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The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Baltimore ( la, link=no, Archidiœcesis Baltimorensis) is the premier (or first) see of the
Latin Church , native_name_lang = la , 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 in the United States. The archdiocese comprises the
City of Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
and nine of Maryland's 23 counties in the central and western portions of the state: Allegany, Anne Arundel,
Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...
, Carroll, Frederick, Garrett, Harford, Howard, and
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
. The archdiocese is the metropolitan see of the larger regional Ecclesiastical Province of Baltimore. The
Archdiocese of Washington The Archdiocese of Washington is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in the United States. Its territorial remit encompasses the District of Columbia and the counties of Calvert, Charles, Montgomery, ...
was originally part of the Archdiocese of Baltimore. The Archdiocese of Baltimore is the oldest diocese in the United States whose see city was entirely within the nation's boundaries when the United States declared its independence in 1776. The Holy See granted the archbishop of Baltimore the right of
precedence Precedence may refer to: * Message precedence of military communications traffic * Order of precedence, the ceremonial hierarchy within a nation or state * Order of operations, in mathematics and computer programming * Precedence Entertainment, ...
in the nation at liturgies, meetings, and Plenary Councils on August 15, 1859. Although the Archdiocese of Baltimore does not enjoy " primatial" status, it is the premier episcopal see of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States of America, as "prerogative of place". Within the archdiocese are 518,000 Catholics, 145 parishes, 545 priests (244 diocesan priests, 196 priests resident in diocese), 159 permanent deacons, 55 brothers, 803 sisters, five hospitals, 28 aged homes, 7 diocesan/parish high schools, 13 private high schools, and four Catholic colleges/universities. The Archdiocese of Baltimore has two major seminaries:
St. Mary's Seminary and University St. Mary's Seminary and University is a Catholic seminary located within the Archdiocese of Baltimore in Baltimore, Maryland; it was the first seminary founded in the United States after the Revolution and has been run since its founding by the ...
in Baltimore and Mount St. Mary's Seminary in Emmitsburg. This archdiocese was featured in the Netflix documentary ''
The Keepers ''The Keepers'' is a seven-episode American documentary web series that explores the unsolved murder of nun Catherine Cesnik in 1969. Cesnik taught English and drama at Baltimore's all-girls Archbishop Keough High School, and her former student ...
'' exposing the sexual abuse history at Archbishop Keough High School and the murder of Sister Catherine Cesnik in 1969. It was revealed in late 2016 that the Archdiocese of Baltimore had paid off numerous settlements since 2011 for abuse victims.


