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Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. Louis

Coordinates:38°38′34″N90°15′26″W/ 38.64278°N 90.25722°W/38.64278; -90.25722
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Archdiocese of Saint Louis

Archidiœcesis Sancti Ludovici
Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis
Coat of arms
Location
CountryUnited States
TerritorySt. Louis Cityand ten counties in eastern Missouri
Ecclesiastical provinceSt. Louis
Statistics
Area5,968 sq mi (15,460 km2)
Population
- Total
- Catholics		(as of 2017)
2,255,800
514,178 (22.8%)
Parishes178
Schools112
Information
DenominationCatholic
Sui iurischurchLatin Church
RiteRoman Rite
EstablishedJuly 18, 1826 (197 years ago)
CathedralCathedral Basilica of St. Louis
Patron saintSaint Louis IX(Primary)
Saint Vincent DePaul
Saint Rose Philippine Duchesne(Secondary)[1]
Secular priests301
Current leadership
PopeFrancis
ArchbishopMitchell T. Rozanski
Auxiliary BishopsMark Steven Rivituso
Bishops emeritusRaymond Leo Burke
Robert Joseph Hermann
Robert James Carlson
Map
Website
archstl.org

TheArchdiocese of St. Louis(Latin:Archidiœcesis Sancti Ludovici) is aLatin Churchecclesiastical territory orarchdioceseof theCatholic Churchthat covers theCity of St. Louisand theMissouricounties ofFranklin,Jefferson,Lincoln,Perry,Saint Charles,Saint Francois,Ste. Genevieve,St. Louis,Warren,andWashington.It is themetropolitan seeof theecclesiastical provincecontaining threesuffragan sees:Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau,theDiocese of Jefferson City,and theDiocese of Kansas City-Saint Joseph.[citation needed] It is led by Archbishop,Mitchell Thomas Rozanski,formerly theBishop of Springfield in Massachusetts.[2]The archdiocesancathedralis theCathedral Basilica of St. Louis.

History[edit]

Early history[edit]

The first parish of Saint Louis was established in 1770 by French settlers to the region. The parish was then part of theDiocese of San Cristobal de la Habana,based inHavana, Cuba.It was later incorporated into theDiocese of Louisiana and the Two Floridaswhen it was erected on April 25, 1793, which originally encompassed the entire Louisiana Purchase as well as the Florida peninsula and the Gulf Coast. The oldest parish in the diocese is St. Genevieve parish founded in 1759 inSte. Genevieve, Missouri[3]

Pope Pius VI erected the Diocese of Louisiana and the Two Floridas encompassing the pioneer parishes of St Louis, New Orleans, andLouisianaand both Florida colonies on April 25, 1793, taking its territory from theDiocese of San Cristobal de la Habana,based inHavana, Cuba.The diocese originally encompassed the entire territory of theLouisiana Purchase,from theGulf of MexicotoBritish North America,as well as the Florida peninsula and theGulf Coast.[4]This date of erection makes the present Archdiocese of St Louis and the Archdiocese of New Orleans the second oldest Catholic dioceses in the present United States after theArchdiocese of Baltimore,which the same pope had erected as the Diocese of Baltimore on November 6, 1789. The new diocese encompassed the area under the Spanish crown asLuisiana,which was all the land draining into the Mississippi River from the west, as well as Spanish territory to the east of the river in modern-dayMississippi,Alabama,andFlorida.

