Carl A. Kemme

Last updated
His Excellency, The Most Reverend

Carl Alan Kemme
Bishop of Wichita
Church Catholic Church
Province Kansas City in Kansas
See Wichita
AppointedFebruary 20, 2014
InstalledMay 1, 2014
Predecessor Michael Owen Jackels
Orders
OrdinationMay 10, 1986
by  Daniel L. Ryan
ConsecrationMay 1, 2014
by  Joseph Fred Naumann, George Joseph Lucas, and Thomas Paprocki
Personal details
Born (1960-08-14) August 14, 1960 (age 63)
Effingham, Illinois
Alma mater
MottoHumilitas (Humility)
Styles of
Carl Alan Kemme
Coat of arms of Carl Alan Kemme.svg
Reference style
Spoken style Your Excellency
Religious style Bishop

Carl Alan Kemme (born August 14, 1960) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. Since 2014, he has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Wichita in Kansas.

Contents

Biography

Early life

Carl Kemme was born on August 14, 1960, in Effingham, Illinois to Donald and Marita (Kortte) Kemme, who ran a farm near Shumway, Illinois. Carl Kemme has four brothers and one sister. Kemme attended Shumway Elementary School in Shumway and then Beecher High School in Beecher, Illinois. After deciding to study for the priesthood, Kemme transferred to St. Henry's Preparatory Seminary in Belleville, Illinois, where he finished high school. [1]

After high school, Kemme enrolled at Immaculate Conception Seminary in Springfield, Illinois. He later graduated from Cardinal Glennon College in St. Louis and Kenrick Seminary in St. Louis with a Bachelor of Arts degree and a Master of Divinity degree. [1]

Priesthood

Kemme was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception by Bishop Daniel L. Ryan on May 10, 1986. [2] After his ordination, Kemme served as parochial vicar in the following parishes in Illinois:

From 1992 to 1996, Kemme was named pastor of three parishes in Illinois:

Kemme served as the diocesan administrator of Our Lady of the Holy Spirit Parish in Mt. Zion, Illinois from 1996 to 1997. He was then appointed pastor of Holy Family Parish in Decatur, serving there for the next six years. While still at Holy Family, Kemme was appointed priest moderator of St. James Parish in Decatur for two years. In 2002, he was named pastor St. Peter Parish in Petersburg, Illinois, staying there from 2002 to 2005. [1]

In 2002, Bishop George J. Lucas named Kemme as vicar general and moderator of the curia for the diocese; he would hold both positions until 2009. On August 23, 2002 Pope John Paul II named him a prelate of honor with the title monsignor. [1] He was assigned as pastor of St. John Vianney Parish in Sherman, Illinois. [1]

In 2009, Kemme resigned as vicar general and moderator to become diocesan administrator sede vacante after the departure of Bishop George Lucas. With the installation of a new bishop in Springfield, Kemme returned to being vicar general and moderator, remaining in both roles until 2014. [2] [1]

Bishop of Wichita

On February 20, 2014, Pope Francis appointed Kemme as the eleventh bishop of Wichita. He was consecrated by Archbishop Joseph Naumann on May 1, 2014, in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Wichita. Lucas and Bishop Thomas Paprocki were the principal co-consecrators. [3] [1]

On September 20, 2019, Kemme published a list of 15 priests that faced credible accusations of sexual abuse of minors. Eleven of the priests were deceased and the others were no longer in ministry. [4] Kemme added this statement:

Owning our past is the first step in building a new future, one in which we will continue to diligently work hard as we have been for many years now, so that these violations to human dignity will never happen again. Many of the faithful will no doubt experience great anger in receiving this information. I share that anger. [5]

On November 1, 2021, Kemme placed Reverend Michael Schemm from Resurrection Parish in Bel Aire, Kansas, on suspension pending investigation. The diocese had received sexual abuse allegations again Schemm dating back to the 1990s. The diocese also forwarded the allegations to local police. [6] Due to insufficient evidence of any crime, Schemm was not indicted and returned to ministry in March 2022. [7]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield in Illinois</span> Latin Catholic ecclesiastical jurisdiction in Illinois, United States

