The Archdiocese of Porto Alegre ( la, Archidioecesis Portalegrensis in Brasilia) is a Latin Rite Metropolitan Archbishopric of the

Roman Catholic Church 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 ...

Rio Grande do Sul Rio Grande do Sul (, , ; "Great River of the South") is a state in the southern region of Brazil. It is the fifth-most-populous state and the ninth largest by area. Located in the southernmost part of the country, Rio Grande do Sul is border ...

state, southernmost

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. The Archdiocese's

mother church Mother church or matrice is a term depicting the Christian Church as a mother in her functions of nourishing and protecting the believer. It may also refer to the primary church of a Christian denomination or diocese, i.e. a cathedral or a metropo ...

and Metropolitan seat of its

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 archdio ...

is the Metropolitan Cathedral of Our Lady Mother of God in

Porto Alegre Porto Alegre (, , Brazilian ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. Its population of 1,488,252 inhabitants (2020) makes it the twelfth most populous city in the country and the center of Brazil's fif ...

. Archbishop Emeritus Dadeus Grings was succeeded by the current incumbent, Archbishop Jaime Spengler, who was appointed on 18 September 2013 by

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013 ...

, and installed on 15 November 2013.

History

* It was erected as the Diocese of São Pedro do Rio Grande by

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...

on 7 May 1848, on territory split off from the Diocese of São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro. * It was elevated by

Pope Pius X Pope Pius X ( it, Pio X; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing modernist interpretations of ...

on 15 August 1910 to the rank of a

Metropolitan archdiocese A metropolis religious jurisdiction, or a metropolitan archdiocese, is an episcopal see whose bishop is the metropolitan bishop or archbishop of an ecclesiastical province. Metropolises, historically, have been important cities in their provinces. ...

/ Portalegren(sis) in Brasilia (Latin), having lost territories to establish Diocese of Pelotas,

Diocese of Santa Maria The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santa Maria ( la, Archdioecesis Sanctae Mariae) is an archdiocese located in the city of Santa Maria. Before being elevated to an archdiocese itself in 2011 it was part of the Ecclesiastical province of Porto Al ...

and Diocese of Uruguaiana. * Lost territories on 1934.09.08 to establish the Diocese of Caxias and Territorial Prelature of Vacaria * 1957.01.18: Gained territory back from above Territorial Prelature of Vacaria * Lost territories repeatedly : on 1959.06.20 to establish

Diocese of Santa Cruz do Sul The Roman Catholic Diocese of Santa Cruz do Sul ( la, Dioecesis Sanctae Crucis in Brasilia) is a diocese located in the city of Santa Cruz do Sul in the Ecclesiastical province of Santa Maria in Brazil. History * 20 June 1959: Established as Di ...

, on 1959.08.15 to above Diocese of Caxias, on 1971.02.01 to above Diocese of Caxias do Sul, on 1980.02.02 to establish the

Diocese of Novo Hamburgo The Roman Catholic Diocese of Novo Hamburgo ( la, Dioecesis Novohamburgensis) is a diocese located in the city of Novo Hamburgo in the Ecclesiastical province of Porto Alegre in Brazil. History * 2 February 1980: Established as Diocese of Novo H ...

, as its suffragan, on 1999.11.10 to establish the

Diocese of Osorio 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 ...

, as its suffragan, and on 2008.07.02: to establish the

Diocese of Montenegro The Roman Catholic Diocese of Montenegro ( la, Dioecesis Nigromontana) is a suffragan Latin diocese in the Ecclesiastical province of its mother see, the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Porto Alegre (in the state capital) in Rio Grande do Sul state, s ...

, as its suffragan * It enjoyed a

Papal visit Papal travel outside Rome has been historically rare, and voluntary travel of the pope was non-existent for the first 500 years. Pope John Paul II (1978–2005) undertook more pastoral trips than all his predecessors combined. Pope Francis (2013� ...

from

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 ...

in July 1980.