In April 1803, the United States purchasedLouisianafrom France, which had in 1800 forced Spain to retrocede the territory in theThird Treaty of San Ildefonso.The United States took formal possession of St Louis, then part ofUpper Louisiana,on March 10, 1804.John Carroll,theBishop of Baltimore,served asapostolic administratorof the diocese from 1805 to 1812.[citation needed]

The area's first bishop wasLouis William Valentine Dubourg,who on September 24, 1815, was appointed Bishop ofLouisianaand the [EastandWest] Two Floridas byPope Pius VII.He was the Bishop of the Louisiana Territory from 1815 to 1826.[3]DuBourg chose to set up hisepiscopal seein St. Louis. In 1823,Pope Pius VIIappointedJoseph Rosatito the office ofcoadjutor bishopof the diocese.[citation needed]

On August 19, 1825,Pope Leo XIIerected theApostolic Vicariate of Alabama and the Floridas,taking its territory from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Louisiana and the Two Floridas. Although the two Florida territories were no longer part of the diocese, he did not change its title. But soon after, Bishop Rosati abruptly resigned the office of coadjutor bishop during a trip to Rome after which the Vatican decided to split the diocese again, making St. Louis a separate see. On July 18, 1826, the same pope

  • Erected the Diocese of St. Louis, taking its territory from the Diocese of Louisiana and the Two Floridas and theDiocese of Durango,
  • Erected theApostolic Vicariate of Mississippi,taking its territory from the Diocese of Louisiana and the Two Floridas,
  • Erected theDiocese of New Orleans,taking its territory from the Diocese of Louisiana and the Two Floridas, and
  • Appointed Bishop Rosati as apostolic administrator of both the Diocese of New Orleans and the Diocese of St. Louis.[citation needed]

Diocese[edit]

After Bishop Dubourg's resignation and transfer to lead thediocese of Montauban,France, the diocese of Louisiana was split, giving New Orleans a bishop again, and the Diocese of St. Louis was erected on July 18, 1826, byPope Leo XII.When founded, it included the state ofMissouri,the western half ofIllinois,and all American territory west of theMississippi Riverand north of the state ofLouisiana.It was the largest American diocese, equaling in extent all of the other nine dioceses.[citation needed]

Its first bishop,Joseph Rosati,led the Catholic Church's expansion of its presence in these areas, and built its first cathedral, now known as theBasilica of St. Louis, King of France.He was the Bishop of St. Louis from 1826 to 1843.[3]

On July 28, 1837, territory in Iowa, Minnesota, and the Dakotas was taken from the Diocese to form theDiocese of Dubuque, Iowa.[citation needed]

Until 1840, the "Old Cathedral" was the only church in the city. By 1850, there were 10.[3]

The archdiocese has admitted that it enslaved at least 87 people throughout its history, and that at least 5 senior clergy owned slaves.[5]

Archdiocese[edit]

The St. Louis Diocese was elevated to an Archdiocese on July 20, 1847, byPope Pius IX.

Because of its former size, the archdiocese was often referred to as theRome of the West.[6]It is dedicated toSaint Louis IXand has as its copatrons SaintsVincent de PaulandRose Philippine Duchesne.[7]

The Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis contains the largest collection of mosaics in the world.[8] The Cathedral was dedicated in 1926 on the 100th anniversary of the establishment of St. Louis as a diocese, and was built under the direction of Archbishop John Glennon – the last Irish-born Bishop of St. Louis – and completed under the leadership of Archbishop John May. Work on the cathedral mosaics would not be completed for 60 years. The Cathedral of St. Louis was designated a "Basilica" in 1997 on the 150th anniversary of the archdiocese.[3]

St. Louis Preparatory Seminary in the countryside which is now the St. Louis suburb of Shrewsbury was completed in 1931. Later it became Cardinal Glennon College. Today it is the archdiocesan seminaryKenrick-Glennon Seminary.[citation needed]

In January 1999, the archdiocese was host to a two-day visit fromPope John Paul II,the first time a pope had visited the city. It was not John Paul's first visit, since 30 years earlier, he had paid a visit when he was Cardinal Wojtyła,ArchbishopofKraków.[9]

Facing a shortage of priests and decreased Mass attendance, the Archdiocese of St. Louis announced in May 2023 it was closing 44 parishes in a reorganization. In making the announcement, Archbishop Rozanski said "The church experience in our parishes today is not the same as it was 50 years ago, yet we are still functioning in many ways out of the same mode of evangelization with the same structures. We have inherited a great treasure of Catholic institutions from previous generations, but many of them are no longer as effective or sustainable as they once were.”[10]

