The Roman Catholic Diocese of Leeds is a

Catholic 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 ...

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, 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 Roman province, pro ...

of the

Latin Rite Latin liturgical rites, or Western liturgical rites, are Catholic rites of public worship employed by the Latin Church, the largest particular church ''sui iuris'' of the Catholic Church, that originated in Europe where the Latin language once ...

centred on

Leeds Cathedral Leeds Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of St Anne, commonly known as Saint Anne's Cathedral, is the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Leeds, and is the seat of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Leeds. It is in the city of Leeds, West ...

in the city of

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

in West Yorkshire, England. It was founded on 20 December 1878, with the splitting of the

Diocese of Beverley The Roman Catholic Diocese of Beverley is an historical diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in England. It took its name after the town of Beverley in the East Riding of Yorkshire, although the episcopal see was located in the city of York. T ...

, which had covered all of

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

. The Diocese of Leeds was made to cover the historic

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...

, while the

Diocese of Middlesbrough The Roman Catholic Diocese of Middlesbrough is a Latin Rite Roman Catholic diocese based in Middlesbrough, England and is part of the province of Liverpool. It was founded on 20 December 1878, with the splitting of the Diocese of Beverley which ...

took over the organisation of the rest of Yorkshire.

History

In the 19th century, the region covered by the modern diocese fell under the jurisdiction of Vicar Apostolic of the Northern District, which in turn became the

Apostolic Vicariate of the Yorkshire District Yorkshire ( ) is a historic county in Northern England and the largest by area size in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have been undertaken over time by its subdivisions, whi ...

, which was then elevated to the distinction of

in 1850. Around 1861, the then Bishop of Beverley, Robert Cornthwaite, informed the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...

that in his opinion, the Diocese of Beverley was too large, and in light of the expanding Catholic population, should be sub-divided into two regions. After 15 years of discussion and planning, it was agreed that on 20 December 1878, the Diocese of Beverley be dissolved and that the Diocese of Leeds be created to cater for the

and those parishes in the City of York to the south of the River Ouse, and the

, covering the

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

and East Ridings of Yorkshire and those parishes in the City of York to the north of the River Ouse. However, in 1982 the two York parishes south of the River Ouse were ceded to the Diocese of Middlesbrough to unite the City of York under one bishop. In 1980, fifty parishes in the

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. The county has four council areas which are the cities of Doncaster and Sheffield as well as the boroughs of Barnsley and Rotherham. In N ...

region of the diocese were transferred from Leeds to the newly formed

Diocese of Hallam The Diocese of Hallam is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in England. The diocese comprises the whole of the City of Sheffield, and the surrounding towns of Rotherham, Doncaster, Barnsley, Chesterfield, ...

. The parish of Howden was transferred from the Middlesbrough diocese to the Leeds diocese in 2004.

Patronal Feasts of the Diocese

Bishops

Ordinaries

See

for bishops of that diocese. * Robert Cornthwaite: Translated Bishop of Leeds, 20 December 1878 – died 16 June 1890. * William Gordon: 16 June 1890 – died 7 June 1911. *

Joseph Robert Cowgill Joseph Robert Cowgill (23 February 1860 – 12 May 1936) was an English prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the third Bishop of Leeds. Life and ministry Joseph Cowgill was born in village Broughton in North Yorkshire ...

: 7 June 1911 – died 12 May 1936. *

Henry John Poskitt Henry John Poskitt (6 September 1888 – 19 February 1950) was an English prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He was the fourth Bishop of Leeds. Life and ministry Poskitt was born in the village of Birkin in the West Riding of Yorkshire ...

: 21 September 1936 – died 19 February 1950. *

John Carmel Heenan John Carmel Heenan (26 January 1905 – 7 November 1975) was a senior-ranking English prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Westminster from 1963 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1965. Biography E ...

: Consecrated Bishop of Leeds 12 March 1951 – translated to Archdiocese of Liverpool, in 1957; future Cardinal. *

George Patrick Dwyer George Patrick Dwyer (25 September 1908 – 17 September 1987) was an English prelate and the Archbishop Emeritus of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham, England. Dwyer served as the sixth Archbishop of Birmingham from 1965 to 1981, suc ...

: Consecrated Bishop of Leeds by John Carmel Heenan, Archbishop of Liverpool, 24 September 1957 – translated to Archdiocese of Birmingham, in 1965. *

Gordon Wheeler William Gordon Wheeler (5 May 1910–21 February 1998) was an English prelate and the bishop emeritus of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Leeds. Wheeler had served as the seventh Roman Catholic Bishop of Leeds, being succeeded by David Konstant. B ...

