Fulton J. Sheen

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Fulton J. Sheen

His Excellency Fulton John Sheen (May 8, 1895—December 9, 1979) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He was Bishop of Rochester and American television's first preacher of note, hosting Life Is Worth Living in the early 1950s on the DuMont Television Network.

Sheen was born in El Paso, Illinois, the oldest of four sons of a farmer. Though he was known as Fulton, his mother's maiden name, he was baptized Peter John Sheen. As an infant, Sheen contracted tuberculosis. After the family moved to nearby Peoria, Illinois, Sheen's first role in the Catholic church was as an altar boy at St. Mary's Cathedral.

1 Education
2 Radio and television
3 Later years
4 Posthumous appeal
5 Trivia
6 Biography
7 Works
- 7.1 Books
- 7.2 Essays
8 External links

[edit] Education

After earning high school valedictorian honors at Spalding Insititute in Peoria in 1913, Sheen was educated at St. Viator College, Bourbonnais, Illinois. Making the debating team in his freshman year, his coach called him aside the night before a major debate with the University of Notre Dame, and told him bluntly: "Sheen, you're absolutely the worst speaker I ever heard."

Sheen attended Saint Paul Seminary in Minnesota before his ordination on September 20, 1919, then followed that with further studies at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. His youthful appearance was still evident on one occasion when a local priest who was unable to celebrate Mass asked Sheen to substitute for him. Arriving at the parish, the pastor curtly told him, "Get over to the church. The other altar boys are dressed already."

Sheen earned a doctorate in philosophy at the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium in 1923. While there, he became the first American ever to win the Cardinal Mercier award for the best philosophical treatise.

Sheen then taught theology at St. Edmund's College, Ware in England, In 1926, the Bishop of his hometown in Peoria asked him to take over St. Patrick's Parish. After eight months, Sheen returned to Catholic University to teach philosophy.

[edit] Radio and television

A popular instructor, Sheen wrote the first of some 90 books in 1925, and in 1930 began a weekly Sunday night radio broadcast, The Catholic Hour. Two decades later, the broadcast had a weekly listening audience of four million people. During the middle of this era, he conducted the first religious service broadcast on the new medium of television, putting in motion a new avenue for his religious pursuits.

Sheen was also credited with helping convert a number of notable figures to the Catholic faith. One of his first converts was writer Heywood Broun, who had been critical of Sheen's stance on evolution, but after countless discussions with the priest, changed his mind. Others who followed in Broun's footsteps included politician Clare Boothe Luce and automaker Henry Ford II.

Sheen served as Auxiliary Bishop of New York from 1951 to 1965. In 1951 he also began a weekly television program on the DuMont network, Life is Worth Living. The show, scheduled for Tuesday nights at 8:00 p.m., was not expected to offer much of a challenge against ratings giants Milton Berle and Frank Sinatra, but surprisingly held its own, causing Berle to joke, "He uses old material, too". In 1952, Sheen won an Emmy Award for his efforts, accepting the acknowledgement by saying, "I feel it is time I pay tribute to my four writers. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John."

The program consisted of Sheen simply speaking in front of a live audience, often speaking on the theology of current topics such as the evils of communism or the usage of psychology, and occasionally using a chalkboard. One of his best remembered presentations came in February 1953, when he forcefully denounced the Soviet regime of Joseph Stalin. Sheen gave a dramatic reading of the burial scene from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, substituting the names of Caesar, Cassius, Marc Antony, and Brutus with those of prominent Soviet leaders: Stalin, Beria, Malenkov, and Vishinsky. From the bishop's lips came the pronouncement, "Stalin must one day meet his judgment." On March 5, 1953, Stalin died.

The show would run until 1957, drawing as many as 30 million people on a weekly basis. In 1958, he became national director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, serving for eight years before being appointed Bishop of Rochester on October 26, 1966. Sheen also hosted a nationally-syndicated series, The Fulton Sheen Program, from 1961 to 1968 (first in black and white and then in color). The format of this series was basically the same as Life is Worth Living.

[edit] Later years

While serving in Rochester, he created the Sheen Ecumenical Housing Foundation, which survives to this day. However, his continuing celebrity status led to travels outside the diocese, preventing him from establishing a close relationship with parishioners. That situation was compounded with his controversial stance on racial issues and his denunciation of the Vietnam War in August 1967. On October 15, 1969, one month after celebrating his 50th anniversary as a priest, Sheen resigned from his position and was then appointed Archbishop of the Titular See of Newport (Wales) by Pope Paul VI. The largely ceremonial position allowed Sheen to continue his extensive writing.

On October 2, 1979, two months before Sheen's death, Pope John Paul II visited St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York and embraced Sheen, saying, "You have written and spoken well of the Lord Jesus Christ. You are a loyal son of the Church." Sheen is buried in St. Patrick's Cathedral near the deceased Archbishops of New York.

[edit] Posthumous appeal

In 2002 Sheen's Cause for Canonization was officially opened, and so he is now referred to as a Servant of God.

Reruns of Sheen's various programs continue to air on the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) and the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN).

