer would be NOT to attempt to convert somebody (or a group of people) to a certain way of thinking in regards to religious beliefs. Is this the spirit of Catholicism? Hardly; because if it was, then the whole purpose of spreading the Gospel, the propagation of the Faith, and being concerned for the salvation of souls, was all done in vain by every single missionary in the history of the Church. All of them strived to achieve that goal.

Many remarkable stories could be told about the success of missionary activity. Over and over again we see clergymen sacrifice their entire life for the benefit of their neighbor, not just in preaching and teaching, but also in many other works of charity. Therefore, when we see Catholicism spread throughout the world in every territory, it is because of those who came before us who had the mark of faith and who tirelessly worked to establish Catholic culture even to the point of their deaths. Some missionaries, however, are not well known. A chunk of them were great saints while others were very holy and while they may not be declared saints, could very well be saints. 

One such man, whose body was found in-corrupt in 1972 (112 years after his death), and who during his life accomplished much of his work alone, can be found right here in the United States. He was not in a historically Catholic-settled area such as Maryland, or a Catholic-influenced city such as Chicago or St. Louis. Instead, he is located right in the "bible belt buckle" of Nashville, Tennessee and his name was Bp. Richard Pius Miles, first bishop of Nashville.

Life of the Good Bishop  

Back in his day, Nashville was not known for its Honky Tonk highway, country music, or for its replica of the Parthenon. In fact, it wasn't even the state's capital until five years after he arrived. At that time, Nashville had scarcely 6500 hundred people with no Catholic Church, a handful of scattered faithful, and no easy access to find them or get to them other than by horseback or on foot. How did he manage?  We shall see because Richard Clark in his book Lives of the Deceased Bishops of the Catholic Church in the United States Vol. II: explains what he was able to do in the course of 22 years. Below he gives an account of his life:

Richard Pius Miles was born in Prince George's county, Maryland, May 17, 1791. At that time there was a considerable emigration from Maryland to Kentucky. The celebrated Daniel  Boone had advanced the frontier of civilization in that region, and Bishop Miles' parents, themselves connected with the Maryland branch of the Boone family, which was of the same stock with that of the great explorer and pioneer, were among those who followed in the westward current young Miles, then at the age of five years, emigrated with his parents to Kentucky, in 1796. With many instances of religious vocations in his family before him, and educated in piety from his infancy by his good parents, as soon as he was capable of choosing a vocation he chose the better part, and resolved to enter the Dominican Convent of St. Rose, Washington county, Kentucky. He received the white habit of St. Dominic, October 10, 1806, being then only fifteen years old. During his entire life he was most affectionately attached to his brethren of the Dominican Order.

Ten years of study and application to the various offices of the Order prepared him for the sacred ministry, to which dignity he was raised in September, 1816. For twenty-two years he devoted himself with great zeal and untiring energy to the missions of Ohio and Kentucky, having been pastor of the congregations of Somerset KY and Zanesville OH, where the memory of his labors and of his kind and genial manners is still cherished. The models after which his missionary life was formed were such men as Bishops Flaget and David, and Fathers Nerinckx and Badin, all missionaries of the severest and most laborious apostolic schools, and men of the most pious, simple, and humble lives. 

From the earliest days of  his priesthood he was a favorite companion of, and valuable assistant to, Bishop Flaget, in some of those great visitations of his diocese, each of which was a fruitful and consoling revival of faith and piety in the country through which they passed. In 1830 he accompanied Bishop Edward Fenwick, of Cincinnati, in a visitation of the State  of Ohio, which was fruitful in great results, and rendered invaluable services to that venerable and good Prelate. Like the other missionaries of the West in those early days, Father Miles had to hunt up the scattered Catholics of his mission; long journeys on horseback were the usual task of the priest, and the severity of his labors was greatly increased by the roughness of the roads and the inconveniences of the traveling vehicles. It was under such circumstances that Father Miles performed his missionary labors in the various parts of Kentucky and Ohio.

