Alexander King Sample
ALEXANDER KING SAMPLE
Born: November 7, 1960
Deceased:
Bishop of Marquette, 2006-2013
Archbishop of Portland in Oregon, 2013-present
 Bishop of Marquette |
 Archishop of Portland in Oregon |
| English | blazon wanted |
Origin/meaning
As common in US episcopal heraldry, the arms show the arms of the diocese impaled with the personal arms of the bishop.
The personal half is composed of three main elements. The lower portion of the arms shows a blue field on which is seen a random scattering of silver fleur-de-lis as presented in the mantle of the Blessed Virgin Mary in her title of Our Lady of Czestochowa, the Madonna displayed in the monastery at Jasna Gora in Poland. This symbolism is used to represent the Bishop's filial devotion to Mary, the Mother of God and to honor the Polish heritage that has come to him from his mother, Joyce Dory Sample.
The upper half shows a red field with a gold border composed of two bars and fleur-de-lis pointing in opposite directions. This charge has been part of the Royal Scottish arms for generations. It is employed to signify the Bishop's Scottish heritage that he received from his father, also named Alexander King Sample. On the red field is a gold monstrance, the device used for public veneration of the Most Blessed Sacrament, used here to signify the centrality of the Holy Eucharist in Christianity, being the source and summit of the Church's life and mission as well as the central activity of the ministerial priesthood.
For his motto, Bishop Sample uses the Latin phrase, "VULTUM CHRISTI CONTEMPLARI" ("to contemplate the face of Christ"). This theme is taken from the writings of Pope John Paul II (Novo Millennio lneunte and Ecclesia de Eucharistia).
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© since 1995, Heraldry of the World, Ralf Hartemink 
Index of the site Diocese of Marquette, 2008