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Carl A. Kemme

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His Excellency, The Most Reverend

Carl Alan Kemme
Bishop of Wichita
ChurchCatholic Church
ProvinceKansas City in Kansas
SeeWichita
AppointedFebruary 20, 2014
InstalledMay 1, 2014
PredecessorMichael Owen Jackels
Orders
OrdinationMay 10, 1986
by Daniel L. Ryan
ConsecrationMay 1, 2014
by Joseph Fred Naumann, George Joseph Lucas, and Thomas Paprocki
Personal details
Born (1960-08-14) August 14, 1960 (age 64)
Effingham, Illinois
Alma mater
MottoHumilitas (Humility)
Styles of
Carl Alan Kemme
Reference style
Spoken styleYour Excellency
Religious styleBishop

Carl Alan Kemme (born August 14, 1960) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. Since 2014, he has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Wichita in Kansas.

Biography

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Early life

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Carl Kemme was born on August 14, 1960, in Effingham, Illinois to Donald and Marita (Kortte) Kemme, who ran a farm near Shumway, Illinois. Carl Kemme has four brothers and one sister. Kemme attended Shumway Elementary School in Shumway and then Beecher High School in Beecher, Illinois. After deciding to study for the priesthood, Kemme transferred to St. Henry's Preparatory Seminary in Belleville, Illinois, where he finished high school.[1]

After high school, Kemme enrolled at Immaculate Conception Seminary in Springfield, Illinois. He later graduated from Cardinal Glennon College in St. Louis and Kenrick Seminary in St. Louis with a Bachelor of Arts degree and a Master of Divinity degree.[1]

Priesthood

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Kemme was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception by Bishop Daniel L. Ryan on May 10, 1986.[2] After his ordination, Kemme served as parochial vicar in the following parishes in Illinois:

  • St. Patrick in Decatur from 1986 to 1989
  • Saints Peter and Paul in Collinsville from 1989 to 1990
  • Blessed Sacrament in Springfield from 1990 to 1992[1]

From 1992 to 1996, Kemme was named pastor of three parishes in Illinois:

Kemme served as the diocesan administrator of Our Lady of the Holy Spirit Parish in Mt. Zion, Illinois from 1996 to 1997. He was then appointed pastor of Holy Family Parish in Decatur, serving there for the next six years. While still at Holy Family, Kemme was appointed priest moderator of St. James Parish in Decatur for two years. In 2002, he was named pastor St. Peter Parish in Petersburg, Illinois, staying there from 2002 to 2005.[1]

In 2002, Bishop George J. Lucas named Kemme as vicar general and moderator of the curia for the diocese; he would hold both positions until 2009. On August 23, 2002 Pope John Paul II named him a prelate of honor with the title monsignor.[1] He was assigned as pastor of St. John Vianney Parish in Sherman, Illinois.[1]

In 2009, Kemme resigned as vicar general and moderator to become diocesan administrator sede vacante after the departure of Bishop George Lucas. With the installation of a new bishop in Springfield, Kemme returned to being vicar general and moderator, remaining in both roles until 2014.[2][1]

Bishop of Wichita

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On February 20, 2014, Pope Francis appointed Kemme as the eleventh bishop of Wichita. He was consecrated by Archbishop Joseph Naumann on May 1, 2014, in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Wichita. Lucas and Bishop Thomas Paprocki were the principal co-consecrators.[3][1]

On September 20, 2019, Kemme published a list of 15 priests that faced credible accusations of sexual abuse of minors. Eleven of the priests were deceased and the others were no longer in ministry.[4] Kemme added this statement:

Owning our past is the first step in building a new future, one in which we will continue to diligently work hard as we have been for many years now, so that these violations to human dignity will never happen again. Many of the faithful will no doubt experience great anger in receiving this information. I share that anger.[5]

On November 1, 2021, Kemme placed Reverend Michael Schemm from Resurrection Parish in Bel Aire, Kansas, on suspension pending investigation. The diocese had received sexual abuse allegations again Schemm dating back to the 1990s. The diocese also forwarded the allegations to local police.[6] Due to insufficient evidence of any crime, Schemm was not indicted and returned to ministry in March 2022.[7]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i "About Bishop Kemme". Catholic Diocese of Wichita. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  2. ^ a b "Pope Names Springfield, Illinois Priest as Bishop of Wichita, Kansas and Newark Priest as Auxiliary Bishop of Miami". United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved 2014-02-28.
  3. ^ "Bishop Carl Alan Kemme". Catholic-Hierarchy. Retrieved 2014-02-28.
  4. ^ "Wichita diocese names 15 priests accused of child sex abuse". AP NEWS. 2021-04-30. Retrieved 2022-01-12.
  5. ^ Kemme, Carl (September 19, 2019). "Letter from Bishop in Regards to Clergy Disclosures". Catholic Diocese of Wichita. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  6. ^ KWCH Staff (November 2021). "Wichita-area priest placed on leave, accused of sexually abusing minor". www.kwch.com. Retrieved 2022-01-12.
  7. ^ "Wichita priest returns to public ministry after allegations of child exploitation". www.kake.com. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
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Episcopal succession

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Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Bishop of Wichita
2014–Present 		Incumbent
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