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Diocese of Bismarck

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Diocese of Bismarck
Dioecesis Bismarcquensis
Cathedral of the Holy Spirit
Cathedral of the Holy Spirit
Location
Country United States
Territory 24 counties in western North Dakota
Ecclesiastical province Saint Paul and Minneapolis
Statistics
Area 88,720 km2 (34,250 sq mi)
Population
Total
Catholics 		(as of 2025)
280,836
61,862 (22%)
Parishes 98
Information
Denomination Catholic
Sui iuris church Latin Church
Rite Roman Rite
Established December 31, 1909 (116 years ago)
Cathedral Cathedral of the Holy Spirit
Patron saint Immaculate Conception
Current leadership
Pope Leo XIV
Bishop David D. Kagan
Metropolitan Archbishop Bernard Hebda
Map
Website
bismarckdiocese.com

The Diocese of Bismarck (Latin: Dioecesis Bismarckiensis) is a diocese of the Catholic Church in western North Dakota in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. The bishop is David Kagan. The mother church of the diocese is Cathedral of the Holy Spirit.

Territory

The Diocese of Bismarck encompasses 24 North Dakota counties that cover 34,000 square miles.[1] It has a total population over 280,836 people, with approximately 61,862 Catholic church members.

History

1800 to 1900

The first Catholic presence in present-day North Dakota was in 1818. Archbishop Joseph-Octave Plessis of the Archdiocese of Quebec sent a priest to visit Fort Pembina, a settlement of several French-Canadian families from the Red River Colony of present-day Manitoba.[2]

At that time, the Dakotas has been acquired by the United States from Spain in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. However, the Catholic hierarchy in the United States did not assert authority over the area until later in the 19th century. The Bismarck area would then be under the following jurisdictions.

  • Diocese of Saint Louis (1826 to 1837)
  • Diocese of Dubuque (1837 to 1850)
  • Diocese of Saint Paul (1850 to 1879)
  • Vicariate Apostolic of Dakota (1879 to 1889)
  • Diocese of Jamestown (later Fargo) (1889 to 1909)[3]

The first representative of the Catholic Church in the United States to reach the Dakotas was Pierre-Jean De Smet, a Jesuit missionary who stopped near the Missouri River in 1840 to minister to the Mandan nation.[4]

In 1847, the Archdiocese of Quebec assigned the priest Georges-Antoine Belcourt to Pembina as a missionary to the Chippewa and Métis in the Fort Pembina area.[5] Upon arrival at Pembina, Belcourt constructed a small log cabin 20 by 30 feet (6.1 by 9.1 m) as a chapel, which was not large enough for all of his congregation. On August 14, 1848, Belcourt performed his first baptism in Pembina, and held a communion class for 92 Native Americans.[4]

The first Catholic church in western North Dakota was the Church of the Immaculate Conception, dedicated in Bismarck in 1875.[6] In 1893, the Benedictine Order established the Assumption Priory in Devils Lake. It later became Assumption Abbey in Richardson. The first Catholic parish in Dickinson was St. Patrick's, established in 1885 for Irish workers on the railroad.[7]

1900 to 1951

St. Leo the Great Church in Minot was dedicated in 1908, the first Catholic church in that town.[8] On December 31, 1909 Pope Pius X established the Diocese of Bismarck, taking its territory from the Diocese of Fargo.[9][10] He appointed Vincent de Paul Wehrle, abbot of Assumption Abbey, as the first bishop of the new diocese. During Wehrle's 29-year tenure, the Catholic population increased from 25,000 to 55,000. He constructed 55 churches and 18 parochial schools, and four hospitals were established. Wehrle established 115 new congregations. He also began construction on the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Bismarck, but was forced to abandon the project due to the Great Depression of the 1930s[11]

After Wehrle retired in 1939, Pope Pius XII named Vincent Ryan of Fargo as the second bishop of Bismarck.[12] During his 11-year tenure, Ryan oversaw construction of 69 church buildings for a total cost exceeding $10 million.[13] Ryan founded the diocesan newspaper, Dakota Catholic Action, in 1941.[13] The Cathedral of the Holy Spirit was dedicated in 1945.[13] Ryan publicly opposed the 1948 "anti-garb" law passed by the North Dakota Legislative Assembly. It prohibited nuns from wearing their religious habits while teaching in public schools.[13] Ryan died in 1951.[12]

1952 to 1982

In 1952, Lambert Hoch was appointed the third bishop of Bismarck, by Pius XII.[14] During his four-year tenure, Hoch promoted vocations to the priesthood and religious life; between 1952 and 1960, 29 priests were ordained for the diocese and 13 for Assumption Abbey in Richardton.[15] Hoch became bishop of the Diocese of Sioux Falls in 1956.[14]