History

Before and during the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
, the Catholics in Great Britain's thirteen colonies in America were under the
ecclesiastical jurisdiction Ecclesiastical jurisdiction signifies jurisdiction by church leaders over other church leaders and over the laity. Jurisdiction is a word borrowed from the legal system which has acquired a wide extension in theology, wherein, for example, it is ...
of the
Apostolic Vicariate of the London District The Apostolic Vicariate of the London District was an ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales. It was led by a vicar apostolic who was a titular bishop. The apostolic vicariate was created in 1688 and was diss ...
in England. After the Treaty of Paris, signed on September 3, 1783, ended the war, Maryland clergy delivered a petition to the Holy See, on November 6, 1783, for permission for the missionaries in the United States to nominate a superior who would have some of the powers of a
bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
. In response, Pope Pius VI on June 6, 1784, confirmed Father John Carroll, who had been selected by his brother priests, as Superior of the Missions in the newly independent thirteen United States of North America, with power to give the
sacrament of confirmation In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. For adults, it is an affirmation of belief. It involves laying on ...
. This act established a hierarchy in the United States and removed the Catholic Church in the U.S. from the authority of the vicar apostolic of the London District. Maryland being one of the few regions of the colonial United States with a substantial Roman Catholic population, Pope Pius VI proceeded to erect the Prefecture Apostolic of the United States encompassing the entire territory of the United States, with its see in Baltimore, and appointed Fr. Carroll as the first Prefect Apostolic on November 26, 1784. The same pope erected the Diocese of Baltimore, the first diocese in the United States, in the territory of the prefecture apostolic on November 6, 1789. In 1790, Father Carroll traveled to England where he was ordained and consecrated as a bishop in Lulworth Castle in Dorset, by Bishop
Charles Walmesley Charles Walmesley, OSB (best known by the pseudonyms Signor Pastorino or Pastorini; 13 January 1722 – 25 November 1797) was the Roman Catholic Titular Bishop of Rama and Vicar Apostolic of the Western District of England. He was known, especi ...
, O.S.B. Carroll subsequently ordained the first American-born Catholic priest, William Matthews, at St. Peter's Pro-Cathedral in the Diocese of Baltimore in 1800. On April 8, 1808, Pope Pius VII erected the Diocese of Boston, the Diocese of New York, the Diocese of Philadelphia, and the
Diocese of Bardstown The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bardstown was a Catholic diocese in the United States established in Bardstown, Kentucky on April 8, 1808, along with the Diocese of Boston, Diocese of New York, and Diocese of Philadelphia, comprising the former ...
in Bardstown, Kentucky, taking their territory from the Diocese of Baltimore. He simultaneously elevated the Diocese of Baltimore to a
metropolitan archdiocese A metropolis religious jurisdiction, or a metropolitan archdiocese, is an episcopal see whose bishop is the metropolitan bishop or archbishop of an ecclesiastical province. Metropolises, historically, have been important cities in their provinces. ...
, designating the four new dioceses as its
suffragan sees A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Anglican Communion, a suffragan bishop is a bishop who is subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop (bishop ordinary) and so is not normally jurisdiction ...
. The archdiocese continued to lose territory through the 19th century as the church evolved and grew in the United States. * Pope Pius VII erected of the Diocese of Charleston (encompassing the states of North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia) and the
Diocese of Richmond The Diocese of Richmond ( la, Diœcesis Richmondiensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or diocese of the Catholic Church in the United States. Its current territory encompasses all of central and southern Virginia, Hampton Roads ...
(encompassing the state of Virginia except two counties of the Eastern Shore region) on July 11, 1820;, making both dioceses additional suffragans of the Archdiocese of Baltimore. *
Pope Gregory XVI Pope Gregory XVI ( la, Gregorius XVI; it, Gregorio XVI; born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari; 18 September 1765 – 1 June 1846) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1831 to his death in 1 June 1846. He h ...
erected the Vicariate Apostolic of the Oregon Territory, taking its territory from the Archdiocese of Baltimore and the Archdiocese of Quebec and making it an additional suffragan of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, on December 1, 1843. * The federal government having retroceded the city of Alexandria from the District of Columbia to Virginia in 1846,
Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...
transferred that territory from the Archdiocese of Baltimore to the Diocese of Richmond on August 15, 1858. * Pope Pius IX also erected the Diocese of Wilmington (Delaware), taking the state of Delaware and the Eastern Shore region of Maryland and Virginia from the Archdiocese of Baltimore and making it a suffragan of the same archdiocese, on March 3, 1868. * On July 22, 1939,
Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. ...
erected the
Archdiocese of Washington The Archdiocese of Washington is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in the United States. Its territorial remit encompasses the District of Columbia and the counties of Calvert, Charles, Montgomery, ...
, taking the territory of the District of Columbia and Montgomery, Prince George, St. Mary's, Calvert, and Charles Counties from the Archdiocese of Baltimore,Most Rev. Michael J. Curley
. Archdiocese of Baltimore. Retrieved on November 19, 2016.
and naming the archbishop of Baltimore, Michael J. Curley also the first archbishop of Washington so the two archdioceses remained united (in the person of the bishop).Archbishops of the Modern Era (1851 - 2012)
. Archdiocese of Baltimore. Retrieved on November 19, 2016.
This action established the current territory of the Archdiocese of Baltimore. Archbishop Curly used the title of Archbishop of Baltimore-Washington during this period, although the title of the archdiocese never formally changed. Eight years later, on November 15, 1947, the same pope appointed Patrick A. O'Boyle as the second Archbishop of Washington, thus separating the jurisdictions completely. The Archdiocese of Washington thus became the only archdiocese in the United States that was not also a metropolitan see, and this status endured until Pope Paul VI elevated it to a metropolitan see, designating the Diocese of St. Thomas as its only suffragan, on October 12, 1965. The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Baltimore was the only metropolitan archdiocese in the United States from its elevation to that status on April 8, 1808, until Pope Pius IX elevated the Diocese of St. Louis to that status on July 20, 1847, so the entire country formed just one ecclesiastical province for most of that period. The same pope elevated the
Diocese of Cincinnati The Archdiocese of Cincinnati ( la, Archidiœcesis Cincinnatensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or archdiocese that covers the southwest region of the U.S. state of Ohio, including the greater Cincinnati and Dayton metropolitan ...
, the Diocese of New Orleans, the Diocese of New York, and the Diocese of Oregon City to metropolitan archdioceses, on July 19, 1850, substantially reducing the area of the Metropolitan Province of Baltimore. As the nation's population grew and waves of Catholic immigrants arrived, the Holy See continued to erect new dioceses and elevate certain others to the status of metropolitan archdioceses, which simultaneously became metropolitan sees of new ecclesiastical provinces. Thus, the Province of Baltimore gradually became smaller, diminishing to the states of Delaware, Virginia, and West Virginia and the counties of Maryland that are not part of the Archdiocese of Washington. At that time, the province consisted of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, the Diocese of Richmond, the Diocese of Wheeling, and the Diocese of Wilmington. On May 28, 1974, Pope Paul VI (1) transferred the two counties of the Eastern Shore region of Virginia from the Diocese of Wilmington to the Diocese of Richmond, (2) erected the
Diocese of Arlington The Diocese of Arlington ( la, Dioecesis Arlingtonensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the Mid-Atlantic United States. The Diocese of Arlington comprises 70 parishes across 21 counties and se ...
, taking the northern portion of the state of Virginia from the Diocese of Richmond and making it a suffragan of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Baltimore, and (3) adjusted the boundary between the Diocese of Richmond and the Diocese of Wheeling, which Pope Pius IX had erected in territory taken from the Diocese of Richmond and made a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Baltimore on July 19, 1850, to conform to the Virginia-West Virginia state line by transferred the territory of the Diocese of Wheeling that was in Virginia to the Diocese of Richmond and the territory of the Diocese of Richmond that was in West Virginia to the Diocese of Wheeling. A few months later, on August 21, 1974, the same pope changed the title of the Diocese of Wheeling to Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston. These actions established the present configuration of the Metropolitan Province of Baltimore, which now consists of the Archdiocese of Baltimore and the Diocese of Arlington, the Diocese of Richmond, the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, and the Diocese of Wilmington. The archdiocese began to publish its diocesan newspaper, ''The Baltimore Catholic Review'' in 1913 as the successor to the earlier diocesan publication ''The Catholic Mirror'', published 1833 to 1908. The name has since been shortened to ''
The Catholic Review ''The Catholic Review'' is Maryland's largest paid weekly newspaper distributed by mail. The ''Review'' covers national and international news of interest to Catholics and serves as the newspaper of record for the archdiocese of Baltimore. His ...
''. It changed from weekly to biweekly publication in 2012 and transformed again to a monthly magazine in December 2015.


