The following information about the Fathers from the Second Edition of the Society of the Divine Savior, "On Whose Shoulders We Stand", published 2005. Salvatorian Archives, 2506 N. Wauwatosa Ave., Wauwatosa, WI 53213-1135
Collection compiled by Michael R. Hoffman SDS
Submitted by Bob Domagalski, contact information on contributors page.
BROTHER FIDELIS RAUSCH SDS Born March 28, 1911 - Died October 7, 2003 Brother Fidelis Rausch (birth name: Karl) was born in Verona, Missouri, a small farming community southwest of Springfield. While he was in his teens, his family moved to Idaho, near Idaho Falls. After working for several years on his family's farm, he felt the call to religious life and entered the Society in St. Nazianz, Wisconsin. In 1934, he began his Novitiate there, and he made his profession of vows on September 8, 1935. For the next sixty-eight years, numerous Salvatorian communities benefited from his skills as a carpenter, plumber, electrician, auto repairman, boiler room engineer, and farmer: the seminaries in St. Nazianz; in Lanham, Maryland; in Blackwood, New Jersey; and in Galt, California. He served in parishes in Phoenix, Arizona; in Bryte (West Sacramento), California; in McMinnville, Tennessee; and in Phenix City, Alabama. He also worked on the farm at the Salvatorian Mission House in Elkton, Maryland; in St. Pius X Retreat Center, in Blackwood, New Jersey; and in the Provincial Offices in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Those who knew him would remark, "If it's broken, Bro. Fidelis can fix it!" After suffering a stroke at the age of 90, he moved to the Jordan Hall community in Milwaukee, and a second stroke a few months before his death brought need for more skilled nursing care at Alexian Village, where he died peacefully on October 7, 2003. He was buried in the community cemetery in St. Nazianz. Bro. Fidelis is remembered as a quiet, deeply spiritual and saintly man, who had a great sense of humor and a quick wit. He was reminded, during one of the later anniversaries of his profession, that he had surely lived up to his religious name, a name that means "Faithful." His family also gave to the church a brother who became a Benedictine Abbot, a sister who belonged to the Sisters of Mercy, and two sisters who were Salvatorians, Sister Rosalie and Louise Rausch.
FATHER CHRISTOPHER REINER SDS Born August 27, 1907 - Died August 30, 1978 Father Christopher Reiner (birth name: Francis Joseph) was born in 1907 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. While at first entertaining an interest in the Jesuit community and studying at Marquette High School and Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, he chose to join the Salvatorian Novitiate in 1936 in St. Nazianz, where he made his profession of vows on September 8, 1937. He continued his studies for the priesthood at Divine Savior Seminary in Lanham, Maryland, and Catholic University in Washington, DC. He was ordained in the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on May 29, 1943. His first assignment was in the seminary in St. Nazianz, where he was spiritual director for the students, as well as associate editor in the Publishing Department. Later, he became rector of the seminary and Superior of the community. He later assumed these same responsibilities at the new Mother of the Savior Seminary in Blackwood, New Jersey. In 1953, Fr. Christopher became the director and retreat master of St. Pius X Retreat House in Blackwood. In 1972, he semi-retired and was chaplain of the Salvatorian Sisters in St. Mary’s Nursing Home in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. But failing health and decreasing ability to walk forced him to retire fully in 1976. He lived in the formation community in New Carrollton, Maryland, providing both a guiding presence and a source of reference for the scholastics. He died there, peacefully in his sleep, on August 30, 1978, just three days after celebrating his 71st birthday. While admittedly being a tough Superior in his earlier years, Fr. Christopher’s later years found him choosing a gentler demeanor, providing a real pastoral presence to those under his care. Because of his many years of service in New Jersey where so many people had come to know him, his funeral was held at the Retreat House in Blackwood. His body was brought to the community cemetery in St. Nazianz for burial.
