The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio is an

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 associate ...

of the

Catholic Church in the United States With 23 percent of the United States' population , the Catholic Church is the country's second largest religious grouping, after Protestantism, and the country's largest single church or Christian denomination where Protestantism is divided i ...

, and

sui juris ''Sui iuris'' ( or ) also spelled ''sui juris'', is a Latin phrase that literally means "of one's own right". It is used in both secular law and the Catholic Church's canon law. The term church ''sui iuris'' is used in the Catholic '' Code of Ca ...

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 ...

in full communion with the

pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. It encompasses in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio had a self-reported 2018 population of 796,954, up from 728,001 in 2014. The archdiocese includes the city of

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

and the following counties: Val Verde,

Edwards Edwards may refer to: People * Edwards (surname) * Edwards family, a prominent family from Chile * Edwards Barham (1937-2014), a former member of the Louisiana State Senate * Edwards Pierrepont (1817–1892), an American attorney, jurist, and ora ...

Real Real may refer to: Currencies * Brazilian real (R$) * Central American Republic real * Mexican real * Portuguese real * Spanish real * Spanish colonial real Music Albums * ''Real'' (L'Arc-en-Ciel album) (2000) * ''Real'' (Bright album) (2010) ...

Kerr Kerr may refer to: People *Kerr (surname) *Kerr (given name) Places ;United States *Kerr Township, Champaign County, Illinois *Kerr, Montana, A US census-designated place *Kerr, Ohio, an unincorporated community *Kerr County, Texas Other uses ...

, Gillespie, Kendall,

Comal COMAL (''Common Algorithmic Language'') is a computer programming language developed in Denmark by Børge R. Christensen and Benedict Løfstedt and originally released in 1975. COMAL was one of the few structured programming languages that was a ...

, Guadalupe, Gonzales, Uvalde, Kinney,

Medina Medina,, ', "the radiant city"; or , ', (), "the city" officially Al Madinah Al Munawwarah (, , Turkish: Medine-i Münevvere) and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah (, ), is the Holiest sites in Islam, second-holiest city in Islam, ...

, Bexar, Wilson, Karnes,

Frio Frío or Frio may refer to: __NOTOC__ Places * Frio River, Texas, United States * Frio County, Texas, United States * Frio Town, Texas, United States, known as Frio City Music * Frio (musician), stage name of Edwin Rojas Restrepo, a Colombian ...

, Atascosa, Bandera County, and the portion of McMullen north of the

Nueces River The Nueces River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas, about long. It drains a region in central and southern Texas southeastward into the Gulf of Mexico. It is the southernmost major river in Texas northeast of the Rio Grande. ''Nueces'' ...

. On August 28, 1874, the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Galveston 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 ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

was divided and the northern territory was canonically erected by 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 ...

as the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Antonio. Originally part of the Ecclesiastical Province of New Orleans, it was subsequently elevated on August 3, 1926, to a metropolitan archdiocese. The archbishop of San Antonio also serves as the metropolitan of the ecclesiastical province of San Antonio with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio overseeing the following

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 ...

dioceses:

Amarillo Amarillo ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "yellow") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat, seat of Potter County, Texas, Potter County. It is the List of cities in Texas by population, 14th-most populous city in Texas and th ...

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

El Paso El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the s ...

Fort Worth Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. According ...

, Laredo,

Lubbock Lubbock ( ) is the 10th-most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of government of Lubbock County. With a population of 260,993 in 2021, the city is also the 85th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the northw ...

, and

San Angelo San Angelo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Tom Green County, Texas, United States. Its location is in the Concho Valley, a region of West Texas between the Permian Basin to the northwest, Chihuahuan Desert to the southwest, Osage Plai ...

. All of Texas' dioceses had been suffragan sees under San Antonio until December 2004 when

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

created the new Ecclesiastical Province of Galveston-Houston and elevated the

Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston 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 ...

to a metropolitan see.

History

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio was erected as a diocese on August 28, 1874, under the then

Diocese of Galveston 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 ...

. It was elevated to an archdiocese on August 3, 1926. In 2010, it had 138

parishes A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

, 34 missions and two pastoral centers. In 2018, it reported 139 parishes, 5 hospitals, 3 health care centers, 3 orphanages, 16 nurseries, 10 high schools, and 30 elementary schools. With the appointment of Archbishop

José Horacio Gómez José Horacio Gómez Velasco (born December 26, 1951) is a Mexican-born American prelate of the Catholic Church. He became the fifth Archbishop of Los Angeles in 2011. He served as Auxiliary Bishop of Denver from 2001 to 2004 and as Archbi ...

as the Coadjutor Archbishop of Los Angeles, its cathedral was considered

sede vacante ''Sede vacante'' ( in Latin.) is a term for the state of a diocese while without a bishop. In the canon law of the Catholic Church, the term is used to refer to the vacancy of the bishop's or Pope's authority upon his death or resignation. Hi ...

until October 14, 2010. On October 14, 2010,

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 ...

appointed Gustavo Garcia-Siller as archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio. On January 31, 2019, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio released a list of 56 Catholic clergy who were "credibly accused" of committing acts of sex abuse as early as 1940.

