James Terry Steib SVD | |
|---|---|
| Bishop Emeritus of Memphis | |
| Diocese | Memphis |
| Appointed | March 24, 1993 |
| Installed | May 5, 1993 |
| Retired | August 23, 2016 |
| Predecessor | Daniel M. Buechlein |
| Successor | Martin Holley |
| Previous post |
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| Orders | |
| Ordination | January 6, 1967 by Philip Matthew Hannan |
| Consecration | February 10, 1984 by John L. May,George Joseph Gottwald, andCharles Roman Koester |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1940-05-17)May 17, 1940 (age 85) |
| Motto | The Lord is my light |
| Styles of James Terry Steib | |
|---|---|
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| Reference style | |
| Spoken style | Your Excellency |
| Religious style | Bishop |
James Terry Steib,SVD (born May 17, 1940) is anAmerican Catholic retired prelate who served asbishop of Memphis from 1993 to 2016. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop for theArchdiocese of St. Louis from 1983 to 1993. He was the firstAfrican American to lead the Diocese of Memphis and is a member of theSociety of the Divine Word (Verbites).
James Terry Steib was born on May 17, 1940, inVacherie, Louisiana, one of five children of Rosemond and Vivian Steib. As a child, Steib worked with his family harvesting sugar cane.[1] After graduating from high school, Steib attendedSt. Augustine Seminary inBay St. Louis, Mississippi, and St. Michael's Mission House Seminary inConesus, New York. He graduated with a bachelor's degree from St. Mary's Mission Seminary inTechny, Illinois.[1]
On January 6, 1967, Steib was ordained as a priest by ArchbishopPhilip Matthew Hannan for the Vervites in Bay St. Louis.[2][3] After his ordination, the Verbites assigned Steib toSaint Stanislaus College in Bay St. Louis, teaching English, literature, religion, reading and speech to high school students.[4] He also held a position as assistant dean of students at Saint Stanislaus from 1967 to 1969. In 1973, Steib graduated fromXavier University inNew Orleans with a master's degree in guidance and counseling.[2]
In 1976, the Verbites appointed Steib as provincial superior of their Southern Province, holding that position for three years.[4] In 1979, he became vice president of the Conference of Major Superiors of Men.
On December 6, 1983,Pope John Paul II appointed Steib as an auxiliary bishop of St. Louis and titular bishop ofFallaba.[3] He was consecrated inSt. Louis, Missouri, on February 10, 1984, by ArchbishopJohn L. May, with Auxiliary BishopsGeorge Gottwald andCharles Koester serving as co-consecrators.[3]
On March 24, 1993, John Paul II appointed Steib as bishop of Memphis. He was installed on May 5, 1993.[3] One of Steib's primary accomplishments was reopening eight Catholic schools inMemphis that had been closed for financial reasons by a previous bishop.[4] In an interview, Steib commented on this:
When we closed a school in an urban area, we were leaving more than buildings behind; we were leaving behind children who yearned for a Catholic school more than ever. It is the heritage of Catholic education to lift up those most in need.[4]
In 2004, a Memphis man named Steib and the diocese in a sexual abuse lawsuit. The plaintiff claimed that Reverend Juan Carlos Duran, aBolivian priest at Ascension Parish inRaleigh, Tennessee, had sexually abused him in 1999 when his was 14 years old. After a church investigation, Steib banned Duran from public ministry and sent him to a center for treatment.[5] Duran was eventuallydefrocked.[6] In 2006. the diocese settled the case for $2 million.[7] When interviewed for adeposition in the case, Steib had these comments:
I don’t know that the church did not respond appropriately. I think it responded according to what it knew and believed at the time. I think that many of the times saw this as a very moral issue … and … you remove the person … from the temptation or the sin, you know.[7]
In June 2005, Steib expressed his views on outreach togays andlesbians in his pastoral letter "This Far by Faith":
To be sure that we do not leave anyone behind…to be sure that we promote genuine gratitude and reverence for the gift that each one of us is to the Church, we have begun to lay the foundations for a diocesan ministry with Catholic gay and lesbian persons.[1]
In 2005, a man sued Steib and the diocese in a case involving Reverend Paul St. Charles, a leader theCatholic Youth Organization in the diocese. The plaintiff accused St. Charles of molesting him at adrive-in movie when he was an altar server in the 1970s. Steib had ordered a diocese review of the allegations in 2004 and then suspended St. Charles from ministry.[8][6] In 2009, Steib responded to protests by other American bishops over theUniversity of Notre Dame inviting PresidentBarack Obama to speak at its commencement ceremony, due to Obama's position onabortion rights for women. Steib remarked:
Nothing was done during other administrations, nothing was said when other presidents who favored the war in Iraq with its constant killing, or who favored capital punishment were given awards in the name of the Church, even though those presidents were not adhering to Catholic Right to Life principles.[9]
On December 21, 2015, theMemphis City Council renamed a portion of Central Avenue as J. Terry Steib Lane in honor of the bishop. On August 23, 2016,Pope Francis accepted Steib's letter of resignation as bishop of Memphis.[1][3]
| Catholic Church titles | ||
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| Preceded by | Bishop of Memphis 1993–2016 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by – | Auxiliary Bishop of St. Louis 1984–1993 | Succeeded by – |
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