BROTHER STEPHAN REUTER SDS Born May 29, 1876 - Died January 17, 1965 Brother Stephan Reuter (birth name: Edward Joseph) was born in 1876 in Roxbury, Wisconsin, a farming community northwest of Madison. After finishing high school, he attended Pio Nono College in Milwaukee and North Western Business College in Madison. He entered the Society in St. Nazianz, and after completing his Novitiate year, he made his profession of vows on September 8, 1924. His first ministry was in the Provincial residence in Milwaukee, where he was engaged in various tasks for the community, especially in the care and maintenance of the home and gardens. He returned to St. Nazianz for a time, and then his services were required in several places over the course of a few years: the scholasticate community in Washington, DC; at Jordan College in Menominee, Michigan; and in the mission parish in Jordan, Oregon, where he helped the ailing pastor, Fr. Ludger Gloeggler, in what would be the final year of the pastor's life. Bro. Stephan then went to Gary, Indiana, and for ten years he served with the Polish Salvatorians in their community there. He returned once again to St. Nazianz in 1952, where he stayed for the remainder of his life, working in the Publishing Department, until its relocation to New Holstein in 1958. Frail health and advanced years kept Bro. Stephan from regular tasks after this. On January 17, 1965, he died peacefully near the end of the day. He was buried in the community cemetery in St. Nazianz. Bro. Stephan is remembered as an intelligent and very quiet man, an avid reader, a deeply spiritual and saintly man.
BROTHER JAMES RIEDEN SDS Brother James Rieden, SDS, died September 2, 2010 at Alexian Village in Milwaukee, at the age of 74. Born December 6, 1935 in Fond du Lac, son of the late leo and Isabel (nee Timm) Rieden. The family made their home in Appleton. He entered the Society of the Divine Savior (Salvatorians) on March 19, 1952. He was a missionary in Tanzania, East Africa for 13 years. Also ministered as a “house parent” at the Carmelite Home for Boys in Wauwatosa 1972-1974, House Manager for Aspen House, a National Children’s Center Home in Washington D.C. for people who are both deaf and mentally handicapped from 1985 – 2003. Ministered to Salvatorian students in the Philippines from 2007 – 2009. Preceded in death by his parents; survived by sisters, Lorie Rieden of Milwaukee, Ann Cross of Appleton and Judith Gebraski of Chicago and brother, Paul Rieden of Neenah, as well as many brothers and sisters in the Salvatorian Family. Funeral Mass Friday, September 10, 11 a.m. at the Chapel of Alexian Village, 9301 N. 76th St., Milwaukee, WI.Visitation Friday at the Chapel from 10 a.m. until time of Mass. Burial Friday 3 p.m. at Salvatorian Cemetery, St. Nazianz, WI. Appleton Post Crescent - September 8, 2010
BROTHER MARION RINDERER SDS Born August 22, 1916 - Died December 22, 1987 Brother Marion Rinderer (birth name: Cornelius Joseph) was born on August 22, 1916, in Highland, Illinois, a small community in the western part of the state, near St. Louis, Missouri. After one year of high school, he joined the Society in St. Nazianz, Wisconsin, and he entered the Novitiate there in 1938. He made his profession of vows on September 8, 1939. Through the years, Bro. Marion served a number of communities in engineering and maintenance: in the seminary and monastery in St. Nazianz; at Jordan Seminary in Menominee, Michigan; at Divine Savior Seminary in Lanham, Maryland; and at Mother of the Savior Seminary in Blackwood, New Jersey. He also spent a short time doing similar work in the mission of Macao, China. In 1957, he went to Colfax, Iowa, to help in the remodeling of the newly-relocated Novitiate; and in the newly- acquired Trinity Prep Seminary in Sioux City. He later served in the Provincial Residence in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; at Salvatorian Center in New Holstein; and at St. Pius X Seminary in Galt, California. After a brief time on sabbatical leave, he served in Salvatorian parishes and institutions in Blackwood, New Jersey; in Tonopah, Nevada; in Elko, Nevada; and once again in St. Nazianz, where he retired in 1982. After the community relocated to the Jordan House in Milwaukee in 1985, Bro. Marion began experiencing a series of small strokes. He suffered a cranial aneurysm and died on December 22, 1987. He was buried in the community cemetery in St. Nazianz. He was a man who was accustomed to hard work and he was faithful in his many years of ministry to the community.