Statistics

As per 2014, it pastorally served 2,547,000 Catholics (74.4% of 3,423,000 total) on 13,530 km² in 156 parishes and 739 missions with 359 priests (203 diocesan, 156 religious), 59 deacons, 1,450 lay religious (341 brothers, 1,109 sisters) and 44 seminarians.

Ecclesiastical province

Besides administering his own Archbishopric, the Metropolitan supervises 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 jurisdiction ...

Sees : *

Roman Catholic Diocese of Caxias do Sul The Roman Catholic Diocese of Caxias do Sul ( la, Dioecesis Caxiensis Australis) is a diocese located in the city of Caxias do Sul in the Ecclesiastical province of Porto Alegre in Brazil. On Wednesday, 16 June 2010, Pope Benedict XVI appointed ...

Roman Catholic Diocese of Montenegro The Roman Catholic Diocese of Montenegro ( la, Dioecesis Nigromontana) is a suffragan Latin diocese in the Ecclesiastical province of its mother see, the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Porto Alegre (in the state capital) in Rio Grande do Sul state, ...

, its daughter *

Roman Catholic Diocese of Novo Hamburgo The Roman Catholic Diocese of Novo Hamburgo ( la, Dioecesis Novohamburgensis) is a diocese located in the city of Novo Hamburgo in the Ecclesiastical province of Porto Alegre in Brazil. History * 2 February 1980: Established as Diocese of Novo ...

, its daughter * Roman Catholic Diocese of Osório, its daughter

Bishops

Episcopal ordinaries, and current auxiliary bishops

;''Suffragan Bishops of São Pedro do Rio Grande'' * Feliciano Rodrigues de Araujo Prates (1851.05.05 – death 1858.05.27) * Sebastião Dias Laranjeira (1860.09.28 – death 1888.08.13) * Cláudio Gonçalves Ponce de Leon,

Lazarists , logo = , image = Vincentians.png , abbreviation = CM , nickname = Vincentians, Paules, Lazarites, Lazarists, Lazarians , established = , founder = Vincent de Paul , fou ...

(C.M.) (1890.06.26 – 1910.08.15 ''see below''), previously Bishop of

Goiás Goiás () is a Brazilian state located in the Center-West region. Goiás borders the Federal District and the states of (from north clockwise) Tocantins, Bahia, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso do Sul and Mato Grosso. The state capital is Goiâ ...

(Brazil) (1881.05.13 – 1890.06.26) **

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- ...

: João Antônio Pimenta (1906.02.21 – 1911.03.07), Titular Bishop of

Pentacomia ''Pentacomia'' is a genus of beetles in the family Cicindelidae Tiger beetles are a family of beetles, Cicindelidae, known for their aggressive predatory habits and running speed. The fastest known species of tiger beetle, ''Rivacindela hudson ...

(1906.02.21 – 1911.03.07); next Bishop of

Montes Claros Montes Claros is a city located in northern Minas Gerais state, in Brazil. The population is 413,487 (2020 est.) in an area of . It was made a seat of a municipality in 1831 and attained city status in 1857. History The region was originally in ...

(Brazil) (1911.03.07 – 1943.07.20) ;''Metropolitan Archbishops of Porto Alegre'' * Cláudio Gonçalves Ponce de Leon,

Lazarists , logo = , image = Vincentians.png , abbreviation = CM , nickname = Vincentians, Paules, Lazarites, Lazarists, Lazarians , established = , founder = Vincent de Paul , fou ...

(C.M.) (''see above'' 1910.08.15 – retired 1912.01.09), 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 ...

Anazarbus Anazarbus ( grc, Ἀναζαρβός, medieval Ain Zarba; modern Anavarza; ar, عَيْنُ زَرْبَة) was an ancient Cilician city. Under the late Roman Empire, it was the capital of Cilicia Secunda. Roman emperor Justinian I rebuilt ...

