The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Philadelphia is a

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 Jo ...

ecclesiastical territory or

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

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 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

southeastern The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sep ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. It covers the City and County of Philadelphia as well as Bucks,

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent ...

, and Montgomery counties. The diocese was erected by

Pope Pius VII Pope Pius VII ( it, Pio VII; born Barnaba Niccolò Maria Luigi Chiaramonti; 14 August 1742 – 20 August 1823), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 14 March 1800 to his death in August 1823. Chiaramonti was also a m ...

on April 8, 1808, from territories of the Archdiocese of Baltimore. Originally the diocese included all of

, and seven counties and parts of three counties in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

. The diocese was raised to the dignity of a metropolitan archdiocese on February 12, 1875. The seat of the

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 Cathedral-Basilica of Ss. Peter & Paul. The Most Reverend

Nelson J. Perez Nelson Jesus Perez (born June 16, 1961) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who serves as the 10th archbishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania, having been appointed by Pope Francis in January 2020. He previousl ...

was appointed as Archbishop of Philadelphia in January 2020. It is also the

Metropolitan Metropolitan may refer to: * Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories * Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England * Metropolitan county, a typ ...

See of the

Ecclesiastical Province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian Churches with traditional hierarchical structure, including Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity. In general, an ecclesiastical province consists of sev ...

of Philadelphia, which includes the

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 ...

episcopal see An episcopal see is, in a practical use of the phrase, the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, mak ...

s of Allentown, Altoona-Johnstown, Erie, Greensburg,

Harrisburg Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, and Scranton. The territory of the province is coextensive with the state of Pennsylvania.

History of the archdiocese

The history of the Catholic Church in the area dates back to

William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...

and when

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different ele ...

was said publicly as early as 1707.''A Brief History of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia''
. Retrieved 2010-03-11. On April 8, 1808, the

dioceses of Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Bardstown (moved to Louisville in 1841) were erected by

from the territory of the Diocese of Baltimore, which was simultaneously raised to the rank of metropolitan archdiocese. Michael Egan was appointed as the first

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

and was

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different gro ...

as a bishop on October 28, 1810, by Archbishop John Carroll.

In 1868, the dioceses of Harrisburg, Scranton, and Wilmington were erected from the territory of the diocese (the Wilmington diocese also received parts of Maryland and Virginia). Philadelphia was raised to a metropolitan archiepiscopal see on February 12, 1875, with Harrisburg and Scranton among its suffragan dioceses. On January 28, 1961, the five northern counties of Berks, Carbon, Lehigh, Northampton, and Schuylkill were split off from the archdiocese, to create the Diocese of Allentown. By 1969, the archdiocese had grown to 1,351,704 parishioners, 1,096

diocesan 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 ...

priests A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

, 676 priests of

religious institute A religious institute is a type of institute of consecrated life in the Catholic Church whose members take religious vows and lead a life in community with fellow members. Religious institutes are one of the two types of institutes of consecrat ...

s and 6,622 religious women. In February 2012, the diocese announced the largest reorganization of their elementary and high school education system, with numerous recommended school closings and/or mergers. In a Thursday, August 23, 2012, online news story article about the Archdiocese's schools, Lou Baldwin of

Catholic News Service Catholic News Service (CNS) is an American news agency owned by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) that reports on the Catholic Church. The agency's domestic service is set to shut down at the end of 2022, but its Rome b ...

(CNS) announced that the Faith in the Future Foundation would assume management of the seventeen archdiocesan high schools and the four special education schools.

Bishops

Bishops of Philadelphia

# Michael Francis Egan, O.F.M. (1808–1814)
( Ambrose Maréchal, P.S.S. appointed in 1816; did not take effect.) #

Henry Conwell Henry Conwell ( – April 22, 1842) was an Irish-born Catholic bishop in the United States. He became a priest in 1776 and served in that capacity in Ireland for more than four decades. After the Pope declined to appoint him Archbishop of Arma ...

