1. Jean-Baptiste Brondel was a Belgian-born prelate of the Catholic Church.
17 Facts About Jean-Baptiste Brondel
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Jean-Baptiste Brondel served as bishop of the Diocese of Vancouver Island in British Columbia and Alaska and as vicar apostolic and bishop of the Diocese of Helena in Montana.
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Jean-Baptiste Brondel was born in Bruges to Charles Joseph and Isabella Brondel.
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Jean-Baptiste Brondel received his early education from the Xaverian Brothers in his native city.
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In 1852, Brondel entered the College of St Louis in Bruges, where he studied for ten years.
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Jean-Baptiste Brondel then studied philosophy and theology at the American College of Louvain in Leuven, Belgium.
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Jean-Baptiste Brondel was ordained to the priesthood by Cardinal Engelbert Sterckx on 17 December 1864.
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Jean-Baptiste Brondel continued his studies at the American College for two more years.
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Jean-Baptiste Brondel taught at Holy Angels College in Vancouver for one year, then moved to the Washington Territory in the United States.
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Jean-Baptiste Brondel served as rector of the church at Steilacoom with its attendant missions for ten years.
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Jean-Baptiste Brondel was transferred to Walla Walla in 1877, but returned to Steilacoom the following year.
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On 26 September 1879, Jean-Baptiste Brondel was appointed the third bishop of the Diocese of Vancouver Island by Pope Leo XIII.
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Jean-Baptiste Brondel received his episcopal consecration on 14 December 1879 from Archbishop Charles J Seghers.
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The vicariate was elevated to the Diocese of Helena on 7 March 1884 by Leo XIII, with Jean-Baptiste Brondel becoming its first bishop.
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Jean-Baptiste Brondel significantly increased the number of priests; by 1903, the number of seminarians in Montana increased from one to thirteen.
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Jean-Baptiste Brondel took a particular interest in the evangelization of Native Americans, and the United States government often used his popularity among that community to further its aims in the community.
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Jean-Baptiste Brondel died at Helena at age 61, and was buried in a vault under the cathedral of that city.