Plenary councils of Baltimore

The
Plenary Councils of Baltimore The Plenary Councils of Baltimore were three national meetings of Catholic bishops in the United States in 1852, 1866 and 1884 in Baltimore, Maryland. During the early history of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States all of the diocese ...
were three national meetings of Catholic bishops in the United States in 1852, 1866 and 1884 in Baltimore, Maryland. * First Plenary Council of Baltimore (1852): among the decrees were one that required immigrant priests to provide a letter of reference from their previous bishops, and a requirement that marriage banns be published. * Second Plenary Council of Baltimore (1866): promulgated the custom of the Churching of women, the blessing of women after giving birth, focusing on blessing and thanksgiving; and set the age for first communion at ten years of age, as well as, handling other ecclesiastical matters. * Third Plenary Council of Baltimore (1884): was presided over by Archbishop of Baltimore
James Gibbons James Cardinal Gibbons (July 23, 1834 – March 24, 1921) was a senior-ranking American prelate of the Catholic Church who served as Apostolic Vicar of North Carolina from 1868 to 1872, Bishop of Richmond from 1872 to 1877, and as ninth ...
as Apostolic Delegate. It set six Holy Days of Obligation, and appointed a commission to draft a catechism, and addressed other subjects.


Notable people

*
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton (August 28, 1774 – January 4, 1821) was a Catholic religious sister in the United States and an educator, known as a founder of the country's parochial school system. After her death, she became the first person b ...
- Seton founded the first American congregation of religious sisters, the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph, in Emmitsburg, Maryland, in 1809. A year later, she opened the first free Catholic school for girls in the United States. Many trace the modern Catholic school system in America to Seton's Emmitsburg institution. In 1975, Seton became the first American-born person to be canonized a saint. * Mother Mary Lange - Born in Cuba, Elizabeth Clarisse Lange migrated to United States in the early 19th century. She eventually settled in Baltimore and opened a free school in her home where she educated black children who faced intense prejudice and were denied access to most schools. In 1828, Lange founded the Oblate Sisters of Providence, the first sustained religious order for women of African descent in the United States. She also opened what would later become St. Frances Academy - the first Catholic School for African-American children in the U.S. In 1991, the Catholic Church opened a cause of sainthood for Lange, naming her a "servant of God."


