Leroy Matthiesen (June 11, 1921 – March 22, 2010) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Amarillo in Texas from 1980 to 1997.
Biography
Early life
Leroy Matthiesen was born June 11, 1921, in Olfen, an unincorporated community in Runnels County, Texas. He grew up on a cotton farm. Deciding to become a priest, he attended the Pontifical College Josephinum in Worthington, Ohio.
Priesthood
Matthiesen was ordained a priest at the Josephinum by Cardinal Amleto Cicognani for the Diocese of Amarillo on March 10, 1946. <blockquote><nowiki>I'm no rabble rouser. On the whole I accomplished what I wanted to by bringing an issue to the consciousness of people. It's amazing how people have begun to live with the unlivable.</nowiki>
Matthiesen admitted eight priests into the Diocese of Amarillo after they had undergone treatment following accusations of sexual impropriety. His most controversial priest assignments were Reverend Orville Blum, whom Mattheisen appointed as principal of Alamo Catholic High School in Amarillo and pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Amarillo. In addition, Reverends John Salazar-Jimenez and Ed Graff were admitted into the diocese by Matthiesen. Both of these priests were known to be serious sexual abusers and Matthiesen was warned not to assign them to parishes by other Catholic officials.
Retirement and legacy
On January 21, 1997, John Paul II accepted Matthiesen's resignation as bishop of Amarillo. Also in 2004, Matthiessen stirred controversy when he started a fundraising effort to assist three priests whom his successor bishop had removed from public ministry. In his retirement, Matthiesen published three books:
- Wise and Otherwise: The Life and Times of a Cottonpicking Texas Bishop (2004)
- The Golden Years: The History of St. Laurence Cathedral in Amarillo (2005)
- Lieber Bernard und Elise: The Lives and Times of a German Texas Family (2009)
Leroy Matthiesen died on March 22, 2010, in Amarillo at age 88.