Priesthood
Baum was ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop Edwin V. O'Hara on May 12, 1951. His first assignment was as assistant pastor of St. Aloysius Church in Kansas City. He taught theology and Church history at St. Theresa College from 1954 to 1956, as well as at St. Aloysius Academy and Glennon High School. He then furthered his studies at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, Angelicum in Rome, where he earned a Doctorate of Sacred Theology degree in 1958. His thesis was entitled: "The Teaching of Cardinal Cajetan on the Sacrifice of the Mass".
Returning to Kansas City, Baum resumed his teaching duties at St. Theresa College (1958–63) and served as secretary of the Diocesan Tribunal. He also did pastoral work at St. Theresa's Church and St. Peter's Church, both in Kansas City. In 1960, he became pastor of St. Cyril's Church in Sugar Creek. He published "Considerations Toward the Theology of the Presbyterate" in 1961. He was named a papal chamberlain by Pope John XXIII in April 1961, and vice-chancellor of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph in 1962.
From 1962 to 1965, Baum served as a peritus, or theological expert, to Bishop Charles Helmsing at the Second Vatican Council. In that capacity, he worked with the Secretariat for Christian Unity and helped draft Unitatis Redintegratio, the Council's decree on ecumenism. In 1964, he was named the first executive director of the Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs for the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, a post which he held for five years. He also served as a member of the Joint Working Group of representatives of the Catholic Church and World Council of Churches (1965–69) and of the Mixed Committee of representatives of the Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation (1965–66).
In 1967, Baum returned to Kansas City, where he served as chancellor of the diocese and pastor of St. James Church. He was named a domestic prelate in 1968.
Read more about this topic: William Wakefield Baum
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