News Release: On the Death of Bishop Carl Mengeling

(Lansing, Mich.)—Michigan Catholic Conference president and CEO Paul A. Long today offered the following comments regarding the death of Most Rev. Carl F. Mengeling, bishop emeritus of the Diocese of Lansing, who passed into eternal life July 1, 2025.

“Bishop Mengeling was first and foremost a pastor. He treated everyone with dignity and the respect a pastor shows his flock,” Long said. “Bishop Mengeling believed the Church has a role to play in the public square and that Catholics should be educated on matters of Church teaching as it could possibly apply to public issues.”

Appointed the fourth shepherd of the Lansing diocese in 1995, Bishop Mengeling was the driving force behind the creation of a statewide education program on assisted suicide in 1997, preparing Catholics in Michigan to help defeat a ballot proposal in 1998 that would have legalized the practice.

Bishop Mengeling, who also served on the MCC Board of Directors during his episcopacy that concluded upon his retirement in 2008, was adamant that the Church, as employer, live up to its social teachings, especially in the provision of health and pension benefits. MCC continues this mission today as the provider and administrator of benefits for Church employees and retirees in this state.

“As a believer, Bishop Mengeling was a good and happy man with a loving heart,” Long said. “May God give rest to his noble soul.”

A public visitation for Bishop Mengeling will be held at St. Gerard Catholic Church in Lansing on Tuesday, July 8 from 7 to 9 p.m. A second public visitation will take place at St. Mary Cathedral in Lansing on Wednesday, July 9, following the conclusion of a Reception of the Body Liturgy at 2 p.m., celebrated by Bishop Earl Boyea of Lansing, until 9 p.m. A final public visitation will take place at the Cathedral on Thursday, July 10 from 9 to 11:30 a.m.

More information regarding the funeral rites for Bishop Mengeling, as well as his full obituary, can be found at the Diocese of Lansing website.

Michigan Catholic Conference is the official public policy voice of the Catholic Church in this state.

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