Remembering former abbey prior, Jonesboro prioress

Father David, Sister Henrietta were well-known throughout Diocese of Little Rock

Published: January 11, 2014

Father David Bellinghausen, OSB, pastor of St. Mary Church in Altus, and former prior at Subiaco Abbey and Sister Henrietta Hockle, OSB, well-known former principal, Catholic schools superintendent and prioress of Holy Angels Convent in Jonesboro.

Two Benedictine leaders in Arkansas died as 2013 ended and 2014 began.

Father David Bellinghausen, OSB, pastor of St. Mary Church in Altus, was a former prior at Subiaco Abbey. Sister Henrietta Hockle, OSB, was well-known around the diocese as a former principal, Catholic schools superintendent and prioress of Holy Angels Convent in Jonesboro.

Monk and pastor

Father Bellinghausen balanced scholarship with deep Catholic faith.

Always thirsty for a deeper understanding of what it means to be a professed man of God, Father David Bellinghausen’s search for spiritual depth in this life ended on New Year’s Eve at the age of 74. He had been a professed monk for 52 years and a priest for 27 years.

Born the second of 10 children in Rhineland, Texas, Gerald Bellinghausen was educated by the Olivetan Benedictine Sisters and later graduated valedictorian of the Rhineland High School class of 1957.

He arrived at Subiaco Abbey Jan. 17, 1960, and professed his vows as a monk Aug.15, 1961, receiving the name David. During his lifetime, he served nearly two decades in the abbey’s print shop, 15 years working with the order’s Black Angus cattle farm and as monastery prior from 1997 to 2012.

Early in his vocational career, he ministered through Search, Marriage Encounter and other retreat activities as well as a religious education instructor in nearby Scranton. This work helped lead him to study for the priesthood at St. Joseph Seminary College in St. Benedict, La., and Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans, from which he graduated in 1983.

From there, he entered the Pontifical College Beda in Rome. A highlight during this three years of study was serving as deacon at the Feb. 22, 1986, Ash Wednesday Mass celebrated by Pope John Paul II, receiving the blessed ashes from the hands of the Holy Father.
Brother David completed his theological studies in 1986. He was ordained to the priesthood Nov. 1, 1986, by Bishop Andrew J. McDonald of Little Rock. For the next two years he was on the faculty of Subiaco Academy and attended graduate programs at St. John University in Minnesota and the Incarnate Word College in San Antonio.

His pastoral assignments included Holy Redeemer Church in Clarksville and its mission in Hartman and Sacred Heart Church in Muenster, Texas. He was assigned to be the pastor of St. Mary Church in Altus in 2012.

“I love the solitude of monastic life, but I also enjoy being with people,” he told Arkansas Catholic in 2011. “I have enjoyed exercising the priestly office within my monastic vocation.”

Survivors include two sisters, Catherine Pavlicer of Colleyville, Texas, and Phyllis Barker of Fort Worth, Texas; and three brothers, Urban Bellinghausen of Munday, Texas, Alvin Bellinghausen of Amarillo, Texas, and Charles Bellinghausen of Justin, Texas.

Teacher and historian

In seven decades of vocational life, Sister Henrietta became one of the most well-known figures in the Diocese of Little Rock. Her long involvement in education and preserving the history of her order and the Catholic Church in Arkansas gave her the opportunity to touch many lives.

She died Jan. 2 at the Holy Angels Convent Infirmary. She was 86.

She was born on April 8, 1927, to Joe and Minnie Hockle in Jonesboro, the second in a family of four girls. After graduating from Blessed Sacrament School there, she attended Holy Angels Academy and entered Holy Angels Convent in 1943, professing her first vows in 1945. She also earned a bachelor’s degree in English from St. Scholastica College in Duluth, Minn. and master’s and specialist degrees in educational administration from Arkansas State University in Jonesboro.

She put her knowledge to work in Catholic schools in Texas and Arkansas as a teacher and principal. Her reputation led Bishop Andrew J. McDonald to appoint her diocesan superintendent of schools, a position she held for 17 years. During her tenure, she was instrumental in establishing the Arkansas Non-Public School Accrediting Association.

Sister Henrietta served as prioress of Holy Angels Convent from 1993 to 1999. Following her tenure as superior, she became involved in community health care ministry, working part-time in the marketing department and serving on the medical center and health care boards at St. Bernards Medical Center.

She also published several historical works including: “Mother Beatrice Renggli, OSB”, a book on the founder of the Jonesboro Benedictines; “A Century of Serving: A Centennial History of St. Bernards Hospital”; “On High Ground: A History of the Olivetan Benedictines in Arkansas”; and “Parish on the Ridge: A History of Blessed Sacrament Parish”. Sister Henrietta edited “The Echoes”, the quarterly community newsletter from 1999 to 2013, “A Perspective of Catholic Education: 1699-1975,” and an elementary school textbook, “Our Catholic Heritage: A History of the Catholic Church in Arkansas.”

Sister Henrietta also maintained a wide number of hobbies, including flower gardening, bird watching and table games.