[edit] Trivia

Actor Martin Sheen has said on several occasions that he took his stage name from Bishop Fulton J. Sheen.

Sheen often referred to his "angel", who would erase the blackboard when Sheen stepped away from it. This duty was performed by a never-seen stagehand.

The official repository of Sheen's papers, television programs, and other materials is at St. Bernard's Institute in Rochester, New York.

"JMJ"--the initials Sheen wrote on the blackboard before using it on his television programs--stands for "Jesus, Mary, Joseph."

[edit] Biography

Reeves, Thomas C. (2001). America's Bishop: The Life and Times of Fulton J. Sheen. Encounter Books. ISBN 1-893554-25-2
Riley, Kathleen L. (2004). Fulton J. Sheen: An American Catholic Response to the Twentieth Century. Alba House.
Sheen, Fulton J. (1980). Treasure in Clay: The Autobiography of Fulton J. Sheen. Doubleday & Company.

[edit] Works

Bishop Sheen wrote 96 books and hundreds of articles and columns.

[edit] Books

God and Intelligence, 1925
Religion Without God, 1928
The Life of All Living, 1929 Rev. Ed. 1979
The Divine Romance, 1930
Old Errors and New Labels, 1931
Moods and Truths, 1932
Way of the Cross, 1932
Seven Last Words, 1933, Alba House reprint: ISBN 0-8189-0760-6
Hymn of the Conquered, 1933
The Eternal Galilean, 1934
Philosophy of Science, 1934
The Mystical Body of Christ, 1935
Calvary and the Mass, 1936
The Moral Universe, 1936
The Cross and the Beatitudes: Lessons on Love and Forgiveness, 1937, Liguori Publications reprint: ISBN 0-7648-0592-4
The Cross and the Crisis, 1938
Liberty, Equality and Fraternity, 1938
The Rainbow of Sorrow, 1938
Victory over Vice, 1939
Whence Come Wars, 1940
The Seven Virtues, 1940
For God and Country, 1941
A Declaration of Dependence, 1941
God and War and Peace, 1942
The Divine Verdict, 1943
The Armor of God, 1943
Philosophies at War, 1943
Seven Words to the Cross, 1944
Seven Pillars of Peace, 1944
Love One Another, 1944
Seven Words of Jesus and Mary: Lessons on Cana and Calvary, 1945, Liguori Publications reprint: ISBN 0-7648-0708-0
Preface to Religion, 1946
Characters of the Passion, 1946
Jesus, Son of Mary, 1947
Communism and the Conscience of the West, 1948
Philosophy of Religion, 1948
Peace of Soul, 1949, Liguori Publications reprint: ISBN 0-89243-915-7
Lift Up Your Heart, 1950
Three to Get Married, 1951
The World’s First Love, 1952, McGraw Hill, Ignatius Press reprint: ISBN 0-89870-597-5
Life Is Worth Living, Vol. 1, 1953
Life Is Worth Living, Vol. 2, 1954
- Life Is Worth Living: First and Second Series, Ignatius Press reprint: ISBN 0-89870-611-4
The Life of Christ, 1954
Way to Happiness: An Inspiring Guide to Peace, Hope and Contentment, 1954, Alba House reprint: ISBN 0-8189-0775-4
Way to Inner Peace, 1954
God Loves You, 1955
Thinking Life Through, 1955
Thoughts for Daily Living, 1955
Life Is Worth Living, Vol. 3, 1955
Life Is Worth Living, Vol. 4, 1956
Life Is Worth Living, Vol. 5, 1957
Life of Christ, 1958, McGraw Hill, revised edition Doubleday, 1977: ISBN 0-385-13220-4
This Is The Mass, 1958; Rev. Ed. 1965
This Is Rome, 1960
Go to Heaven, 1960
This Is the Holy Land, 1961
These Are the Sacraments, 1962
The Priest Is Not His Own, 1963, Ignatius Press reprint: ISBN 1-58617-044-9
Missions and the World Crisis, 1964
The Power of Love, 1965
Walk with God, 1965
Christmas Inspirations, 1966
Footprints in a Darkened Forest, 1966
Guide to Contentment, 1967
Easter Inspirations, 1967
Those Mysterious Priests, 1974
Life Is Worth Living, First and Second Series Abridged, 1978
Treasure in Clay, 1980
The Quotable Fulton Sheen: A Topical Compilation of the Wit, Wisdom, and Satire of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, 1989, George J. Marlin, Richard P. Rabatin, and John L. Swan, editors, Doubleday, ISBN 0-385-26226-4
From the Angel's Blackboard: The Best of Fulton J. Sheen, 1996, Liguori Publications reprint: ISBN 0-89243-925-4
Simple Truths: Thinking Life Through With Fulton J. Sheen, 1998, Liguori Publications reprint: ISBN 0-7648-0169-4
Your Life Is Worth Living: The Christian Philosophy of Life, 2001, Esther B. Davidowitz, Jon R. Hallingstad, editors, Saint Andrew's Press, ISBN 0-9701456-8-3. Transcript of 1965 audio recording.