The Archdiocese of Grouard–McLennan () is a

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

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 associated ...

of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

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and the

metropolitan see Metropolitan may refer to: Areas and governance (secular and ecclesiastical) * Metropolitan archdiocese, the jurisdiction of a metropolitan archbishop ** Metropolitan bishop or archbishop, leader of an ecclesiastical "mother see" * Metropolitan ...

of an

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian churches, including those of both Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity, that have traditional hierarchical structures. An ecclesiastical province consist ...

for the Roman Catholic Church in northwestern Canada. 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 ...

Gérard Pettipas Gérard Pettipas, C.Ss.R. (born September 6, 1950) is a Canadian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He is a member of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (Redemptorists). He currently serves as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Grouard- ...

. As archbishop, Pettipas also serves as

pastor A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...

of the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, the mother church and

episcopal see An episcopal see is the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, making it synonymous with ''diocese'' ...

of the archdiocese.

Ecclesiastical province

The Metropolitan has two

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Catholic Church, a suffragan bishop leads a diocese within an ecclesiastical province other than the principal diocese, the metropolitan archdiocese; the diocese led ...

s : *

Roman Catholic Diocese of Mackenzie-Fort Smith Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

* Roman Catholic Diocese of Whitehorse.

History

The Archdiocese of Grouard–McLennan was erected on April 8, 1862, as the

Apostolic Vicariate An apostolic vicariate is a territorial jurisdiction of the Catholic Church under a titular bishop centered in missionary regions and countries where dioceses or parishes have not yet been established. The status of apostolic vicariate is often ...

of Athabaska Mackenzie, on territory split off from the

Diocese of Saint-Boniface The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint-Boniface () is a Latin archdiocese in part of the civil Province of Manitoba in Canada. Despite having no suffragan dioceses, the archdiocese is nominally metropolitan and is an ecclesiastical province by it ...

. A month later on May 8, 1862, Henri Faraud was appointed as

apostolic vicar Apostolic may refer to: The Apostles An Apostle meaning one sent on a mission: *The Twelve Apostles of Jesus, or something related to them, such as the Church of the Holy Apostles *Apostolic succession, the doctrine connecting the Christian Churc ...

. Faraud served until March 20, 1890, when he resigned. He was succeeded by Émile Grouard who was appointed

on October 18, 1890. Faraud and later Grouard were assisted by Isidore Clut who was appointed

auxiliary bishop An auxiliary bishop is a bishop assigned to assist the diocesan bishop in meeting the pastoral and administrative needs of the diocese. Auxiliary bishops can also be titular bishops of sees that no longer exist as territorial jurisdictions. ...

on August 3, 1864, and who served until his death on July 9, 1903. On July 3, 1901, the territory of the vicariate was split, remaining as the Apostolic Vicariate of Athabaska, which comprised what is today the northwestern area of the Province of Alberta, but losing the then Apostolic Vicariate of Mackenzie, which comprised what today is the

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of Provinces and territorie ...

as well as northeastern area of the Province of Alberta. Grouard remained as the Apostolic Vicar of Athabaska and Gabriel Breynat was appointed Apostolic Vicar of Mackenzie. A few years after the death of Bishop Clut, Celestin_Henri Joussard was appointed

coadjutor The term "coadjutor" (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: * Coadjutor bishop ...

apostolic vicar on May 11, 1909. On March 15, 1927, the name of the vicariate was changed from the Apostolic Vicariate of Athabaska to the Apostolic Vicariate of Grouard. Joussard never ended up succeeding Grouard as Apostolic Vicar of Athabaska and both Grouard and Joussard retired on April 18, 1929. Following the retirement of Grouard, Joseph Guy was appointed Vicar Apostolic of Grouard on December 19, 1929. Guy served until June 2, 1937, when he was appointed the Bishop of Gravelbourg. The following year on March 30, 1938, Ubald Langlois was appointed Apostolic Vicar of Grouard. On June 15, 1945, Henri Routhier was appointed coadjutor apostolic vicar. In 1946 Langlois transferred the seat of the vicariate from Grouard to McLennan. The town of Grouard, taking its name from Bishop Grouard when it was incorporated as a town on September 27, 1909, was a thriving community of approximately 1,200 people. This changed when the Edmonton, Dunvegan and British Columbia Railway built its new line south of