(1819–1841) #

Francis Patrick Kenrick Francis Patrick Kenrick (December 3, 1796 or 1797 – July 8, 1863) was an Irish-born prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the third Bishop of the Diocese of Philadelphia (1842–1851) and the sixth Archbishop of the Archdiocese of ...

(1842–1851;

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- ...

1830–1842), appointed Archbishop of Baltimore # Saint John Nepomucene Neumann, C.Ss.R. (1852–1860) # James Frederick Wood (1860–1875; coadjutor bishop 1857–1860), elevated to

Archbishops of Philadelphia

# James Frederick Wood (1875–1883) # Patrick John Ryan (1884–1911) # Edmond Francis Prendergast (1911–1918) # Cardinal Dennis Joseph Dougherty (1918–1951) # Cardinal

John Francis O'Hara John Francis O'Hara (August 1, 1888 – August 28, 1960) was an American member of the Congregation of Holy Cross and prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as President of the University of Notre Dame (1934–1939) and as the Archbishop of ...

, C.S.C. (1951–1960) # Cardinal

John Joseph Krol John Joseph Krol (October 26, 1910 – March 3, 1996) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He was Archbishop of Philadelphia from 1961 to 1988, having previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Cleveland (1953 ...

(1961–1988) # Cardinal

Anthony Joseph Bevilacqua Anthony Joseph Bevilacqua (June 17, 1923 – January 31, 2012) was an American cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania from 1988 to 2003. Bevilacqua previously served as ...

(1988–2003) # Cardinal Justin Francis Rigali (2003–2011) # Charles Joseph Chaput,

O.F.M. Cap. The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. O.F.M. Cap.) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of Three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFM Obs., now OFM ...

(2011–2020) #

(2020–present)

Current auxiliary bishops

* Timothy C. Senior (2009–present) * John J. McIntyre (2010–present) * Michael J. Fitzgerald (2010–present)

Former auxiliary bishops

John Joseph McCort John Joseph McCort (February 16, 1860 – April 21, 1936) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Altoona from 1920 until his death in 1936. Biography Early life and education John McCort was born on February 1 ...

(1912–1920), appointed Coadjutor Bishop and later Bishop of Altoona * Michael Joseph Crane (1921–1928) * Gerald Patrick O'Hara (1929–1935), appointed Bishop of Savannah and later Apostolic Nuncio and Titular Archbishop * Hugh L. Lamb (1935–1951), appointed Bishop of Greensburg * J. Carroll McCormick (1947–1960), appointed Bishop of Altoona-Johnstown and later Bishop of Scranton * Joseph Mark McShea (1952–1961), appointed Bishop of Allentown *

Cletus Joseph Benjamin Cletus Joseph Benjamin (May 2, 1909 – May 15, 1961) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia from 1960 to 1961. Biography Cletus Benjamin was born in Old Forg ...

(1960–1961) * Francis James Furey (1960–1963), appointed Coadjutor Archbishop and later Archbishop of San Antonio *

Gerald Vincent McDevitt Gerald Vincent McDevitt (February 23, 1917 – September 29, 1980) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia from 1962 until his death in 1980. Biography Gerald ...

(1962–1980) *

John Joseph Graham John Joseph Graham (September 11, 1913—August 4, 2000) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia from 1964 to 1988. Early life and education John Graham was bo ...

(1963–1988) *

Thomas Jerome Welsh Thomas Jerome Welsh (December 20, 1921 – February 19, 2009) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Arlington in Virginia (1974–1983) and as bishop of the Diocese of Allentown in Pennsylv ...

(1970–1974), appointed Bishop of Arlington and later Bishop of Allentown *

Martin Nicholas Lohmuller Martin Nicholas Lohmuller (August 21, 1919 – January 24, 2017) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as an auxiliary bishop of Philadelphia from 1970 to 1994. At the time of his death, he was the oldest American Cath ...

(1970–1994) *

Edward Thomas Hughes Edward Thomas Hughes (November 13, 1920 – December 25, 2012) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church who served as Bishop of Metuchen, New Jersey from 1987 to 1997. Biography Hughes was born in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania, to Charles a ...

