Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston

Infobox Roman Catholic diocese
Roman Catholic Diocese of=Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston
Latin name of diocese=Archidioecesis Bostoniensis


caption=Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston
location=Boston, Massachusetts, United States
territory=Counties of Essex, Middlesex, Suffolk, Norfolk, and Plymouth (the towns of Mattapoisett, Marion, and Wareham excepted) [ [http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/dbost.html Catholic Hierarchy page] ]
population=1,845,758 Catholics [ [http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/dbost.html Ibid.] ]
rite=Roman Rite
patron=Saint Patrick
province=Archdiocese of Boston
established=April 8, 1808
cathedral=Cathedral of the Holy Cross
co-cathedral=
leadership=Seán Patrick O'Malley, OFM Cap]
website= [http://www.rcab.org/ www.rcab.org]
pope=Benedict XVI
metropolitan=Seán Patrick O'Malley, OFM Cap
Archbishop of Boston
ordinary=Seán Patrick O'Malley, OFM Cap
Archbishop of Boston
auxiliary=Most Rev. Emilio S. Alluè, SDB, D.D.
Most Rev. John Anthony Dooher
Most Rev. Walter J. Edyvean
Most Rev. Robert Francis Hennessey
Most Rev. Francis X. Irwin, DD, ACSWThe Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston (Latin: Archidioecesis Bostoniensis) is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the New England region of the United States. It comprises several counties of the state of Massachusetts. It is led by a prelate archbishop who serves as pastor of the mother church, Cathedral of the Holy Cross in the City of Boston.

As of 2007, there are 295 parishes in the archdiocese. The archdiocese estimates that 1.8 million Catholics are in the territory, of whom about 315,000 regularly attend. [cite news | last = Kerber | first = Ross | coauthors = Globe staff | title = Bless you, we take Visa | publisher = "The Boston Globe" | date = 2007-01-29 | url = http://www.boston.com/business/personaltech/articles/2007/01/29/bless_you_we_take_visa/?page=2 | accessdate = 2007-01-29 ]

History

The original Diocese of Boston was canonically erected on April 8, 1808 by Pope Pius VII. It took its territories from the larger historic Diocese of Baltimore and consisted of the states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont. Throughout the history of the United States and exponential growth of Catholicism in New England, the Diocese of Boston was carved into smaller new dioceses: on November 28, 1843, Pope Gregory XVI erected the Diocese of Hartford; Pope Pius IX erected the Diocese of Burlington and the Diocese of Portland on July 29, 1853, the Diocese of Springfield on June 14, 1870, and the Diocese of Providence on February 16, 1872. On February 12, 1875, Pope Pius IX elevated the diocese to become an archdiocese.

Sex abuse scandal

The archdiocese was the center of the Roman Catholic sex abuse cases that culminated in the resignation of its archbishop, Cardinal Bernard Francis Law, on December 13, 2002. The Archdiocese settled with most claims for $86 million. In June 2004, much of the land around the archdiocese of Boston headquarters was sold to Boston College, in part to raise money for legal costs associated with scandal in Boston. [ [http://www.boston.com/globe/spotlight/abuse/stories5/042104_sale.htm Diocesan headquarters sold to BC] The Boston Globe, April 21, 2004.] [ [http://www.boston.com/globe/spotlight/abuse/stories5/042104_statement.htm Statement of the Archdiocese of Boston and Boston College on sale of part of Brighton campus] The Boston Globe, April 20, 2004.] ]

Cardinal

For a number of years the Archbishop of Boston was traditionally named a Cardinal. Pope John Paul II also denied the archdiocese a new prelate cardinal while Cardinal Law was still in active service in the Roman Curia. That changed on February 22, 2006 when Pope Benedict XVI announced that current Archbishop Sean Patrick O'Malley would be among 15 bishops who would be appointed as cardinals in the near future. Cardinal O'Malley and the 14 others were formally installed in a ceremony in Rome on March 24, 2006.

List of Pastoral Regions

The Archdiocese of Boston is divided into 5 pastoral regions, each headed by an episcopal vicar.

*Central Region
*Merrimack Region
*North Region
*South Region
*West Region

List of bishops and archbishops

The following is a list of the Ordinaries of Boston:
# Bishop Jean-Louis Lefebvre de Cheverus (1808-1823) appointed Bishop of Montauban, France
# Bishop Benedict Joseph Fenwick S.J. (1825-1846) died
# Bishop John Bernard Fitzpatrick (1846-1866) died
# Archbishop John Joseph Williams (1866-1907) died
# Cardinal Archbishop William Henry O'Connell (1907-1944) died
# Cardinal Archbishop Richard Cushing (1944-1970) retired
# Cardinal Archbishop Humberto Sousa Cardinal Medeiros (1970-1983) died
# Cardinal Archbishop Bernard Francis Law (1984-2002) resigned, appointed Archpriest of Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore in 2004
# Cardinal Archbishop Seán Patrick O'Malley O.F.M.Cap. (2003- )

High schools

* Academy of Notre Dame, Tyngsboro
* Archbishop Williams High School, Braintree
* Arlington Catholic High School, Arlington
* Austin Preparatory School, Reading
* Bishop Fenwick High School, Peabody
* Boston College High School, Dorcester
* Cardinal Spellman High School, Brockton
* Cathedral High School, Boston
* Catholic Memorial High School, West Roxbury
* Central Catholic High School, Lawrence
* Elizabeth Seton Academy, Boston
* Fontbonne Academy, Milton
* Hudson Catholic High School, Hudson
* Lowell Catholic High School, Lowell
* Malden Catholic High School, Malden
* Marian High School Framingham
* Matignon High School, Cambridge
* Mount Alvernia High School, Newton
* Mount Saint Joseph Academy Boston
* Newton Country Day School, Newton
* North Cambridge Catholic High School, Cambridge
* Notre Dame Academy, Hingham
* Notre Dame High School, Lawrence
* Our Lady of Nazareth Academy, Wakefield
* Pope John XXIII High School, Everett
* Presentation of Mary Academy, Metheun
* Sacred Heart High School, Kingston
* Saint Clement High School, Medford
* St. John's Preparatory School, Danvers
* St. Mary's High School, Lynn
* Saint Sebastian's School, Needham
* Savio Preparatory High School, East Boston (closed 2007)
* Trinity Catholic High School, Newton
* Ursuline Academy, Dedham
* Xaverian Brothers High School, Westwood

ee also

*Polish Cathedral style churches

External links

* [http://www.rcab.org/ Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston]
* [http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/dbost.html Catholic Hierarchy Profile of the Archdiocese of Boston]
* [http://www.boston.com/globe/spotlight/abuse/ Boston Globe / Spotlight / Abuse in the Catholic Church]

References