The Dominican Fathers of St. Rose were anxious to establish houses of their Order for nuns, to satisfy the religious vocations of many pious ladies of the West. The Superior, Father Thomas Wilson, approved this suggestion, and regarded the rules of the Third Order best suited to the country and the circumstances. It was with his approbation that Father Miles established the Convent of St. Magdalen, now known as St. Catharine of Sienna, near Springfield, Kentucky. Miss Mary Sansberry, herself a Marylander, and Miss Mary Carrico, were the first nuns; the former of whom, under the name of Sister Angela, was the first prioress. Father Miles' wisdom and prudence in the establishment and guidance of this institution, of which he was the ecclesiastical Superior, were much commended. 

An academy and day-school were commenced by the Sisters of St. Catharine's Convent at the same time, and have ever since proved the sources of immense good in the West, through the exertions of the good Sisters of St. Dominic, in dispensing a Catholic education to many thousands of young ladies. The first branch from the Convent of St. Catherine was that of St. Agnes, at Memphis, introduced during the episcopate of Bishop Miles in the diocese of Nashville, of which Memphis is a part, at the solicitation of Father Thomas L. Grace, now Bishop of St. Paul, Minnesota. Since then its branches have multiplied, and its blessings to the community have increased a hundredfold.

The Council which assembled at Baltimore in 1837 proposed to the Holy See the erection of several new episcopal sees, and amongst these the See of Nashville for the State of Tennessee, and nominated Father Miles as its first Bishop. His labors in the West, his zeal for religion, and the high and responsible offices he had held in his Order, of which he had been provincial,  marked him out as eminently qualified for this exalted station, and though his loss was severely felt by the Order of St. Dominic, all acknowledged that his capacity for good would be enlarged in the more extensive field of the episcopate. He was consecrated in the Cathedral of Bardstown, September 16,1838. The venerable Bishop Flaget was engaged to perform the consecration, but his infirmities rendered him unable to do more than assist by his presence. Bishop Rosati became consecrator in his place, assisted by Bishops Brute, David, and Chabrat The Very Rev. John Timon, afterwards Bishop of Buffalo, preached the consecration sermon.

Bishop Miles proceeded at once to Nashville and took possession of his see. No new diocese ever erected in this country, probably, was so destitute as that of Tennessee when its first Bishop entered it. He stood alone in that large diocese, without support, sympathy, or means. There was not a priest in the diocese; occasionally it was visited  by some zealous missionary from Kentucky in search of the few scattered Catholics, to strengthen them in their faith and console them with the sacraments of the Holy Church. One or two miserable sheds, in a dilapidated and falling condition, were the only places  in the State in which the faithful could assemble to attend divine service. 

The bishop, having no residence, was compelled to take board at Nashville, and commence the work of organizing, or rather of erecting the Church of Tennessee. At this disheartening crisis the Bishop was taken ill with the prevailing fever of the climate, so fatal to the unacclimated. " Stretched upon a bed of sickness," writes one who received these particulars from the Bishop's mouth, " he was looking hourly for his dissolution, with no familiar face to cheer him, no priest to minister to his spiritual wants, or to aid him with his corporal works of mercy. 

Thus he lingered on for several days, with a high fever raging upon him, till at  last, as if by a special mercy and providence of God, a priest, traveling through the Southern country, casually stopped at Nashville, and in accordance with duty as well as with courtesy, his first thoughts were to report himself to the Bishop. His presence at so critical a moment sent a thrill of joy through the house. 

God did not forget the Bishop who had so often administered the consolations of the Church to the sick and dying. From the moment the good priest appeared at his bed- side, the fever began to abate; he saw in the minister of his religion a friend and a comforter; he no longer felt alone in his new habitation. His health soon returned, and with it his proverbial energy; an energy which  is manifested in the increase of his flock and in the number of churches built under his auspices." 

