This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedia's deletion policy. Please share your thoughts on the matter at this article's entry on the Articles for deletion page. |
John H. Fleming (1849-April 24, 1923) was an American priest of the Archdiocese of Boston.
Fleming was born in Boston in 1849 and attended Boston Latin School before the College of the Holy Cross. [1] Fleming studied for two years at the Grand Séminaire de Montréal and then two years at Saint-Sulpice Seminary in Paris, where he was ordained in 1874. [1] He then traveled through Europe for several months before returning to Boston. [1] While in Dedham, he also played a role in the affairs of the town. [1]
The Boston Latin School is a public exam school in Boston, Massachusetts. It was established on April 23, 1635, making it both the oldest public school in America and the first public school in the United States. The Public Latin School was a bastion for educating the sons of the Boston "Brahmin" elite, resulting in the school claiming many prominent New Englanders as alumni. Its curriculum follows that of the 18th century Latin school movement, which holds the classics to be the basis of an educated mind. Four years of Latin are mandatory for all pupils who enter the school in the 7th grade, three years for those who enter in the 9th.
The College of the Holy Cross, or better known simply as Holy Cross, is a private Jesuit liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts. Founded in 1843, Holy Cross is the oldest Catholic college in New England and one of the oldest in the United States.
The Grand séminaire de Montréal is the sacerdotal school of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Montreal.
He had two sisters, Louise Fleming and Hannah Carney. [2] [3] [1]
His first assignment was at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross before moving to St. James the Greater Church on Harrison Avenue in Boston. [1] He served as curate in both churches. [1]
The Cathedral of the Holy Cross is the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston and is the largest Roman Catholic church in New England.
After Fr. Henry J. Madden left St. Mary's Church in Ayer, Massachusetts in 1884, Fleming took over for him as pastor. [4] [5] [6] [7] He remained there for five years until being transferred to St. Mary's in Dedham in June 1890. [5] [1]
Ayer is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. Originally part of Groton, it was incorporated February 14, 1871, and became a major commercial railroad junction. The town was home to Camp Stevens, a training camp for Massachusetts volunteers during the American Civil War. Later, Fort Devens was established by the federal government to train New England soldiers for World War I. Fort Devens is a major influence on the area, although it is considerably smaller than when it was first closed in the mid-1990s. The town's population was 7,427 at the 2010 census.
Fleming arrived at St. Mary's in Dedham in June 1890 and began a 33-year tenure as pastor. [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] After 20 years of working, praying, and fundraising from the meager immigrant wages of many of the parishioners, the upper church was finished during his pastorate. [10] [14] [9] It took so long that another architect had to take over but was, according to Fleming, "almost too beautiful for ordinary use." [8] [11] One critic said that though some parishes in the area have more people than did the entire town of Dedham, "few parishes in Boston can boast of a more impressive Church" than St. Mary's. [15] Another said it was second to none in the archdiocese. [16]
St. Mary of the Assumption Church is a parish of the Roman Catholic Church in Dedham, Massachusetts, in the Archdiocese of Boston.
DedhamDED-əm is a town in and the county seat of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 24,729 at the 2010 census. It is located on Boston's southwest border. On the northwest it is bordered by Needham, on the southwest by Westwood, and on the southeast by Canton. The town was first settled by Europeans in 1635.
The parish cemetery in West Roxbury was also purchased during his tenure [10] [5] and the old wooden rectory next to the church [10] was torn down so a new rectory could be built [13] of Dedham Granite [17] in 1913. [11] [lower-alpha 1] On Sundays, however, the quality of his preaching was such that other priests would come to St. Mary's to listen. [11]
In 1881, while at St. James' Church, Fleming was sued for $5,000 in Suffolk Superior Court by the parents of Lizzie M. Gordon, a 15 year old girl who claimed to have the stigmata [18] [19] [20] and to see visions of the Blessed Virgin Mary. [21] [19] [22] [lower-alpha 2] Three years prior, Gannon began going into trances, during which should could not speak [21] unless Fleming or a few others placed their hands on her. [18] [19] [22] [23] When she came out of them, she claimed to have received revelations from the Virgin Mary and to have seen saints [22] and the faces of those who died. [21]
Her family sent for Fleming, their parish priest, in the fall of 1878. [21] [23] Fleming would often attend to the girl, often in the company of another priest, and the visits seemed to help her. [21] In one of her revelations, Gannon said that the Virgin Mary had a message for Fleming, that he was to write a book that told Gannon's story and of all of her visions. [19] Fleming declined to write the book. [19]
In the fall of 1879, Fleming visited the girl, who was entranced and holding in her hands two or three images or dolls of angels. They were about .75 inches long [22] and appeared to be cut from heavy paper. [21] Gordon said the images had been given to her by her dead brother. [18] [lower-alpha 3] Her brother, to whom she had been quite attached, had died two years prior. [18] She also claimed to have received several other items from angels or spirits, including a letter written by the Virgin Mary. [19] [lower-alpha 4] Fleming persuaded the girl to give the images to him. [21] [23]
During his visits, Fleming called in doctors and others to see if they could help the girl and she was diagnosed with hysteria [19] [18] [23] by Dr. Hodges. [22] A Dr. Porter suggested Gordon be sent to a hospital. [22] [23] Over time Fleming came to believe the girl was faking, and so stopped visiting around Christmas in 1880. [21] [18] [22] [23]