(1912.01.09 – death 1924.05.26) * João (Batista) Becker (1912.01.09 – 1946.12.30), previously Bishop of Santa Catarina (Brazil) (1908.05.03 – 1912.08.01) * Alfredo Scherer (1946.12.30 – 1981.08.29), Cardinal in 1969; previously Titular Bishop of Hemeria (1946.06.13 – 1946.12.30) as Auxiliary Bishop of Porto Alegre (1946.06.13 – 1946.12.30) * João Colling (1981.08.29 – retired 1991.07.17), died 1992; previously Titular Bishop of

Corone Corone ( grc, Κορώνη, Korṓnē, crow) may refer to: * Koroni, also spelled Corone, a town in Greece * Corone (crow) In Greek and Roman mythology, Corone ( grc, Κορώνη, Korṓnē, crow ) is a young woman who attracted the atten ...

(1949.12.12 – 1951.03.23) as Auxiliary Bishop of Santa Maria (Brazil) (1949.12.12 – 1951.03.23), Bishop of

Passo Fundo Passo Fundo is a municipality in the north of the southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. It is named after its river. It's the twelfth largest city in the state with an estimated population of 204,722 inhabitants living in a total munici ...

(Brazil) (1951.03.23 – 1981.08.29) *

Altamiro Rossato Altamiro Rossato (23 June 1925 – 13 May 2014) was a Brazilian Catholic prelate and Archbishop Emeritus of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Porto Alegre. He was Archbishop of Porto Alegre from 1991 till 2001. Biography Rossato was born in Campi ...

Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer The Redemptorists officially named the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer ( la, links=no, Congregatio Sanctissimi Redemptoris), abbreviated CSsR,is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men (priests and brother ...

(Redemptorists, C.Ss.R.) (1991.07.17 – retired 2001.02.07)); died 13 May 2014; previously Bishop of Marabá (Brazil) (1985.12.08 – 1989.03.15),

Coadjutor Archbishop The term coadjutor (or coadiutor, 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: * Coa ...

of Porto Alegre (1989.03.15 – succession 1991.07.17) * Dadeus Grings (2001.02.07 – retired 2013.09.18); previously Bishop of

São João da Boa Vista São João da Boa Vista (; "Saint John of the Good View" in English) is a municipality in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. The population in 2020 was 91,771 and the area is . The elevation is . The foundation history The city was founded on June ...

(Brazil) (1991.01.23 – 2000.04.12), Coadjutor Archbishop of Porto Alegre (2000.04.12 – succession 2001.02.07) *

Jaime Spengler Jaime is a common Spanish and Portuguese male given name for Jacob (name), James (name), Jamie, or Jacques. In Occitania Jacobus became ''Jacome'' and later ''Jacme''. In east Spain, ''Jacme'' became ''Jaime'', in Aragon it became ''Chaime'', and i ...

(18 September 2013– ...), previously Titular Bishop of Patara (2010.11.10 – 2013.09.18) as Auxiliary Bishop of Porto Alegre (2010.11.10 – 2013.09.18) ** Auxiliary Bishop (2015.01.07 – ...) Leomar Antônio Brustolin, Titular Bishop of

Tigava :''See Leistarcha scitissimella for the moth species also known as Tigava scitissimella'' Tigava was an ancient Roman-Berber town and bishopric in Roman Africa, which remains a Latin Catholic titular see. It corresponds with the modern locality o ...

** Auxiliary Bishop (2015.12.30 – ...) Aparecido Donizete de Souza, Titular Bishop of Macriana minor ** Auxiliary Bishop (2016.01.27 – ...) Adilson Pedro Busin, C.S., Titular Bishop of

Guardialfiera Guardialfiera is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Campobasso in the Italian region Molise, located about northeast of Campobasso. It sits on a hilltop overlooking Lake Guardialfiera, which was created as a result of the damming of ...

** Auxiliary Bishop (2019.04.10 - ...) Darley José Kummer, Titular Bishop of

Elvas Elvas () is a Portuguese municipality, former episcopal city and frontier fortress of easternmost central Portugal, located in the district of Portalegre in Alentejo. It is situated about east of Lisbon, and about west of the Spanish fortress ...