(1976–1986), appointed Bishop of Metuchen * Francis B. Schulte (1981–1985), appointed Bishop of Wheeling-Charleston and later Archbishop of New Orleans * Louis A. DeSimone (1981–1997) *

Edward Peter Cullen Edward Peter Cullen (born March 15, 1933) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Allentown in Pennsylvania from 1998 to 2009 and as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia fr ...

(1994–1997), appointed Bishop of Allentown *

Joseph Francis Martino Joseph Francis Martino (born May 1, 1946) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Scranton in Pennsylvania from 2003 to 2009. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of ...

(1996–2003), appointed Bishop of Scranton *

Robert P. Maginnis Robert Patrick Maginnis (December 22, 1933 – September 14, 2022) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia from 1996 to 2010. Early life and education Robert ...

(1996–2010) * Michael Francis Burbidge (2002–2006), appointed Bishop of Raleigh and later Bishop of Arlington *

Joseph R. Cistone Joseph Robert Cistone (May 18, 1949 – October 16, 2018) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Saginaw in Michigan from 2009 to until his death in 2018. Biography Early life ...

(2004–2009), appointed Bishop of Saginaw *

Joseph P. McFadden Joseph Patrick McFadden (May 22, 1947 – May 2, 2013) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. Formerly an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, he was installed as Bishop of Harrisburg on August 18, 2010. He s ...

(2004–2010), appointed Bishop of Harrisburg * Daniel E. Thomas (2006–2014), appointed

Bishop of Toledo This is a list of Bishops and Archbishops of Toledo ( la, Archidioecesis Metropolitae Toletana).

* Edward Michael Deliman (2016–2022)

Other living priests of this diocese who became bishops

:''Note: Year range in parentheses indicates the time of service as a priest of the (Arch)diocese of Philadelphia, prior to appointment to the episcopacy.'' *

Edward Joseph Adams Edward Joseph Adams (born August 24, 1944) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has served in the diplomatic service of the Holy See since 1976. He was the apostolic nuncio to Great Britain from 2017 to 2020 and held earlier ...

(1970–1996), appointed nuncio and titular archbishop''See'': List of the Catholic bishops of the United States#American bishops serving outside the United States. *

Herbert Bevard Herbert Armstrong Bevard (born February 24, 1946) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the bishop of the Diocese of Saint Thomas in the United States Virgin Islands from 2008 until 2020. Biography Early life He ...

(1972–2008), appointed Bishop of St. Thomas * Michael Joseph Bransfield (1971–2004), appointed Bishop of Wheeling-Charleston * Joseph Lawrence Coffey (1996–2019), appointed auxiliary bishop of U.S. Military * James Patrick Green (1976–2006), appointed nuncio and titular archbishop * Joseph A. Pepe (1970–2001), appointed Bishop of Las Vegas *

(1989–2012), appointed auxiliary bishop of Rockville Centre; ''appointed Archbishop of Philadelphia in 2020''

Other deceased priests of this diocese who became bishops

:''Note: Year range in parentheses indicates the time of service as a priest of the (Arch)diocese of Philadelphia, prior to appointment to the episcopacy.'' * Francis Brennan (1920–1940), appointed official of the Roman Rota; appointed titular archbishop and Cardinal in 1967 * Edwin Byrne (1915–1925), appointed Bishop of Ponce *

George Aloysius Carrell George Aloysius Carrell, S.J. (June 13, 1803—September 25, 1868) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the first bishop of the Diocese of Covington, Kentucky from 1853 until his death in 1868. Early life and ...

, SJ (ordained 1827; Philadelphia native but not priest of this diocese), appointed Bishop of Covington in 1853 * James Jordan Carroll (1889–1908), appointed Bishop of Nueva Segovia, Philippines * Hubert James Cartwright (1927–1956), appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Wilmington * Joseph M. Corrigan (1903–1940), appointed titular bishop *

Joseph Thomas Daley Joseph Thomas Daley (December 21, 1915 – September 2, 1983) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Harrisburg in Pennsylvania from 1971 until his death in 1983. Biography Early life J ...