Bishop Miles immediately commenced his arduous mission. Not only was he without a priest to share his labors and take part in his counsels, but the labor of reaching the members of his flock, who did not exceed one hundred families, was immeasurably increased by their being scattered all through the entire state. He began by traveling over his extensive diocese on horseback in search of his children, finding here and there an isolated Catholic, " to whom his visit brought hope of a better day for the Church in Tennessee." Religion, from this moment, began to look up in that extensive region. When the people heard their religion preached in fervid and eloquent terms by a consecrated ruler in the Church, in the court houses and other places, where it was never heard before, and assisted at the divine service before altars, improvised though they were, began to rally around their pastor, and small congregations of pious Catholics soon began to form in various parts of the state. 

During this, his first visitation of the new diocese, the Bishop paid his first visit to Memphis, where he was received with great joy by the people; he preached three times for them, and made arrangements for a church and priest. He experienced great difficulties in getting priests, so great was the demand for them throughout the country, and so little means for their support were available in Tennessee. The Rev. Mr. Clancy, from Spring Hill college, near Mobile, was the first priest who generously volunteered to attach himself to this poor and arduous mission. The Bishop visited Somerset, Kentucky, where he was surrounded by the fruits of his own generous labors in that state, and there he ordained two young priests, who nobly resolved to work in the new diocese of Nashville.

A beginning being once made, in a short time new churches began to spring up,  and Tennessee seemed at once to experience a new creation. He had an arduous task in sustaining these struggles of the infant Church of Tennessee. For several years he was only able to assign one priest to several counties, and in 1844 a single  missionary, Father Schacht, had as many as eight large counties to attend. It may also be mentioned, as an instance of Bishop Miles's labors for the benefit of the Catholic population of his diocese, that he provided a large tract of land in Humphrey county, as a place of settlement for them, where they soon began "to enjoy the comforts of a peaceful and independent home." 

In March, 1840, Bishop Miles revisited St. Rose, in Kentucky, one of the scenes of his former labors. Here he joined Bishop, now Archbishop, Purcell and Rev. Father McElroy, S.J., who were then also paying a visit to that  interesting place. Bishop Miles accepted the earnest invitation of his brethren of St. Rose to spend a few days with them, and while there he ordained, at the request of Bishop Flaget, several young priests, conferred confirmation, and conducted in person the examination of the young ladies of the academy of St Catharine, which, as has been stated, was founded by himself.

His visit to his former children, after the severe and exhausting labors of his first few months of episcopal administration, was one of unalloyed pleasure; and fervent indeed were the prayers of all for his health and prosperity, and for a safe return from the visit to Europe which he was then about to make. Proceeding at once to the East, he embarked for Europe, to visit Rome and other places on business for his diocese.

Bishop Miles took part in the ceremonies of consecrating the Cathedral at Cincinnati, on November 2, 1845, and chanted the solemn Requiem Mass, which occupied one of the days of this great gathering of Bishops, priests, and people. On his way to embark for Europe he also took part in the ceremony of laying the corner-stone of the Church of St. Vincent de Paul at Baltimore. He was ever fond of the historical glories of his native state, and was on several occasions, after attending the Councils at Baltimore, one of the most delighted guests at the celebrations of the landing of the Pilgrim Fathers of Maryland, so nobly gotten up by the Philodemic Society of Georgetown College.

At a spiritual retreat, which he gave in Nashville shortly after, his arrival there in 1839, there were but nine communicants; in a few  years the number of communicants was increased to four hundred, and the number of Catholics reached nearly a thousand. In a visitation of the diocese, which he made in 1847, he confirmed nearly four hundred persons, of whom nineteen adults were converts. In the same year he had the consolation of dedicating the Church of St. Peter at Memphis, erected by the exertions of Rev. M. McAleer, and of preaching and giving confirmation on the same day. In the following year he had the happiness o  dedicating his own Cathedral, under the name and patronage of the Blessed Virgin of the Seven Dolors, at Nashville, assisted by Bishops Portier and Purcell, and a large body of clergy. This fine structure cost thirty thousand dollars, and its erection was due to the indefatigable exertions of the Bishop. He also succeeded in erecting a fine episcopal residence, and in enriching it with a well selected ecclesiastical library. 