Bishops

The following are lists of ordinaries (bishops and archbishops of the diocese) and auxiliary bishops, and their years of service. They are followed by other priests of this diocese who became bishops.

Bishops of San Antonio

Anthony Dominic Ambrose Pellicer Anthony Dominic Pellicer (December 7, 1824 – April 14, 1880) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He was the first Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio, Bishop of San Antonio, serving from 1874 until his death in 1880. Biogr ...

(1874–1880) #

John Claude Neraz John Claude Neraz (January 12, 1828 – November 15, 1894) was a French-born clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of San Antonio from 1881 until his death in 1894. Biography John Claude Neraz was born in Anse, Rhône, ...

(1881–1894) #

John Anthony Forest John Anthony Forest (December 25, 1838 – March 11, 1911) was a French-born clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of San Antonio from 1895 until his death in 1911. Biography John Forest was born in Saint-Martin-la-Sau ...

(1895–1911) # John William Shaw (1911–1918; Coadjutor Bishop 1910-1911), appointed

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 Jeffers ...

# Arthur Jerome Drossaerts (1918–1926), elevated to Archbishop

Archbishops of San Antonio

# Arthur Jerome Drossaerts (1926–1940) # Robert Emmet Lucey (1941–1969) # Francis James Furey (1969–1979) #

Patrick Fernández Flores Patricio Fernández Flores (July 26, 1929 – January 9, 2017) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served from 1979 to 2004 as archbishop of the Archdiocese of San Antonio in Texas, bishop of the Diocese of El Paso in Texa ...

(1979–2004) # Jose Horacio Gómez Velasco (2004–2010), appointed Coadjutor Archbishop and later

Archbishop of Los Angeles The Archdiocese of Los Angeles ( la, Archidiœcesis Angelorum in California, es, Arquidiócesis de Los Ángeles) is an ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church ( particularly the Roman Catholic or Latin Church) located in t ...

# Gustavo Garcia-Siller, M.Sp.S. (2010–present)

Auxiliary Bishops

* Stephen Aloysius Leven (1955–1969), appointed Bishop of San Angelo *

(1970–1978), appointed Bishop of El Paso and later Archbishop of San Antonio *

Hugo Mark Gerbermann Hugo Mark Gerbermann, M.M. (September 11, 1913 - October 19, 1996) was an American-born Catholic missionary and bishop. As a member of the Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America (Maryknoll) he was assigned to missions in Ecuador and Guatema ...

, M.M. (1975–1982) *

Raymundo Joseph Peña Raymundo Joseph Peña (February 19, 1934 – September 24, 2021) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church.Bishop of El Paso and later Bishop of Brownsville * Charles Victor Grahmann (1981–1982), appointed Bishop of Victoria and later Bishop of Dallas * Ricardo Ramirez, C.S.B (1981–1982), appointed Bishop of Las Cruces * Bernard Ferdinand Popp (1983–1993) *

Edmond Carmody Edmond Carmody, D.D., (born January 12, 1934) is an Irish-born American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Corpus Christi in Texas (2000 to 2010), bishop of the Diocese of Tyler in Texas (1992 to 2000) ...

(1988–1992), appointed Bishop of Tyler and later Bishop of Corpus Christi *

Joseph Anthony Galante Joseph Anthony Galante (July 2, 1938 – May 25, 2019) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Camden in New Jersey from 2004 to 2013. He previously held several positions as a bishop in Tex ...

(1992–1994), appointed Bishop of Beaumont and later Coadjutor Bishop of Dallas and Bishop of Camden *

John Yanta John Walter Yanta (October 2, 1931 – August 6, 2022) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Amarillo in Texas from 1997 to 2008 and as an auxiliary bishop in the Archdiocese of San Anton ...

(1994–1997), appointed Bishop of Amarillo * Thomas Flanagan (1998–2005) *

Patrick Zurek Patrick James Zurek (born 17 August 1948) is an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He has served as Roman Catholic Diocese of Amarillo, Bishop of Amarillo since February 22, 2008. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Roman C ...

(1998–2008), appointed Bishop of Amarillo *

Oscar Cantú Oscar Cantú (born December 5, 1966) is a Mexican-American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of San Jose in California since 2018. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Las Cruces in New Mexico fro ...