FATHER JAMES ROESKE SDS Born May 6, 1912 - Died December 4, 1982 Father James Roeske (birth name: William Joseph) was born on May 6, 1912, in Chicago, Illinois. After completing his high school studies and first two years of college in Salvatorian Seminary in St. Nazianz, Wisconsin, he entered the Society’s Novitiate there, and he made his profession of vows on September 8, 1944. He completed his studies for the priesthood at Divine Savior Seminary in Lanham, Maryland, and Catholic University in Washington, DC. where he was ordained in the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on June 6, 1950. Fr. James assisted in the Publishing Department in St. Nazianz and taught in the seminary; he ministered as associate pastor of Mother of Good Parish in Milwaukee during three separate assignments; he was Superior of the community in St. Nazianz, and chaplain of Holy Family Hospital in Manitowoc; and he was pastor of St. Rita in the Desert Parish in Vail, Arizona. It was in 1969 that Fr. James began his third time ministering as associate pastor of Mother of Good Counsel Parish in Milwaukee, and he remained there until his death on December 4, 1982. He died in the hospice of St. Joseph’s Hospital, where he was a patient for a short time following a diagnosis of terminal cancer. He was buried in the community cemetery in St. Nazianz. Fr. James was dearly loved by the people to whom he ministered and he is remembered as a deeply pastoral and compassionate priest with a soft voice and a warm heart.
FATHER HERMAN JOSEPH ROGIER SDS Born February 12, 1874 - Died February 21, 1929 Father Herman Joseph Rogier (birth name: Michael) was born in Nicolai, Germany, in 1874. He learned the Polish language in his boyhood home and the German Language in school. He entered the Society in 1888 in Rome, Italy, and he made his profession of vows on February 13, 1890. He earned his doctorate in philosophy and licentiate in theology from the Gregorian University in Rome, and was ordained there in 1896. In August of that year, he came to the United States with the Founder, Fr. Francis Jordan, and with Fr. Epiphanius Deibele, and he helped Fr. Epiphanius to establish the community in St. Nazianz, Wisconsin. Fr. Herman Joseph also served as pastor of St. Gregory’s Parish in the village. In 1910, he became pastor of St. Joseph’s Parish in Wealdstone, England. He returned to the United States in 1912 and ministered as chaplain to the Franciscan Sisters in Alverno Convent in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, and pastor of St. Joseph’s Parish there. In 1918, he began teaching philosophy and theology to the Salvatorian scholastics in the seminary in St. Nazianz, and he helped in the neighboring parishes on the weekends. He returned to his former assignments at Alverno in 1925, where he remained until a few weeks before his death on February 21, 1929. He was buried in the community cemetery on Loretto Hill in St. Nazianz. Fr. Herman Joseph is remembered for the depth of his spirituality, and his self-sacrifice for the communities in which he served. ******** Notes form St. Nazianz Rev. Herman Rogier, S.D.S., pastor of St. Joseph's church at Alverno, died Thursday, February 21 at 7 pm in the Holy Family Hospital at Manitowoc. Funeral services will be held Tuesday, February 26 at 9:30 am from St. Ambrose Church here, with burial in the adjoining cemetery. The Rev. Rogier was a member of the Salvatorian Community here and came with the first priests who arrived here from Rome in 1896 and had reached the age of 54. He also was the pastor at ST. Gregory's church at St. Nazianz from 1905 - 1910. Manitowoc Pilot - Thurs., Feb. 28, 1929
FATHER PATRICK ROHAN SDS Born October 10, 1927 - Died May 4, 1965 Father Patrick Rohan (birth name: Charles Robert) was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1927. He became acquainted with the Society while he was a student at Mother of Good Counsel School, in the last three years of his elementary education. He attended Salvatorian Seminary in St. Nazianz for high school and the first two years of college, and then he entered the Novitiate in Menominee, Michigan. He made his profession of vows on September 8, 1947. He continued his studies for the priesthood at Divine Savior Seminary in Lanham, Maryland, and Catholic University in Washington, DC, where he was ordained in the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on June 6, 1953. Fr. Pat returned to St. Nazianz to write and do research for a few months, and in November 1953, he went to Jordan Seminary in Menominee, Michigan, where he taught, was director of studies, and was consultor to the local Superior. He later returned to St. Nazianz to teach, and he was also a consultor to the Superior there. In 1962, he was appointed principal of Francis Jordan High School in Milwaukee, and local Superior of the community. An active, vibrant, and humorous man, Fr. Pat was well loved by his students and the community. His sudden and unexpected heart attack and death on May 4, 1965, at the age of 37, was a terrible shock and loss to the school and to his fellow Salvatorians. He was buried in the community cemetery in St. Nazianz.