Lesser Slave Lake Lesser Slave Lake is located in northern Alberta, Canada, northwest of Edmonton. It is the second largest lake entirely within Alberta boundaries (and the largest easily accessible by vehicle), covering and measuring over long and at its wid ...

instead of going through Grouard which was on the north shore of Lesser Slave Lake. The majority of Grouard's population moved to

High Prairie High Prairie is a town in northern Alberta, Canada within Big Lakes County. It is located at the junction of Alberta Highway 2, Highway 2 and Alberta Highway 749, Highway 749, approximately northeast of Valleyview, Alberta, Valleyview and wes ...

, the newly established town on the railway. Bishop Grouard had originally established a mission at the Lesser Slave Lake settlement, the original name of Grouard, under the patronage of Saint Bernard, in 1872. Shortly after the seat of the vicariate was transferred to McLennan, work began on a new cathedral dedicated to Saint John the Baptist. Langlois served as Apostolic Vicar of Grouard until his death on September 18, 1953. Upon Langlois death, Bishop Routhier immediately succeeded him as Apostolic Vicar of Grouard. On July 13, 1967, the Apostolic Vicariate of Grouard was elevated to the Archdiocese of Grouard–McLennan and made the

Metropolitan See Metropolitan may refer to: Areas and governance (secular and ecclesiastical) * Metropolitan archdiocese, the jurisdiction of a metropolitan archbishop ** Metropolitan bishop or archbishop, leader of an ecclesiastical "mother see" * Metropolitan ...

of northwestern Canada with the newly elevated Dioceses of Prince George, Mackenzie-Fort Smith and

Whitehorse Whitehorse () is the capital of Yukon, and the largest city in Northern Canada. It was incorporated in 1950 and is located at kilometre 1426 (Historic Mile 918) on the Alaska Highway in southern Yukon. Whitehorse's downtown and Riverdale areas ...

as suffragans, but the Diocese of Prince George was later transferred to the Ecclesiastical Province of British Columbia. On this date all the Apostolic Vicariates in northern Canada were elevated to dioceses. Routhier served until his resignation on November 21, 1972, he was succeeded by Henri Légaré, who had been Bishop of Labrador-Schefferville. Archbishop Légaré served until his retirement on July 16, 1996. On the same day Henri Goudreault, who had also served as Bishop of Labrador City-Schefferville, was appointed to succeed him. Archbishop Goudreault died suddenly of a heart attack on July 23, 1998. The Archdiocese of Grouard–McLennan remained vacant until the appointment of Arthé Guimond, who had served as archdiocesan administrator, on June 9, 2000. Archbishop Guimond retired on November 30, 2006, and

was appointed to succeed him on the same day.

Bishops

Episcopal ordinaries

(all

Roman Rite The Roman Rite () is the most common ritual family for performing the ecclesiastical services of the Latin Church, the largest of the ''sui iuris'' particular churches that comprise the Catholic Church. The Roman Rite governs Rite (Christianity) ...

, mostly members of Latin congregations) ;''Apostolic Vicars of Athabaska Mackenzie'' * Henri Faraud (8 May 1862 – death 20 March 1890),

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 ...

Anemurium Anemurium (), also called Animurium, is an ancient city whose ruins, now called ''Eski Anamur'' or ''Anemuryum'', are close to the modern Turkish city of ''Anamur''. It was in the Roman province of ancient Cilicia, Cilicia, later Isauria, and was ...

(1863.05.16 – 1890.09.26) **

Auxiliary Bishop An auxiliary bishop is a bishop assigned to assist the diocesan bishop in meeting the pastoral and administrative needs of the diocese. Auxiliary bishops can also be titular bishops of sees that no longer exist as territorial jurisdictions. ...

Isidore Clut (1864.08.03 – death 1903.07.09), Titular Bishop of

Arindela Gharandal () is a town in the Tafilah Governorate in southern Jordan, located about south-southeast of the governorate capital Tafilah. It is identified with Arindela (), a town in the late Roman province of Palaestina Salutaris, also called Palae ...