He established a charity hospital at Nashville, under the care of the Sisters of Charity from Nazareth KY, and gave them the old church, which he caused to be fitted up for that purpose. The academy of St. Mary, under the care of the Sisters of Charity, which became in his lifetime one of the most useful and flourishing educational institutions of the West, is a monument of his zeal. He rallied around him thirteen zealous priests, as sharers of his labors and rewards; he built fourteen churches and six chapels, and established thirteen stations for the mission. 

He also established a Theological Seminary, three female religious institutes, nine parish schools, a colony of the Dominican Order at Memphis, and a fine orphan asylum, under the care of the Sisters of St. Dominic. The Catholic population, which at his appointment was counted  by individuals, increased under his energetic administration to twelve thousand. The first ordination ever witnessed in Tennessee was that performed by Bishop Miles, November 29, 1842, when he raised to the priesthood Rev. John O' Dowd, a student of the bishop's Theological Seminary at Nashville.

Bishop Miles took part in the Councils which assembled at Baltimore, in 1840, 1843, 1846, and 1849, and at the First National Council, which assembled there in 1852. At the first  of these there were twelve Prelates assembled, representing that number of  dioceses; at the last  there were six Archbishops and twenty-four bishops in session, facts showing  the great progress of the Church during Bishop Miles' time.

During several years, Bishop Miles' health was very feeble, owing to a chronic cough with which he was greatly troubled. Many of the labors of his arduous mission were performed by him while thus  in infirm health. The  assistance of a Coadjutor became necessary to him, and the Right Rev. James Whelan was appointed to that office, and consecrated May  8, 1859.

Bishop Miles was remarkable through life for his cheerful disposition, which he preserved to the last, although his decline became more and more apparent every day. On February 17, 1860, he was kept awake all night by his cough; on the following morning he was found sitting before the fire in the position he usually occupied while reciting the sacred office; on raising him from his chair, it was found he could not stand; he was carried to  his bed, from which he never arose; he departed this life on the 21st.  

He received the last sacraments from the hands of his Coadjutor, and his death was calm  and resigned. His loss was universally lamented in Nashville and throughout Tennessee, and by all religious denominations. A  profound respect was manifested by the entire community for his memory and virtues. His remains were interred under the high altar of his Cathedral. It has been well said of him: " Never morose, and seldom low-spirited, Bishop Miles had the happy faculty, in his social relations, to be able to impart to all around him a portion of his own cheerful spirit. He was pious without affectation, charitable to the poor and kind and affable to all.

 

Proselytism is a Solemn DUTY

Unlike hearing the nonsense coming straight out of the Jorge's mouth, real popes such as Pope Gregory XVI, who appointed Bp. Miles to Nashville had this to say in Probe Nostis regarding the propagation the Faith:

Venerable Brothers, We Give You Greeting and Our Apostolic Blessing.

You are well aware, venerable brothers, of the many misfortunes which now afflict the Catholic Church. You know, too, that holy religion is being attacked by the pollution of errors of every kind and by the unbridled rashness of renegades. At the same time heretics and unbelievers attempt by cleverness and deceit to pervert the hearts and minds of the faithful You are aware, in shore, that practically no effort has been left untried in the attempt to overthrow the unshakeable building of the holy city. In particular, We are obliged, alas! to see the wicked enemies of truth spread everywhere unpunished.

They harass religion with ridicule, the Church with insults, and Catholics with arrogance and calumny. They even enter cities and towns, establish schools of error and impiety, and publish their poisonous teachings which are adapted to secret deceit by misusing the natural sciences and recent discoveries. Furthermore they enter the hovels of the poor, traverse the countryside, and seek the acquaintance of the farmers and the lowest classes. They try every method of attracting the uneducated, especially the youth, to their sects, and of making them desert the Catholic faith, whether by means of Bibles inaccurately translated into the vernacular, pestilential newspapers and pamphlets of little weight, or by seductive speeches, pretended charity, and gifts of money.