Under the plan, thirty-five parishes will be taken over, or subsumed, by neighboring ones and fifteen will merge with others to create five new parishes by 2026.[10]

Sexual Abuse of Children[edit]

In 2004, the Archdiocese paid $1.7 million to settle claims that it could have intervened to prevent the abuse of children, but failed to do so.[11]

In 2018, then-Archbishop Robert Carlson testified that he was unsure whether he knew in the 1980s that sexual assault of a minor was a crime, and was unable to say when he came to believe that sexual abuse of a minor was a crime.[12]

In July 2019, the Archdiocese of St. Louis released the names of 64 clergy who were "credibly accused" of committing acts of sexual abuse while serving in the Archdiocese.[13][14]

On August 16, 2019, "sexually violent priest" Frederick Lenczycki, who had previously served prison time in Illinois between 2004 and 2009 for acts of sexual abuse,[15]was sentenced to 10 years in prison2+1⁄2months after pleading guilty to sexually abusing a boy in St. Louis County.[13]

In 2019, the Missouri Attorney General's Office identified over 160 instances of St. Louis Catholic diocesan priests and deacons sexually abusing minors.[16]

In June 2023, the Archdiocese agreed to pay $1 million to settle a lawsuit by a man who alleged he was raped when an altar boy from 4th through 6th grade[11]by a since-defrocked priest who has been required to register as a sex offender.[17]

Cancellation of free lunch program for schoolchildren[edit]

In April 2022, the Archdiocese directed local Catholic schools to cease participation in free lunch programs, which journalists cautioned could potentially result in thousands of schoolchildren going without free daily lunches. The Archdiocese reportedly advised its schools that if they offered free lunches, they would have to adhere to the Civil Rights Act, which it described as "problematic."[18][19]

Before its withdrawal of the federal program went into effect, the archdiocese allegedly claimed that it would provide its own free lunch program.[20]

Bishops[edit]

The following is a list of the bishops and archbishops of St. Louis, and coadjutors and auxiliary bishops of St. Louis; and their years of service.[citation needed]

Bishop of Louisiana and the Floridas[edit]

  1. Louis-Guillaume-Valentin Dubourg(1812–1826), appointedBishop of Montaubanand laterArchbishop of Besançon

Bishops of St. Louis[edit]

  1. Joseph Rosati,C.M. (1827–1843)
    -John Timon(Appointed Coadjutor Bishop in 1839, but did not take effect); appointed Prefect Apostolic of the Republic of Texas in 1840 and laterBishop of Buffalo
  2. Peter Richard Kenrick(1843–1847); Elevated to Archbishop

Archbishops of St. Louis[edit]

  1. Peter Richard Kenrick (1847–1895)
  2. John Joseph Kain(1895–1903)
  3. CardinalJohn J. Glennon(1903–1946)
  4. CardinalJoseph Ritter(1946–1967)
  5. CardinalJohn Joseph Carberry(1968–1979)
  6. John L. May(1980–1992)
  7. Justin Francis Rigali(1994–2003), appointedArchbishop of Philadelphia(Cardinalin 2003)
  8. Raymond Leo Burke(2004–2008), appointedPrefectof theApostolic Signaturaand later Patron of theOrder of Malta(Cardinalin 2010)
  9. Robert James Carlson(2009–2020)
  10. Mitchell T. Rozanski(2020–present)

Auxiliary Bishops[edit]

Other priests of this diocese who became bishops[edit]

Churches[edit]

Main article:List of churches in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. Louis

Education[edit]

The Archdiocese of St. Louis contains 97 primary schools and 25 high schools, with a total enrollment as of 2023 of 30,741.[21]

High schools[edit]

Coeducational schools[edit]

All boys schools[edit]

All girls schools[edit]

Closed schools[edit]

Cemeteries[edit]

The Archdiocese Office of Catholic Cemeteries operates 17 cemeteries in the region, including:[25]

