Josip Stadler


Josip Stadler was a Roman Catholic priest, the first Archbishop of Vrhbosna, the founder of the religious order of the Servants of the Infant Jesus. He is a candidate for sainthood.

Early life and education

Stadler was born in Slavonski Brod in the Habsburg Monarchy. His parents, Đuro and Marija were hatmakers. Early in life, he lost both parents. He was taken care of by the Oršić family. He started his education in Slavonski Brod, and continued it, under the patronage of cardinal Juraj Haulik, in Požega and Zagreb where he attended gymnasium. In Rome he attended the Pontifical Gregorian University where he attained a doctorate in philosophy and theology.

Career

Stadler was ordained a priest in Rome on June 6, 1868, after which he returned to Zagreb where he worked as a professor at a seminary and later a university professor at the Catholic Faculty of Theology of the University of Zagreb.
In 1881, the Catholic Church hierarchy in Bosnia and Herzegovina was reinstated after nearly seven centuries, when the last bishop of Bosnia was evicted by Bosnian ban Kulin and left Bosnia for Đakovo. Pope Leo XIII named Stadler as the first archbishop of Vrhbosna in Sarajevo. Under his direction, the Cathedral of Jesus' Heart was built, along with the seminary and church of Sts. Cyril and Methodius. In Travnik he helped build the gymnasium and seminary, as well as many churches and women's seminaries throughout the country.
Stadler founded the women's order of the Servants of the Infant Jesus with the intention of helping impoverished and abandoned children and others. He sent a plea to Vienna, to Franziska Lechner to send nuns to Sarajevo. He formed the orphanages Betlehem and Egipat for children and a home for the elderly.

Death

Stadler died in Sarajevo on the feast day of the Assumption of Mary in his 75th year. He was succeeded by archbishop Ivan Šarić. Stadler was buried in Sarajevo Cathedral.

Canonization

During Pope John Paul II's visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina on 12 April 1997 the pope prayed at Stadler's grave. The process for Stadler's canonization began in Sarajevo on 20 June 2002.

Works

Following is a partial list of works authored by archbishop Stadler: