Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson

Diocese of Paterson Dioecesis Patersonensis
Location
Country	United States
Territory	Northern New Jersey: Passaic, Morris, and Sussex Counties
Ecclesiastical province	Metropolitan Province of Newark
Population - Catholics	(as of 2004) 420,172 (36.8%)
Information
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Rite	Roman Rite
Established	December 9, 1937
Cathedral	Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist
Patron saint	SS. Patrick and John the Baptist
Current leadership
Pope	Francis
Bishop	Arthur J. Serratelli
Metropolitan Archbishop	John Joseph Myers
Emeritus Bishops	Frank J. Rodimer
Map
Website
patersondiocese.org

The Diocese of Paterson is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States, which includes three counties in northern New Jersey: Passaic, Morris, and Sussex. The city of Paterson, third-largest in the state of New Jersey, was chosen as the episcopal see, even though the vast majority of diocesan territory lies west of the city. The diocese is a ceremonial suffragan of the Archdiocese of Newark, and is part of Region III of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.^[1]

Description

The diocese was established by Pope Pius XI on December 9, 1937, the same day that the Dioceses of Camden, New Jersey and Owensboro, Kentucky were established. The new Diocese of Paterson was created by taking territory formerly part of the (then) Diocese of Newark. Bishop Thomas J. Walsh, the bishop of Newark, was made the Archbishop of a newly elevated Archdiocese of Newark the next day, December 10, 1937.

One week later, Walsh's auxiliary bishop Thomas H. McLaughlin was appointed as the first bishop of Paterson, and the former parish church of St. John the Baptist in Paterson was established as the Diocesan Cathedral.

Patrons of the Diocese of Paterson are St. Patrick and St. John the Baptist. The Proper Feasts for the Diocese of Paterson are March 17 (Feast of St. Patrick), June 24 (The Birthday of St. John the Baptist) and June 30 (The Dedication of the Cathedral Church).

As of 2004, there were 211 diocesan priests, 161 religious priests, 192 permanent deacons, 199 male religious and 816 female religious ministering in the diocese, which had a Catholic population of 420,172 out of a total (Catholic and non-Catholic) population of 1,124,058 people.^[2] At that time, the Diocese of Paterson was the 44th largest U.S. diocese in terms of population.^[3]

Bishops

The following is a list of the Bishops of the Diocese of Paterson and their years of service:

1. †Thomas Henry McLaughlin (1937-1947)
2. †Thomas Aloysius Boland (1947-1952)
3. †James A. McNulty (1953-1963)
4. †James Johnston Navagh (1963-1965)
5. †Lawrence B. Casey (1966-1977)
6. Frank Joseph Rodimer (1978-2004)
7. Arthur J. Serratelli (2004-present)

† Indicates deceased.

Before the establishment of the Diocese of Paterson, governance over the territory that is now the Diocese of Paterson was exercised by the Ordinaries of Newark from 1853-1937, the Ordinaries of New York from 1808-1853 and the Ordinaries of Baltimore from 1789-1808.

Leadership and Deaneries

Leadership

• Ordinary: Most Rev. Arthur J. Serratelli, S.T.D., S.S.L., D.D.
• Vicar General and Moderator of the Curia: Rev. Msgr. James T. Mahoney, Ph.D.
• Vicars:
  • Rev. Msgr. Edward J. Kurtyka, J.C.D., P.A., Judicial Vicar
  • Rev. Stanley Barron, Vicar for Education
  • Rev. Hernan Arias, Vicar for Pastoral Administration
  • Rev. Paul Manning, Vicar for Evangelization
• Chancellor and Delegate for Religious: Sr. Mary Edward Spohrer, S.C.C.
• Vice Chancellor and Priest-Secretary to the Bishop: Rev. T. Kevin Corcoran
• Vice Chancellor: Rev. Marc A. Mancini, J.C.L.

Deaneries

The 111 parishes of the Diocese are split organizationally into twelve deaneries spanning the three counties:

The City of Paterson

The City of Passaic

The City of Clifton

Mid-Passaic County

Northern Passaic County

Eastern Morris County

Northeastern Morris County

N.B. Our Lady of Fatima Traditional Latin Mass Chapel, located in Pequannock, is not considered a parish of the Diocese of Paterson. Instead, it is a chapel of ease administered by the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter.

Northern Morris County

Southeastern Morris County

Southwestern Morris County

Western Morris County

Sussex County

** St. James the Greater Parish is sometimes considered part of a stand-alone Western Sussex Deanery, of which St. James the Greater is the only member parish. The pastor of this parish is traditionally also the pastor of St. Thomas the Apostle Parish in Sandyston.

