Alexander Christie (bishop)

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The Most Reverend

Alexander Christie
Archbishop of Oregon City
ChurchCatholic
ArchdioceseOregon City
AppointedMarch 4, 1899
Term endedApril 6, 1925
PredecessorWilliam Hickley Gross
SuccessorEdward Howard
Other post(s)Bishop of Vancouver Island (1898-1899)
Orders
OrdinationDecember 22, 1877
by Édouard-Charles Fabre
ConsecrationJune 29, 1898
by John Ireland
Personal details
Born(1848-05-28)May 28, 1848
Highgate, Vermont
DiedApril 6, 1925(1925-04-06) (aged 76)
Portland, Oregon

Alexander Christie (May 28, 1848 – April 6, 1925) was an American

Archbishop of Oregon City (1899–1925). He founded the University of Portland
in 1901.

Biography

Christie was born in

priest on December 2, 1877.[1] He served as pastor of Sacred Heart Church[2] in Waseca from 1878 until 1890, when he was transferred to the new Church of the Ascension in Minneapolis, Minnesota.[3] From 1894 to 1898, he was pastor of St. Stephen's Church in Minneapolis.[4]

Episcopacy

Bishop

On March 26, 1898, Christie was appointed

John Ireland, with Bishop Jean-Baptiste Brondel and John Shanley serving as co-consecrators.[1]

Archbishop

Christie was named

Archbishop of Oregon City on March 4, 1899.[1] Bishop Christie founded the University of Portland. According to University tradition, while on board a ship in the Willamette River, Christie observed the abandoned West Hall atop Waud's Bluff, formerly the site of the Methodist Portland University and decided to purchase it. Originally called "Columbia University" after the nearby river, it opened September 5, 1901. The following year he persuaded the Congregation of Holy Cross to assume control, telling them "Take over Columbia and make it the Notre Dame of the Pacific Northwest!"[5]

One of Christie's early priorities was to have the Archdiocese divided into something more manageable. The Diocese of Baker City was created in 1903, assuming responsibility for all of the state east of the Cascades. The Christie Home for Orphaned Girls was opened in 1907.[6]

The Catholic Truth Society was established in 1922, and he successfully campaigned against an Oregon law that would eliminate parochial schools, which was eventually settled by the Supreme Court in Pierce v. Society of Sisters.[4]

After a steady decline in health, Bishop Christie died, at age 76, and was buried at Mount Calvary Cemetery in Portland.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Archbishop Alexander Christie". Catholic-Hierarchy.org.[self-published source]
  2. ^ Sacred Heart Church, Waseca, MN
  3. ^ Church of the Ascension, Minneapolis, MN.
  4. ^
    Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Portland. Archived from the original
    on 2008-07-23.
  5. ^ "History", University of Portland
  6. ISBN 9780813219493
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by
Bishop of Vancouver Island

1898–1899 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Archbishop of Oregon City

1899–1925 		Succeeded by
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