  • Ascension
  • Calvary
  • Glencoe
  • Holy Cross
  • Mt. Olive
  • Our Lady
  • Queen of Peace
  • Resurrection
  • Sacred Heart
  • St. Charles Borromeo
  • St. Ferdinand
  • St. Mary's
  • St. Monica
  • St. Peter
  • Sts. Peter & Paul
  • St. Philippine
  • St. Vincent

Suffragan sees[edit]

Ecclesiastical Province of St. Louis

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^"St. Rose Philippine Duchesne arrives at St. Louis Walk of Fame".
  2. ^"Leadership".Retrieved2024-06-23.
  3. ^abcde[Dolan, Timothy Michael. Archdiocese of St. Louis: Three Centuries of Catholicism, 1700-2000. Strasbourg, France: Editions Du Signe, 2001. Print.]
  4. ^Points, Marie Louise. "New Orleans." The Catholic EncyclopediaVol. 11. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. November 19, 2017
  5. ^Bogan, Jesse (2024-01-29)."St. Louis Archdiocese is slow to share its history of owning slaves".STLtoday.Retrieved2024-04-09.
  6. ^"Small group with big mission hopes to save 'Rome of the West' in St. Louis | Jefferson City News-Tribune".newstribune.2022-02-13.Retrieved2024-04-10.
  7. ^"About the Archdiocese".Retrieved2024-06-23.
  8. ^"25 Things to Do in St. Louis".2011-02-25.Retrieved2012-02-17.
  9. ^"The Polish Museum of America celebrates Saint John Paul II 100th Birthday".2020-05-16.Retrieved2024-06-23.
  10. ^ab"Reorganization will cut Catholic Parishes in St. Louis".St. Louis Public Radio.Retrieved2023-07-06.
  11. ^ab"St Louis Catholic archdiocese to pay $1m to settle sexual abuse lawsuit".The Guardian.Associated Press. 2023-06-09.ISSN0261-3077.Retrieved2023-08-21.
  12. ^"St. Louis Archbishop Didn't Know Sex With Children Was a Crime".NBC News.2014-06-10.Retrieved2023-08-22.
  13. ^ab"St. Louis Archdiocese names 64 priests credibly accused of sexually abusing children or possessing child porn | Metro | stltoday".
  14. ^"List Release | Promise To Protect | Archdiocese of St Louis".archstl.org.Retrieved2023-08-22.
  15. ^"Judge denies lower bond for former Hinsdale priest".22 April 2019.
  16. ^"Archdiocese of St. Louis abuse victim speaks out after settling with church for $1M".STLPR.2023-11-10.Retrieved2024-04-09.
  17. ^"Archdiocese of St. Louis abuse victim speaks out after settling with church for $1M".STLPR.2023-11-10.Retrieved2024-04-09.
  18. ^Messenger, Tony (2022-08-30)."Messenger: St. Louis Archdiocese tells Catholic schools to drop free lunch program".STLtoday.Retrieved2023-05-17.
  19. ^"St. Louis Catholic schools directed to exit Nat'l School Lunch Program".Aleteia — Catholic Spirituality, Lifestyle, World News, and Culture.2022-08-31.Retrieved2023-08-21.
  20. ^"St. Louis archdiocese: Students won't lose their lunch over federal program decision".The Pillar.2022-09-01.Retrieved2023-08-21.
  21. ^"Home | Archdiocese of St. Louis Catholic Schools".archstlschools.org.Retrieved2023-06-12.
  22. ^abc"Schools | Archdiocese of St. Louis Catholic Schools".archstlschools.org.Retrieved2023-06-12.
  23. ^"Barat Academy".Barat Academy.Retrieved2023-06-12.
  24. ^"Agencies | Archdiocese of St Louis".archstl.org.Retrieved2023-06-12.
  25. ^Archdiocese of St. Louis: Cemeteries

External links[edit]

38°38′34″N90°15′26″W/ 38.64278°N 90.25722°W/38.64278; -90.25722

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