Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta

Archdiocese of Atlanta
Archdioecesis Atlantensis
Location
Country  United States
Territory 69 counties in northern Georgia Georgia (U.S. state)
Ecclesiastical province Province of Atlanta
Metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia
Coordinates 33°46′23″N 84°23′15″W / 33.77306°N 84.38750°W / 33.77306; -84.38750Coordinates: 33°46′23″N 84°23′15″W / 33.77306°N 84.38750°W / 33.77306; -84.38750
Statistics
Area 55,521 km2 (21,437 sq mi)
Population
- Total
- Catholics		 (as of 2014)
7,150,000
1,000,000 (14.0%)
Parishes 167
Information
Denomination Catholic
Rite Roman Rite
Established July 2, 1956
Cathedral Cathedral of Christ the King
Patron saint Immaculate Heart of Mary
Pope St. Pius X
Current leadership
Pope Francis
Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory
Auxiliary Bishops Luis Rafael Zarama
Bernard Shlesinger
Map
Website
archatl.com

The Archdiocese of Atlanta is an archdiocese of the Catholic Church in the U.S. state of Georgia.[1] Its ecclesiastical territory comprises Georgia's northern counties, including the capital of Atlanta.[1] It is led by a prelate archbishop, currently Wilton D. Gregory,[1] who is also pastor of the mother church, the Cathedral of Christ the King in Atlanta.[1] The Cathedral is the metropolitan see of the Catholic Ecclesiastical Province of Atlanta, which covers Georgia,[1] South Carolina, and North Carolina. As of 2014, there were 100 parishes and missions in the Archdiocese.[2] There were 900,000 registered Catholics in the Archdiocese as of 2010.[3]

History

Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Downtown Atlanta, whose pastor convinced Sherman not to burn the city's churches

Establishment

The former Diocese of Atlanta was established by a division of the Diocese of Savannah-Atlanta on July 2, 1956.[1] At that time, there were also two designated co-cathedrals, including St. John the Baptist in Savannah and Christ the King in Atlanta.[1]

The Diocese of Savannah-Atlanta was originated through the Diocese of Charleston, South Carolina;[1] and prior to that, the Archdiocese of Baltimore, Maryland.[1] Catholic settlement began in Georgia in the 1700s,[1] with the establishment of a Catholic mission in Georgia by Catholic settlers who had moved to Georgia from Baltimore.[1]

The Diocese of Atlanta was elevated to the rank of archdiocese on February 10, 1962.[1]

Selected leadership history

In 1966, the Archdiocese was home to the youngest bishop in the nation, Joseph Bernardin. Ordained an auxiliary bishop[1] at the age of 38, Bernardin[1] later became Archbishop of Cincinnati and ultimately the Archbishop of Chicago and cardinal.

In 1988, Eugene Antonio Marino[1] was named Archbishop of Atlanta,[1] becoming the first African American archbishop in the United States.[1] He resigned from his position two years later after his affair - termed an "inappropriate relationship"[1] by the Archdiocese - with a lay minister became public knowledge. After a period of reflection and renewal,[1] he continued on in religious service in New York State until his death.[1]

In December 2004, Pope John Paul II appointed Wilton Gregory as Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Atlanta,[4] and he was installed in January 2005.[4]

In July 2009, Pope Benedict XVI, recognizing Archbishop Gregory's need for assistance in governing the burgeoning archdiocese, named Monsignor Luis Rafael Zarama as the second Auxiliary Bishop of Atlanta.[5][6] In April 2013, Monsignor David Talley was installed as an additional Auxiliary Bishop of Atlanta.[7][8]

Population

Cathedral of Christ the King in Buckhead

Metro Atlanta contains a large, and rapidly growing, Roman Catholic population. The number of Catholics grew from 30,840 members in 1960 to 292,300 members in 1998 and to 900,000 members in 2010, an increase of 207 percent.[9] The population is estimated by the USCCB to top 1 million by 2011, with an overall increase of 2,500 people.[3][10] The increase is fueled by Catholics moving to Atlanta from other parts of the U.S. and the world, and from newcomers to the church.[3][11] About 11 percent of all metropolitan Atlanta residents are Catholic.[5]

Territory

In 2014, the Archdiocese included 100 parishes and missions.[2] In 2007, the Archdiocese comprised 84 parishes,[1][9] serving the following northern Georgia counties:

Bishops

Sacred Heart, located in Peachtree Center

The lists of bishops and their years of service:

Bishop of Atlanta

Archbishops of Atlanta

Auxiliary Bishops

Other priest of this diocese who became a bishop

Religious orders serving the Archdiocese

There are many religious orders of women and men serving in the Archdiocese of Atlanta.[12] Orders currently represented in the Archdiocese are included in the lists to follow.[12]

