American Religion Timelines
Catholic Events and People - Biographies By Last Name
| Name | Introduction |
|---|---|
| Angelica, Mary | Mother Angelica (1923-2016) is the founder of the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN), the world’s largest religious broadcaster. |
| Badin, Stephen Theodore | Stephen Badin (1768-1853) was the first Catholic priest ordained in America. |
| Brownson, Orestes | Orestes Brownson (1803-1876) was a public intellectual who defended Catholicism and its compatibility with American society. |
| Cabrini, Frances Xavier | Frances Xavier Cabrini (1850-1917) was the first American citizen to be named a saint by the Catholic Church. |
| Carroll, John | John Carroll (1735-1815) served as the first Catholic bishop in the United States and helped expand the Catholic Church domestically. |
| Chavez, Cesar | Cesar Chavez (1927-1993) was a prominent labor leader who fought on behalf of American farm workers. |
| Coughlin, Charles | Charles Coughlin (1891-1979) was a Catholic "radio priest," who was controversial for his anti-Semitic, pro-Nazi views leading up to World War II. |
| Daly, Mary | Mary Daly (1928-2010) was a radical feminist theologian at Boston College who viewed traditional (male) depictions of the Christian God as oppressive toward women. |
| Day, Dorothy | Dorothy Day (1897-1980) was a Catholic activist, known for co-founding the Catholic Worker movement, leading anti-war and anti-nuclear proliferation movements, and promoting assistance to the poor. |
| de Brebeuf, Jean | Jean de Brebeuf (1593-1649) was a French Jesuit missionary priest and early North American martyr. |
| Drexel, Katharine | Katharine Drexel (1858-1955) founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, a religious order devoted to the education and assistance to racial minorities in America. |
| England, John | John England (1786-1842) was the first bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Charleston (South Carolina) and advocated republicanism within the Catholic Church. |
| Fenwick, Benedict Joseph | Benedict Joseph Fenwick (1782-1846) served as Catholic bishop of Boston from 1825 to 1846. |
| Flaget, Benedict Joseph | Benedict Joseph Flaget (1763-1850) was the first bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Bardstown, Kentucky, and the first Bishop of Louisville. |
| Gibbons, James | James Gibbons (1834-1921) was an American cardinal archbishop who guided the Catholic Church through historic changes and mediated relations between American Catholics and the Vatican. |
| Healy, James Augustine | James Augustine Healy (1830-1900) was the first Catholic American priest and bishop of African descent. |
| Hecker, Isaac | Isaac Hecker (1819-1888) was an intellectual forefather to the Catholic Americanist movement. He was dedicated to defending the Catholic Church and converting Americans to Catholicism. |
| Higgins, George G. | George Higgins (1916-2002) was a Catholic priest and activist during the labor movement. He also helped improve relations between Catholics and Jews. |
| Hughes, John | John Hughes (1797-1864) was a New York archbishop, who oversaw growth in the American Catholic Church due to Irish immigration and advocated Catholic parochial education. |
| Ireland, John | Born in 1838, John Ireland was a bishop of the Catholic Church regarded as a leader of the Americanist movement. He died in 1918. |
| Jogues, Isaac | Isaac Jogues (1607-1646) was a French Jesuit missionary priest and early North American martyr. |
| Maurin, Peter | Peter Maurin’s (1877-1949) vision of a transformed society led to the co-founding of the Catholic Worker Movement with Dorothy Day. |
| Merton, Thomas | Thomas Merton (1915-1968) was a Catholic monk and prolific writer, who denounced social inequality and opened up interfaith dialogue. |
| Nerinckx, Charles | Charles Nerinckx (1761-1824) was a Catholic missionary priest of the Diocese of Bardstown, Kentucky, in the early 19th century. |
| Neumann, John Nepomucene | John Neumann (1811-1860) served as bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Philadelphia from 1852 to 1860 and was the first American bishop to be canonized. |
| O'Connor, Flannery | The American writer Flannery O'Connor (1925-1964) depicted fictional Southern characters confronting grace in depressing circumstances. |
| Ryan, John A. | John A. Ryan (1869-1945) was a Catholic priest and moral theologian who fought for economic justice. He helped inspire and support Roosevelt’s New Deal Programs. |
| Schlafly, Phyllis | Phyllis Schlafly (1924-2016) was a conservative Catholic activist who strengthened the pro-life and religious right movements. |
| Serra, Junipero | Junipero Serra (1713-1784) was a Spanish Franciscan priest who strengthened Spanish control of California and helped bring Catholic faith to the New World. |
| Seton, Elizabeth Ann | Elizabeth Ann Seton (1774-1821) founded the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph and was an early promoter of parochial school and Catholic women's education. |
| Sheen, Fulton | Fulton Sheen (1895-1979) was a popular Catholic leader, who appeared on popular radio programs ("Catholic Hour") and television programs ("Life is Worth Living"). |
| Spalding, John Lancaster | John Lancaster Spalding, born in 1840, was an American bishop who advocated for Catholic education. He died in 1916. |
| Spalding, Martin John | Martin John Spalding, born in 1810, was a leading bishop of the Catholic Church in the mid-19th century. He died in 1872. |
| Tekakwitha, Kateri | Kateri Tekakwitha (1656-1680) was a Native American Catholic, known for her asceticism and chastity. She was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI in 2012. |
| VI, Paul | Pope Paul VI (1897-1978) oversaw the completion of the Second Vatican Council and authored Humanae Vitae, an important and controversial document in modern Catholicism. |
| XXIII, John | Pope John XXIII (1881-1963) called the Second Vatican Council, one of the most significant events in the modern Catholic Church. |
