Maurice John Dingman

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Maurice John Dingman (January 20, 1914 – February 1, 1992) was an American

bishop of the Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Des Moines
from 1968 to 1986.

Biography

Early life and ministry

Maurice Dingman was born on January 20, 1914, on a farm near

St. Ambrose College in Davenport before studying in Rome at the Pontifical North American College and the Pontifical Gregorian University
.

Dingman was

St. Ambrose Academy in Davenport from 1940 until 1943, when he became assistant chancellor of the diocese and Bishop Henry Rohlman
's secretary.

Dingman earned a

Congregation of the Humility of Mary Motherhouse in Ottumwa, Iowa. He was also chaplain at Regina Coeli Monastery in Bettendorf, Iowa, and Mercy Hospital in Davenport, Iowa.[1]

Bishop of Des Moines

On April 2, 1968, Dingman was appointed as the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Des Moines by

episcopal ordination on June 19, 1968, at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Davenport from Archbishop Luigi Raimondi. Bishops Ralph Hayes and Gerald O'Keefe were the co-consecrators.[3] Dingman's episcopal ordination was one of the first celebrated in the vernacular.[4] He was installed at St. Ambrose Cathedral in Des Moines on July 7, 1968.[5] A Mass followed at Veterans Memorial Auditorium
.

Dingman became known as a champion of rural issues and ecumenism, and strengthened the laity, priests, and nuns of the diocese.[1] He supported nuclear disarmament and was open to discussion on the subject of women's ordination.[1] From 1976 to 1979, he served as president of the National Catholic Rural Life Conference.

On October 4, 1979, Pope

John Paul II visited the Diocese of Des Moines on the suggestion of Joe Hays, a farmer in Truro, Iowa, and on the invitation of Dingman.[6] After landing at the Des Moines Airport, the pope visited the rural parish of St. Patrick near Irish Settlement. He then celebrated a Mass at the Living History Farms
in Urbandale, Iowa.

In October 1983, Dingman was abducted by gunpoint by two juveniles, whose advocate in court the bishop later became.[1]

Later life and death

On April 17, 1986, Dingman suffered a massive

Pacem in Terris Peace and Freedom Award
, sponsored in part by the Diocese of Davenport, and St. Ambrose College.

Maurice Dingman died on February 1, 1992, at Mercy Hospital in Des Moines. His funeral was celebrated at St. Ambrose Cathedral, and he was buried in Glendale Cemetery in Des Moines.[8]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Hudson, David; Marvin Bergman; Loren Horton (2008). The Biographical Dictionary of Iowa. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press.
  2. ISBN 9780814644713
    .
  3. ^ a b c "Bishop Maurice John Dingman". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. David M. Cheney. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
  4. ^ Avella 2018, p. 256.
  5. ^ The Official Catholic Directory. New Providence, New Jersey: P.J. Kenedy & Sons. 2009. p. 378.
  6. ^ Avella 2018, p. 337.
  7. ^ Avella 2018, p. 354.
  8. ^ "Bishop Maurice Dingman, 78". Quad-City Times. Davenport. February 2, 1992. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
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