Pius XII named Hilary Hacker as the fourth bishop of Bismarck in 1956.[16] Hacker dedicated much of his tenure implementing the liturgical reforms from the Second Vatican Council of the early 1960s.[17] His tenure was marked by high enrollments in Catholic schools, as well as the founding of Bishop Ryan High School in Minot and Trinity High School in Dickinson. He established an annual appeal called God's Share; between 1956 and 1963, the annual collection rose from $165,000 to $225,000.[17] Hacker retired in 1982.[11]

1982 to present

The next bishop of Bismarck was Auxiliary Bishop John Kinney of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, named by Pope John Paul II in 1982. Kinney became bishop of the Diocese of Saint Cloud in 1995.[18] Auxiliary Bishop Paul Zipfel of the Archdiocese of Saint Louis replaced Kinney in 1997. Zipfel retired in 2011.[19]

Pope Benedict XVI in 2011 appointed David Kagan from the Diocese of Rockford as the next bishop off Bismarck.[20] In 2015, Kagan announced that the diocese was cutting ties with the Boy Scouts of America because it allowed gay men to serve as scout leaders and volunteers.[21]

Kagan announced in 2022 that the diocese would investigate the life of Michelle Duppong for possible canonization. She conducted evangelical work for several years at universities and colleges in North Dakota.[22]

Sex abuse

In 2002, Bishop Zipfel introduced a zero-tolerance policy regarding sexual abuse allegations against priests in the diocese. Under the policy, the diocese would immediately remove any clergy accused of sexual abuse from active ministry and report them to the police for investigation.[23]

In 2019, the diocese released the names of 22 clergy with credible accusations of sexual abuse of minors since 1950.[24] In 2020, Bishop Kagan released a list of 18 diocesan clergy and four extern clergy with credible accusations of sexual abuse of minors. He stated that the last substantiated case of sexual abuse had occurred in 1989.[25]

Bishops

Bishops of Bismarck

  1. John Baptist Vincent de Paul Wehrle, O.S.B. (1910–1939)
  2. Vincent James Ryan (1940–1951)
  3. Lambert Anthony Hoch (1952–1956), appointed Bishop of Sioux Falls
  4. Hilary Baumann Hacker (1956–1982)
  5. John Francis Kinney (1982–1995), appointed Bishop of Saint Cloud
  6. Paul Albert Zipfel (1996–2011)
  7. David D. Kagan (2011–Present)

Other diocesan priests who became bishops

Schools

As of 2025, the Diocese of Bismarck has three high schools and 11 elementary schools or preschools.

  • Bishop Ryan Catholic School – Minot[26]
  • St. Mary's Central High School – Bismarck[27]
  • Trinity Junior High and High School – Dickinson[28][29]

Canonical status and jurisdiction

Diocese of Bismarck is a diocese of the catholic church of the Catholic Church.[30]

From the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia

Diocese of Bismarck — (BISMARCKIENSIS).

In North Dakota, this diocese was erected on 31 December, 1909, and is suffragan to the Archdiocese of St. Paul, Minnesota. It comprises the counties of Adams, Billings, Bowman, Burke, Burleigh Divide, Dunn, Emmons, Hettinger, McKenzie, McLean, Mercer, Morton, Mountrail, Oliver, Renville, Stark, Ward, and Williams, -- an area of 42,316 square miles. Mgr. Vincent Wehrle was elected its first bishop on 9 April, and was consecrated at St. Paul, 19 May, 1910. Born at Berg, Switzerland, 20 December, 1855, Bishop Wehrle made his profession at the Benedictine Monastery of Einsiedeln, 3 December, 1876, and was ordained priest on 23 April, 1882. Appointed to the American apostolate shortly afterwards, he founded numerous missions and parishes in North Dakota. In 1884 he erected the Priory of St. Gall, and in 1901 St. Mary's Abbey at Richardton, of which he was elected abbot in 1903. The diocese receives its name from the city of Bismarck (5443 inhabitants), the capital of the state. The early Catholic history of the territory has been treated in the article NORTH DAKOTA. According to the latest statistics the diocese contains: 1 bishop; 25 secular and 28 regular (Benedictine) priests; 34 churches with resident priests (3 for Indians); 53 missions with churches (5 for Indians); 43 stations without churches (2 for Indians); 8 parochial schools; 3 Catholic hospitals; 2 Catholic Indian boarding-schools; about 27,000 Catholics (1200 Indians). In 1911 there were 2596 confirmations and 1912 baptisms (83 of adults). The Sisters of St. Benedict (48 in all) have houses at Bismarck, Dickinson, Fort Yates, Glen Ullin, Richardton, and Elbow Woods. The Ursuline Sisters (11) have a convent at St. Anthony, and the Franciscan Sisters (4) have charge of the hospital at Minot.

