Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn
The Diocese of Brooklyn is a diocese of the Catholic Church in the U.S. state of New York. It is headquartered in Brooklyn and its territory encompasses the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. It is a suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of New York. The diocesan cathedral is the Cathedral Basilica of St. James in Downtown Brooklyn and its co-cathedral is the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph in Prospect Heights. The current diocesan bishop is Nicholas Anthony DiMarzio.
Diocese of Brooklyn Dioecesis Bruklyniensis | |
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Cathedral Basilica of St. James | |
Flag | |
Location | |
Country | |
Territory | Brooklyn and Queens |
Ecclesiastical province | Archdiocese of New York |
Headquarters | 310 Prospect Park West Brooklyn, New York, 11215 |
Statistics | |
Area | 179 sq mi (460 km2) |
Population - Total - Catholics | (as of July 2017) 5,007,353 1,506,000 |
Parishes | 188 |
Schools | 99 |
Information | |
Denomination | Catholic |
Sui iuris church | Latin Church |
Rite | Roman Rite |
Established | July 29, 1853 |
Cathedral | Cathedral Basilica of St. James |
Co-cathedral | Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph |
Secular priests | 472 |
Current leadership | |
Pope | Francis |
Bishop | Nicholas Anthony DiMarzio |
Metropolitan Archbishop | Timothy Michael Cardinal Dolan Archbishop of New York |
Auxiliary Bishops | Octavio Cisneros Paul Robert Sanchez Raymond Francis Chappetto James Massa Witold Mroziewski Neil Edward Tiedemann |
Bishops emeritus | Guy Sansaricq (Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus) |
Map | |
Website | |
dioceseofbrooklyn.org |
Brooklyn is one of the few dioceses in the United States that is made up of 100% urban territory.[1]
The Bishop of the Diocese of Brooklyn, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio, presides from both the Cathedral Basilica of St. James and the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph. This atypical arrangement was required due to the small size of the Cathedral Basilica of St. James. St. Joseph's Church was designated as a Co-Cathedral for the Diocese of Brooklyn on February 14, 2013, by Pope Benedict XVI after Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio petitioned the Vatican.
History
The diocese was established in 1853 out of the territory of the Archdiocese of New York, at a time when Brooklyn was still a separate city from New York City. It originally included all of Long Island, but its present-day territory was established in 1957 when Nassau and Suffolk counties were split to form the Diocese of Rockville Centre.[2]
The opening of the Brooklyn Navy Yard in 1801 drew a number of immigrants, largely Catholics from Northern Ireland, especially from Derry and Donegal. They would cross the East River to attend services at St. Peter's Church on Barclay Street. Periodically, Rev. John Power or others would come to celebrate Mass at the home of William Purcell or at Dempsey's Blooming Grove Garden on Fulton St. The Church of St. James was erected in 1822. In July, 1841, Father Johann Stephen Raffeiner, from the Tyrol, began the German parish of the Most Holy Trinity on a part of the farm of the old Dutch Meserole family in the Bushwick section. Holy Cross Cemetery was opened in 1849. In 1853, Archbishop John Hughes appointed his vicar-general, Irish-born John Loughlin, former pastor of St. Patrick's on Mulberry St. as bishop of the new diocese. Loughlin chose St. James as his cathedral.[3]
During his episcopate, Loughlin founded 120 parishes. Plans to build the larger Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception were deferred in favor of orphanages, schools, and hospitals. He was succeeded in 1892, by Bishop Charles Edward McDonnell, former chancellor of the Archdiocese of New York. The Diocese of Brooklyn served at that time 250,000 Catholics. With the increase in the number of immigrants of various nationalities, McDonnell founded a number of national churches which ministered to parishioners in their own language. To this end, he invited several religious institutes into the diocese, including the Redemptorists, Benedictines, Franciscans (including the Minor Conventuals and Capuchins), Jesuits, Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth, Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart, Daughters of Wisdom, and Sisters of the Holy Infant Jesus.[4] He also built three hospitals. Camp Wycoff and Camp Black, set up during the Spanish–American War were attended by local clergy.
Thomas Edmund Molloy was named the third Bishop of Brooklyn on November 21, 1921. In 1930 Bishop Molloy established the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception. The Diocese of Rockville Centre was split off from Brooklyn April 6, 1957. Ten days later, Bryan Joseph McEntegart became the next Bishop of Brooklyn. He built six high schools, Cathedral Preparatory Seminary, and a hospital. He improved outreach to the growing Hispanic population, he sent priests and religious to study Spanish language and culture. Bishop Francis Mugavero experience as former head Brooklyn's Catholic Charities was reflected in his episcopate. In 1971, Mugavero established the Catholic Migration Office to serve the needs of immigrants and refugees living in Brooklyn and Queens. The Nehemiah project produced affordable housing in Brownsville.
