Robert William Muench
ROBERT WILLIAM MUENCH
Born: December 28, 1942
Deceased:
Auxiliary Bishop of New Orleans, 1990-1996
Bishop of Covington, 1996-2002
Bishop of Baton Rouge, 2002-2018
 Auxiliary Bishop of New Orleans |
 Bishop of Covington |
 Bishop of Baton Rouge |
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Origin/meaning
As common in US episcopal heraldry, the arms show the arms of the diocese impaled with the personal arms of the bishop.
The pall in the personal arm symbolically represents the pallium, the special wool collar which signifies the rank of archbishop: Bishop Muench's patron, Saint Robert Beuarmine, was archbishop of Capua.
The crozier is a simple style, as used by an abbot, and so represents here the bishop's other patron, Saint William, who was an abbot. Yet the crozier also has a meaning as a symbol for monks and monastic life, therefore it symbolises the last name of the bishop, which is derived from the German word for monk (Mönch).
The silver crescent with between its points a yellow fleur-de-lys, are both symbols of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The fleur-de-lys was added to the personal arms after his transfer to Baton Rouge and is taken from the arms of his previous see, the Diocese of Covington.
The crescent also symbolises the "Crescent City" of New Orleans, the bishop's longtime "home" archdiocese. In this light, the triangular shape above the pall can be understood additionally to signify the Louisiana delta upon which the city of New Orleans is built.
The book is charged with the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, the" Alpha" and "Omega," signifying that Christ is the beginning and end of all things The plate is charged with the joined Greek letters "Chi" and "Rho,• an ancient Christian symbol for the Lord Jesus, as they are the first two letters of XPICTOC ("Christ"), meaning "Anointed."
Bishop Muench's motto, placed on scroll below the shield, is the phrase "Jesus Must Increase'," taken from Saint John's Gospel (Jn 3:30).
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