Sexual abuse cases

In 2016, the Archdiocese of Baltimore confirmed that settlements had been paid to past students of Archbishop Keough High School who were sexually abused by Father A. Joseph Maskell, a priest at the school from 1967 to 1975. In January 1970, a popular English and drama teacher at Archbishop Keough, Sister Cathy Cesnik, was found murdered in the outskirts of the city of Baltimore. Her murder was never solved and is the topic of a true crime documentary ''
The Keepers ''The Keepers'' is a seven-episode American documentary web series that explores the unsolved murder of nun Catherine Cesnik in 1969. Cesnik taught English and drama at Baltimore's all-girls Archbishop Keough High School, and her former student ...
'' that was released on Netflix on May 19, 2017. Maskell, who died in 2001, was long fingered as a lead suspect in her murder. Though never formally charged, the Archdiocese of Baltimore settled with 16 of Maskell's possible victims for a total of $472,000 by 2017. A report released by
Pennsylvania Attorney General The Pennsylvania Attorney General is the chief law enforcement officer of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It became an elected office in 1980. The current Attorney General is Democrat Josh Shapiro. On August 15, 2016, then-Attorney General Kat ...
Josh Shapiro on August 14, 2018, singled out bishop and future cardinal William Keeler for transferring abusive Pennsylvania priest Father Arthur Long from the Diocese of Harrisburg to the Archdiocese of Baltimore. On August 15, 2018, one day after the Pennsylvania report was published, the Archdiocese of Baltimore announced that a pre K-8 Catholic school scheduled to be opened in 2018 and named for Keeler would no longer bear his name. Despite a denial from Long's religious order and the Archdiocese of Baltimore that Long abused children while serving the Archdiocese of Baltimore, a leaked church memo written in 1995, the year Long was removed from ministry, revealed that accusations of "inappropriate behavior" had surfaced against Long in 1991 and 1992 during his time in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, and the Pennsylvania report noted that Keeler was notified of accusations of Long sexually abusing children when he was serving as Bishop of Harrisburg in 1987. Long died in 2004. In March 2019, Archbishop Lori banned accused former Archdiocese of Baltimore Auxiliary Bishop Gordon Bennett from practicing any form of ministry in the Archdiocese of Baltimore and the suffragan Diocese of Wheeling–Charleston. In April 2019, the Archdiocese of Baltimore added the names of 23 deceased clergy to a list of accused clergy which the archdiocese published in 2002. Long, a Jesuit, was among those added to the list.


Episcopate


"Prerogative of place"

The Archdiocese of Baltimore is led by the archbishop of Baltimore and a corps of auxiliary bishops who assist in the administration of the archdiocese as part of a larger
curia Curia (Latin plural curiae) in ancient Rome referred to one of the original groupings of the citizenry, eventually numbering 30, and later every Roman citizen was presumed to belong to one. While they originally likely had wider powers, they came ...
. Sixteen men have served as Archbishop of Baltimore; , the archbishop is
William E. Lori William Edward Lori (born May 6, 1951) is an American prelate of the Catholic Church who has served as the 16th archbishop of the Archdiocese of Baltimore in Maryland since 2012. He was previously the fourth bishop of the Diocese of Bridgeport i ...
. In 1858, the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith (''Propaganda Fide''), with the approval of
Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...
, conferred "Prerogative of Place" on the Archdiocese of Baltimore. This decree gives the
archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...
of Baltimore
precedence Precedence may refer to: * Message precedence of military communications traffic * Order of precedence, the ceremonial hierarchy within a nation or state * Order of operations, in mathematics and computer programming * Precedence Entertainment, ...
over all other archbishops of the United States (but not
cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...
s) in
council A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or nat ...
s, gatherings, and meetings of whatever kind of the hierarchy (''in conciliis, coetibus et comitiis quibuscumque''), regardless of the seniority of other archbishops in promotion or ordination.