In September 2018, the Diocese of Brooklyn agreed to a record $27.5 million settlement for sex abuse allegations.[5] On February 15, 2019, the Diocese of Brooklyn and Queens made public a list of 108 clergy who were "credibly accused" of committing [6][7][8] some of whom have also been convicted for there crimes.[9][8] Along with the list, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio also issued a letter of apology, asking for forgiveness.[10] In June 2020, the FBI arrested Rev. Francis Hughes, a priest serving in Queens, on child pornography charges and sex-related charges involving underage minors.[11] Hughes, who was also caught sharing explicit texts and photos with an underage 15 year old boy, admitted to having a sexual encounter with a teen boy on school grounds in Queens and also making numerous previous attempts to meet other teens for sex.[11]
Churches
Bishops
The lists of the bishops and auxiliary bishops of the diocese and their years of service, followed by other priests of the diocese who became bishops:
Bishops of the Diocese of Brooklyn
- John Loughlin (1853–1891)
- Charles Edward McDonnell (1892–1921)
- Thomas Edmund Molloy (1922–1956), elevated to Archbishop (ad personam) in 1951
- Bryan Joseph McEntegart (1957–1968), elevated to Archbishop (ad personam) in 1966
- Francis Mugavero (1968–1990)
- Thomas Vose Daily (1990–2003)
- Nicholas Anthony DiMarzio (2003-present)
Auxiliary Bishops
Present
- Octavio Cisneros (2006-present)
- Paul Robert Sanchez (2012-present)
- Raymond Francis Chappetto (2012-present)
- James Massa (2015-present)
- Witold Mroziewski (2015-present)
- Neil Edward Tiedemann (2016-present)
Past
- George Mundelein (1909–1915), appointed Archbishop of Chicago (Cardinal in 1924)
- Thomas Edmund Molloy (1920-1921), appointed Bishop of Brooklyn
- Raymond Augustine Kearney (1934–1956)
- John Joseph Boardman (1952–1977)
- Edmund Joseph Reilly (1955–1958)
- Joseph Peter Michael Denning (1959–1982)
- Charles Richard Mulrooney (1959–1981)
- John J. Snyder (1972–1979), appointed Bishop of Saint Augustine
- Joseph Michael Sullivan (1980–2005)
- René Arnold Valero (1980–2005)
- Anthony Bevilacqua (1980–1983), appointed Bishop of Pittsburgh and later Archbishop of Philadelphia (elevated to Cardinal in 1991)
- Ignatius Anthony Catanello (1994–2010)
- Gerald Barbarito (1994–1999), appointed Bishop of Palm Beach
- Guy Sansaricq (2006–2010)
- Frank Joseph Caggiano (2006-2013), appointed Bishop of Bridgeport
Other priests of the diocese who became bishops
- George J. Caruana, appointed Bishop of Puerto Rico in 1921 and later Apostolic Nuncio and Apostolic Delegate and Titular Archbishop
- James Henry Ambrose Griffiths,appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Military, USA in 1949 and later Auxiliary Bishop of New York
- John Joseph Carberry, appointed Coadjutor Bishop (in 1956) and later Bishop of Lafayette in Indiana, Bishop of Columbus, and Archbishop of Saint Louis (elevated to Cardinal in 1969)
- Vincent John Baldwin (priest here, 1931-1957), appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Rockville Centre in 1962
- John R. McGann (priest here, 1950-1957), appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Rockville Centre in 1970 and later Bishop of Rockville Centre
- James Joseph Daly (priest here, 1948-1957), appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Rockville Centre in 1977
- Gerald Augustine John Ryan (priest here, 1950-1957), appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Rockville Centre in 1977
- Alfred John Markiewicz (priest here, 1953-1957), appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Rockville Centre in 1986 and later Bishop of Kalamazoo
- Emil Aloysius Wcela (priest here, 1956-1957), appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Rockville Centre in 1989
- Vincent DePaul Breen, appointed Bishop of Metuchen in 1997
- Edward Bernard Scharfenberger, appointed Bishop of Albany in 2014
- Kevin J. Sweeney, appointed Bishop of Paterson in 2020
(Leo Joseph White, prefect of Garissa, Kenya, 1976-1984, was incardinated in this diocese in 1990.)
