Ronald Paul Herzog

Ronald Paul Herzog (April 22, 1942 – April 12, 2019) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, who served as Bishop of Alexandria in central Louisiana from 2005 to 2017.

Biography

Early life Paul Herzog was born on April 22, 1942, in Akron, Ohio. His parents were Lutheran and Catholic. Deciding toe become a priest, Herzog entered St. Joseph Seminary in Covington, Louisiana. He then attended the Pontifical College Josephinum in Worthington, Ohio.

Priesthood Herzog was ordained to the priesthood at the Josephinum for the Diocese of Natchez-Jackson by Cardinal Amleto Giovanni Cicognani on June 1, 1968. Herzog was then incardinated, or transferred, from Biloxi to the new diocese. His new diocese assigned him as pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in Lumberton, Mississippi, and the Saint Joseph Parish and Mission in Poplarville, Mississippi. Bishop Joseph Lawson Howze named Herzog as director of the diocesan Office of Liturgy from 1980. The Vatican elevated Herzog to the rank of monsignor in 1988. That same year, the diocese named him as pastor of Immaculate Conception Parish in Laurel, Mississippi. He also served as chaplain of the Mississippi National Guard, holding the rank of brigadier general.

Bishop of Alexandria in Louisiana On November 4, 2004, Herzog was appointed bishop of Alexandria in Louisiana by Pope John Paul II. He received his episcopal consecration at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral in Alexandria, Louisiana, on January 5, 2005, from Archbishop Alfred Hughes, with Bishops Thomas Rodi and Robert Muench serving as co-consecrators. Herzog selected as his episcopal motto, "One In The Lord".

Herzog served as the Catholic chair of the Anglican-Roman Catholic Consultation. Within the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, he was a member of the Committee on Divine Worship, the Committee on National Collections, and the Subcommittee on Native American Catholics.

Herzog suffered a stroke in February 2014, with his left side affected. Herzog underwent extensive physical and occupation therapy, eventually submitting his resignation as bishop of Alexandria in Louisiana to the Vatican in 2016. On September 21, 2016, Pope Francis named David Talley, auxiliary bishop of Atlanta, as coadjutor bishop of Alexandria.

Retirement and death Talley succeeded Herzog as bishop of Alexandria on February 2, 2017. Herzog died in Alexandria on April 12, 2019, at the age of 76 after a brief illness.