Roman Catholic Diocese of Camden

Diocese of Camden
Dioecesis Camdensis
Location
Country United States
Territory South Jersey
Ecclesiastical province Metropolitan Province of Newark
Metropolitan Camden, New Jersey
Population
- Catholics

500,000
Information
Denomination Roman Catholic
Rite Roman Rite
Established December 9, 1937
Cathedral Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception
Current leadership
Pope Benedict XVI
Bishop

Joseph A. Galante

Bishop of Camden
Metropolitan Archbishop

John Joseph Myers

Archbishop of Newark
Map
Website
camdendiocese.org

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Camden is a particular church or diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, located in New Jersey, United States, and presides over Roman Catholic parishes and schools in the six southern New Jersey counties of Atlantic, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, and Salem.

Pope Pius XI established the Diocese of Camden on December 9, 1937, by breaking it off from the Diocese of Trenton. Today, the Diocese of Camden presides over 125 parishes. The oldest parish is St. Mary (Gloucester City), which was founded in 1848. Over 500,000 Catholics live within this diocese.

The Bishop of Camden presides from the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Camden. However, most major ceremonies are held at Saint Agnes Catholic Church in Blackwood. Some liturgies are held at St. Joseph Pro-Cathedral, Camden.

The Diocese of Camden is currently led by Bishop Joseph A. Galante. On April 2, 2008, Bishop Galante announced the closing of roughly half of the parishes in the diocese. This followed a previous announcement of the closing of various Catholic schools. The closures are different from other dioceses in the United States because where in most locations churches and schools have been closed gradually as populations shifted or the number of priests declined, in the Camden Diocese, they have all been announced at once and are expected to be accomplished within twelve to twenty-four months. The massive closings have proved to be extremely controversial, even prompting protests and letter writing campaigns to Archbishop John J. Myers, the Archbishop of Newark, New Jersey; and Archbishop Pietro Sambi, the Apostolic Pro-Nuncio in Washington, D.C.

Contents

Bishops of the Diocese of Camden (terms of service)

  1. † Bishop Bartholomew J. Eustace (1938–1956) (died December 11, 1956)
  2. † Bishop Justin J. McCarthy (1957–1959) (died December 26, 1959)
  3. † Archbishop Celestine Damiano (1960–1967) (died October 2, 1967)
  4. † Bishop George H. Guilfoyle (1968–1989) (retired on May 13, 1989; died June 11, 1991)
  5. † Bishop James T. McHugh (1989–1998) (appointed coadjutor bishop of Rockville Centre on December 7, 1998; succeeded to the office of bishop of that diocese on January 4, 2000; died in December 2000)
  6. Bishop Nicholas Anthony DiMarzio (1999–2003) (appointed bishop of Brooklyn on August 1, 2003)
  7. Bishop Joseph A. Galante (2004–present)

† = deceased

Schools

High schools

Ecclesiastical province

See also

Philadelphia portal
New Jersey portal
Catholicism portal

External links