Co-cathedrals

The archbishop is concurrently the pastor of the
Cathedral of Mary Our Queen The Cathedral of Mary Our Queen is a Catholic cathedral located in northern Baltimore, Maryland. The structure, remarkable in size, was completed in 1959. The cathedral is the seat of the Archbishop of Baltimore, joining the Basilica of the Nat ...
in Homeland in north Baltimore (donated by
Thomas J O'Neill Thomas J O'Neill (born November 11, 1849, died April 6, 1919) was an Irish-born American merchant and philanthropist. He was one of eight children of John and Anne Lynch O'Neill of County Cavan in north central Ireland.Find A Grave, Thomas O’Neill ...
) and the
Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, also called the Baltimore Basilica, was the first Roman Catholic cathedral built in the United States, and was among the first major religious buildings constru ...
(old Baltimore Cathedral). The older cathedral is located on Cathedral Hill above downtown, near the Mount Vernon-Belvedere neighborhood. Both are called co-cathedrals. The archbishop appoints a
rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
for each of the co-cathedrals. The basilica, built in 1806–1821, is the first cathedral constructed in the United States (within its boundaries at the time). It is considered the mother church of the United States. During the time from the first bishop John Carroll's installation in 1790 to the dedication of the old Baltimore Cathedral in 1821, the bishop's throne (''cathedra'') was at St. Peter's Church (first parish in the diocese, founded 1770). It was located two blocks south on the northwestern corner of North Charles Street and West Saratoga Street, serving as the pro-cathedral with its attached rectory, school and surrounding cemetery. Old St. Peter's was across the street from the "Mother Church of the Anglican Church" in Baltimore, Old St. Paul's Church, with four successive buildings at the site beginning in 1730 at the southeast corner of Charles and Saratoga streets in downtown overlooking the harbor. St. Peter's Roman Catholic parish was razed in 1841. The Archdiocese of Baltimore is one of only three United States dioceses that have two churches serving as cathedrals in the same city, the others being the
Diocese of Honolulu The Catholic Diocese of Honolulu ( la, Diœcesis Honoluluensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church that comprises the entire state of Hawaii and the unincorporated Hawaiian Islands. The Diocese of Honol ...
, and the
Diocese of Brooklyn The Diocese of Brooklyn is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or 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. ...
. Other dioceses with two cathedrals have them in separate cities.


Bishops


Prefect Apostolic of the United States

# John Carroll (1784–1789), appointed first diocesan bishop with erection of diocese


Bishop of Baltimore

# John Carroll (1789–1808), elevated to
Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...


Archbishops of Baltimore1>

# John Carroll (1808–1815) #
Leonard Neale Leonard Neale (October 15, 1746 – June 18, 1817) was an American Catholic prelate and Jesuit who became the second Archbishop of Baltimore and the first Catholic bishop to be ordained in the United States. While president of Georgetown Coll ...
(1815–1817;
coadjutor archbishop The term coadjutor (or coadiutor, literally "co-assister" in Latin) is a title qualifier indicating that the holder shares the office with another person, with powers equal to the other in all but formal order of precedence. These include: * Coa ...
1795–1815) #
Ambrose Maréchal Ambrose Maréchal, P.S.S. (August 28, 1764 – January 29, 1828) was an American Sulpician and prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the third Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Baltimore in Maryland. He dedicated the Basilica of the ...
(1817–1828) # James Whitfield (1828–1834; coadjutor archbishop 1828) # Samuel Eccleston (1834–1851; coadjutor archbishop 1834) #
Francis Patrick Kenrick Francis Patrick Kenrick (December 3, 1796 or 1797 – July 8, 1863) was an Irish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the third Bishop of the Diocese of Philadelphia (1842–1851) and the sixth Archbishop of the Archdiocese of ...
(1851–1863) #
Martin John Spalding Martin John Spalding (May 23, 1810 – February 7, 1872) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Louisville (1850–1864) and Archbishop of Baltimore (1864–1872). He advocated aid for freed slaves follow ...
(1864–1872) # James Roosevelt Bayley (1872–1877) #
James Gibbons James Cardinal Gibbons (July 23, 1834 – March 24, 1921) was a senior-ranking American prelate of the Catholic Church who served as Apostolic Vicar of North Carolina from 1868 to 1872, Bishop of Richmond from 1872 to 1877, and as ninth ...
(1877–1921) (Cardinal in 1886) #
Michael Joseph Curley Michael Joseph Curley (October 12, 1879 – May 16, 1947) was an Irish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the first archbishop of the Archdiocese of Washington (1939–1947). He served as the tenth archbishop of the Archdio ...
(1921–1947) #
Francis Patrick Keough Francis Patrick Keough (December 30, 1890 – December 8, 1961) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Providence in Rhode Island from 1934 to 1947 and as archbishop of the Archdiocese of ...
(1947–1961) #
Lawrence Shehan Lawrence Joseph Shehan (March 18, 1898 – August 26, 1984) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Baltimore from 1961 to 1974 and was made a cardinal in 1965. Shehan was an advocate for civil rights a ...
(1961–1974; coadjutor archbishop 1961) (Cardinal in 1965) #
William Donald Borders William Donald Borders (October 9, 1913 – April 19, 2010) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He was the 13th Archbishop of Baltimore from 1974 to 1989, having previously served as the first Bishop of Orlando from 1968 t ...
(1974–1989) #
William Henry Keeler William Henry Keeler (March 4, 1931 – March 23, 2017) was an American cardinal of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Baltimore, Maryland, from 1989 to 2007 and was elevated to the College of Cardinals in 1994. He previously serv ...
(1989–2007) (Cardinal in 1994) #
Edwin Frederick O'Brien Edwin Frederick O'Brien (born April 8, 1939) is an Americans, American prelate of the Catholic Church, Roman Catholic Church. He has been a cardinal since 2012 and headed the Order of the Holy Sepulchre from 2011 to 2019. O'Brien served as arch ...
(2007–2011), appointed Grand Master of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre (Cardinal in 2012) # William Edward Lori (2012–present)


