- Roman Catholic Diocese of Sandhurst
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Diocese of Sandhurst
Dioecesis Sandhurstensis
Sacred Heart Cathedral, BendigoLocation Country Australia Ecclesiastical province Melbourne Metropolitan Archdiocese of Melbourne Coordinates 36°45′17″S 144°17′07″E / 36.75472°S 144.28528°E Statistics Area 45,178 km2 (17,443 sq mi) Population
- Total
- Catholics(as of 2004)
341,850
91,400 (
26.7%)Parishes 41Information Denomination Roman Catholic Rite Latin Rite Established 30 March 1874 Cathedral Sacred Heart Cathedral, Bendigo Current leadership Pope Benedict XVI Bishop vacant Metropolitan Archbishop Denis Hart Website Catholic Diocese of Sandhurst The Roman Catholic Diocese of Sandhurst is a suffragan Latin rite diocese of the Archdiocese of Melbourne, erected in 1874, covering the central and north-east regions of Victoria, Australia, including Bendigo.
Contents
History
The Diocese of Sandhurst was established on 30 March 1874, from the Diocese of Melbourne. At the same time, the Diocese of Melbourne was made an Archdiocese of Melbourne and the Diocese of Sandhurst became one of its suffragan. Both are within the Ecclesiastical Province of Melbourne.
By 1911, the diocese had Augustinian Fathers, Marist Brothers, Sisters of Mercy, Sisters of St. Brigid, Sisters of St. Joseph, Presentation Sisters, Faithful Companions of Jesus and Good Shepherd Sisters.[1]
Construction of the Sacred Heart Cathedral began in 1885, under Bishop Crane. Its organ was installed in 1905, under Stephen Reville. The cathedral was completed in 1977, under Bernard Stewart. Sacred Heart Cathedral is one of the largest Neo-Gothic or Gothic Revival cathedrals in Australia and its construction was largely made possible by the estate of the Paderborn-born German pioneer priest Henry Backhaus, the first Roman Catholic priest on the goldfields of Bendigo.
Ordinaries
At present the Diocese has no incumbent Bishop. Mons. Francis Marriott continues as administrator of the Sacred Heart Cathedral and Chancellor of the Diocese.
The following individuals have been elected as Roman Catholic Bishops of Sandhurst:[2]
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Order Name Date enthroned Reign ended Term of office Reason for term end 1 Martin Crane, OSA † 4 August 1874 21 October 1901 27 years, 78 days Died in office 2 Stephen Reville, OSA † 21 October 1901 18 September 1916 14 years, 333 days Died in office 3 John McCarthy † 14 February 1917 18 August 1950 33 years, 185 days Died in office 4 Bernard Denis Stewart † 18 August 1950 21 April 1979 28 years, 246 days Retired and appointed Bishop Emeritus of Sandhurst 5 Noel Desmond Daly † 21 April 1979 1 July 2000 21 years, 71 days Resigned and appointed Bishop Emeritus of Sandhurst 6 Joseph Grech † 8 March 2001 28 December 2010 9 years, 295 days Died in office 7 presently vacant n/a n/a
Other information
It comprises the area north of the Great Dividing Range, south of the Murray River and east of the Loddon River, an area of 45,178 sq km (17,450 sq mls). The diocese is divided into 41 parishes and has 74 priests, 109 religious sisters and 5 brothers. Its seat is at the Sacred Heart Cathedral in Bendigo, which was until 1891 called Sandhurst.
The diocese is a suffragan of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Melbourne, in the Ecclesiastical Province of Melbourne. The diocese had a Catholic population of about 86,000 in 2006.
There are 50 Catholic schools in the diocese – 40 primary, 9 secondary and one P–10 school – catering for 7,700 primary and 5,850 secondary students. Bendigo's oldest Catholic church is St Kilian's.[3]
References
- ^
"Sandhurst". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1913. - ^ "Diocese of Sandhurst". The Hierarchy of the Catholic Church. 19 February 2011. http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/dsanh.html. Retrieved 4 October 2011.
- ^ "Vatican offer to Anglicans". The Age (Australia). 28 November 2009. http://www.theage.com.au/national/vatican-ban-on-offer-to-anglicans-20091127-jx1p.html.
See also
Further reading
- Ebsworth, Walter (1973). Pioneer Catholic Victoria. Polding Press. ISBN 0-85884-096-0.
- O'Farrell, Patrick (1977). The Catholic Church and Community in Australia. West Melbourne: Thomas Nelson.
- The Official Directory of the Catholic Church in Australia 2005/2006. Maryborough, Victoria: published with the authority of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, by the National Council of Priests of Australia. 1977. ISSN 321-4764 1 321-4764.
- Arneil, Stan (1992). Out Where the Dead Men Lie (The Augustinians in Australia 1838-1992). Brookvale, Sydney: Augustinian Press. ISBN 0949826030.
External links
Province of Sydney Province of Melbourne Province of Brisbane Province of Perth Province of Adelaide Immediately subject to
the Holy See/PatriarchArchdiocese of Hobart · Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn · Military Ordinariate of Australia · Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Saints Peter and Paul · Maronite Eparchy of Saint Maron of Sydney · Melkite Catholic Eparchy of St Michael, Archangel · Chaldean Catholic Eparchy of Saint Thomas the ApostleCategories:- Religious organizations established in 1874
- Roman Catholic Ecclesiastical Province of Melbourne
- Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 19th century
- Roman Catholic dioceses in Australia
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