The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Nassau ( la, Archidioecesis Nassaviensis) is an
archdiocese
In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.
History
In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
of the
Latin Church
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, image = San Giovanni in Laterano - Rome.jpg
, imagewidth = 250px
, alt = Façade of the Archbasilica of St. John in Lateran
, caption = Archbasilica of Saint Joh ...
of the
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
in the
Caribbean
The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
. The archdiocese encompasses the islands of the former British dependency of the
Bahamas
The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...
. The archbishop is the metropolitan responsible for the suffragan diocese of
Diocese of Hamilton in Bermuda and the
Mission sui iuris of
Turks and Caicos, and is a member of the
Antilles Episcopal Conference The Antilles Episcopal Conference (AEC) is a Roman Catholic episcopal conference. Its members are bishops and archbishops from current and former British, Dutch, and French colonies and dependencies in the Caribbean (excluding Haiti), Central Ameri ...
.
The first permanent Roman Catholic presence in the Bahamas was established in 1885 by the
Archdiocese of New York given its trade connections. The archdiocese was originally erected as the Prefecture Apostolic of the Bahama in March 1929, and was no longer associated with New York by 1932. The diocese was subsequently elevated to the Vicariate Apostolic of the Bahama Islands in January 1941, and then to a full diocese, as the diocese of Nassau, in June 1960. On June 22, 1999, the diocese was again elevated as the new Archdiocese of Nassau.
As of 2004, the archdiocese contains 30 parishes, 15 active diocesan priests, 14 religious priests, and 48,000 Catholics. It also has 28 Women Religious, 14 Religious Brothers, and 13 permanent deacons.
Bishops
Ordinaries
*
John Bernard Kevenhoerster
John Bernard Kevenhoerster, O.S.B. (November 1, 1869 – December 9, 1949) was a German-born prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as the first Prefect Apostolic (1931–41) and Vicar Apostolic (1941-49) of the Bahama Islands.
Biography
Ke ...
O.S.B. (1931–1949)
*
Paul Leonard Hagarty
Paul Leonard Hagarty, O.S.B., O.B.E. (March 20, 1909 – September 22, 1984) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He was the first Bishop of Nassau (1960–81), having previously served as Vicar Apostolic of the Bahama Islands (1 ...
O.S.B. (1950–1981)
*
Lawrence Aloysius Burke, S.J. (1981–2004), appointed Archbishop of Kingston in Jamaica
*
Patrick Christopher Pinder (2004–present)
Auxiliary bishop
*
Patrick Christopher Pinder (2003–2004), appointed Archbishop here
References
Archdiocese of Nassau page at catholichierarchy.orgretrieved July 18, 2006
Roman Catholic dioceses in the Caribbean
Catholic Church in the Bahamas
A
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