: Installed as Bishop of Leeds on 27 June 1966 – retired 10 September 1985. *

David Konstant David Every Konstant (16 June 1930 – 9 October 2016) was an English prelate and the Bishop Emeritus of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Leeds, England. Konstant had served as the eighth Roman Catholic Bishop of Leeds, being succeeded by Arthur Ro ...

: Appointed Bishop of Leeds on 23 July 1985; installed as Bishop of Leeds on 25 September 1985 – retired 7 April 2004 and died 9 October 2016. *

Arthur Roche Arthur Roche (born 6 March 1950) is an English cardinal of the Catholic Church who has served as prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship since 2021. He previously served as secretary of the congregation from 2012 to 2021. Prior to his s ...

: Appointed

Coadjutor bishop A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) is a bishop in the Catholic, Anglican, and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in the administration of the diocese. The coadjutor (literally, "co ...

on 16 July 2002 with the Right of Succession. Installed as the 9th Bishop of Leeds on 7 April 2004 upon Konstant's retirement – left office on 26 June 2012 when he was appointed as Secretary, and later Prefect of the

Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments it, Dicastero per il Culto Divino e la Disciplina dei Sacramenti , type = Dicastery , seal = Coat of arms Holy See.svg , seal_size = 100px , seal_caption = Coat of arms of the Holy See , logo = , p ...

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

, with the title

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 ...

, Bishop ''emeritus'' of Leeds. He remained in Leeds as

Apostolic Administrator An Apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...

until 27 September 2012 when he left for Rome. *

Marcus Stock Marcus Stock (born 27 August 1961) is an English bishop of the Catholic Church who has been the tenth Bishop of Leeds since 2014. Early life Marcus Nigel Ralph Stock was born on 27 August 1961 in London, England. He attended Oxford Universit ...

: Named on 15 September 2014; installed as Bishop of Leeds on 13 November 2014.

Coadjutor Bishops

(1905-1911) * William Gordon (1889-1890) *

(2002-2004)

Auxiliary Bishop

Gerald Moverley Gerald Moverley (9 April 1922 - 14 December 1996) was the first Bishop of the Diocese of Hallam in Yorkshire from 30 May 1980 until July 1996 when he resigned due to ill health. Born in Bradford, England, Gerald Moverley was ordained priest on ...

(1967-1980), appointed Bishop of Hallam

Other priests of this diocese who became bishops

Arthur Hinsley Arthur Hinsley (1865–1943) was an English prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Westminster from 1935 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1937. Early life and ministry Hinsley was born in Carlton ne ...

(priest here, 1893-1905), appointed titular bishop in 1926; future Cardinal *

Richard Lacy Richard Lacy (16 January 1841 – 11 April 1929) was an Irish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the first Bishop of Middlesbrough from 1879 to 1929. Biography Born in Navan, County Meath, Ireland on 16 January 1841, he was ...

, appointed Bishop of Middlesbrough in 1879 *

Thomas Kevin O'Brien Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

, appointed auxiliary bishop of Middlesbrough in 1981 * Arthur Grange Riddell, appointed Bishop of Northampton in 1880 *

Thomas Shine Thomas Shine KC*HS (12 February 1872 – 22 November 1955) was an Irish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the Bishop of Middlesbrough from 1929 to 1955. Born in New Inn, County Tipperary, Ireland on 12 February 1872, comp ...

, appointed auxiliary bishop of Middlesbrough in 1921 * John Wilson, appointed auxiliary bishop of Westminster in 2015 - later

Archbishop of Southwark The Archbishop of Southwark (''Br'' �sʌðɨk is the Ordinary (Catholic Church), Ordinary of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Southwark in England. As such he is the Metropolitan Archbishop of the Province of Southwark. The archdiocese has ...

* Philip Moger, appointed auxiliary bishop of Southwark in 2022

Deaneries

Below is a list of the eleven deaneries of the diocese, along with the

Dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

and the Dean's Parish.

Parishes

Below is a list of the parishes which fall under the Diocese of Leeds, they are presented within the

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residenc ...

which they are grouped in.

References

External links

Official SiteThe Latin Mass Society in the Catholic Diocese of Leeds
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leeds

Christianity in West Yorkshire Christianity in North Yorkshire Christianity in Yorkshire

Roman Catholic Ecclesiastical Province of Liverpool