Gordon's father tried to persuade Fleming to continuing visiting the girl. [21] When he was unsuccessful in that, almost a year after she had given up the dolls, [19] [20] he asked for their return. [21] [18] [23] Fleming told her father that he lost them. [21] [23] Gordon's father then appealed to Archbishop John Joseph Williams but the bishop sided with the priest. [21] [18] [lower-alpha 5]
When the suit was brought in the summer of 1881, the girl reportedly had hardly spoken for a year. [21] She was bedridden and could not see or speak, according to her lawyers. [22] Other testified that they had seen her doing work around the home, out shopping with her mother in the neighborhood, and even speaking. [20] Her parents contended that her condition was brought about by the loss of the images. [21] [22] [18] Others contended that the suit was brought when Fleming refused to help the girl and her family seek publicity. [19] Before the case went to trial, Gordon's father published a book about his daughter. [22]
The jury found for Gordon and awarded damages of $0.01. [24]
He died suddenly on April 24, 1923 at the Ambassador Hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey. [25] [1] He had been sick for a few months and traveled south to try and regain his strength. [1] His body was transported to Boston, and then to Dedham, where he lay in state, first at the rectory and then in the church. [26] On the morning of his funeral, St. Mary's Church was packed with "throngs" of people, including scores of priests, and dignitaries from the church, state, county, and town, as well as representatives from fraternal societies. [27] A low mass was said at 8 am for the children of the parish, and a solemn Requiem Mass was said at 10 am. [27] He is buried with his mother in the Forest Hills Cemetery. [3]
His estate totaled $85,000, of which he left $40,000 to the Carney Hospital to pay for four private rooms for St. Mary's parishioners who may become ill. [2] [3] His will stipulated that the parishioners using the rooms should be recommended by the pastor of the church and that preference should be given to people of humble but decent circumstances. [3] His music machine, worth about $2,000, was left to St. John's Preparatory School. [3]
He also left $1,000 for the sexton of the church and a large sum to both his sister and the parish. [2] [3] There were also bequests of $5,000 to Boston College and Emmanuel College. [2] The educational funds were for scholarships for students from the parish who were recommended by the pastor. [3] Any books not taken by his family were also left to Boston College. [3] Fleming had previously donated books to the Boston College library. [28]
Bequests were also made to a Little Sisters of the Poor Home for the Aged [ disambiguation needed ] in Roxbury, Home for Destitute Catholic Children, St. Vincent's Orphan Asylum, St. Mary's Infant Asylum, and St. John's Industrial Home in Newton. [3] He also left funds to supports the missions. [3] The executors of his will were Fr. Charles A. Finn, Fr. Timothy C. Maney, and James. R. Flanagan. [2]
John J. Geoghan was an American Roman Catholic priest and serial child rapist while he was assigned to parishes in the Archdiocese of Boston in Massachusetts. He was re-assigned to several parish posts involving interaction with children, even after receiving treatment for pedophilia.
Dedham is a village within the borough of Colchester in northeast Essex, England, on the River Stour and the border of Essex and Suffolk. The nearest town to Dedham is the small market town of Manningtree.
The history of Dedham, Massachusetts, from 1793 to 1999 begins with the naming of Dedham as the shiretown of the newly formed Norfolk County. Being named county seat brought an influx of new residents and visitors to town and Dedham experienced rapid growth with the new turnpikes and railroads. The Town was central to three major court cases, the Fairbanks Case, the Dedham Case, and the world-famous Sacco and Vanzetti Case.
John "Jackie" Andrew Barnes III was an American private first class in the United States Army during the Vietnam War.
Timothy G. O’Connell (1868-1955) was an American architect whose Boston-based practice specialized in ecclesiastical design.
Robert Joseph Banks is a retired American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the tenth bishop of the Diocese of Green Bay, Wisconsin from 1990 to 2003.
John Anthony Dooher is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Boston.
St. Susanna Church is a Roman Catholic parish of the Archdiocese of Boston located in Dedham, Massachusetts. The pastor is Father Stephen S. Josoma, and Laurence J. Bloom is the deacon. It is known as "one of the most liberal parishes in the Archdiocese of Boston."
The history of St. Mary's Church in Dedham, Massachusetts begins with the first mass said in Dedham, Massachusetts in 1843 and runs to the present day.
Our Lady of Good Voyage, also known as the Seaport Shrine, is a Roman Catholic church located at 51 Seaport Boulevard in the Seaport District of Boston and in the Archdiocese of Boston. The shrine has 250 seats and holds Mass twice daily and three times on Sundays. The original chapel was located a short distance away and was built to serve the fisherman and dockworkers in what was then an industrial neighborhood.
Monsignor Charles Alphonsus "Zip" Finn was a priest of the Archdiocese of Boston. At the time of his death, he was the oldest priest in the United States, the oldest alumnus of Boston College, and the Pontifical North American College, and the oldest Knight of Columbus.
Patrick O'Beirne was an Irish-born priest who ministered in the Archdiocese of Boston.
John Hunting was Ruling Elder of the First Church and Parish in Dedham.
Daniel Slattery was a 19th century Irish-born resident of Dedham, Massachusetts. The first Catholic mass in Dedham was said in his home.
Rev. John P. Brennan was the first American Catholic priest to declare bankruptcy.
Rev. Dennis J. O'Donovan was an American Roman Catholic priest.
Robert J. Johnson was an Irish-born priest who ministered in the Archdiocese of Boston.
Arthur Clark represented Dedham, Massachusetts in the Great and General Court. He was elected in 1900 at 22 years old and was the youngest member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives. He chose not to stand for reelection in 1902.
Henry A. Walsh was an American priest of the Archdiocese of Boston.