Catholic Directory (New York, 1912); and bibliography to NORTH DAKOTA.

References

  1. Back to citation "About". Diocese of Bismarck. Retrieved March 10, 2025.
  2. Back to citation "PROVENCHER, JOSEPH-NORBERT (baptized Joseph)". Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Retrieved 2026-01-23.
  3. Back to citation "Fargo (Diocese) [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved 2023-10-07.
  4. Back to citation occurrence 4.0 Back to citation occurrence 4.1 "CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: North Dakota". www.newadvent.org. Retrieved 2026-01-23.
  5. Back to citation Reardon, James (1951). "George Anthony Belcourt: Pioneer Missionary of the Northwest". Canadian Catholic Historical Association. 18: 75–89. Retrieved November 3, 2010.
  6. Back to citation "Our History". Pro-Cathedral of St. Mary. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  7. Back to citation "St. Patrick's Catholic Church · Church Groups and Buildings · Southwestern North Dakota Digital Archive At the Dickinson Museum Center". dmc.omeka.net. Retrieved 2025-03-10.
  8. Back to citation "History". St. Leo Catholic Church. Retrieved 2026-05-08.
  9. Back to citation "Diocese of Bismarck". Catholic-Hierarchy. Retrieved 2014-04-16.
  10. Back to citation "Diocese of Bismarck". Gcatholic.org. Retrieved 2014-04-16.
  11. Back to citation occurrence 11.0 Back to citation occurrence 11.1 "Vincent De Paul Wehrle, O.S.B., D.D. 1910–1939". Roman Catholic Diocese of Bismarck. Archived from the original on 2010-04-30. Retrieved 2009-09-07.
  12. Back to citation occurrence 12.0 Back to citation occurrence 12.1 "Bishop Vincent James Ryan [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved 2023-10-07.
  13. Back to citation occurrence 13.0 Back to citation occurrence 13.1 Back to citation occurrence 13.2 Back to citation occurrence 13.3 "Vincent J. Ryan, D.D., L.L.D. 1940–1951". Roman Catholic Diocese of Bismarck. Archived from the original on 2010-04-30. Retrieved 2009-09-07.
  14. Back to citation occurrence 14.0 Back to citation occurrence 14.1 "Bishop Lambert Anthony Hoch". Catholic-Hierarchy.org.
  15. Back to citation "Lambert A. Hoch, DD., L.L.D. 1952-1956". Roman Catholic Diocese of Bismarck. Archived from the original on 2012-06-17. Retrieved 2009-09-07.
  16. Back to citation "Bishop Hilary Baumann Hacker [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved 2023-10-07.
  17. Back to citation occurrence 17.0 Back to citation occurrence 17.1 "Hilary B. Hacker, D.D. 1956-1982". Roman Catholic Diocese of Bismarck. Archived from the original on 2010-04-30. Retrieved 2009-06-29.
  18. Back to citation Simon-Johnson, Barb. "Bishop John F. Kinney". Diocese of Saint Cloud. Retrieved 2022-10-09.
  19. Back to citation "Bishop Paul Albert Zipfel [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved 2023-10-07.
  20. Back to citation "Rinunce e nomine, 19.10.2011". Archived from the original on April 3, 2012. Retrieved October 20, 2011.
  21. Back to citation CNA. "Why the Boy Scouts' new policy led a Catholic bishop to cut ties". Catholic News Agency. Retrieved 2023-04-29.
  22. Back to citation Agency, Catholic News. "Did a saint work in Catholic campus ministry? Bismarck diocese opens inquiry for Michelle Duppong". www.catholicworldreport.com. Retrieved 2023-04-29.
  23. Back to citation "Zipfel: New sexual abuse policy will help". Prairie Public Broadcasting. 2002-06-19. Retrieved 2022-10-10.
  24. Back to citation "North Dakota dioceses name 53 Catholic officials accused of sexually abusing children". Grand Forks Herald.
  25. Back to citation "Bismarck Diocese names priests with sexual abuse claims". Valley News Live. 2020-01-03. Retrieved 2023-04-29.
  26. Back to citation "Bishop Ryan Catholic School". Bishop Ryan Catholic School. Retrieved 2026-05-08.
  27. Back to citation "St. Mary's Central High School". St. Mary's Central High School. Retrieved 2026-05-08.
  28. Back to citation "School Finder". Bismarck Diocese. Retrieved 2023-10-07.
  29. Back to citation "Trinity Junior High & High School". Dickinson Catholic Schools. Retrieved 2026-05-08.
  30. Back to citation Diocese of Bismarck, official website

46°48′30″N 100°46′09″W / 46.80833°N 100.76917°W

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