Joseph Edward Kurtz

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JOSEPH EDWARD KURTZ

Born: August 18, 1946
Deceased:

Bishop of Knoxville, 1999-2007
Archbishop of Louisville, 2007 - present

Arms (crest) of Joseph Edward Kurtz

Bishop of Knoxville
Arms (crest) of Joseph Edward Kurtz

Bishop of
Official blazon
English blazon wanted
  • (Knoxville) Arms impaled. Dexter: On a cross throughout Or, three Greek crosses in fess Gules; within the quarters: I. Of the second a fess indented of three points to chief Argent; II Azure, a dogwood blossom per saltire of the third; III. barry wavy of the fourth and of the third; IV. of the second, issuant from base a railroad trestle of the third. Sinister: Quarterly Gules and Azure; throughout a cross Or, interlaced at the center by an annulet Argent; in chief dexter a lily of the last and in base sinister an anchor of the third.

Origin/meaning

As common in US episcopal heraldry, the arms show the arms of the diocese impaled with the personal arms of the bishop.

On a field that is quartered red and blue is a golden cross of the faith. Encircling the center of the cross is a silver annulet, which is taken from the arms of the bishop's home Diocese of Allentown, Pa. The annulet, sometimes referred to as an "espousal ring," is used to honor St. Catharine of Siena, often referred to as having had a mystical marriage to Christ. St. Catharine is the titular patroness of the cathedral church in Allentown.

In the upper left quarter of the design is a silver lily to honor Bishop Kurtz's baptismal patron, St. Joseph, the father of Christ. In the lower right is a golden anchor, the classic symbol of hope. It is used to acknowledge the virtue of hope as a most precious gift from God, by which "we desire the kingdom of heaven and eternal life as our happiness, placing our trust in Christ's promises and relying not on our own strength, but on the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, No. 1817).

For his motto Bishop Kurtz has selected the phrase "Hope in the Lord," from Psalm 31: 25. It expresses the bishop's belief that all lasting hope finds its source in the person of Jesus Christ. Every human person, "buoyed up by hope, is preserved from selfishness and led to the happiness that flows from charity" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, No. 1818) The achievement is completed with the heraldic insignia of a prelate of the rank of bishop.



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Literature: http://www.dioceseofknoxville.org (2007)