Joseph Fred Naumann
Joseph Fred Naumann is an American Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Kansas City in Kansas from 2004 to 2025. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of St. Louis in Missouri from 1997 to 2004.
Biography
Early life
Joseph Naumann was born on June 4, 1949, in St. Louis, Missouri, to Fred and Louise Naumann. He himself never knew his father, who was murdered before he was born, Naumann explained in a personal message after the fatal attack on Charlie Kirk.He graduated from St. Louis Preparatory Seminary South in St. Louis in 1967 and from Cardinal Glennon College in St. Louis in 1971. He then served as a deacon at a parish in Florissant, Missouri, and completed his theological studies at Kenrick Seminary in Shrewsbury, Missouri.
Priesthood
Naumann was ordained to the priesthood on May 24, 1975, for the Archdiocese of St. Louis by Cardinal John Carberry. After his ordination, he was assigned as an associate pastor of St. Dominic Savio Parish in Affton, Missouri. Naumann was transferred in 1979 to become associate pastor of Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in St. Louis.In 1984, Naumann was placed as a part-time curate at Most Blessed Sacrament Parish in St. Louis, while working as coordinator of the pro-life committee for the archdiocese. Naumann was sent in 1989 to Ascension Parish in Normandy, Missouri, remaining there for the next five years. He was named vicar general of the archdiocese in 1994.
Auxiliary Bishop of St. Louis
He received his episcopal consecration on September 3, 1997 from Archbishop Justin Rigali, with Bishops Edward O'Donnell and Edward Braxton serving as co-consecrators. As auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of St. Louis and titular bishop of Caput Cilla, Naumann continued to work as vicar general. He was named as apostolic administrator of the archdiocese in October 2003.Archbishop of Kansas City in Kansas
John Paul II named Naumann as the coadjutor archbishop of the Archdiocese of Kansas City, Kansas, on January 7, 2004, serving under Archbishop James Keleher. When Keleher resigned as archbishop on January 15, 2005, Naumann succeeded him.Naumann sits on the committees on Pro-Life and on Communications within the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops as well as the Kenrick-Glennon Seminary Board of Trustees and the board of regents for Conception Seminary. He is also chair of the Kansas Catholic Conference.
On April 21, 2015, Naumann was also appointed apostolic administrator for the Diocese of Kansas City–Saint Joseph. He served in this role until November 4, 2015, when James Johnston Jr. was installed as bishop there. Naumann was elected chairman of the USCCB Committee on Pro-Life Activities on November 14, 2017, defeating by a narrow margin Cardinal Blase Cupich.
After sexual abuse allegations were made against Bishop John Brungardt of the Diocese of Dodge City in February 2021, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome directed Naumann to open a canonical preliminary investigation into them. In March 2022, Naumann announced that the investigation had exonerated Brungardt.