Current auxiliary bishops

* Adam J. Parker (2017–present) * Bruce Lewandowski (2020–present)


Former auxiliary bishops

* Alfred Allen Paul Curtis (1897–1908), previously appointed Bishop of Wilmington * Owen Patrick Bernard Corrigan (1908–1929) * Thomas Joseph Shahan (1914–1932) *
John Michael McNamara John Michael McNamara (August 12, 1878 – November 26, 1960) was an American clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Baltimore from 1927 to 1947 and of the Archdiocese of Washington from ...
(1927–1947), appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Washington * Lawrence Joseph Shehan (1945–1953), appointed Bishop of Bridgeport; later returned as Coadjutor Archbishop of Baltimore and succeeded to see (see "Archbishops" above); future
Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...
* Jerome Aloysius Daugherty Sebastian (1953–1960) * Thomas Austin Murphy (1962–1984) * Thomas Joseph Mardaga (1966–1968), appointed Bishop of Wilmington * Francis Joseph Gossman (1968–1975), appointed Bishop of Raleigh * Philip Francis Murphy (1976–1999) * James Francis Stafford (1976–1982), appointed Bishop of Memphis and later Archbishop of Denver, President of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, and Major Penitentiary of the
Apostolic Penitentiary The Apostolic Penitentiary (), formerly called the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Penitentiary, is a dicastery of the Roman Curia and is one of the three ordinary tribunals of the Apostolic See. The Apostolic Penitentiary is chiefly a trib ...
(elevated to
Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...
in 1998) * William Clifford Newman (1984–2003) *
John Ricard John Huston Ricard, S.S.J. (born February 29, 1940) is an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee in Florida from 1997 to 2011 and as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Baltimo ...
(1984–1997), appointed Bishop of Pensacola-Tallahassee * Gordon Dunlap Bennett (1997–2004), appointed Bishop of Mandeville *
William Francis Malooly William Francis Malooly (born January 18, 1944) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. Malooly served as the bishop of the Diocese of Wilmington in Delaware from 2008 until 2021. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of ...
(2000–2008), appointed Bishop of Wilmington * Mitchell T. Rozanski (2004–2014), appointed Bishop of Springfield in Massachusetts * Denis J. Madden (2005–2016) * Mark E. Brennan (2017–2019), appointed Bishop of Wheeling-Charleston