BROTHER PHILIP ROLDAN SDS Born November 21, 1906 - Died October 21, 1993 Brother Philip Roldan (birth name: Nicanor Ibuna) was born in 1906 in the Philippines. After graduation from high school and a few years of working in his homeland, he became interested in religious life. He came to the United States and entered the Society as a Brother candidate in St. Nazianz, Wisconsin, in early 1931. His Novitiate year was also spent in St. Nazianz, and he made his profession of vows on May 12, 1933. For the next nine years, Bro. Philip worked in the community house, gardens, and sacristy of Mother of Good Counsel Parish in Milwaukee, providing domestic services to both the community and the parish. Then he did similar work, as well as cooking, in Jordan Seminary in Menominee, Michigan; and in Mother of the Savior Seminary in Blackwood, New Jersey. In 1956, while serving in Blackwood, he was naturalized as a United States citizen. He ministered in the Novitiate in Colfax, Iowa, and in 1968, he returned to St. Nazianz. In 1985, the community relocated to the Jordan House in Milwaukee. Declining health brought Bro. Philip to St. Mary's Nursing Home for many months, where he died peacefully on October 28, 1993. He was buried in the community cemetery on Loretto Hill in St. Nazianz. He is remembered as a man of simple faith and deep humility who loved participating in the life of the community. He would frequently entertain the group with a violin solo, and could often be found in the community chapel, playing a simple tune before the statue of Mary, Mother of the Savior, for whom he had great love and devotion.
BROTHER CYPRIAN ROSELIUS SDS Born March 12 1911 - April 6, 1983 Brother Cyprian Roselius (birth name: James Michael) was born on March 12, 1911, in Bucklin, Kansas, a small community in the central part of the state, west of Wichita. After three years of high school, he worked for the railroad and in construction, before considering religious life. At the age of 28, he entered the Society in St. Nazianz, Wisconsin, and after his Novitiate year there, he made his profession of vows on March 19, 1941. In his many years in religious life, Bro. Cyprian ministered in many of the newest and newly-renovated buildings of the province: he was maintenance man and boiler room operator in the newly-constructed seminary building in St. Nazianz; he went to Divine Savior Seminary in Lanham, Maryland, to work in the boiler room of the new seminary building there. When Mother of the Savior Seminary in Blackwood, New Jersey, was under construction in 1948, Bro. Cyprian went to help in the building and in the boiler room there. He helped prepare the new Trinity Prep Seminary in Sioux City, Iowa, in 1956. When the Trecker Mansion in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, was being renovated into the provincial offices in 1958, he helped in that project. In 1959, when Salvatorian Center was opening in New Holstein, Bro. Cyprian went to help install the plumbing there. And in 1961, when the Society was readying Mount St. Paul College in Waukesha, he was on-hand to operate the boilers and install the plumbing in the new dormitory building there. He lived in the Mount St. Paul complex until 1972, two years after the college closed. Waukesha County, which had bought the property, retained his services to help in the reconversion of the buildings for their usage. Later, he continued as part-time consultor for Waukesha County's projects in the old college complex, while he lived and worked in the Provincial Residence in Milwaukee. In 1977, Bro. Cyprian retired to Mother Mary Mission in Phenix City, Alabama, but a fall resulting in a fractured hip three years later forced his return to St. Nazianz for extended care. He later moved to St. Mary's Home in Manitowoc, where he died on April 6, 1983. He was buried in the community cemetery in St. Nazianz. A delightful man with a wizened face, Bro. Cyprian is remembered for his warmth and outgoing nature, a man of humor who made friends easily among the young and the old equally well.