(1941–1963), appointed auxiliary bishop of Harrisburg * Francis Xavier DiLorenzo (1968–1988), appointed auxiliary bishop of Scranton * Dennis Joseph Dougherty (1890–1903), appointed Bishop of Nueva Segovia, Philippines; ''appointed Archbishop of Philadelphia in 1918 (Cardinal in 1921)'' *

Edmond John Fitzmaurice Edmond John Fitzmaurice (June 24, 1881 – July 26, 1962) was an Irish-born American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Wilmington in Delaware from 1925 to 1960. Biography Early life and education Ed ...

(1904–1925), appointed Bishop of Wilmington *

John Edmund Fitzmaurice John Edmund Fitzmaurice (January 8, 1839 – June 18, 1920) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the fourth bishop (Catholic Church), bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Erie, Diocese of Erie in Pennsylvania (1 ...

(1862–1897), appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Erie *

John Patrick Foley John Patrick Foley (November 11, 1935 – December 11, 2011) was an American cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. From 2007 until 2011, he was Grand Master of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, an order of knighthood u ...

(1962–1984), appointed titular archbishop (Cardinal in 2007) * Joseph Anthony Galante (1964–1992), appointed auxiliary bishop of San Antonio *

Francis Xavier Gartland Francis Xavier Gartland (January 13, 1805 – September 20, 1854) was an Irish-born American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the first bishop of the Diocese of Savannah, covering Georgia and Eastern Florida, from 1850 until his d ...

(1832–1850), appointed Bishop of Savannah * Daniel James Gercke (1901–1923), appointed Bishop of Tucson *

Ignatius Frederick Horstmann Ignatius Frederick Horstmann (December 16, 1840 – May 13, 1908) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Cleveland in Ohio from 1892 until his death in 1908. Biography Early life Ignati ...

(1865–1891), appointed Bishop of Cleveland * John Joseph Hughes (1826–1837), appointed Coadjutor Bishop of New York * Francis Edward Hyland (1927–1949), appointed auxiliary bishop of Savannah-Atlanta *

Thomas Francis Kennedy Thomas Francis Kennedy (11 November 17881 April 1879), Scottish politician, was born near Ayr in 1788. He studied for the bar and became advocate in 1811. Having been elected Member of Parliament for the Ayr Burghs in 1818, he devoted the great ...

(1887–1907), appointed titular bishop * James Paul McCloskey (1898–1917), appointed Bishop of Zamboanga, Philippines * Philip R. McDevitt (1885–1916), appointed Bishop of Harrisburg * Thomas Joseph McDonough (1938–1947), appointed auxiliary bishop of St. Augustine * Thomas McGovern (1861–1888), appointed Bishop of Harrisburg * Eugene J. McGuinness (1915–1937), appointed Bishop of Raleigh * John Joseph O'Connor (1945–1979), appointed auxiliary bishop of U.S. military; future Cardinal * William O'Hara (1842–1868), appointed Bishop of Scranton * Jeremiah F. Shanahan (1859–1868), appointed Bishop of Harrisburg * John W. Shanahan (1869–1899), appointed Bishop of Harrisburg *

David B. Thompson David Bernard Thompson (May 29, 1923 − November 24, 2013) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Charleston, South Carolina from 1990 to 1999. Biography Thompson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After s ...

(1950–1961), appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Charleston in 1989

Churches

Educational institutions

Circa 1912 there were about 68,000 students in Catholic schools within the archdiocesan territory. This increased to 250,000 in 1961, but the figures decreased after that year. Enrollment was down to 68,000 in 2012. There were about 50,000 students in Catholic schools in the city of Philadelphia in 2000, and this figure decreased to 30,000 in 2010. In that span one Catholic high school and 23 Catholic elementary schools closed or merged, and the proliferation of

charter schools A charter school is a school that receives government funding but operates independently of the established state school system in which it is located. It is independent in the sense that it operates according to the basic principle of autono ...

in that period meant that the number of students combined in that type of school outnumbered that of the remaining Philadelphia Catholic schools. In 2012 the archdiocese proposed closing or merging 18 schools in Philadelphia and 31 schools outside of Philadelphia; the ''

Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Penns ...

