Thomas Joseph Shahan

THOMAS JOSEPH SHAHAN

Born : September 11, 1857
Deceased : March 9, 1932

Auxiliary bishop of Baltimore, 1914-1932; titular bishop of Germanicopolis
Rector of the Catholic University of America, 1909-1927

Official blazon

Argent, in base water proper, over all an anchor bendwise cabled sable, in dexter chief a mullet azure.
MOTTO: Spes mea Christus.

Origin/meaning

The arms are taken "in toto" from the principal partition of the escutcheon of Pope Pius X who ap pointed him a bishop. The anchor also refers to his motto: "Christ is my hope." The image is borrowed from the Epistle of Saint Paul the Apostle to the Hebrews, chapter 6, verse 19: "This hope we have, as a sure and firm anchor of the soul, reading even behind the veil."

The blue star in the left corner is one of the symbols of the Blessed Virgin Mary, "Morning Star" and "Star of the Sea " to whom the Prelate had a tender devotion. He is the founder of the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, one of the largest Marian shrines in the world, in Washington, DC.

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Literature : Brassard, 1956