Other priests of this diocese who became bishops

* John J. Chanche, P.S.S., appointed Bishop of Natchez in 1841 * Ignatius A. Reynolds, appointed Bishop of Charleston in 1843 * Henry B. Coskery, appointed Bishop of Portland in 1853; did not take effect * William Henry Elder, appointed Bishop of Natchez in 1857 and Archbishop of Cincinnati in 1883 * Thomas Albert Andrew Becker, appointed Bishop of Wilmington in 1868 and Bishop of Savannah in 1886 *
Thomas Patrick Roger Foley Thomas Patrick Roger Foley (March 6, 1822 – February 19, 1879) was a bishop of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States. He served as Coadjutor Bishop of Chicago from March 10, 1870, until his death on February 19, 1879. Life Born in B ...
, appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Chicago in 1870 * John Joseph Keane, appointed Bishop of Richmond in 1878, rector of The Catholic University of America in 1886, and
Archbishop of Dubuque The Archdiocese of Dubuque ( la, Archidiœcesis Dubuquensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in the northeastern quarter of the state of Iowa in the United States. It includes all the Iowa count ...
in 1900 *
Mark Stanislaus Gross Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * Finn ...
, appointed vicar apostolic of North Carolina in 1880; resigned the episcopate c. 1881 * Jeremiah O'Sullivan, appointed Bishop of Mobile in 1885 *
John Samuel Foley John Samuel Foley (November 5, 1833 – January 5, 1918) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Detroit from 1888 until his death in 1918. Biography John Foley was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to Matt ...
, appointed Bishop of Detroit in 1888 * Placide Louis Chapelle, appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Santa Fe in 1891 (succeeded to that see in 1894),
Archbishop of New Orleans The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans ( la, Archidioecesis Novae Aureliae, french: Archidiocèse de la Nouvelle-Orléans, es, Arquidiócesis de Nueva Orleans) is an ecclesiastical division of the Roman Catholic Church spanning Jefferso ...
in 1897 and
Apostolic Delegate An apostolic nuncio ( la, nuntius apostolicus; also known as a papal nuncio or simply as a nuncio) is an ecclesiastical diplomat, serving as an envoy or a permanent diplomatic representative of the Holy See to a state or to an international ...
to Cuba and Extraordinary Envoy to Puerto Rico and the Philippines in 1898 *
Patrick James Donahue Patrick James Donahue (April 15, 1849 – October 4, 1922) was an English-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Wheeling in West Virginia from 1894 until his death in 1922. Biography Early life ...
, appointed Bishop of Wheeling in 1894 * William Thomas Russell, appointed Bishop of Charleston in 1916 *
William Joseph Hafey William Joseph Hafey (March 19, 1888 – May 12, 1954) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Raleigh in North Carolina (1925–1937) and bishop of the Diocese of Scranton in Pennsylvania (19 ...
, appointed Bishop of Raleigh in 1925 and Bishop of Scranton in 1938 *
Thomas Joseph Toolen Thomas Joseph Toolen (February 28, 1886 – December 4, 1976) was an American clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Mobile from 1927 to 1969, and was given the personal title of Archbishop in 1954. Early life and educati ...
, appointed Bishop of Mobile in 1927 *
Peter Leo Ireton Peter Leo Ireton (September 21, 1882 – April 27, 1958) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Richmond in Virginia from 1945 until his death in 1958. Biography Early life Ireton was bor ...
, appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Richmond in 1935 and Bishop of Richmond in 1945 * John Joyce Russell, appointed Bishop of Charleston in 1950 and later Bishop of Richmond in 1958 * Philip Matthew Hannan (priest of this archdiocese, 1939-1947), appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Washington in 1956 and
Archbishop of New Orleans The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans ( la, Archidioecesis Novae Aureliae, french: Archidiocèse de la Nouvelle-Orléans, es, Arquidiócesis de Nueva Orleans) is an ecclesiastical division of the Roman Catholic Church spanning Jefferso ...
in 1965 * Michael William Hyle, appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Wilmington in 1958 (succeeded to that see in 1960) * John Selby Spence (priest of this archdiocese, 1933-1947), appointed auxiliary bishop of Washington in 1964 * Edward John Herrmann (priest of this archdiocese, 1947), appointed auxiliary bishop of Washington in 1966 and Bishop of Columbus in 1973 * Victor Benito Galeone, appointed Bishop of Saint Augustine in 2001 * F. Richard Spencer, appointed Auxiliary Bishop for the Military Services, USA in 2010


Priests appointed, but never ordained, as bishops

* Dominic Laurence Grässel appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Baltimore in 1793 but the notice arrived after his death


