The Archdiocese of Mexico ( la, Archidioecesis Mexicanensis) is a

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ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese 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 ...

that is situated in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. It was erected as a diocese on 2 September 1530 and elevated to an archdiocese on 12 February 1546."Archdiocese of México"
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Catholic-Hierarchy.org ''Catholic-Hierarchy.org'' is an online database of bishops and dioceses of the Roman Catholic Church and Eastern Catholic Churches. The website is not officially sanctioned by the Church. It is run as a private project by David M. Cheney in ...

''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved February 29, 2016"Metropolitan Archdiocese of México"
''GCatholic.org''. Gabriel Chow. Retrieved February 29, 2016 The archdiocese is one of the largest in the world, with over four million Catholics, surpassed only by Guadalajara,

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the Ga ...

and

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

. Prior to 2019, the archdiocese was the largest in the world, with nearly 8 million Catholics. In September 2019,

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

approved the division of the archdiocese, erecting three new suffragan dioceses from its territory:

Azcapotzalco Azcapotzalco ( nci, Āzcapōtzalco , , from '' āzcapōtzalli'' “anthill” + '' -co'' “place”; literally, “In the place of the anthills”) is a borough (''demarcación territorial'') in Mexico City. Azcapotzalco is in the northwestern p ...

Iztapalapa Iztapalapa () is a borough (''demarcación territorial'') in Mexico City, located on the east side of the entity. The borough is named after and centered on the formerly independent municipality of Iztapalapa, which is officially called Iztapalapa ...

, and

Xochimilco Xochimilco (; nci, Xōchimīlco, ) is a borough (''demarcación territorial'') of Mexico City. The borough is centered on the formerly independent city of Xochimilco, which was established on what was the southern shore of Lake Xochimilco in th ...

. These are the only three suffragans within the

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian Churches with traditional hierarchical structure, including Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity. In general, an ecclesiastical province consists of seve ...

of which the archdiocese is the

metropolitan see Metropolitan may refer to: * Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories * Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England * Metropolitan county, a ...

. Today, the archdiocese's territory comprises most of

, with the exception of the three new dioceses, each of which is coextensive with its eponymous borough. The cathedra of the archdiocese is found within the Metropolitan Cathedral in Mexico City.

Bishops

Ordinaries

Ordinaries who became Cardinals: *

Miguel Darío Miranda y Gómez Miguel Darío Miranda y Gómez (December 19, 1895 – March 15, 1986) was a Mexican Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Mexico City from 1956 to 1977, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1969. Biography Miguel ...

, in 1969 *

Ernesto Corripio y Ahumada Ernesto Corripio y Ahumada (June 29, 1919 – April 10, 2008) was a cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He was Archbishop of Mexico in Mexico City (1977–1994) and was Primate of Mexico. In the consistory of June 30, 1979 in Vatican City P ...

, in 1979 *

Norberto Rivera Carrera Norberto Rivera Carrera (born 6 June 1942) is a Mexican prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who was archbishop of Mexico City from 1995 to 2017. He was made a cardinal in 1998. He was Bishop of Tehuacán from 1985 to 1995. Early life and mini ...

, in 1998 *

Carlos Aguiar Retes Carlos Aguiar Retes (; born 9 January 1950) is a Mexican cardinal of the Catholic Church who serves as the Archbishop of Mexico City. He has served as an officer of the Mexican Episcopal Conference and the Latin American Episcopal Conference ...

, in 2016 while Archbishop of Tlalnepantla

Coadjutor archbishop

* Miguel Darío Cardinal Miranda y Gómez (1955–1956); future Cardinal

Current auxiliary bishops

* Rogelio Esquivel Medina (appointed 27 June 2001) * Salvador González Morales (appointed 16 February 2019) * Carlos Enrique Samaniego López (appointed 16 February 2019) * Luis Manuel Pérez Raygoza (appointed 25 January 2020) * Héctor Mario Pérez Villarreal (appointed 25 January 2020)

Former auxiliary bishops

Juan Manuel de Irrizarri y Peralta ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking communities around the world and in the Philippines, and also (pronounced differently) in the Isle of Man. In Spanish, t ...

(27 April 1840 – 27 March 1849) * Maximino Ruiz y Flores (8 March 1920 – 11 May 1949) * Francisco Orozco Lomelín (19 March 1952 – 17 October 1990) * José Villalón Mercado (1 April 1952 – 12 September 1977) * Alfredo Torres Romero (30 December 1967 – 4 January 1975), appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Aguascalientes *

Luis Mena Arroyo Luis Mena Arroyo (April 27, 1920 Churintzio – March 3, 2009) was a Mexican Auxiliary Bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mexico from 1961 to 1964 and, with personal title of Archbishop, from 1979 until 1995. Between those stints, he w ...

(13 July 1961 – 1 September 1964), appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Chihuahua; returned here as Auxiliary Bishop (27 July 1979 – 9 September 1995), with personal title of Archbishop * Jorge Martínez Martínez (5 June 1971 – 1 August 1994) *

Javier Lozano Barragán Javier Lozano Barragán (; 26 January 1933 – 20 April 2022) was a Mexican prelate of the Catholic Church who was president of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Health Care Workers from 1997 to 2009. He was made a cardinal in 200 ...