(2008–2013), appointed Bishop of Las Cruces *

Michael Joseph Boulette Michael Joseph Boulette (born June 4, 1950) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of San Antonio in Texas since 2017. Biography Early life Michael J. Boulette wa ...

(2017–present) * Gary W. Janak (2021–present)

Other priests of this diocese who became bishops

Mariano Simon Garriga Mariano Simon Garriga (May 30, 1886 – February 21, 1965) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Corpus Christi in Texas from 1949 until his death in 1965. Biography Early life Mariano G ...

, appointed Coadjutor Bishop in 1936 and later Bishop of Corpus Christi *

Sidney Matthew Metzger Sidney Matthew Metzger, STD, JCD (July 11, 1902 – April 12, 1986) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of El Paso in Texas from 1942 to 1978. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop ...

, appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Santa Fe in 1939 and later Coadjutor Bishop and Bishop of El Paso *

Laurence Julius FitzSimon Laurence Julius FitzSimon (January 31, 1895 – July 2, 1958) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Amarillo in Texas from 1941 until his death in 1958. Biography Early life Laurence Fi ...

, appointed Bishop of Amarillo in 1941 *

John Louis Morkovsky John Ludvik Morkovsky (August 16, 1909 – March 24, 1990) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Amarillo in Texas from 1958 to 1963 and as bishop of the Diocese of Galveston-Houston in Texas fr ...

, appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Amarillo in 1955, later Bishop of Amarillo, Coadjutor Bishop of Galveston-Houston, Bishop of Galveston-Houston *

Charles Edwin Herzig Charles Edwin Herzig (August 14, 1929 – September 7, 1991) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the first bishop of the Diocese of Tyler in Texas from 1987 until his death in 1991. Biography Charles Herzig w ...

, appointed Bishop of Tyler in 1986 *

Gerald Richard Barnes Gerald Richard Barnes (born June 22, 1945) is an American prelate of the Catholic Church, Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Bernardino, Diocese of San Bernardino in California from 1996 to 2020 and ...

, appointed Auxiliary Bishop in 1992 and later Bishop of San Bernardino * José Arturo Cepeda Escobedo, appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Detroit in 2011

Education

; Catholic Universities *

Our Lady of the Lake University Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU), known locally as the Lake, is a private Catholic university in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1895 by the Sisters of Divine Providence, a religious institute originating in Lorraine, France, duri ...

* St. Mary's University *

University of the Incarnate Word The University of the Incarnate Word (UIW) is a private, Catholic university with its main campus in San Antonio and Alamo Heights, Texas. Founded in 1881 by the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, the university's main campus is located o ...

;High schools *

Antonian College Preparatory High School Antonian College Preparatory High School is an archdiocesan Catholic co-educational high school for students grades 9 through 12. Antonian has been recognized as a National Blue Ribbon Catholic high school. It is located in Castle Hills, Texas. It ...

, Castle Hills (Est. 1964) * Central Catholic Marianist High School, San Antonio (Est. 1852) *

Holy Cross of San Antonio Holy Cross of San Antonio is a Catholic, coeducational college preparatory secondary school located in the Loma Vista neighborhood of San Antonio, Texas, on the west side of the city, in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio. History Holy ...

, San Antonio (Est. 1957) *

Incarnate Word High School Incarnate Word High School is a private, Roman Catholic, all-girls high school in Midtown San Antonio, Texas, United States established in 1881. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio and is a division of the University o ...

, San Antonio (Est. 1881) * Our Lady of the Hills High School, Kerrville (Est. 2013) * Providence High School, San Antonio (Est. 1951) * St. Anthony Catholic High School, San Antonio (Est. 1903) * St. Gerard Catholic High School, San Antonio (Est. 1927) * John Paul II Catholic High School, Schertz (Est. 2009) ;Former high schools *

St. Francis Academy Saint Francis Academy may refer to: * Saint Francis Academy (Gainesville, Florida), a secondary school in the U.S. * St. Francis Academy, a former U.S. all-girls secondary school that merged into Joliet Catholic Academy Joliet Catholic Academy ( ...

- High school for girls *

St. Mary's School by the Riverwalk The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio is an archdiocese of the Catholic Church in the United States, and sui juris Latin Church in full communion with the pope of Rome. It encompasses in the U.S. state of Texas. The Roman Catholic Archd ...

(1910–2004)

Province of San Antonio

See ''

List of the Catholic bishops of the United States The following is a list of bishops of the Catholic Church in the United States, including its five inhabited territories. The U.S. Catholic Church comprises: * 176 Latin Church dioceses led by bishops * 18 Eastern Catholic eparchies led by e ...

References

External links

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio Official Site
*
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio Official Site
(Archive)
Archdiocese of San Antonio Schools

Archdiocese of San Antonio
(Archives) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Roman Catholic Archdiocese Of San Antonio Organizations based in San Antonio