The Diocese of Montreal is a

diocese 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 associ ...

of the Ecclesiastical Province of Canada of the

Anglican Church of Canada The Anglican Church of Canada (ACC or ACoC) is the province of the Anglican Communion in Canada. The official French-language name is ''l'Église anglicane du Canada''. In 2017, the Anglican Church counted 359,030 members on parish rolls in 2,2 ...

, in turn a province of the

Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is the third largest Christian communion after the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Founded in 1867 in London, the communion has more than 85 million members within the Church of England and other ...

. The diocese comprises the encompassing the City and Island of

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

, the Laurentians, the South Shore opposite Montreal, and part of the

Eastern Townships The Eastern Townships (french: Cantons de l'Est) is an historical administrative region in southeastern Quebec, Canada. It lies between the St. Lawrence Lowlands and the American border, and extends from Granby in the southwest, to Drummondv ...

. The

See city See or SEE may refer to: * Sight - seeing Arts, entertainment, and media * Music: ** ''See'' (album), studio album by rock band The Rascals *** "See", song by The Rascals, on the album ''See'' ** "See" (Tycho song), song by Tycho * Television * ...

, and 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 denominations ...

is Christ Church. The diocese maintains approximately 9,000 on its parish rolls"Montreal Anglican", June 2010 in about seventy parishes.

History

The diocese was established in 1850, having been carved off from the Diocese of Quebec (where there was a suffragan bishop of Montreal from 1836). The first

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin word mean ...

was organised nine years later. Its first bishop, Francis Fulford, was influenced by the

Oxford Movement The Oxford Movement was a movement of high church members of the Church of England which began in the 1830s and eventually developed into Anglo-Catholicism. The movement, whose original devotees were mostly associated with the University of ...

. In 1866, there was one archdeaconry: J. Scott was

Archdeacon of Montreal An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denominations, above that of most ...

Present status

While Montreal was the largest Canadian city and the centre of commerce in the country, the diocese thrived. In recent decades, however, as these attributes have shifted to

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

, the English-Canadian population in the diocese has shrunk dramatically, forcing the merger and the closure of parishes. The diocese's original membership of 25,000 150 years ago has shrunk by over one-third, even as the total population in the civil region has expanded from about 70,000 to over 3,000,000—a 9000% decrease in its proportional importance. The diocese's decline thus far exceeds Montreal's relative loss of prestige to Toronto. With both the dioceses of Montreal and

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirte ...

now having less than 10,000 members, and decreasing membership, discussions are underway for the eventual merger of the two fading dioceses, beginning with an exploration of opportunities for combined administration. Today, like the Anglican Church of Canada generally,

liberal theology Religious liberalism is a conception of religion (or of a particular religion) which emphasizes personal and group liberty and rationality. It is an attitude towards one's own religion (as opposed to criticism of religion from a secular position ...

dominates, with the bishop approving a form for blessings for same-sex unions in 2010. The present bishop is

Mary Irwin-Gibson Mary Irwin-Gibson is the bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Montreal. At the time of her election, Irwin-Gibson was Dean of Ontario and rector of St George's Cathedral in Kingston, where she had been in office since September, 2009. Irwin-Gibso ...

Parish list

Estrie Estrie () is an administrative region of Quebec that comprises the Eastern Townships. ''Estrie'', a French neologism, was coined as a derivative of ''est'', "east". Originally settled by anglophones, today it is about 90 per cent francophone. Angl ...

Memphrémagog Regional County Municipality

* St Paul's Anglican Church, Masonville,

Potton Potton is a town and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England, about east of the county town Bedford. Its population in 2011 was 4,870. In 1783 the Great Fire of Potton destroyed a large part of the town. T ...

Island of Montreal The Island of Montreal (french: Île de Montréal) is a large island in southwestern Quebec, Canada, that is the site of a number of municipalities including most of the city of Montreal and is the most populous island in Canada. It is the main ...

* All Saints by the Lake,

Dorval Dorval () is an on-island suburban city on the island of Montreal in southwestern Quebec, Canada. In 2016, the Canadian Census indicated that the population increased by 4.2% to 18,980. Although the city has the largest surface area in Montr ...

