1940's Religion | Spellman, Francis J. 1889-1967

ARCHBISHOP OF NEW YORK

The American Pope.

On 23 December 1945 Francis J. Spellman, archbishop of New York, was named cardinal by Pope Pius XII. The appointment represented the culmination of an extraordinary career within the Catholic Church and within American society. By 1945 Spellman was the leading Roman Catholic clergyman in the United States, the confidant of powerful political and business figures, and the spiritual leader of the largest Catholic archdiocese in America, His influence on American political affairs, both domestic and foreign, was considerable, leading critics to dub him "the American Pope."

Background.

Spellman was born in Whitman, Massachusetts, on 4 May 1889 to an upper-middle-class grocer. An indifferent and unexceptional student, he nonetheless went to Fordham University in 1907, determined to make his mark in the priesthood. After graduating he attended the North...