Area 2,104 sq mi (5,450 km) | Ecclesiastical province Washington Parishes 139 Phone +1 301-853-4500 | |
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Territory District of Columbia plus counties of Montgomery, Prince George's, St. Mary's, Calvert, and Charles in Maryland Population- Total- Catholics (as of 2014)2,867,377630,823 (22.0%) Address 5001 Eastern Ave NE, Hyattsville, MD 20782, USA Hours Closed now Tuesday9AM–5PMWednesday9AM–5PMThursday9AM–5PMFriday9AM–5PMSaturday(Maryland Day)ClosedSundayClosedMonday9AM–5PMSuggest an edit Similar National Shrine Bookstore, Cathedral of St Matthew t, Catholic Charities, Archbishop Carroll High Sch, St Peter's Catholic Church Profiles | ||
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington is a particular church of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States. It comprises the District of Columbia and Calvert, Charles, Montgomery, Prince George's and Saint Mary's counties in the state of Maryland.
Contents
- Prelature
- History
- Bishops
- Archbishops
- Other affiliated bishops
- Archdiocesan cemeteries
- Province of Washington DC
- References
The Archdiocese of Washington is home to The Catholic University of America, the only national university operated by the bishops conference of the United States and Georgetown University, the oldest Jesuit institution of higher education in the country.
In addition, the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, a minor basilica dedicated to the nation's patroness, is located within and administered by it, and, although it is not the Archdiocesan cathedral (nor even a parish of the Archdiocese), it is the site of its Easter and Christmas Masses.
Prelature
The ordinary of the Archdiocese of Washington is an archbishop whose cathedra is the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in the City of Washington and who is metropolitan of the Ecclesiastical Province of Washington. Its sole suffragan see is the Diocese of Saint Thomas in the United States Virgin Islands.
The first Archbishop of Washington was Michael Joseph Curley in 1939. Eight years later, on November 15, 1947, the archdiocese received its first residential archbishop, with the appointment of Patrick Aloysius O'Boyle. Currently, Donald William Cardinal Wuerl serves as the ordinary of the Archdiocese.
History
The Archdiocese of Washington often prides itself in sharing the fact that the Society of Jesus celebrated the first Mass in British North America on its shores in 1634. During the colonial era, however, Catholics would remain a persecuted people suffering the wrath of oppression allowed by local penal laws.
Upon the founding of the United States, a Jesuit priest, Father John Carroll, was elected head of the missionary territory (later Prefecture Apostolic) of the United States. In 1789 the Diocese of Baltimore (later the Archdiocese of Baltimore) was established with Carroll as its first bishop, and given ecclesiastical jurisdiction over the entire nation.
On July 22, 1939, Pope Pius XII separated the cities of Washington and Baltimore, creating two archdioceses (Baltimore and Washington), under the oversight of one archbishop in persona episcopi. This process of separation was officially concluded on November 15, 1947, with the appointment of Washington's first residential archbishop. The Archdiocese of Washington became a metropolitan see on October 12, 1965, when the Diocese of Saint Thomas became its first (and, so far, only) suffragan see.
Bishops
The lists of archbishops, auxiliary and affiliated bishops and their terms of service.
Archbishops
- Michael Joseph Curley (1939–1947; simultaneously Archbishop of Baltimore); died in office
- Patrick Aloysius Cardinal O'Boyle (1947–1973); retired; first residential archbishop; died 1987
- William Wakefield Cardinal Baum (1973–1980); appointed Prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education (1980–1990) and Major Penitentiary of the Apostolic Penitentiary (1990–2001); died 2015
- James Aloysius Cardinal Hickey (1980–2000); retired; died 2004
- Theodore Edgar Cardinal McCarrick (2000–2006); retired
- Donald William Cardinal Wuerl (since 2006)
Other affiliated bishops
The following clergy began their service as priests for the Archdiocese, before being appointed bishops elsewhere:
Archdiocesan cemeteries
In addition to the nearly four dozen of its parishes which have their own cemeteries, the archdiocese owns and operates five major cemeteries:
Two former parish cemeteries are also operated by the archdiocese: