The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bahía Blanca (''Archidioecesis Sinus Albi'') is a Latin

Metropolitan archdiocese A metropolis, metropolitanate or metropolitan diocese 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. Eastern Ortho ...

of the

Roman 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 ...

with 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 ...

in the eastern region of the national capital's

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

, central

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

. Its cathedral archiepiscopal see and

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 church, or ...

, located in the city of

Bahía Blanca Bahía Blanca (; English: ''White Bay''), colloquially referred to by its own local inhabitants as simply Bahía, is a city in the Buenos Aires Province, Buenos Aires province of Argentina, centered on the northwestern end of the eponymous Blanc ...

, is the Cathedral of Our Lady of Mercy. Since 12 July 2017

Carlos Azpiroz Costa Carlos Alfonso Azpiroz Costa, O.P. (born 30 October 1956) is an Argentinian Catholic friar of the Order of Preachers who has served as the Archbishop of Bahia Blanca since 2015.

has been 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 archdi ...

Extent and statistics

As per 2015, the Archdiocese pastorally served 661,096 Catholics (83.3% of 793,517 total) on 82,624 km² in 55 parishes and 236 missions with 71 priests (45 diocesan, 26 religious), 27 deacons, 211 lay religious (44 brothers, 167 sisters) and 15 seminarians. It covers the ''partidos'' (municipalities) of Adolfo Alsina, Adolfo González Chávez, Bahía Blanca, Coronel Dorrego, Coronel de Marina Leonardo Rosales, Coronel Pringles, Coronel Suárez, Daireaux, Guaminí, Monte Hermoso, Patagones, Puán, Saavedra, San Cayetano, Tornquist, Tres Arroyos and Villarino.

Ecclesiastical province of Bahía Blanca

The Metropolitan Archdiocese has

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 ...

sees encompassing all of the administrative Provinces of

Patagonia Patagonia () is a geographical region that includes parts of Argentina and Chile at the southern end of South America. The region includes the southern section of the Andes mountain chain with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and glaciers ...

and

Tierra del Fuego Tierra del Fuego (, ; Spanish for "Land of Fire", rarely also Fireland in English) is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South America, South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of the main is ...

, notably : *

Roman Catholic Diocese of Alto Valle del Río Negro The Roman Catholic Diocese of Alto Valle del Río Negro (erected 22 July 1993) is in Argentina and is a suffragan of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bahía Blanca, Archdiocese of Bahía Blanca. Ordinaries *José Pedro Pozzi, S.D.B. (1993–200 ...

Roman Catholic Diocese of Comodoro Rivadavia The Roman Catholic Diocese of Comodoro is located in the city of Comodoro, in the Patagonian province of Chubut in southern Argentina. Diocese The Roman Catholic Diocese of Comodoro Rivadavia encompasses 234,000 km2 (90,382 square miles) of ...

* Roman Catholic Diocese of Rawson *

Roman Catholic Diocese of Río Gallegos The Roman Catholic Diocese of Río Gallegos is located in the city of Río Gallegos, which is the capital of the Patagonia region of Santa Cruz, Argentina. Size The Diocese, according to the Vatican Information Service (VIS), has an area of 2 ...

Roman Catholic Diocese of San Carlos de Bariloche The Roman Catholic Diocese of San Carlos de Bariloche is based in the city of San Carlos de Bariloche, usually referred to as Bariloche, in the province of Río Negro, Argentina. The diocese is a suffragan of the province of Bahia Blanca. The ci ...

Roman Catholic Diocese of Santa Rosa, Argentina The Roman Catholic Diocese of Santa Rosa in Argentina is located in the city of Santa Rosa, La Pampa, Argentina. It was established by Pope Pius XII on 11 February 1957, and is a suffragan diocese in the province of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of B ...

, its daughter *

Roman Catholic Diocese of Viedma The Roman Catholic Diocese of Viedma (Dioecesis Viedmensis) is encompassed in the Ecclesiastical Province of Bahía Blanca. the Bishop was Monsignor Esteban María Laxague, Salesian of Don Bosco appointed by Pope John Paul II on October 31, 200 ...

* (pre-diocesan) Territorial Prelature of Esquel.

History

* It was erected as Diocese of Bahía Blanca / Sinus Albi (Latin) on 20 April 1934 by

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI (; born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, ; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939) was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 until his death in February 1939. He was also the first sovereign of the Vatican City State u ...

's bull ''Nobilis Argentinae nationis'', on territory split off from the Archdiocese of La Plata. Its first bishop was Leandro Bautista Astelarra (1934–1943). * It was elevated as Metropolitan Archdiocese of Bahía Blanca / Sinus Albi (Latin) on 11 February 1957 by

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII (; born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli; 2 March 18769 October 1958) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death on 9 October 1958. He is the most recent p ...

's bull ''Quandoquidem adoranda'', having lost territories to establish

Diocese of Mar del Plata The Roman Catholic Diocese of Mar del Plata () is in Argentina and is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of La Plata. History On 11 February 1957, Pope Pius XII established the Diocese of Mar del Plata from the Diocese of Bahía Blanca and the Arc ...

and (as its suffragan) Diocese of Santa Rosa. * It enjoyed a Papal visit from

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

in April 1987.

Bishops

(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) ...

)

Episcopal Ordinaries

:''Suffragan Bishops of Bahía Blanca'' * Leandro Bautista Astelarra (13 September 1934 – death 24 August 1943) * Germiniano Esorto (2 November 1946 – 31 May 1972 ''see below''), 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 Birtha (1943.08.23 – 1946.11.02) as

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. ...

of La Plata (Argentina) (1943.08.23 – 1946.11.02) :''Metropolitan Archbishops of Bahía Blanca'' * Germiniano Esorto (''see above'' 2 November 1946 – retired 31 May 1972) *

Jorge Mayer Jorge Mayer (20 November 1915 – 25 December 2010) was the Roman Catholic Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Bahía Blanca, Argentina from 1972 to 1991. Biography Mayer was born in San Miguel Arcángel, Adolfo Alsina Partido, Buenos Aires Provi ...

(31 May 1972 – retired 31 May 1991) died 2010: previously Bishop of

Santa Rosa Santa Rosa is the Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish name for Saint Rose. Santa Rosa may also refer to: Places Argentina *Santa Rosa, Mendoza, a city * Santa Rosa, Tinogasta, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, Valle Viejo, Catamarca *Santa Rosa, La Pampa * S ...

(Argentina) (1957.03.13 – 1972.05.31) **

: Emilio Ogñénovich (1979.10.01 – 1982.06.08),

of Mibiarca (1979.10.01 – 1982.06.08), later 'last' Suffragan Bishop of Mercedes (Argentina) (1982.06.08 – 1989.05.10), (see) restyled Bishop of Mercedes–Luján (1989.05.10 – 1997.11.21), (see) promoted first Archbishop of Mercedes–Luján (1997.11.21 – retired 2000.03.07), died 2012 ** Auxiliary Bishop: José Vittorio Tommasí (1984.11.19 – 1991.08.28), Titular Bishop of Equizetum (1984.11.19 – 1991.08.28); later Bishop of Nueve de Julio (Argentina) (1991.08.28 – death 1998.09.16) * Rómulo García (31 May 1991 – retired 15 June 2002), died 2005; previously Titular Bishop of Uzita (1975.08.09 – 1976.01.19) as Auxiliary Bishop of

(Argentina) (1975.08.09 – 1976.01.19), succeeding as Bishop of Mar del Plata (1976.01.19 – 1991.05.31) **

: Néstor Hugo Navarro (1998.04.15 – 2003.03.19), Titular Bishop of

Rotdon Roses (; , ) is a municipality in the ''comarca'' of the Alt Empordà, located on the Costa Brava, Catalonia, Spain. Roses is the site of the former bishopric of Rotdon, now a Latin Catholic titular see. It is situated on the coast at the nor ...

(1998.04.15 – 2003.03.19); next Bishop of

Alto Valle del Río Negro The musical term alto, meaning "high" in Italian (Latin: ''altus''), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In four-part voice leading alto is the second-highest part, sung in choruses ...

(Argentina) (2003.03.19 – retired 2010.02.10) *

Guillermo José Garlatti Guillermo José Garlatti is an Argentine prelate of the Catholic Church was the archbishop of Bahía Blanca from 2004 to 2017. He has been a bishop since 1994. Biography He was born in Forgaria nel Fiurle, Udine, Northern Italy on July 12, 1940. ...

(11 March 2003 – retired 12 July 2017); previously

of Aquæ regiæ (1994.08.27 – 1997.02.20) as Auxiliary Bishop of Archdiocese of La Plata (Argentina) (1994.08.27 – 1997.02.20), Bishop of San Rafael (Argentina) (1997.02.20 – 2003.03.11) **

: Pedro María Laxague (2006.11.14 – 2015.11.03),

Castra Severiana Castra Severiana was an ancient Roman-era town of the Roman province of Mauretania Caesariensis, in North Africa during late antiquity. The town in modern Algeria has been tentatively identified with ruins at Sidi-Ali-Ben-Joub (Chanzy) or Lalla ...

(2006.11.14 – 2015.11.03); next Bishop of Zárate–Campana (Argentina) (2015.11.03 – ...) * Carlos Alfonso Azpiroz Costa,

Dominican Order The Order of Preachers (, abbreviated OP), commonly known as the Dominican Order, is a Catholic Church, Catholic mendicant order of pontifical right that was founded in France by a Castilians, Castilian priest named Saint Dominic, Dominic de Gu ...

(O.P.) (12 July 2017 – ...), previously Master (

General Superior A superior general or general superior is the leader or head of an 'order' of religious persons (nuns, priests, friars, etc) or, in other words, of a 'religious institute' in the Catholic Church, and in some other Christian denominations. The super ...

) of the

Order of Preachers The Order of Preachers (, abbreviated OP), commonly known as the Dominican Order, is a Catholic mendicant order of pontifical right that was founded in France by a Castilian priest named Dominic de Guzmán. It was approved by Pope Honorius ...

(O.P., Dominicans) (2001.07.14 – 2010.09.05), Grand Chancellor of Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum) (2001.07.14 – 2010.09.05),

Coadjutor Archbishop 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 ...

of Bahía Blanca (2015.11.03 – succession 2017.07.12).

Coadjutor archbishop

Carlos Alfonso Azpiroz Costa Carlos may refer to: Places ;Canada * Carlos, Alberta, a locality ;United States * Carlos, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Carlos, Maryland, a place in Allegany County * Carlos, Minnesota, a small city * Carlos, West Virginia ;Elsewhere ...

, O.P. (2015-2017)

Auxiliary bishops

Emilio Ogñénovich Emilio Ogñénovich (January 25, 1923 – January 29, 2011) was the Catholic bishop of the Archdiocese of Mercedes-Luján, Argentina. Ogñénovich was born to a father from Cetinje and a mother "from Zadar or Split"; they both died when he was t ...

(1979-1982), appointed Bishop of Mercedes * José Vittorio Tommasí (1984-1991), appointed Bishop of Nueve de Julio *

Néstor Hugo Navarro Nestor, or Néstor, is a given name of Greek origin. In Greek mythology it comes from that of Nestor, the son of Neleus, the King of Pylos and Chloris. The Greek derivation is from a combination of , and . The name is also found in Russia, Portu ...

(1998-2003), appointed Bishop of Alto Valle del Río Negro * Pedro María Laxague (2006-2015) appointed Bishop of Zárate-Campana * Jorge Luis Wagner (2019-)

Sources and external links

GCathholic with Google map - data for all sections
*

at ''AICA'' (Argentine Catholic News Agency). * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bahia Blanca, Roman Catholic Diocese Roman Catholic dioceses in Argentina Roman Catholic Ecclesiastical Province of Bahía Blanca

Religious organizations established in 1934 Religion is a range of social system, social-cultural systems, including designated religious behaviour, behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, religious text, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics in religion, ethics, or ...

Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 20th century