The Diocese of Springfield in Illinois is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in south central Illinois in the United States. The mother church is the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Springfield.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Wichita</span> Diocese of the Catholic Church

The Diocese of Wichita is a Latin Catholic ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in Kansas in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield–Cape Girardeau</span> Latin Catholic ecclesiastical jurisdiction in Missouri, USA

The Diocese of Springfield–Cape Girardeau is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in southern Missouri in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Saint Louis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victor Hermann Balke</span> Catholic bishop

Victor Herman Balke is a prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Crookston in Minnesota from 1976 to 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph Fred Naumann</span> American Christian cleric

Joseph Fred Naumann is an American Catholic prelate who has served as Archbishop of Kansas City in Kansas since 2004. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of St. Louis from 1997 to 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Joseph Lucas</span> American prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1949)

George Joseph Lucas is an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He has been serving as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Omaha in Nebraska since 2009, having previously served as bishop of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois from 1999 to 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eugene John Gerber</span> American Roman Catholic prelate (1931–2018)

Eugene John Gerber was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Dodge City in Kansas from 1976 to 1982, and bishop of the Diocese of Wichita in Kansas from 1982 to 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ronald Michael Gilmore</span> American prelate

Ronald Michael Gilmore is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the fifth Bishop of the Diocese of Dodge City in Kansas from 1998 to 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin Vann</span> American Catholic prelate

Kevin William Vann is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Orange in Southern California since 2012. Vann previously served as bishop of the Diocese of Fort Worth in Texas from 2005 to 2012.

Ignatius Anthony Catanello was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. From 1994 to 2010 he served as an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Brooklyn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James D. Conley</span> Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska

James Douglas Conley is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Lincoln in Nebraska since 2012. He served as an auxiliary bishop in the Archdiocese of Denver in Colorado from 2008 to 2012.

James Aloysius Griffin was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois from 1924 until his death in 1948.

Daniel Leo Ryan was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Latin Church diocese of Springfield in Illinois from 1984 to 1999. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Joliet in Illinois from 1981 to 1984.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Balthasar Brungardt</span> Catholic bishop

John Balthasar Brungardt is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, serving as bishop of the Diocese of Dodge City in Kansas since 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward Weisenburger</span> American prelate

Edward Joseph Weisenburger, J.C.L., is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, serving as the bishop of the Diocese of Tucson in Arizona since 2017. He previously served as the bishop of the Diocese of Salina in Kansas from 2012 to 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raymond Chappetto</span> American prelate

Raymond Francis Chappetto is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who was an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Brooklyn in New York City from 2012 to 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J. Mark Spalding</span>

Joseph Mark Spalding, D.D., J.C.L. is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Nashville in Tennessee since 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shawn McKnight</span> American prelate of the Catholic Church (born 1968)

William Shawn McKnight, also known as W. Shawn McKnight, is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Jefferson City in Missouri since 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Edward Koenig</span>

William Edward Koenig is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as the tenth bishop of the Diocese of Wilmington in Delaware since 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Iffert</span> US Roman Catholic bishop

John Curtis Iffert is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as bishop for the Diocese of Covington in Kentucky since 2021.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "About Bishop Kemme". Catholic Diocese of Wichita. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  2. 1 2 "Pope Names Springfield, Illinois Priest as Bishop of Wichita, Kansas and Newark Priest as Auxiliary Bishop of Miami". United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved 2014-02-28.
  3. ↑ "Bishop Carl Alan Kemme". Catholic-Hierarchy. Retrieved 2014-02-28.
  4. ↑ "Wichita diocese names 15 priests accused of child sex abuse". AP NEWS. 2021-04-30. Retrieved 2022-01-12.
  5. ↑ Kemme, Carl (September 19, 2019). "Letter from Bishop in Regards to Clergy Disclosures". Catholic Diocese of Wichita. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  6. ↑ KWCH Staff (November 2021). "Wichita-area priest placed on leave, accused of sexually abusing minor". www.kwch.com. Retrieved 2022-01-12.
  7. ↑ "Wichita priest returns to public ministry after allegations of child exploitation". www.kake.com. Retrieved 2024-02-11.

Episcopal succession

Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Bishop of Wichita
2014–Present		Incumbent
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.