Joseph Clement Willging

{{Infobox Christian leader

| type =

| honorific_prefix = His Excellency, The Most Reverend

| name = Joseph Clement Willging

| honorific_suffix =

| title = Bishop of Pueblo

| see = Diocese of Pueblo

| elected =

| term = February 24, 1942
March 3, 1959

| quashed =

| predecessor =

| successor = Charles Albert Buswell

| opposed =

| other_post =

| ordination = June 20, 1908

| ordained_by = James Gibbons

| consecration = February 24, 1942

| consecrated_by = Amleto Giovanni Cicognani

| birth_date = {{Birth date|1884|09|06}}

| baptised =

| birth_place = Dubuque, Iowa, US

| death_date = {{Death date and age|1959|03|03|1884|09|06}}

| death_place = Denver, Colorado, US

| buried =

| resting_place_coordinates =

| nationality =

| religion = Roman Catholic

| residence =

| parents =

| education = Columbia College
St. Mary's Seminary
Catholic University of America

| alma_mater =

| motto =

| signature =

| signature_alt =

| coat_of_arms =

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}}Joseph Clement Willging (September 6, 1884 – March 3, 1959) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the first bishop of the new Diocese of Pueblo in Colorado from 1942 until his death in 1959.

Biography

= Early life =

Joseph Willging was born on September 6, 1884, in Dubuque, Iowa, to Henry and Elizabeth (née Hanover) Willging.{{cite book|last=Curtis|first=Georgina Pell|title=The American Catholic Who's Who|volume=XIV|year=1961|publisher=Walter Romig|location=Grosse Pointe, Michigan}} He attended St. Mary's School (1891–1898) and Columbia College (1898–1905) in Dubuque. Willging then went to Baltimore, Maryland, to study at St. Mary's Seminary, earning a Bachelor of Sacred Theology degree in 1908.

= Priesthood =

Willging was ordained to the priesthood in Baltimore by Cardinal James Gibbons for the Diocese of Helena on June 20, 1908.{{cite news|work=Catholic-Hierarchy.org|title=Bishop Joseph Clement Willging|url=http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bwillging.html}}{{Self-published source|date=March 2015}}{{Cite web |title=BISHOP J. C. WILLGING OF PUEBLO, COLO., 74i |url=http://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1959/03/05/91418711.html?pageNumber=31 |access-date=2022-07-01 |website=timesmachine.nytimes.com |language=en}} He then studied at Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., for a year. Returning to Montana, Willging was appointed principal of St. Aloysius Institute in Helena, in 1909. He taught at Carroll College in Helena from 1910 to 1914, returning during that period to Catholic University for one year. Willging then served as chancellor of the diocese until 1927, when he became pastor of Immaculate Conception Parish in Butte, Montana. Willging was named a papal chamberlain (1921), a domestic prelate and the vicar general of Helena in 1939.

= Bishop of Pueblo =

On December 6, 1941, Willging was appointed the first bishop of the Diocese of Pueblo by Pope Pius XII.{{Cite web |title=3 NAMED U.S. BISHOPS; Pope Makes Appointments In Colorado, Minnesota and Ohio |url=http://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1941/12/10/99263525.html?pdf_redirect=true&site=false |access-date=2022-07-01 |website=timesmachine.nytimes.com |language=en}} He received his episcopal consecration on February 24, 1942, from Archbishop Amleto Cicognani, with Archbishop Henry Rohlman and Bishop Joseph Michael Gilmore serving as co-consecrators. During his 17-year-long tenure, Willging increased the number of parishes from 39 to 60, and the number of priests from 84 to 151.{{cite news|work=Roman Catholic Diocese of Pueblo|title=Our Mission|url=http://www.dioceseofpueblo.com/mission.htm}} He also encouraged the establishment of parochial schools and Catholic hospitals.