* Anglican Church of St Peter and St Mark, Saint-Laurent,

* Christ Church Cathedral, Ville-Marie, Montreal * Christ Church, Beaurepaire,

Beaconsfield Beaconsfield ( ) is a market town and civil parish within the unitary authority of Buckinghamshire, England, west-northwest of central London and south-southeast of Aylesbury. Three other towns are within : Gerrards Cross, Amersham and High W ...

* Church of the Epiphany,

Verdun Verdun (, , , ; official name before 1970 ''Verdun-sur-Meuse'') is a large city in the Meuse department in Grand Est, northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department. Verdun is the biggest city in Meuse, although the capital ...

, Montreal * Église de la Nativité,

Montréal-Nord Montreal North (french: Montréal-Nord) is a borough (''arrondissement'') of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It consists entirely of the former city of Montréal-Nord on Island of Montreal in southwestern Quebec. It was amalgamated into t ...

, Montreal * Mile-End Community Mission / Mission Communautaire Mile-End, Le Plateau Mont-Royal, Montreal * Montreal Diocesan Theological College, Ville-Marie, Montreal * St Barnabas Church, Pierrefonds-Roxboro, Montreal * St Cuthbert, St Hilda, & St Luke,

Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie is a borough (''arrondissement'') in the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located in the centre-east of the city. Geography The borough is bordered to the northwest by Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension ...

, Montreal * St George, Ville-Marie, Montreal * St George's Church, Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue * St Jax Church, Ville-Marie, Montreal * St John the Baptist,

Pointe-Claire Pointe-Claire (, ) is a Quebec local municipality within the Urban agglomeration of Montreal on the Island of Montreal in Canada. It is entirely developed, and land use includes residential, light manufacturing, and retail. As of the 2021 cen ...

St John the Evangelist John the Evangelist ( grc-gre, Ἰωάννης, Iōánnēs; Aramaic: ܝܘܚܢܢ; Ge'ez: ዮሐንስ; ar, يوحنا الإنجيلي, la, Ioannes, he, יוחנן cop, ⲓⲱⲁⲛⲛⲏⲥ or ⲓⲱ̅ⲁ) is the name traditionally given ...

, Montreal * St Lawrence Anglican Church, Lasalle, Montreal * St Mary's Church, Kirkland * St Matthias' Church - Église St Matthias, Westmount * St Michael and All Angels, Pierrefonds-Roxboro, Montreal * St Paul's Anglican Church,

Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce (, ) is a borough (''arrondissement'') of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The borough was created following the 2002 municipal reorganization of Montreal. It comprises two main neighbourhoods, Côte-des-Neiges ...

, Montreal * St Philip's Church, Montreal West * St Stephen's, Lachine, Montreal * St Thomas' Anglican Church,

, Montreal * Ste-Anne's Hospital Chapel, Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue

Lanaudiere

Les Moulins Regional County Municipality Les Moulins is a regional county municipality in the Lanaudière region of Quebec, Canada. It is located immediately north of Laval on the north shore of the Rivière des Mille-Îles, and comprises the municipalities of Terrebonne and Mascouch ...

* Anglican Parish of Mascouche,

Mascouche Mascouche () is an off-island suburb of Montreal, in southern Quebec, Canada. The city is located on the Mascouche River within the Les Moulins Regional County Municipality and has a population of 51,183, ranking 20th among Quebec municipaliti ...

Matawinie Regional County Municipality Matawinie is a regional county municipality in the region of Lanaudière in southwestern Quebec, Canada. Its seat is Rawdon. The population according to the 2021 Canadian Census was 55,500. Subdivisions There are 27 subdivisions within the RC ...

* Christ Church, Rawdon

Laurentides The Laurentides () is a region of Quebec. While it is often called the Laurentians in English, the region includes only part of the Laurentian mountains. It has a total land area of and its population was 589,400 inhabitants as of the 2016 C ...

Argenteuil Regional County Municipality Argenteuil is a regional county municipality located in the Laurentides region of Quebec, Canada. Its seat is Lachute. History In 1682, Charles-Joseph d'Ailleboust was granted by Louis de Buade de Frontenac, Governor General of New France, a ...

* Holy Trinity Calumet, Grenville-sur-la-Rouge * Laurentian Regional Ministry (LRM) - Christ Church, Mille-Isles * Laurentian Regional Ministry (LRM) - Holy Trinity, Lakefield,

Gore Gore may refer to: Places Australia * Gore, Queensland * Gore Creek (New South Wales) * Gore Island (Queensland) Canada * Gore, Nova Scotia, a rural community * Gore, Quebec, a township municipality * Gore Bay, Ontario, a township on Manito ...