We mention events which you yourselves witness. For despite your sorrow and your pastoral denunciations, you are obliged to tolerate in your dioceses these men spreading heresy and unbelief, these assertive preachers who ceaselessly waylay and ravage your flock by going around in sheep’s clothing while inwardly they are ravening wolves. What more can We add? There is hardly any uncivilized district left in the entire world to which headquarters of the main societies of heretics and unbelievers have not sent scouts and emissaries without counting the cost. These men, by waging secret or open war on the Catholic religion and its pastors and ministers, tear the faithful from the bosom of the Church and prevent unbelievers from entering it.

You can easily imagine the straits in which We live, since We are laden with the care of Christ’s flock and the churches, and must therefore render a detailed account to the divine Prince of Shepherds. For this reason We decided to recall in this letter the causes of the troubles which beset both Us and you. You can then reflect how important it is for all the bishops to redouble their efforts so as to break the assault of the enemies, to beat back their attacks, and to forewarn and protect the faithful from their clever appeals. We have been doing this, and We shall not stop. We know that you have likewise done so, and We are confident that you will continue.

However, in order not to lose heart, “we should all be sure not to fear them as if We had to overcome them by our own strength, since Christ is both our counsel and our courage. As we can do nothing without Him, with Him we can do all things. To give strength to the preachers of the Gospel and ministers of the sacraments, He says, ‘Behold I am with you all days even to the end of the world’ and also, ‘I have spoken these things to you that you may have peace in me; in the world you shall have affliction but take heart, I have overcome the world.’ So clear and indisputable are these promises that no scandals should make us weak lest we seem un-thankful for God’s choice of us even though His help is as effective as His promises are true.

Even in our time all can see those clear results of the divine promise which never have failed and never shall fail in the Church. They are plainly seen in the unconquerable constancy of the Church amid so many enemy attacks, in the spread of religion amid such disturbance and dangers, and in the consolation which “the Father of Mercies and the God of all Consolation gives us in every trial.” On the one hand, We have to lament the loss which the Catholic religion has suffered and continues to suffer in certain districts. But the many victories which the unconquerable constancy of Catholics and their priests has won and continues to win even in those districts gives us ground for joy. We rejoice greatly also at its marvelously abundant gains despite so many hindrances. This proves even to our enemies that oppression of the Church frequently contributes to its glory and strengthens the faithful.

We are thankful for the success of apostolic missions in America, the Indies, and other faithless lands. The indefatigable zeal of many apostolic men has led them abroad into those places. Relying not on wealth nor on any army, they are protected by the shield of faith alone. They fearlessly fight the Lord’s battles against heresy and unbelief by private and public speech and writings. They are inspired with a burning love and undeterred by rough roads and heavy toil. They search out those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death to summon them to the light and life of the Catholic Religion. So, fearless in the face of every danger, they bravely enter the woods and caves of savages, gradually pacify them by Christian kindness, and prepare them for true faith and real virtue. At length they snatch them from the devil’s rule, by the bath of regeneration and promote them to the freedom of God’s adopted sons.

However, We are reduced to tears both of sorrow in Our detestation of cruel persecutors and executioners, and of consolation in beholding the heroic constancy of the confessors of the faith, as We recall here the glorious deeds of the new martyrs in the Far East. We have already praised them at length in an address to the consistory. Tonkin and Cochin are still wet with the blood of many bishops, priests, and faithful. They have repeated the achievement of the early Christian martyrs in facing a cruel death for Christ undismayed by torture. This is a major victory for the Church and for religion. It casts the persecutors into confusion when they see that even today the divine promises of unending protection and help are really fulfilled. This is the reason why, in the words of St. Leo: “the religion established by the sacrament of the Cross of Christ cannot be destroyed by any kind of cruelty.”

These events bring consolation and glory to the Catholic religion. But there are other grounds of consolation for the Church. Pious organizations are developing for the good of religion and Christian society. Some of these assist the work of the holy apostolic missions. God, who ceaselessly protects His Church, raises up within it new societies as times, places, and circumstances require. Under the Church’s authority each society in its own ways devotes its full energy to works of charity, the instruction of the faithful, and the spread of the faith.

