Assignment Record– Rev. Vincent Arthur "Fr. Art" Yzermans

Summary of Case: Vincent Arthur Yzermans was a St. Cloud MN diocesan priest, ordained in 1951. In addition to serving in parishes throughout the diocese, Yzermans was a writer and editor. He served as a communications consultant during three sessions of Vatican II and was named "Monsignor" in 1965. He was also a press advisor to the U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops in Washington DC in the mid-1960s, and editor of the national Catholic paper, Our Sunday Visitor. Yzermans struggled with alcoholism for which he was in and out of treatment more than a dozen times. In the late 1960s he was moved out-of-state to an IN convent, spent a year in Santa Rosa CA in the mid-1970s, a year at St. Thomas College in Minneapolis, and later did a stint in residence at a parish in Anchorage AK. He was on medical leave 1979-1984 before returning to St. Cloud. Yzermans died May 4, 1995 in Albuquerque NM. His name was among 33 released by the St. Cloud diocese January 3, 2014 of clergy involved in incidents of likely claims of sexual abuse of minors.

 

Born: December 2, 1925
Ordained: June 2, 1951
Died: May 4, 1995

  

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Start Stop Assignment Town/Accusations State Position Notes

1951

St. Cloud bishop was Joseph Francis Busch (1915-1953).

 1952 St. Boniface's

Melrose

 MN 2/2

St. Boniface's had a school with 313 students.

1951

 1952 St. Bernard's Ward Springs MN   This was a mission of St. Boniface's in Melrose.

1952

Busch was succeeded by Peter William Bartholome (1953-1968).

 1956 St. Mary's Cathedral St. Cloud MN 5/5, 6/7, 4/5, 3/5 St. Mary's had aschool with 801-615 students.
1956 1957 St. John the Baptist Swanville MN 1/1  
1957 1962 The St. Cloud Visitor St. Cloud MN Editor and Business Manager  
1962 1964 Diocesan Information Bureau St. Cloud MN Director  
1962 1965 Second Vatican Council Vatican City Italy Peritus (communications consultant); representative of St. Cloud's Bishop Batholome Yzermans attended all three sessions of Vatican II.
1963 1964 St. Nicholas' St. Nicholas MN 1/1  

1964

Washington DC archbishop was Patrick Aloysius O'Boyle (1947-1973).

 1967 On Duty Outside Diocese: Bureau of Information Washington DC Yzermans had the title "Very Rev. Msgr." beginning in 1965. Per his obituary, Yzermans was a press advisor to the U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops and editor of the national Catholic paper, Our Sunday Visitor. He is said to have been forced out after less than two years, due to differences with the paper's owner and manager.

1967

Ft. Wayne-South Bend bishop was Leo Aloysius Pursley (1956-1976).

 1969 Victory-Noll Motherhouse Novitiate Juniorate and College Huntington IN Chaplain; In residence Our Lady of Victory Missionary Sisters.
      Melrose, Watkins, Freeport, Albany MN   Per Yzermans' obituary, he served for an unspecified time after his time in DC in small parishes around these towns.

1969

George Henry Speltz replaced Bartholome as St. Cloud bishop (1968-1987).

 1975 St. Rosa's St. Rosa MN 1/1  

1975

Santa Rosa bishop was Mark Joseph Hurley (1969-1986).

 1976 On Duty Outside Diocese Santa Rosa CA   Address given is Box 1499.

1976

St. Paul-Minneapolis archbishop was John Robert Roach (1975-1995).

 1977 On Duty Outside Diocese: St. Thomas College St. Paul MN    

1977

St. Cloud diocese

 1978 St. Andrew's Elk River MN 2/2 St. Andrew's had a school with 156 students.

1978

Anchorage archbishop was Francis Thomas Hurley (1976-2001).

 1979 St. Benedict's Anchorage AK 2/2 In residence.  
1979 1984 Absent on Medical Leave        

1984

Jerome George Hanus, O.S.B. succeeded Speltz as St. Cloud bishop (1987-1994).

 1988 St. Anthony's St. Anthony MN 1/1  
1988 1991 Special Assignment: Diocesan Centennial St. Cloud MN    

1991

 

 1995 Special Assignment: Author St. Cloud MN   Yzermans died May 4, 1995 in Albuquerque, NM.

 

Sources: Official Catholic Directory (New York: P.J. Kenedy and Sons, 1952-1996)

• Fr Vincent Arthur "Fr Art" Yzermans, Obituary, findagrave.com
• Press Release from +Donald J. Kettler Bishop of Saint Cloud, Roman Catholic Diocese of St. Cloud via WJON, January 3, 2014
• The Diocese of St Cloud Release Their List of 33 Priests Accused of Sexually Abusing Minors, By Mike Bryant, Legal Examiner, January 3, 2014
• St. Cloud Diocese Reveals Names of Priests Accused of Abusing Children, By Jean Hopfensperger, Star Tribune,
January 3, 2014
• St. Cloud Diocese Releases List of Clergy Accused of Abuse, By Frank Lee, St. Cloud Times, January 4, 2014

 

 

Priests in a Parish: We use the following convention to show a priest's place among the clergy of a parish: 1/2 means that he is the first priest listed in the Official Catholic Directory (usually the pastor) and that there is a total of two priests at the parish. The shorthand 3/4 means that the priest is listed third on a four-priest roster. See our sample page from the Directory.

Note: The Official Catholic Directory aims to report the whereabouts of Catholic priests in the United States on January 1 of the Directory's publication year. Our working assumption is that a priest listed in the Directory for a given year was at the same assignment for part of the previous year as well. However, Kenedy and Sons will sometimes accept updates well into the year of publication. Diocesan clergy records are rarely available to correct this information. The Directory is also sometimes misleading or wrong. We have tried to create an accurate assignment record, given the source materials and their limitations. Assignment records are a work in progress and we are always improving the records that we post. Please email us with new information and corrections.

This assignment record collates Yzermans' career history as it is represented in the Official Catholic Directory with allegations as reported in the media. We make no representation regarding the truth of the allegation we report, and we remind our readers that the U.S. legal system presumes that a person accused of or charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Similarly, individuals who may be defendants in civil actions are presumed not to be liable for such claims unless a plaintiff proves otherwise. Admissions of guilt or liability are not typically a part of civil or private settlements. For more information, see our posting policy.

This assignment record was last updated on August 25, 2015.