The Diocese of Querétaro () is 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 ...

's diocese of the Mexican state of

Querétaro Querétaro, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Querétaro, is one of the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Querétaro, 18 municipalities. Its capital city is Querétaro Cit ...

. Erected on January 26, 1863, it covers an area of 15,326 km². (5,919 square miles), and contains a population of 1,730,034 - 95% of which are Catholic. It belongs to the

Province of León León (, ; ; ; ) is a province of northwestern Spain in the northern part of the Region of León and in the northwestern part of the autonomous community of Castile and León. About one quarter of its population of 463,746 (2018) lives in the c ...

. The current

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

is Fidencio López Plaza.

History

Querétaro has been a site for the Catholic Church's activity since 1601, when the

Carmelites The Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel (; abbreviated OCarm), known as the Carmelites or sometimes by synecdoche known simply as Carmel, is a mendicant order in the Catholic Church for both men and women. Histo ...

established themselves there.

Dominicans Dominicans () also known as Quisqueyans () are an ethnic group, ethno-nationality, national people, a people of shared ancestry and culture, who have ancestral roots in the Dominican Republic. The Dominican ethnic group was born out of a fusio ...

Augustinians Augustinians are members of several religious orders that follow the Rule of Saint Augustine, written about 400 A.D. by Augustine of Hippo. There are two distinct types of Augustinians in Catholic religious orders dating back to the 12th–13 ...

and other houses soon followed. One of the most notable institutions of Querétaro was the college of Apostolic missionaries, which

Innocent XI Pope Innocent XI (; ; 16 May 1611 – 12 August 1689), born Benedetto Odescalchi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 21 September 1676 until his death on 12 August 1689. Political and religious tensions with ...

called the greatest influence for the propagation of the faith in the Indies. From here missionaries went forth to evangelize

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, and

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas, is a state in Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into 43 municipalities. It is located in nor ...

. Adjoining the residence of the bishop in the capital near the church of La Cruz, is the Convent of La Cruz, occupied as headquarters by

Maximilian Maximilian or Maximillian (Maximiliaan in Dutch and Maximilien in French) is a male name. The name "Max" is considered a shortening of "Maximilian" as well as of several other names. List of people Monarchs *Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (1 ...

during the siege of the city by General Escobedo in May, 1867. The Capuchin Convent was used as a prison for the Emperor Maximilian and his two generals,

Miguel Miramón Miguel Gregorio de la Luz Atenógenes Miramón y Tarelo, known as Miguel Miramón, (29 September 1831 – 19 June 1867) was a Mexican Conservative Party (Mexico), conservative general who disputed the president of Mexico, Mexican presidency with ...

and

Tomás Mejía José Tomás de la Luz Mejía Camacho, better known as Tomás Mejía (17 September 1820 – 19 June 1867), was a Mexican soldier of Otomi background, who consistently sided with the Conservative Party (Mexico), Conservative Party throughout its ...

. It was on the hill of Las Campanas on the outskirts of the town that these generals were shot, June 19, 1867. An elaborate mortuary chapel has replaced the former modest monument erected on the site. At Querétaro was ratified in 1848 the treaty by which Mexico ceded to the United States, at the close of the war, the territory covered by Texas,

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

, and Upper California.

List of bishops

*Bernardo Gárate y López de Arizmendi (March 19, 1863 - 31 July 1866) *Ramón Camacho y García (June 22, 1868 - July 30, 1884) *Rafael Sabás Camacho y García (March 27, 1885 - May 11, 1908) *Manuel Rivera y Muñoz (May 11, 1908 - May 2, 1914) *Francisco Banegas y Galván (February 28, 1919 - November 14, 1932) *Marciano Tinajero y Estrada (July 2, 1933 - October 27, 1957) *Alfonso Tóriz Cobián (March 20, 1958 - October 25, 1988) *Mario de Gasperín Gasperín (April 4, 1989 - April 20, 2011) *

Faustino Armendáriz Jiménez Faustino may refer to: *Faustino (name), including a list of people with the name *Faustino (platform), a physical computing platform * Faustino, an ape in the Kasakela chimpanzee community *Bodegas Faustino The Bodegas Faustino vineyard is loc ...

(April 20, 2011 – September 21, 2019), appointed Archbishop of Durango *Fidencio López Plaza (September 12, 2020 – present)

External links

Extensive informationHome page (in Spanish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Diocese of Queretaro

Religious organizations established in 1863 Querétaro, Roman Catholic Diocese of 1863 establishments in Mexico