Likewise a source of joy to the Catholic world, and a wonder to non-Catholics, are the many widespread sodalities of pious women. Under the rule of St. Vincent de Paul or in association with other approved Institutes, they are remarkable in their practice of the Christian virtues. They devote themselves entirely either to saving women from the way of perdition, or to training girls in religion, solid piety and the tasks suited to their state in life, or to relieving the dire want of their neighbors with every assistance. No natural weakness of their sex or fear of any danger holds them back.

A similar cause of joy for Us and for all good men are those groups of the faithful who recently have begun to meet regularly in many cities, especially the larger ones. Their purpose is to combat bad books with good ones written by themselves or others, displaying purity of doctrine instead of foul forms of error and Christian gentleness and charity instead of insults and attacks.

Finally, We must praise most highly the well known society which is constantly expanding, not alone in Catholic territories but even in the countries of non-Catholics and unbelievers. This society enables the faithful of every class to help the apostolic missions and to have a share themselves in the spiritual graces of these missions. We are referring, as you realize, to the famous Society for the Propagation of the Faith.

Now you know both the sorrows which afflict Us for Our losses and of the consolations which sustain Us in the victories of the Catholic religion. We are concerned though that these societies should continue to grow. We earnestly urge you, then, to cherish, protect, and augment them in your own dioceses.

The principal society which We recommend to you is the Society for the Propagation of the Faith. First organized in Lyons in 1822, it spread with marvelous speed and success. But certainly We recommend equally other societies of this type founded at Vienna and elsewhere. Their names are different, but they work at the same task of the propagation of the faith, a task which enjoys the religious support and favor of Catholic princes.

This task is sustained and strengthened by the moderate offerings and daily prayers to God said by each of the members. It is directed to practicing the works of Christian charity towards neophytes, and to delivering the faithful from the attack of persecution. Consequently, We consider it deserving of the admiration and love of all good men. A work so beneficial to the Church can have begun so recently only by the special design of divine providence. For when every kind of plot of the infernal enemy besets the beloved spouse of Christ, the Church could have no more timely good fortune than this ardent desire of the faithful to spread Catholic truth.

For this reason, established as We are despite Our unworthiness in the Papacy, We Ourselves affirm with Our predecessors Our complete support for this great work. Sharing Our concern, you should see to it that this important work flourishes among your flock. “Sing with the trumpet in Sion” and by your fatherly advice see to it that those not already members of the pious society are eager to become members, and that those who are members persevere in their purpose. This is surely the time “when the Christian battle line should smash the devil as he rages all over the world;”it is indeed the time for the faithful to join in this holy union with the priests. We have the strongest hope that God, who ceaselessly supports His Church in its long hard fight with its enemies and also gives it joy in the firmness, love and devotion of the faithful, will grant it the peace it desires when He is placated by Our combined prayers and pious works.

In the meantime We lovingly impart the apostolic blessing to yourselves, venerable brothers, and to all the clergy and lay faithful entrusted to your charge.

Given in Rome at St. Mary Major with the seal of the fisherman on the 18th day of September 1840, in the tenth year of Our Pontificate.

Conclusion

If proselytizing leads to a cul-de-sac, we wouldn't be able to hear about inspirational stories, such as Bp. Miles. There would also be no need to be Catholic and worry about one's salvation.

In these times of apostasy, where real Catholics are scattered just as they were in the humble state of Tennessee (and still are), it's a good reminder to ourselves that we are really not as bad off as we think Catholics used to be. They had to ride on horseback and walk on foot with unpaved roads. We have comfortable vehicles with air conditioning and heat. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass was at first celebrated in dilapidated sheds and smaller uncomfortable homes. The Holy Sacrifice is in many instances still offered in homes and other similar places but with much cleaner and comfortable conditions. Word of mouth and old fashion maps was how Catholics kept in contact and met up. Now we have cell phones, GPS, and Google Maps to help guide us.  

History teaches us many valuable lessons but when they are not told, they are forgotten, just as a reed scattered in the wind. May we continue structuring our lives after the example and memory of true heroes of the Catholic religion in order to receive the crown.