'' stated this would further weaken Philadelphia's

middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. C ...

. The proposal would affect 24% and 29% of the senior high and K-8 schools, respectively.

Elementary schools

(only includes schools notable for their own Wikipedia articles) The first

Catholic school Catholic schools are pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered under the aegis or in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest religious, non-governmental school syste ...

established in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia was at St. Mary Parish in Philadelphia during the late eighteenth century. During the nineteenth century, Bishop Kenrick encouraged the establishment of Catholic schools. Subsequently, St. John Neumann (1851–1860) made the establishment of parish elementary schools a priority and by 1860 there were seventeen parish elementary schools in Philadelphia. Between 1900 and 1930, Catholic elementary schools increased to 124 schools in Philadelphia and 78 schools in the four suburban counties. Between 1945 and 1965, 62 new Catholic elementary schools were established. In 2012, about 25% of the students in Philadelphia Catholic elementary schools were not Catholic. In 2010 South Philadelphia Catholic elementary schools had 2,572 students, a decline by 27% from the 2006 figure.

Special Needs schools

With the foundation of Archbishop Ryan School for Children with Deafness in 1912, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia school system began serving families of children with special needs. St. Katherine Day School and Our Lady of Confidence School, serving students with mental retardation, were opened in 1953 and 1954 respectively, after parent petitions to John Cardinal O'Hara. St. Lucy Day School for Children with Visual Impairment followed in 1955. Queen of the Universe Day Center was added in 1980 to serve students with mental retardation in Bucks County. These five schools are supported by the Catholic Charities Appeal.

High schools within the archdiocese

Diocesan high schools

Leadership within the Archdiocese of Philadelphia envisioned a continued comprehensive education for secondary students. The first free Catholic high school in the United States was the "Roman Catholic High School of Philadelphia", founded for the education of boys in 1890. (It is often referred to as "Roman Catholic", occasionally as "Catholic High", and most commonly as "Roman".) The "Catholic Girls High School" was founded in 1912. Mary McMichan, one of the school's founders, requested in her last will that the school be renamed in honor of her brother. The school became "John W. Hallahan Catholic Girls High School" after her death. Both schools are still in existence. Between 1916 and 1927 West Catholic Boys and Girls and Northeast Catholic were opened. Despite the economic hardships of the 1930s and 1940s, seven more diocesan high schools were founded. During a 22-year growth period from 1945 to 1967, fifteen high schools were opened.

Seminaries

St. Charles Borromeo Seminary Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary is a Roman Catholic seminary in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania that is under the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. The oldest Catholic institution of higher learning in the Philadelphia region, the school ...

* Redemptois Mater Archdiocesan Missionary Seminary

Colleges and universities within the archdiocese

:''Note: Each Catholic college and university within the archdiocese is affiliated with a religious institute, rather than the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.'' * Alvernia University - Philadelphia Center ''(branch campus)'', Cheltenham Township ( Bernardine Sisters of St. Francis) * Cabrini University, Radnor Township ( Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus) *

Chestnut Hill College Chestnut Hill College is a private Catholic college in the Chestnut Hill section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The college was founded in 1924 as a women's college by the Sisters of St. Joseph. It was originally named Mount Saint Joseph College ...

, Philadelphia (

Sisters of Saint Joseph The Sisters of St. Joseph, also known as the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph, abbreviated CSJ or SSJ, is a Roman Catholic religious congregation of women founded in Le Puy-en-Velay, France, in 1650. This congregation, named for ...

) *

Gwynedd Mercy University Gwynedd Mercy University (GMercyU) is a private Roman Catholic university in Lower Gwynedd Township, Pennsylvania. It occupies a campus in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Gwynedd Mercy University was founded in 1948, as Gwynedd-Mercy Colleg ...

