Faith and Action: A History of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, 1821-1996 (review)

Abstract

Faith and Action: A History of Archdiocese of Cincinnati, 1821-1996. By Roger Fortin. (Columbus: Ohio State University Press. 2002. Pp. xviii, 489. $35.00.) The historic see of Cincinnati looms large on American Catholic diocesan landscape. Established in 1821 at emerging West's key urban community, Cincinnati diocese at first included Ohio and parts of what became Michigan and Wisconsin. Partitions reduced its territory to southern Ohio by time Cincinnati became an archdiocese in 1850. By then, city of Cincinnati, nation's largest inland city, had attracted a diverse population including many Germans. There, Catholics built a complex ethnic and religious culture that was a model of Catholic life for region. By twentieth century, other large urban Catholic communities emerged. A less influential but substantial archdiocese, consisting of nineteen Ohio counties since 1944, developed along lines of other large dioceses coping with changes in American and Catholic life. This archdiocese's imposing past gives cause to welcome Roger Fortin's history covering its first 175 years up to 1996. Superseding institutional approach of John H. Lamott's 1921 centennial history, Fortin's focus is the growth and administration of archdiocese of Cincinnati, active participation of laity in life of church, religious education, social issues, and relationship of Catholics to larger society (p. xiii). He strives for a general portrait of accomplishments of clergy, religious, lay people, parishes, and Catholic organizations (p. xiv). The archdiocese recruited Fortin to write this history and gave him full to tell (p. xi). Tucked away in endnotes (p. 458) author discloses that he did not have access to any correspondence of recent Archbishops Paul Leibold, Joseph Bernardin, and Daniel Pilarczyk, that is, since 1969. For an authorized history archdiocese could have been less restrictive so that author had indeed full freedom at least until 1982, last year of late Cardinal Joseph Bernardin's decade as archbishop. Such a restriction serves as another reminder of official Church's uneasiness with accountability. The volume has many strengths. The pre-1969 archbishops' papers and continuous files of diocesan paper, The Catholic Telegraph, provide abundant sources. Previous scholarship on topics and persons related to archdiocese helped author advance a rich story especially for nineteenth century. From hardships marking founding Bishop Edward Fenwick's tenure starting in 1821 through building of a Catholic culture during half-century of John Baptist Purcell's leadership as bishop and archbishop (1833-1883) administrative narrative runs strong. …