Education
The sitting bishop is also the true principal of the diocese's pre-seminary high school, Cathedral Preparatory Seminary. As of March 2009, Cathedral Preparatory Seminary is the only full-time high school seminary in the nation. Three Diocesan and/or parish high schools are under the auspices of the Diocese of Brooklyn and Queens. As of 2019, only 36 Diocese of Brooklyn schools were still not scheduled to close, compared to the 102 which were operational in the 1980s.[12] Between the mid-2000s and 2019, the Diocese of Brooklyn permanently closed 45 of its schools.[12]
High schools
There are three Diocesan and/or parish high schools under the auspices of the Diocese of Brooklyn. While the Catholic high schools below may geographically lie within the diocese, most are run independently of it. [13]
Brooklyn
- Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School
- Cristo Rey Brooklyn High School
- Fontbonne Hall Academy
- Nazareth Regional High School
- St. Edmund Preparatory High School
- St. Joseph High School (closing in June 2020)[14][12]
- Saint Saviour High School of Brooklyn
- Xaverian High School
Queens
Elementary schools
There were 116 Diocesan and parish elementary schools in the Diocese of Brooklyn and Queens including Saint Patrick Catholic Academy located at 9707 4th Ave NewYork. In March 2009. In the fall of 2009, a new free tuition school called the Pope John Paul II Family Academy [15] opened [16] at St. Barbara's School in Bushwick, Brooklyn.http://s3.amazonaws.com/vspot_prod_images/uploads/group/image/70349/77009186205980060.png In 2019 two Diocese of Brooklyn elementary schools– Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Academy in Bensonhurst, and Mary Queen of Heaven Catholic Academy in Mill Basin - permanently closed, and two Bushwick schools, St Brigid and St. Frances Cabrini, merged.[12]
Cemeteries
There are nine Catholic cemeteries serving the Diocese of Brooklyn; two in Brooklyn, five in Queens and three outside the Diocese of Brooklyn.
Brooklyn
- Holy Cross Cemetery
- Most Holy Trinity Cemetery
Queens
- Saint John Cemetery
- Mount St. Mary Cemetery
- St. Monica Cemetery
- Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cemetery
Outside of the Diocese of Brooklyn
- St. Charles / Resurrection Cemeteries
- Trinity Cemetery
- St. Mary Star of the Sea Cemetery
Hospitals
- Saint Vincent's Catholic Medical Center
References
- Coen, Joseph W.; McNamara, Patrick, J.; Vaccari, Peter I. Diocese of Immigrants: The Brooklyn Catholic Experience 1853-2003, Éditions du Signe, 2004. ISBN 2-7468-0912-5. p. 120
- Who We Are," Diocese of Rockville Centre website (accessed 2009-November–02).
- "The Catholic Church in the United States of America: Undertaken to Celebrate the Golden Jubilee of His Holiness, Pope Pius X. V. 1-3 ..." Catholic editing Company. Jul 1, 1914. Retrieved Jul 1, 2020 – via Google Books.
- Meehan, Thomas. "Diocese of Brooklyn." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 2. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 30 August 2019
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. - "Diocese of Brooklyn reaches record $27.5M settlement with four victims of abuse by former lay educator". NBC News. Retrieved Jul 1, 2020.
- "Clergy Sex Abuse Crisis Response". Retrieved Jul 1, 2020.
- "Brooklyn Diocese lists names of 108 clergy accused of sexually abusing minors". WPIX. Feb 15, 2019. Retrieved Jul 1, 2020.
- "List of Diocesan Clergy for whom the Diocese received allegations of sexual misconduct with a minor". Retrieved Jul 1, 2020.
- "Database of Priests Accused of Sexual Abuse". app.bishop-accountability.org. Retrieved Jul 1, 2020.
- https://dioceseofbrooklyn.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Most-Reverend-Nicholas-DiMarzio-Letter.pdf
- https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/queens-priest-arrested-after-sharing-explicit-texts-photos-with-15-year-old-boy-fbi/2540939/
- McGibney, Megan (Jun 21, 2019). "With Schools Closing, Is Catholic Education Disappearing in Brooklyn?". Retrieved Jul 1, 2020.
- "Catholic High Schools". Diocese of Brooklyn website. Archived from the original on May 1, 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-27.
- "After 115 Years, St. Joseph HS to Close in 2020". May 29, 2019. Retrieved Jul 1, 2020.
- NY Daily News (2009-02-27). "Rich donor aids new Catholic school for poor fams". Retrieved 2009-03-20.
- Pope John Pall II Family Academy official site
External links
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