, Lower Gwynedd Township ( Sisters of Mercy) *

Holy Family University Holy Family University is a private Roman Catholic university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was chartered in 1954 by the Congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth. In addition to the main Torresdale campus in the northeas ...

, Philadelphia ( Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth) *

Immaculata University Immaculata University is a private Roman Catholic university in East Whiteland Township, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The university is composed of 1,427 traditional undergraduate and ...

, East Whiteland Township (

Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary The Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (I.H.M.) is a Catholic religious institute of sisters, founded by Fr Louis Florent Gillet, CSsR, and a co-founder of the Oblate Sister of Providence, Mother Theresa Maxis Duchemin, in 1845. ...

) *

La Salle University La Salle University () is a private, Catholic university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The university was founded in 1863 by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools and named for St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle. History L ...

, Philadelphia ( Christian Brothers) * Neumann University, Aston Township ( Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia) * Rosemont College, Lower Merion Township (

Society of the Holy Child Jesus The Society of the Holy Child Jesus is an international community of Roman Catholic sisters founded in England in 1846 by Philadelphia-born Cornelia Connelly. History Born Cornelia Peacock in Philadelphia, she was raised a Presbyterian. In 183 ...

) *

Saint Joseph's University Saint Joseph's University (SJU or St. Joe's) is a private Jesuit university in Philadelphia and Lower Merion, Pennsylvania. The university was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1851 as Saint Joseph's College. Saint Joseph's is the seventh olde ...

, Philadelphia (

Jesuits , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...

) *

Villanova University Villanova University is a private Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Augustinians in 1842 and named after Saint Thomas of Villanova. The university is the oldest Catholic university in Pennsy ...

, Radnor Township (

Augustinians Augustinians are members of Christian religious orders that follow the Rule of Saint Augustine, written in about 400 AD by Augustine of Hippo. There are two distinct types of Augustinians in Catholic religious orders dating back to the 12th–1 ...

)

Catholic Social Services

The Archdiocese has had a foster care agency for more than 100 years. It sued Philadelphia after the city stopped referring foster care cases to the agency after it refused to use same-sex couples to foster children. The case went to the Supreme Court with the nam
Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, Pa

Controversies

Sexual abuse scandals

The

sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia The sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia, in Pennsylvania, U.S., is a significant episode in the series of Catholic sex abuse cases in the United States, Ireland and elsewhere. The Philadelphia abuses were substantially ...

, in Pennsylvania, U.S., is a significant episode in the series of Catholic sex abuse cases in the United States, Ireland and elsewhere. The Philadelphia abuses were substantially revealed through a grand jury investigation in 2005. In early 2011, a new grand jury reported extensive new charges of abusive priests active in the archdiocese. In 2012, a guilty plea by priest Edward Avery and the related trial and conviction of Monsignor William Lynn and mistrial on charges against Rev. James J. Brennan followed from the grand jury's investigations. In 2013, Rev. Charles Engelhardt and teacher Bernard Shero were tried, convicted and sentenced to prison. Lynn was the first official to be convicted in the United States of covering up abuses by other priests in his charge and other senior church officials have been extensively criticized for their management of the issue in the archdiocese. On March 12, 2020, a new trial date was official set for Lynn, who was released and ordered to be retried in 2016 after serving 33 months of his sentence, with jury selection to start March 16. However, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic forced Lynn's retrial to be delayed until January 2021. Following his release from prison in 2016, Lynn was ordered to remain on supervised parole until his retrial. In 2019, it was reported that the 2011 grand jury report also resulted in Lynn being suspended from ministry. On May 5, 2020, Archdiocese of Philadelphia announced that it now expected to pay $126 million in reparations. The archdiocese also said its Independent Reconciliation and Reparations Program, which was established in 2018, has received a total of 615 claims, and had settled 208 of them for $43.8 million as of April 22, 2020. That averages out to about $211,000 per claim, which is in line with what other dioceses have been paying under similar programs. The same day, however, the total number of money which the Archdiocese of Philadelphia expects to pay in sex abuse settlements was soon revised to $130 million by Archbishop of Philadelphia