FATHER FREDERICK ANDREW ROSING SDS Born November 21, 1945 - Died October 6, 1996 Father Frederick Andrew Rosing was born in 1945 in Dunkirk, New York, a city on the shores of Lake Erie, southwest of Buffalo. After graduating from high school in his hometown, he studied at St. Benedict’s Abbey in Benet Lake, Wisconsin. He entered the Benedictine Novitiate in 1965 and made his profession of vows on August 29, 1966. He continued his studies for the priesthood at Loyola University in Chicago, Illinois, and St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in nearby Mundelein. On June 2, 1973, he was ordained in St. Benedict’s Abbey. Two years after ordination, Fr. Fred began studies at Catholic University in Washington, DC, and he earned his Masters Degree in Liturgy in 1977. Following his return to the Abbey, he was named to the ecumenical commission of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. He was also a member of the Anglican / Roman Catholic Dialogues. He served in campus ministry at the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland, and was chaplain and director of liturgy at nearby Andrews Air Force Base. On September 8, 1981, Fr. Fred transferred into the Society. He ministered as director of liturgy in St. John the Baptist Parish in Silver Spring, Maryland; and in June 1983, he was named pastor of Mother of Good Counsel Parish in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a position he held until 1990. After a sabbatical year of studies in Church History at Garrett Seminary in Evanston, Illinois, he returned to Wisconsin and served in campus ministry at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee campus. Following a brief illness, Fr. Fred died in St. Joseph’s Hospital in Milwaukee on October 6, 1996. He was buried in the community cemetery in St. Nazianz. This tall, lively man is remembered especially for his warmth and his mischievous sense of humor, his faithful dedication to his ministries, and his deep love for the beauty of the Church’s liturgy, art, and sense of the symbolic.
BROTHER ISIDORE ROTHENBACHER SDS Born December 17, 1886 - Died September 23, 1971 Brother Isidore Rothenbacher (birth name: Michael) was born in 1886 near Stuttgart, Germany, in the little village of Herbertschofen. His father, a butcher, had died before his birth. His mother was a seamstress. After finishing seventh grade, he worked on his family’s farm in order to support himself and his mother. In 1913, he entered the Society as a candidate in Hamberg, Austria, but a week before he was to begin Novitiate, he was drafted into the German army. In 1917, while serving in France, he was captured by English soldiers and imprisoned for two years. After his release, he returned to Austria and began his Novitiate. He made his profession of vows on June 12, 1921. After serving in Lochau, he came to the United States in 1923, to the Salvatorian Mission House in Elkton, Maryland, where he ministered for the next thirty-nine years, managing the six-hundred acre farm and the large dairy herd. In 1962, he went to manage the farm at Mother of the Savior Seminary in Blackwood, New Jersey. Bro. Isidore retired in 1967 to the retreat house in Colfax, Iowa, where he spent many hours outdoors working on the grounds and gardens. Following a brief illness, he died on September 23, 1971, at Mercy Hospital in Des Moines, Iowa, and he was buried in the community cemetery in St. Nazianz, Wisconsin. He is remembered as a simple, quiet and delightfully humorous man who dedicated himself completely to the community. One famous story that Salvatorians love to tell about Bro. Isidore goes back to his days in the German army during World War I. As a corporal, he was sent back from the front lines to obtain supplies for the soldiers. One of the things they needed was straw for the soldiers’ bedding. The private in charge of the supply shed didn’t want the corporal to take any of the straw. When the private refused to obey his orders, Bro. Isidore slapped the young private and made him give him what he asked for. The private turned out to be Adolf Hitler. Years later, when Bro. Isidore would tell the story, he would add that, had it been a few years after that, he never would have gotten away with it and lived!