Coadjutor bishops

* João Antônio Pimenta (1906-1911), did not succeed to see; appointed Bishop of Montes Claros *

, C.SS.R. (1991-2001) * Dadeus Grings (2000-2001)

Previous auxiliary episcopate, in reverse chronological order

:BIOS TO ELABORATE & WORK IN ** Auxiliary Bishop: Agenor Girardi, M.S.C. (2010.12.22 – 2015.05.06), appointed Bishop of União da Vitória, Parana ** Auxiliary Bishop: Remídio José Bohn (2006.01.18 – 2011.12.28), appointed Bishop of Cachoeira do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul ** Auxiliary Bishop::

, O.F.M. (2010.11.10 - 2018.09.18), appointed Archbishop here ** Auxiliary Bishop: Alessandro Carmelo Ruffinoni, C.S. (2006.01.18 – 2010.06.16), appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Caxias do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul ** Auxiliary Bishop: Jacinto Inácio Flach (2003.11.12 – 2009.09.16), appointed Bishop of Criciúma, Santa Catarina ** Auxiliary Bishop: Eduardo Benes de Sales Rodrigues (1998.03.11 – 2001.01.10), appointed Bishop of Lorena, Sao Paulo; future Archbishop ** Auxiliary Bishop: José Clemente Weber (1994.03.23 – 2004.06.15), appointed Bishop of Santo Ângelo, Rio Grande do Sul ** Auxiliary Bishop: Osvino José Both (1990.06.26 – 1995.11.22), appointed Bishop of Novo Hamburgo, Rio Grande do Sul; future Archbishop ** Auxiliary Bishop: Thadeu Gomes Canellas (1983.11.19 – 1999.11.10), appointed Bishop of Osório, Rio Grande do Sul ** Auxiliary Bishop: José Mário Stroeher (1983.03.25 – 1986.08.08), appointed Bishop of Rio Grande, Rio Grande do Sul ** Auxiliary Bishop: Urbano José Allgayer (1974.02.05 – 1982.02.04), appointed Bishop of Passo Fundo, Rio Grande do Sul ** Auxiliary Bishop: Antônio do Carmo Cheuiche, O.C.D. (1971.05.05 – 2001.06.27) ** Auxiliary Bishop: José Ivo Lorscheiter (1965.11.12 – 1974.02.05), appointed Bishop of Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul ** Auxiliary Bishop: Edmundo Luís Kunz (1955.08.01 – 1988.09.12) ** Auxiliary Bishop: Alfredo Vicente Scherer (1946.06.13 - 1946.12.30), appointed Archbishop here

Other priests of this diocese who became bishops

* Luiz Felipe de Nadal, appointed Bishop of Uruguaiana, Rio Grande do Sul in 1955 * Zeno Hastenteufel, appointed Bishop of Frederico Westphalen, Rio Grande do Sul in 2001 * Jacinto Bergmann, appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul in 2002 *

Liro Vendelino Meurer Liro may refer to: * Liro, Benin *A village on the Vanuatuan island of Paama The Liro is the name of two streams in the Italian region of Lombardy. *The Liro (Como) The Liro is a '' torrente'', or stream, in the north Italian Province of Como. Th ...

, appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Passo Fundo in 2009 * Rodolfo Luís Weber, appointed Prelate of Cristalândia in 2009 * Silvio Guterres Dutra, appointed Bishop of Vacaria, Rio Grande do Sul in 2018

References

Sources and external links

GCatholic.org, with Google map & - satellite photo - data for all sections
* * {{authority control Porto Alegre Religious organizations established in 1848 1848 establishments in Brazil

Archdiocese of Porto Alegre The Archdiocese of Porto Alegre ( la, Archidioecesis Portalegrensis in Brasilia) is a Latin Rite Metropolitan Archbishopric of the Roman Catholic Church in Rio Grande do Sul state, southernmost Brazil. The Archdiocese's mother church and Met ...

Porto Alegre, Archiodese Porto Alegre, Archiodese