. On August 14, 2020, it was revealed that the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and its suffragan dioceses of Pittsburgh, Allentown and Scranton were enduring the bulk of 150 new lawsuits filed against all eight Pennsylvania Catholic dioceses. On December 3, 2020, William McCandless, a member of the Wilmington-based religious order Oblates de St. Francis De Sales who was formerly assigned to DeSales University in Lehigh County, was charged in Philadelphia for possession of child pornography. He also served as an adviser to

Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...

royal family A royal family is the immediate family of kings/queens, emirs/emiras, sultans/ sultanas, or raja/ rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term pa ...

Grace Kelly Grace Patricia Kelly (November 12, 1929 – September 14, 1982) was an American actress who, after starring in several significant films in the early to mid-1950s, became Princess of Monaco by marrying Prince Rainier III in April 1956. Kelly ...

, the late mother of Monaco's leader Prince Albert, was also a native of Philadelphia. Much of McCandless' child pornography was imported from overseas as well. McCandless has been ordered to remain under house arrest until the outcome of his trial.

Firing of Margie Winters for same-sex marriage

In 2015, it was reported that the school's director of religious education, Margie Winters, had been fired from the Waldron Mercy Academy after a parent had reported her directly to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia for marrying her long-term lesbian partner in a civil ceremony in 2007. Winters had been upfront with school administrators at the time of her hiring and was advised to keep a low profile which she says she did. Many parents expressed anger and concern over the school's decision. Principal Nell Stetser justified the decision by arguing that "many of us accept life choices that contradict current Church teachings, but to continue as a Catholic school, Waldron Mercy must comply with those teachings." But she called for "an open and honest discussion about this and other divisive issues at the intersection of our society and our Church." The Archbishop of Philadelphia, Charles Chaput, called the dismissal "common sense."

Saints of Philadelphia

* St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, for whom the suburban college is named and who visited on numerous occasions. She started an orphanage and an Italian national parish that still is functioning today, St. Donato's in West Philadelphia. * St. Katharine Drexel * St. John Nepomucene Neumann – A Redemptorist; became the fourth Bishop of Philadelphia (1852–60) and the first U.S. bishop to be canonized; as bishop of Philadelphia, he founded the first Catholic diocesan school system in the U.S.

Shrines of Philadelphia

* Miraculous Medal Shrine *

National Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa The National Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa ''(or simply Czestochowa)'', known also as the American Czestochowa is a Polish-American Roman Catholic shrine near Doylestown, Pennsylvania, founded in 1953. It houses a reproduction of the Black ...

National Shrine of Saint John Neumann The National Shrine of St. John Neumann is a Roman Catholic National shrine dedicated to St. John Neumann, the fourth Bishop of Philadelphia and the first American male to be canonized. The shrine is located in the lower church of St. Peter t ...

Saint Katharine Drexel Mission Center and Shrine Katharine Drexel, Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, SBS (born Catherine Mary Drexel; November 26, 1858 – March 3, 1955) was an American heiress, philanthropist, religious sister, educator, and foundress of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament. ...

* National Shrine of Saint Rita of Cascia''See'' St.

Rita of Cascia Rita of Cascia, born Margherita Lotti (1381 – 22 May 1457), was an Italian widow and Augustinian nun venerated as a saint in the Roman Catholic Church. After Rita's husband died, she joined an Augustinian community of religious sisters, whe ...

an
National Shrine of Saint Rita of Cascia
official website. Retrieved 2011-01-28.

Publications

The Catholic Standard & Times ''The Catholic Standard & Times,'' published from 1895 to 2012, was the official newspaper of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia. It was the product of the merger of two earlier Catholic newspapers of Philadelphia. The ''Catholic St ...

(former newspaper)
CatholicPhilly.com
(online news site)

References

External links

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia Official Site
**
Office of Catholic Education
* {{authority control Christianity in Philadelphia Religious organizations established in 1808

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

1808 establishments in Pennsylvania