(5 June 1979 – 28 October 1984), appointed Bishop of Zacatecas; future Cardinal *

Francisco María Aguilera González Francisco María Aguilera González (April 27, 1918 – August 5, 2010) was a Mexican Bishop of the Roman Catholic Church Aguilera González was born in Guanajuato Guanajuato (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato ( es, ...

(5 June 1979 – 12 January 1996) *

Carlos Talavera Ramírez Carlos may refer to: Places ;Canada * Carlos, Alberta, a locality ;United States * Carlos, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Carlos, Maryland, a place in Allegany County * Carlos, Minnesota, a small city * Carlos, West Virginia ;Elsewhe ...

(15 January 1980 – 14 March 1984), appointed Bishop of Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz *

Genaro Alamilla Arteaga Genaro (from the Latin Januarius, meaning "devoted to Janus") may refer to *Genaro (given name) *Genaro (surname) Genaro (from the Latin Januarius, meaning "devoted to Janus") is the surname of the following notable people: * Donald Genaro (born 19 ...

(26 January 1980 – 10 October 1989) *

Ricardo Watty Urquidi Ricardo Watty Urquidi (July 16, 1938 – November 1, 2011) was a Mexican-American Roman Catholic bishop of the Diocese of Tepic in Nayarit, Mexico. Born in San Diego, California, he was ordained to the priesthood in 1968. In 1980 he was name ...

, M.Sp.S. (27 May 1980 – 6 November 1989), appointed Bishop of Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas * Abelardo Alvarado Alcántara (26 April 1985 – 22 July 2008) * José de Jesús Martínez Zepeda (11 March 1997 – 3 January 2004), appointed Bishop of Irapuato, Guanajuato *

Marcelino Hernández Rodríguez Marcelino is a surname that originated in Spain. There are also several families with the Marcelino surname in Philippines, Portugal, and the Americas (North, Central, and South). *San Marcelino, is a 1st class municipality in the province of Zamb ...

(5 January 1998 – 23 February 2008), appointed Bishop of Orizaba, Veracruz * José Luis Fletes Santana (29 January 2000 – 31 May 2003) * Guillermo Rodrigo Teodoro Ortiz Mondragón (29 January 2000 – 19 October 2005), appointed Bishop of Cuautitlán, México * Felipe Tejeda García, M.Sp.S. (29 January 2000 – 30 July 2010) * Jonás Guerrero Corona (27 June 2001 – 18 March 2011), appointed Bishop of Culiacán, Sinaloa * Francisco Clavel Gil (27 June 2001 – 28 May 2013) * Antonio Ortega Franco, C.O. (11 February 2004 – 16 February 2019) * José Víctor Manuel Valentín Sánchez Espinosa (2 March 2004 – 5 February 2009), appointed Archbishop of Puebla de los Ángeles, Puebla * Carlos Briseño Arch, O.A.R. (20 May 2006 - 12 November 2018), appointed Bishop of Veracruz * Florencio Armando Colín Cruz (27 November 2008 - 16 February 2019), appointed Bishop of Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca *

Crispin Ojeda Márquez Saints Crispin and Crispinian are the Christian patron saints of cobblers, curriers, tanners, and leather workers. They were beheaded during the reign of Diocletian; the date of their execution is given as 25 October 285 or 286. History Born ...

(4 June 2011 - 27 July 2018), appointed Bishop of Tehuantepec, Oaxaca *

Jorge Estrada Solórzano Jorge is a Spanish and Portuguese given name. It is derived from the Greek name Γεώργιος ('' Georgios'') via Latin ''Georgius''; the former is derived from (''georgos''), meaning "farmer" or "earth-worker". The Latin form ''Georgius'' ...

(28 May 2013 – 11 May 2019), appointed Bishop of Gómez Palacio, Durango * Francisco Daniel Rivera Sánchez, M.Sp.S. (appointed 25 January 2020 – died 18 January 2021)

Other priests of the archdiocese who became bishops

* Bernardo Gárate y López de Arizmendi (15 December 1819 – 19 March 1863), appointed Bishop of Querétaro * Manuel Fulcheri y Pietrasanta (17 December 1898 – 6 May 1912), appointed Bishop of Cuernavaca * Gerardo Anaya y Diez de Bonilla (2 April 1904 – 8 March 1920), appointed Bishop of Chiapas (Ciudad Real de Chiapas) * Arturo Vélez Martínez (29 June 1934 – 8 February 1951), appointed Bishop of Toluca

Territorial losses

Education

Colleges, universities, and seminaries

Secondary schools

Former colleges, universities, and seminaries

References

External links and references

Arquidiócesis Primada de México
''official site (in Spanish)'' * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mexico Religion in Mexico City Roman Catholic dioceses in Mexico Religious organizations established in the 1530s 1530 establishments in New Spain 1530s establishments in Mexico Religious organizations established in the 1540s 1546 establishments in New Spain Roman Catholic dioceses established in the 16th century A Roman Catholic ecclesiastical provinces in Mexico