Institutions in the Diocese

Colleges

• Assumption College for Sisters, Mendham (operated by the Sisters of Christian Charity)
• College of Saint Elizabeth, Convent Station (operated by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth)

Diocesan High Schools

• DePaul Catholic High School, Wayne
• Morris Catholic High School, Denville
• Pope John XXIII Regional High School, Sparta

Other Catholic High Schools

• Academy of Saint Elizabeth, Convent Station (operated by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth)
• Delbarton School, Morristown (operated by the Benedictine monks of Saint Mary's Abbey)
• Mary Help of Christians Academy, North Haledon (operated by the Salesian Sisters)
• Villa Walsh Academy, Morristown (operated by the Religious Teachers Filippini)

Former Diocesan High Schools

• Pope Pius XII High School, Passaic (closed at the end of the 1982-1983 academic year)
• Neumann Prep High School, Wayne (closed at the end of the 1989-1990 academic year)
• Paul VI Regional High School, Clifton (closed at the end of the 1989-1990 academic year)
• Paterson Catholic High School, Paterson (closed at the end of the 2009-2010 academic year)

Catholic Hospitals

• Saint Clare's Health System (part of Catholic Health Initiatives)
  • St. Clare's Hospital/Boonton (formerly Riverside Hospital)
  • St. Clare's Hospital/Denville
  • St. Clare's Hospital/Dover (formerly Dover General Hospital)
  • St. Clare's Hospital/Sussex
• St. Joseph's Healthcare System (operated by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth):
  • St. Joseph's Regional Medical Center, Paterson
  • St. Joseph's Children's Hospital, Paterson
  • St. Joseph's Wayne Hospital (formerly Wayne General Hospital)
• St. Mary's Hospital, Passaic (operated by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth)

Geography

Because of its location in Passaic, Morris and Sussex Counties, the Diocese of Paterson contains a wide spectrum of natural landmarks. The Diocese contains the highest portion of the state of New Jersey in the Skylands Region of Sussex County, as well as the largest lake in the state (Lake Hopatcong), the Great Falls of Paterson and the Great Swamp in Morris County. As for man-made landmarks, the Diocese of Paterson contains one of the parishes claiming to be the oldest Catholic parish in the state, namely Saint Joseph Parish in West Milford.

Geographically, the Diocese of Paterson is bordered by four other dioceses: The Archdiocese of Newark (east), the Diocese of Metuchen (south), the Diocese of Scranton, Pennsylvania (west) and the Archdiocese of New York (north).

		Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York
	Roman Catholic Diocese of Scranton		Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark
	Diocese of Paterson
		Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen

Books on the Diocese of Paterson

• Kupke, Raymond J. "Living Stones: A History of the Church in the Diocese of Paterson." Clifton. 1987

See also

• List of the Catholic cathedrals of the United States
• List of the Catholic dioceses of the United States
• Plenary Councils of Baltimore
• Roman Catholicism in the United States
• Catholicism and American politics
• History of Roman Catholicism in the United States

References

External links

• Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson
• New Jersey Provincial Directory

Diocese of Paterson Ordinaries Bishops Thomas Henry McLaughlin Thomas Aloysius Boland James A. McNulty James Johnston Navagh Lawrence B. Casey Frank Joseph Rodimer Arthur J. Serratelli Churches Cathedral Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, Paterson Parishes Our Lady of Mercy Chapel, Whippany St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church, Paterson St. Nicholas Catholic Church, Passaic Education Colleges Assumption College for Sisters, Mendham College of Saint Elizabeth, Convent Station High schools, diocesan DePaul Catholic High School, Wayne , Denville Pope John XXIII Regional High School, Sparta High schools, other Academy of Saint Elizabeth, Convent Station Delbarton School, Morristown Mary Help of Christians Academy, North Haledon Saint Vincent Martyr School, Madison Villa Walsh Academy, Morristown High schools, former Paterson Catholic High School, Paterson Other Hospitals St. Clare's Hospital, Boonton Township St. Joseph's Regional Medical Center, Paterson St. Mary's Hospital, Passaic Catholicism Portal

Roman Catholic Ecclesiastical Province of Newark Archdiocese of Newark Diocese of Camden Diocese of Metuchen Diocese of Paterson Diocese of Trenton

Coordinates: 40°54′53.09″N 74°09′46.18″W / 40.9147472°N 74.1628278°W / 40.9147472; -74.1628278