Monsignor Higgins was born in 1916 in Chicago and ordained for the Archdiocese of Chicago in 1940. He studied at the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, obtaining a Master's degree in Economics in 1942 and a Ph.D. in 1944. He served on the staff of the National Catholic Welfare Conference (NCWC), now known as the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB)/United States Catholic Conference(USCC), from 1944 to 1980 and was Director of their Social Action Department, 1954-1967. He served with and was much influenced by Msgr. John A. Ryan and Fr. Raymond McGowan, both important figures in the field of Catholic social thought and labor relations. He was elevated to Papal Chamberlain with the title of Monsignor in 1953 and was named a Domestic Prelate in 1959. Upon the advent of the Vatican II Council, Higgins used his experience and knowledge for the Preparatory Commission on the Lay Apostolate and as a Consultant to the Council. Always a champion of human rights and economic justice for
all, especially farm labor where he was the moving force in the
Church's support for Cesar
Chavez and his union movement, Higgins served in several committees,
including
the Bishops' Committee for Catholic-Jewish Relations, the Bishops'
Committee
on Farm Labor, Chairman of the Public Review Board, United Auto Workers
of America (AFL-CIO), member of the American Arbitration Association,
Executive
Committee member of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, member
of the Board of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Fund of the United Farm
Workers,
and Advisor to the Chairman of the U.S. Delegation to the Belgrade
Conference
on Human Rights. Higgins brought his expertise to the classroom,
lecturing
for both the School of Social Science and the Department of Theology at
Catholic University. In addition to these activities, Higgins wrote numerous book reviews for
Commonweal and America, and was the author, 1945-2001, of the syndicated
column "The Yardstick." On August 9, 2000, at a White House ceremony,
President Bill Clinton honored Msgr. Higgins, among several other
notables including Simon Wiesenthal and John Kenneth Galbraith, with the
Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor.
Msgr. Higgins was selected because of his nearly 50 years of service to
the cause of justice for workers and his widespread recognition as the
'labor priest' and point man for the American Catholic Church in this
regard. He was honored with the University of Notre Dame's Laetare Medal
in 2001 and died on May Day, 2002, after a long illness. He was widely
mourned as a tireless champion of the labor movement and a progressive
voice in the Roman Catholic Church.
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to Table of Contents
Return to Table of Contents Return to Table of Contents Return to Table of Contents Return to Table of Contents The Manuscripts Collection of the American Catholic History Research Center and University Archives is proud to be the repository for the personal papers of Monsignor Higgins. If you would like to further explore the career and causes to which Monsignor Higgins has dedicated his life, please feel free to contact us for a research appointment. Send questions and comments to archives@mail.lib.cua.edu
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