The Roman Catholic Diocese of Grand Falls ( la, Dioecesis Grandfallensis) (erected 29 February 1856, as the Diocese of Harbour Grace) is a Latin

suffragan 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 jurisdictiona ...

in the Atlantic Canadian

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United State ...

of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of St. John's, Newfoundland. The

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

episcopal see is the Marian Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, in

Grand Falls-Windsor Grand Falls-Windsor is a town located in the central region of the island of Newfoundland in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, with a population of 13,853 at the 2021 census. The town is the largest in the central region, the s ...

, and it has a former Cathedral, also dedicated to the

Immaculate Conception The Immaculate Conception is the belief that the Virgin Mary was free of original sin from the moment of her conception. It is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church, meaning that it is held to be a divinely revealed truth w ...

, in

Harbour Grace Harbour Grace is a town in Conception Bay on the Avalon Peninsula in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. With roots dating back to the 16th century, it is one of the oldest towns in North America. It is located about northwest ...

, Newfoundland and Labrador.

History

* Established on 1856.02.29 as Diocese of Harbour Grace / Portus Gratiæ (Latin) on territory split off from the Archdiocese of St. John's. * Lost territories repeatedly: on 1870.09.16 to establish

Apostolic Prefecture of Placentia The Apostolic Prefecture of Placentia was a short-lived (1870–91) Catholic pre-diocesan jurisdiction in Atlantic Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to t ...

and on 1945.07.13 to establish Apostolic Vicariate of Labrador. * It was renamed as the Diocese of Harbour Grace-Grand Falls on 22 February 1958 and again as the Diocese of Grand Falls on 30 October 1964.

Statistics

As per 2014, it pastorally served 40,900 Catholics (20.7% of 197,400 total) on 42,368 km² in 30 parishes and 43 missions with 29 priests (diocesan), 1 deacon and 15 lay religious sisters.

Bishops

Ordinaries

(all

Roman Rite The Roman Rite ( la, Ritus Romanus) is the primary liturgical rite of the Latin Church, the largest of the ''sui iuris'' particular churches that comprise the Catholic Church. It developed in the Latin language in the city of Rome and, while dist ...

) ;''Suffragan Bishops of Harbour Grace'' *

John Dalton John Dalton (; 5 or 6 September 1766 – 27 July 1844) was an English chemist, physicist and meteorologist. He is best known for introducing the atomic theory into chemistry, and for his research into colour blindness, which he had. Colour b ...

;

Friars Minor The Order of Friars Minor (also called the Franciscans, the Franciscan Order, or the Seraphic Order; postnominal abbreviation OFM) is a mendicant Catholic religious order, founded in 1209 by Francis of Assisi. The order adheres to the teachin ...

(O.F.M.) (1856.02.29 – death 1869.05.05) *

Enrico Carfagnini Enrico Carfagnini, O.F.M. (also known as Henry Carfagnini; 23 March 1823 – 2 December 1904) was an Italian Friar Minor and educator, who served as the Bishop of Harbour Grace, Newfoundland from 1870 to 1880. He was also Bishop of Gallipoli, ...

, O.F.M. (1870.05.13 – 1880.02.27), next Bishop of

Gallipoli The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...

(Italy) (1880.02.27 – retired 1898.03.24), emeritate as

Titular Archbishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

Cius Cius (; grc-gre, Kίος or Κῖος ''Kios''), later renamed Prusias on the Sea (; la, Prusias ad Mare) after king Prusias I of Bithynia, was an ancient Greek city bordering the Propontis (now known as the Sea of Marmara), in Bithynia and in ...

(1898.03.24 – death 1904.02.12) * Ronald MacDonald (1881.05.24 – retired 1906.09.03), emeritate as Titular Archbishop of

Gortyna Gortyna ( grc, Γόρτυνα; also known as Gortyn (Γορτύν)) was a town of ancient Crete which appears in the Homeric poems under the form of Γορτύν; but afterwards became usually Gortyna (Γόρτυνα). According to Stephanus of ...

(1906.09.03 – death 1912.09.17) * John March (1906.09.04 – death 1940.01.12) * John Michael O'Neill (1940.01.12 – 1958.02.22 ''see below'') ;''Suffragan Bishops of Harbour Grace–Grand Falls * John Michael O'Neill (''see above'' 1958.02.22 – 1964.10.30 ''see below''), died 1974 ;''Suffragan Bishops of Grand Falls'' * John Michael O'Neill (''see above'' 1964.10.30 – 1972.11.23), died 1974 *

Alphonsus Liguori Penney Archbishop Alphonsus Liguori Penney (17 September 1924 – 12 December 2017) was a Canadian Catholic priest who was Archbishop of St. John's from 1979 to 1991. He was born in St. John's, Newfoundland. Sexual abuse scandal The Winter Commission wa ...

(1972.11.23 – 1979.04.05), next Metropolitan Archbishop of

St. John's, Newfoundland St. John's is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. The city spans and is the easternmost city in North America ...

(Canada) (1979.04.05 – retired 1991.02.02) * Joseph Faber MacDonald (1980.01.11 – 1998.10.23), next Bishop of

Saint John, New Brunswick Saint John is a seaport city of the Atlantic Ocean located on the Bay of Fundy in the province of New Brunswick, Canada. Saint John is the oldest incorporated city in Canada, established by royal charter on May 18, 1785, during the reign of Ki ...

(Canada) (1998.10.23 – 2006.09.09); died 2012 *

Martin William Currie Martin William Currie (born December 11, 1943) is a Canadian Catholic who was the seventh archbishop of the Archdiocese of St. John's, Newfoundland. He retired in 2018 and holds the title of Archbishop Emeritus of St. John's. He had previously s ...

(2000.12.12 – 1 March 2011), also

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 ...

(Canada) (2006.09.09 – 2007.05.08), Metropolitan Archbishop of

(Canada) (2007.10.18 – ...) *

Robert Anthony Daniels (Robert) Anthony Daniels (born June 18, 1957)is a Canadian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church.He is the 9th Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Grand Falls, Newfoundland, Canada, succeeding Archbishop Martin Currie, 67, who had been the Bish ...

(1 March 2011 - ...), previously

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of Scebatiana (2004.09.21 – 2011.03.01) as Auxiliary Bishop of

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

(Ontario, Canada) (2004.09.21 – 2011.03.01).

Other priest of this diocese who became bishop

Brian Joseph Dunn Brian Joseph Dunn (born 1955) is a Canadian prelate of the Catholic Church who is Archbishop of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth, Halifax-Yarmouth. He was Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish, Bishop of Antigonish from 2010 to 2019 ...

, appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Sault Sainte Marie, Ontario in 2008

Bibliography

Sources and external links

Roman Catholic Diocese of Grand Falls site

Acta Apostolicae Sedis with the decree renaming the diocese
Roman Catholic Ecclesiastical Province of St. John's, Newfoundland Religious organizations established in 1856 Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 19th century 1856 establishments in Newfoundland 1856 establishments in Canada {{Canada-RC-diocese-stub