Education


High schools

*
Archbishop Curley High School Archbishop Curley High School is a Roman Catholic boys' high school in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore in the United States, within the City of Baltimore. It is affiliated with the Conventual Franciscan religious order. It is the brot ...
, Baltimore *
Archbishop Spalding High School Archbishop Spalding High School is a private, Catholic co-educational high school located in Severn, Maryland, USA. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore. Most of its students live in Annapolis, Crownsville, Arnold, Pasa ...
,
Severn , name_etymology = , image = SevernFromCastleCB.JPG , image_size = 288 , image_caption = The river seen from Shrewsbury Castle , map = RiverSevernMap.jpg , map_size = 288 , map_c ...
*
Bishop Walsh School Bishop Walsh School is a K-12 Catholic school located in Cumberland, Maryland, and under the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Baltimore. Approximately 350 students attend. The school also hosts a pre-K program and operates the St. Michael's p ...
,
Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 1974 ...
*
Calvert Hall College Calvert Hall College High School (also known as "Calvert Hall" or "CHC") is a Catholic college preparatory high school for boys, located in Towson, Maryland, United States. The school's mission is to make its students "men of intellect, men of ...
(high school), Baltimore /
Towson Towson () is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community and a census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 55,197 as of the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Baltim ...
* Cristo Rey Jesuit High School, Baltimore *
Loyola Blakefield Loyola Blakefield is a private Catholic, college preparatory school run by the USA East Province of the Society of Jesus in Towson, Maryland and within the Archdiocese of Baltimore. It was established in 1852 by the Jesuits as an all-boys school f ...
, (formerly Loyola High School), Baltimore /
Towson Towson () is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community and a census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 55,197 as of the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Baltim ...
*
Maryvale Preparatory School Maryvale Preparatory School is a Catholic, independent school for girls in grades six through 12. Affiliated with the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, Maryvale is located in Lutherville, Maryland. It is also affiliated with the Roman Catholic Archd ...
,
Brooklandville Brooklandville is an unincorporated community in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States near the intersection of Jones Falls Expressway and the Baltimore Beltway. The general area is a part of Lutherville, and some addresses in the area are con ...
* Mercy High School, Baltimore * Mount de Sales Academy, Baltimore /
Catonsville Catonsville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 41,567 at the 2010 census. The community lies to the west of Baltimore along the city's border. Catonsville contains the majority of th ...
*
Mount Saint Joseph College Mount Saint Joseph College (commonly MSJ or Mount Saint Joe) is a Catholic college preparatory school and secondary school / high school for young men from ninth to twelfth grade sponsored by the Xaverian Brothers and founded in 1876. It is locate ...
(high school), Baltimore / Irvington * Notre Dame Preparatory School, Baltimore /
Towson Towson () is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community and a census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 55,197 as of the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Baltim ...
* Our Lady of Mount Carmel High School, Baltimore * Our Lady of the Rosary High School, Baltimore * St. Frances Academy, Baltimore * St. John's Catholic Preparatory, Buckeystown/ Frederick County (formerly St. John's Literary Institution, Frederick city), * St. Maria Goretti High School, Hagerstown, * St. Mary's High School,
Annapolis Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east ...
* The Catholic High School of Baltimore, Baltimore *
The John Carroll School The John Carroll School Inc., established in 1964 and incorporated in 1971, is a private Catholic school for grades 9–12. It is located in Bel Air, Harford County, Maryland, United States in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore. History ...
, Bel Air


Churches

*
Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, also called the Baltimore Basilica, was the first Roman Catholic cathedral built in the United States, and was among the first major religious buildings constru ...
(old Baltimore Cathedral / Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary),
Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...
*Basilica of the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton,
Emmitsburg, Maryland Emmitsburg is a town in Frederick County, Maryland, United States, south of the Mason-Dixon line separating Maryland from Pennsylvania. Founded in 1785, Emmitsburg is the home of Mount St. Mary's University. The town has two Catholic pilgrim ...


Ecclesiastical province

*
Diocese of Arlington The Diocese of Arlington ( la, Dioecesis Arlingtonensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the Mid-Atlantic United States. The Diocese of Arlington comprises 70 parishes across 21 counties and se ...
*
Diocese of Richmond The Diocese of Richmond ( la, Diœcesis Richmondiensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or diocese of the Catholic Church in the United States. Its current territory encompasses all of central and southern Virginia, Hampton Roads ...
*
Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston 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 ...
* Diocese of Wilmington


See also

*
Historical list of the Catholic bishops of the United States This is a historical list of all bishops of the Catholic Church whose sees were within the present-day boundaries of the United States, with links to the bishops who consecrated them. It includes only members of the United States Conference of Cat ...
* List of the Catholic dioceses of the United States *
List of Roman Catholic archdioceses The following is a current list of Catholic archdioceses ordered by continent and country (for the Latin Church) and by liturgical rite (for the Eastern Catholic Churches). Many smaller countries, as well as large countries with small Catholic p ...
(by country and continent) *
List of Roman Catholic dioceses (alphabetical) This is a growing list of territorial Catholic dioceses and ordinariates in communion with the Holy See. There are approximately 3,000 actual (i.e., non-titular) dioceses in the Catholic Church (including the eparchies of the Eastern Catholic ...
(including archdioceses) *
List of Roman Catholic dioceses (structured view) As of October 5, 2021, the Catholic Church in its entirety comprises 3,171 ecclesiastical jurisdictions, including over 652 archdioceses and 2,248 dioceses, as well as apostolic vicariates, apostolic exarchates, apostolic administrations, apo ...
(including archdioceses)


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Roman Catholic Archdiocese Of Baltimore
Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...
Christianity in Baltimore Catholic Church in Maryland
Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...
Religious organizations established in 1789 1789 establishments in Maryland