* Laurentian Regional Ministry (LRM) - St Aidan's, Louisa, Wentworth * Laurentian Regional Ministry (LRM) - St Paul's Church, Dunany,

* Laurentian Regional Ministry - St Simeon's Anglican Church,

Lachute Lachute () is a town in southwest Quebec, Canada, northwest of Montreal, on the Rivière du Nord, a tributary of the Ottawa River, and west of Mirabel International Airport. It is located on Autoroute 50, at the junctions of Quebec Provincia ...

* St Matthew's, Grenville

Deux-Montagnes Regional County Municipality

*All Saints Church,

Deux-Montagnes Deux-Montagnes is a suburban municipality in southwestern Quebec, Canada on the north shore of the Rivière des Mille Îles where it flows out of Lake of Two Mountains (''Lac des Deux Montagnes''). It is part of the Deux-Montagnes Regional Coun ...

La Rivière-du-Nord Regional County Municipality

* Laurentian Regional Ministry (LRM) - St John the Baptist, Kilkenny, Saint-Hippolyte

Les Laurentides Regional County Municipality

* Laurentian Regional Ministry (LRM) - Grace Anglican Church,

Arundel Arundel ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Arun District of the South Downs, West Sussex, England. The much-conserved town has a medieval castle and Roman Catholic cathedral. Arundel has a museum and comes second behind much larg ...

* Laurentian Regional Ministry (LRM) - Holy Trinity Church,

Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts is a town in the province of Quebec, Canada, in the regional county municipality of Les Laurentides in the administrative region of Laurentides, also known as the "Laurentians" or the Laurentian Mountains (in English). Sa ...

Les Pays-d'en-Haut Regional County Municipality

* Laurentian Regional Ministry (LRM) - St Francis of the Birds, Saint-Sauveur * Laurentian Regional Ministry - Trinity Church, Morin-Heights

Thérèse-De Blainville Regional County Municipality Thérèse-De Blainville is a regional county municipality in the Laurentides region of Quebec, Canada. It is located immediately north of Laval on the north shore of the Rivière des Mille-Îles. The population according to the 2016 Canadian C ...

* St James Anglican Church,

Rosemère Rosemère is an affluent suburb of Montreal, in southwestern Quebec, Canada on the north shore of the Rivière des Mille Îles in the Thérèse-De Blainville Regional County Municipality. The town is noted for its green look, due to the high ...

Laval

* St Simon and Bartholomew, Laval

Montérégie Montérégie () is an administrative region in the southwest part of Quebec. It includes the cities of Boucherville, Brossard, Châteauguay, Longueuil, Saint-Hyacinthe, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Salaberry-de-Valleyfield and Vaudreuil-Dorion. Th ...

Brome-Missisquoi Regional County Municipality Brome-Missisquoi is a regional county municipality in the Estrie region of Quebec, Canada. It lies in the Eastern Townships area. The seat is Cowansville. In 2021, it was transferred to the Estrie region from Montérégie. In Parliament it is co ...

* All Saints Anglican Church - Parish of Dunham, Dunham * Bishop Stewart Memorial Church of the Holy Trinity, Frelighsburg * Grace Church, Sutton * Holy Trinity Church, Iron Hill,

Brome Lake Brome Lake (french: Lac Brome) is a freshwater lake in the town of Brome Lake, in the Brome-Missisquoi regional county municipality of the Montérégie region of Quebec, Canada. It is the source of the Yamaska River. The name Brome Lake co ...

* Holy Trinity, South Bolton, West Bolton * St Aidan's, Sutton * St James Anglican Church,

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst t ...

* St James, Foster,

* St James the Apostle, Stanbridge East * St James the Apostle and Martyr,

Farnham Farnham ( /ˈfɑːnəm/) is a market town and civil parish in Surrey, England, around southwest of London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, close to the county border with Hampshire. The town is on the north branch of the River Wey, a tri ...