Women's orders

  • Congregation of Our Lady in the Cenacle (rc)
  • Daughters of Mary Mother of Mercy
  • Dominican Sisters of Adrian (OP)
  • Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne (OP)
  • Dominican Sisters of Saint Cecilia, Nashville (OP)
  • Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa (OP)
  • Franciscan Sisters of Our Lady of Refuge, Mexico (RFR)
  • Grey Nuns of the Sacred Heart
  • Handmaids of the Sacred Heart of Jesus/ Ancillae Cordis Jesu (ACJ)
  • Holy Family Sisters of the Needy, Nigeria (HFSN)
  • Institute of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas (RSM)
  • Missionaries of Charity (M.C.)
  • Missionary Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart (MSC)
  • Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart "Ad Gentes," Mexico (MAG)
  • Sisters of Jesus of Kkottongnae, Korea
  • Sisters of Saint Francis (OFS)
  • Sisters of Saint Joseph of Carondolet (csj)
  • Sisters of Saint Joseph of Concordia (CSJ)
  • Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, Nigeria (SBS)
  • Sisters of the Good Shepherd (RGS)
  • Sisters of the Visitation of Holy Mary
  • Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM)

Men's orders

  • Congregation of Missionary Sons of Immaculate Heart of Mary, Claretians (CFM)
  • Congregation of the Passion, Passionists (CP)
  • Fransalians (Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales) (MSFS)
  • Society of Jesus (SJ)
  • Marist Fathers and Brothers (SM)
  • Misioneros de la Natividad de María (MNM)
  • Missionaries of Our Lady of LaSalette (MS)
  • Legionaries of Christ (LC)
  • Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (Trappists) (OCSO)
  • Order of Friars Minor Conventual (Conventual Franciscan) (OFMConv)
  • Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter (FSSP)
  • Society of Our Lady of Most Holy Trinity (SOLT)
  • Society of St. Paul the Apostle, Pauline Fathers and Brothers (SSP)

Schools

The Archdiocese operates eighteen elementary and high schools.[13] Additionally, there are six independent Catholic schools (as noted in the lists to follow) located in the Atlanta metropolitan area.[13] While those six schools are independent, they fall within the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese. The population of student enrollment in all of the Catholic schools in the Archdiocese in 2011-2012 was approximately 12,000.[14] The superintendent of the schools in the Archdiocese is currently Diane Starkovich.[13]

High schools

Elementary schools

  • Christ the King, Atlanta
  • Holy Redeemer, Alpharetta
  • Immaculate Heart of Mary, Atlanta
  • Notre Dame Academy, Duluth, Independent
  • Our Lady of the Assumption, Atlanta
  • Our Lady of Victory, Tyrone
  • Queen of Angels, Roswell
  • St. Catherine of Siena, Kennesaw
  • St. John Neumann Regional, Lilburn
  • St. John the Evangelist, Hapeville
  • St. Joseph, Athens
  • St. Joseph, Marietta
  • St. Jude the Apostle, Atlanta
  • St. Mary, Rome
  • St. Peter Claver Regional, Decatur
  • St. Thomas More, Decatur

Georgia Bulletin

The Georgia Bulletin, the official newspaper of the Archdiocese, was established in 1963 and is published weekly (except for the second and last weeks of June, July, August, as well as the last week of December).[15]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 The Archdiocese of Atlanta: A history, Strasbourg, France: Editions du Signe, Archdiocese of Atlanta, 2006.
  2. 1 2 Parishes and missions, by name, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, Smyrna, GA: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, 2014, Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 Poole, Shelia M. (December 9, 2010). "Project aims to bring Catholics back to church". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved December 13, 2010.
  4. 1 2 The Most Reverend Wilton D. Gregory, SLD, Metropolitan Archbishop of Atlanta Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, Smyrna, GA: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, 2014, Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  5. 1 2 Monsignor Luis R. Zarama named auxiliary bishop for Archdiocese of Atlanta, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, Smyrna, GA: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, 27 July 2009, Chivers, P.M., Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  6. ↑ The Most Reverend Luis Rafael Zarama, Auxiliary Bishop of Atlanta (Episcopal Vicar Region I), Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, Smyrna, GA: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, 2014, Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  7. ↑ Pope appoints Atlanta's second auxiliary bishop, The Georgia Bulletin, Smyrna, GA: The Archdiocese of Atlanta, 17 January 2013, Nelson, A., Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  8. ↑ Bishop David P. Talley, Auxiliary Bishop of Atlanta (Episcopal Vicar Region II), Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, Smyrna, GA: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, 2014, Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  9. 1 2 Nelson, Andrew. "Catholic Population Officially Leaps To 650,000". The Georgia Bulletin. Archdiocese of Atlanta. Retrieved 2007-12-19.
  10. ↑ Nelson, Andrew (January 1, 2009). "Parishes Receive Data As Catholic Population Surges". The Georgia Bulletin. The Catholic Archdiosese of Atlanta. p. 10.
  11. ↑ The church in the south: Growing pains, St. Anthony Messenger, American Catholic.org/Catholic Extension.org, 2006, Beckwith, B., Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  12. 1 2 Religious orders serving in the Archdiocese of Atlanta, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, Smyrna, GA: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, 2014, Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  13. 1 2 3 Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Atlanta, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, Smyrna, GA: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, 2014, Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  14. ↑ Catholic schools by the numbers, The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, Smyrna, GA: Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Atlanta, 2014, Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  15. ↑ "Catholic Newspapers". Hesburgh Libraries Website. University of Notre Dame. Retrieved 7 September 2016.
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