(1864.08.03 – 1903.07.09) * Émile Grouard (18 October 1890 – 3 July 1901 ''see below''), Titular Bishop of Ibora (18 October 1890 – 28 February 1930). ;''Apostolic Vicar of Athabaska'' * Émile Grouard (''see above'' 3 July 1901 – 15 March 1927 ''see below'') ** Coadjutor Vicar Apostolic Célestin-Henri Joussard (1909.05.11 – retired 1929.04.18), Titular Bishop of Arcadiopolis (1909.05.11 – death 1932.09.20). ;''Apostolic Vicars of Grouard'' * Émile Grouard (''see above'' 15 March 1927 – retired 18 April 1929), emeritate as Titular Archbishop of Ægina (1930.02.28 – death 1931.03.07) * Joseph Guy (19 December 1929 – 2 June 1937), Titular Bishop of Photice (1929.12.19 – 1937.06.02); later Bishop of Gravelbourg (1937.06.02 – retired 1942.11.07), emeritate again as Titular Bishop of Photice (1942.11.07 – death 1951.12.08) * Ubald Langlois (30 March 1938 – death 18 September 1953), Titular Bishop of Risinium (1938.03.30 – 1953.09.18) * Henri Routhier (18 September 1953 – see elevated 13 July 1967 ''see below''), succeeding as previous Coadjutor Vicar Apostolic of Grouard (1945.06.15 – 1953.09.18) and Titular Bishop of Naissus (1945.06.15 – 1967.07.13). ;''Metropolitan archbishops of Grouard–McLennan :'' * Henri Routhier (''see above'' 13 July 1967 – retired 21 November 1972), died 1989 * Henri Légaré (21 November 1972 – retired 16 July 1996), also President of Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (1981 – 1983); previously Bishop of Labrador–Schefferville (Canada) (1967.07.13 – 1972.11.21); died 2004 * Henri Goudreault (16 July 1996 – death 23 July 1998), previously Bishop of Labrador–Schefferville (Canada) (1987.04.27 – 1996.07.16) * Arthé Guimond (9 June 2000 – retired 30 November 2006), died 2013 *

(30 November 2006 – ...).

Coadjutor bishops

* Célestin-Henri Joussard (1909-1929), as Coadjutor Vicar Apostolic; did not succeed to see * Henri Routhier (1945-1953), as Coadjutor Vicar Apostolic

Auxiliary bishop

* Isidore Clut (1864-1890)

Extent and statistics

Its ecclesiastic territory includes the northwest section of the Province of Alberta, the boundaries of which are, on the north the

60th parallel north The 60th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 60 degrees north of Earth's equator. It crosses Europe, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, North America, and the Atlantic Ocean. Although it lies approximately twice as far away from the Equator as ...

, separating it from the

and the Diocese of Mackenzie-Fort Smith. To the south the

55th parallel north Following are circles of latitude between the 50th parallel north and the 55th parallel north: 51st parallel north The 51st parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 51 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses Europe, A ...

, separating it from the Diocese of Saint Paul. On the east the 113th meridian west, separating it from the Diocese of Saint Paul (to the 58th parallel north) and the Diocese of Mackenzie-Fort Smith (to the

). To the west the 120th meridian west, separating it from the Province of

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, and the Diocese of Prince George. As per 2014, the archdiocese pastorally served 59,927 Catholics (37.7% of 159,081 total) on 224,596 km² in 33 parishes with 26 priests (17 diocesan, 9 religious), 2 deacons, 20 lay religious (9 brothers, 11 sisters) and 3 seminarians. The archdiocese is organized into five Deaneries: Deanery 1 (centered on McLennan and predominantly French-speaking), Deanery 2 (centered on Peace River), Deanery 3 (centered on Grande Prairie), Deanery 4 (centered around Grouard and Slave Lake and predominantly Cree and Metis) and Deanery 5 (containing the farthest-north communities of Alberta)

References

Sources and external links

Archdiocese of Grouard–McLennan

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grouard-McLennan, Roman Catholic Archdiocese History of Alberta Religious organizations established in 1862 Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 19th century Religious sees in Alberta 1862 establishments in the British Empire 1862 establishments in Canada