1. Irenaeus Frederic Baraga was a Slovenian Catholic missionary to the United States, grammarian and author of Christian poetry and hymns in Native American languages.
26 Facts About Frederic Baraga
1. 2.
Frederic Baraga was the first Bishop of Sault Sainte Marie and Marquette, a post he held for 15 years.
3.
Frederic Baraga was the fourth of five children born to Janez Baraga and Marija Katarina Jozefa nee Jencic; among his siblings was his sister Antonija, who would later become the first Slovenian woman to immigrate to the United States.
4.
Frederic Baraga's mother died in 1808, and his father in 1812.
5.
Frederic Baraga grew up during the Napoleonic Wars, when France had taken over the Slovene Lands from the Austrian Empire for a time.
6.
Frederic Baraga attended law school at the University of Vienna, where he graduated in 1821.
7.
In 1830 Frederic Baraga answered the request of Bishop Edward Fenwick of Cincinnati for priests to aid in ministering to his growing flock, which included a large mission territory.
8.
Frederic Baraga left his homeland on October 29,1830, and arrived in New York on December 31.
9.
Frederic Baraga arrived in Cincinnati, Ohio, on January 18,1831.
10.
Frederic Baraga composed around 100 Catholic hymns in the Ojibwe language, which were published in a hymnal and still continue to be used by the Ojibwe people in Roman Catholic worship in both Canada and the United States.
11.
Frederic Baraga was elevated to bishop by Pope Pius IX and consecrated November 1,1853, in Cincinnati at Saint Peter in Chains Cathedral by Archbishop John Purcell.
12.
Frederic Baraga was the first bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan, now the Diocese of Marquette.
13.
The only way to travel in winter was on snowshoes, which Frederic Baraga continued to do into his sixties.
14.
Frederic Baraga was particularly challenged by the vast diversity of peoples in the region, including the native inhabitants, ethnic French-Canadian settlers, and the new German and Irish immigrant miners.
15.
Difficulties in recruiting staff arose because of many languages; while Frederic Baraga spoke eight languages fluently, he had trouble recruiting priests who could do the same.
16.
Frederic Baraga traveled twice to Europe to raise money for his diocese.
17.
Frederic Baraga was presented a jeweled cross and episcopal ring by the Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria.
18.
Frederic Baraga wrote numerous letters to the Society for the Propagation of the Faith describing his missionary activities.
19.
In time, Frederic Baraga became renowned throughout Europe for his work.
20.
In 1865 Frederic Baraga wrote to Pope Pius IX in support of the canonization of his former confessor, Clement Hofbauer.
21.
Frederic Baraga is buried there in a chapel constructed for him at Saint Peter Cathedral; he formerly reposed with other bishops of Marquette in the cathedral crypt.
22.
Frederic Baraga was declared venerable by Pope Benedict XVI on May 10,2012.
23.
Frederic Baraga's cause was opened in 1952 by Thomas Lawrence Noa, the diocese's eighth bishop, and the formal canonization process began in 1973.
24.
The Bishop Frederic Baraga House is home to the Frederic Baraga Educational Center and Museum.
25.
The church was first pastored by Reverend Sebastian Duroc with Frederic Baraga visiting from time to time.
26.
The Frederic Baraga House is known as the first permanent building in Marquette and was the first Catholic church in the city.