* St James the Lesser, Pigeon Hill, Saint-Armand * St John the Evangelist, Brome * St John the Evangelist, Stanbury, Saint-Ignace-de-Stanbridge * St Paul's, Knowlton,

* St Paul's Anglican Church, Philipsburg, Saint-Armand * Trinity Church,

Cowansville Cowansville is a town in south-central Quebec, Canada, located on Lac Davignon north of the U.S. border. It is the seat of Brome-Missisquoi, a regional county municipality. The population as of the Canada 2021 Census was 15,234. In recent years ...

La Haute-Yamaska Regional County Municipality La Haute-Yamaska (meaning ''The Upper Yamaska'') is a regional county municipality in the Estrie region of Quebec, Canada. Its seat is Granby, Quebec, Granby. It is named for its position at the height of the Yamaska River, which cuts through its ...

* St George, Granby * St Luke, Waterloo

Le Haut-Richelieu Regional County Municipality

* St George, Saint-Georges-de-Clarenceville * St Thomas, Noyan

Le Haut-Saint-Laurent Regional County Municipality

* St James,

Ormstown Ormstown is a municipality in Quebec, Canada, which is situated on the Chateauguay River in the heart of the Chateauguay Valley. It is approximately one hour southwest of Montreal and 20 minutes north of New York State in the United States. The p ...

* St John's,

Huntingdon Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by John, King of England, King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver Cr ...

* St Luke's, Hemmingford

La Vallée-du-Richelieu Regional County Municipality

* St Martin's House,

Otterburn Park Otterburn Park is a small town located 40 km east of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The population as of the Canada 2011 Census was 8,450. The town lies south of Mont-Saint-Hilaire on the Richelieu River and is one of the few officially bilingua ...

* St Stephen's with St James, Chambly

Pierre-De Saurel Regional County Municipality Pierre-De Saurel is a regional county municipality in the Montérégie region in southwestern Quebec, Canada. Originally named Le Bas-Richelieu Regional County Municipality, the name change to Pierre-De Saurel took effect on January 1, 2009. Its ...

* Église Christ Church, Sorel-Tracy

Roussillon Regional County Municipality Roussillon is a regional county municipality in the Montérégie region of Quebec, Canada. The seat is in Saint-Constant, Quebec. The region's population was 171,443 as of the 2016 census. Subdivisions There are 11 subdivisions and one native r ...

* St George's Anglican Church, Châteauguay

Rouville Regional County Municipality Rouville is a regional county municipality in the Montérégie region of Quebec, Canada. Its seat is Marieville. Subdivisions There are 8 subdivisions within the RCM: ;Cities & Towns (3) * Marieville * Richelieu * Saint-Césaire ;Munici ...

* St Thomas' Anglican Church, Rougemont

Urban agglomeration of Longueuil

* St Barnabas, Saint-Lambert * St Joseph of Nazareth Church,

Brossard Brossard (, , ) is a municipality in the Montérégie region of Quebec, Canada and is part of the Greater Montreal area. According to the 2021 census, Brossard's population was 91,525. It shares powers with the urban agglomeration of Longueuil ...

* St Margaret of Antioch, Saint-Hubert,

Longueuil Longueuil () is a city in the province of Quebec, Canada. It is the seat of the Montérégie administrative region and the central city of the urban agglomeration of Longueuil. It sits on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River directly ac ...

* St Paul's Anglican Church, Greenfield Park,

* Trinity Church,

Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville is an off-island suburb of Montreal, in southwestern Quebec, Canada, on the south bank of the Saint Lawrence River just east of Montreal. It lies on the west flank of Mont Saint-Bruno, one of the Monteregian Hills. Th ...

Vaudreuil-Soulanges Regional County Municipality Vaudreuil-Soulanges () is a regional county municipality in Quebec, Canada. It is located on a triangular peninsula in the western Montérégie region of Quebec, formed by the confluence of the Ottawa River to the north, and the St. Lawrence River ...

* St James Church, Parish of Vaudreuil, Hudson * St Mary's Church, Parish of Vaudreuil, Como, Hudson

Bishops of Montreal

See

List of Anglican Bishops of Montreal The Bishop of Montreal is an Anglican bishop in the Ecclesiastical Province of Canada. Before the erection of the diocese, its parent Diocese of Quebec had a suffragan bishop of Montreal: George Mountain, 1836–1850. The incumbents have been: ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Montreal 1850 establishments in Canada Anglican dioceses established in the 19th century Christianity in Montreal Religious organizations established in 1850 Montreal, Anglican Diocese of Anglican Province of Canada