The Archdiocese of São Paulo ( la, Archidioecesis Sancti Pauli in Brasilia) is a Latin Metropolitan

Archbishopric 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 associat ...

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 ...

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 is currently headed by

Odilo Scherer Odilo Pedro Scherer (; born 21 September 1949) is a Brazilian cardinal of the Catholic Church, who has been the Archbishop of São Paulo since March 2007. He was made a cardinal in November 2007. In the international media, he was mentioned as ...

since his appointment by

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereig ...

on 21 March 2007, an appointment that ended almost four decades of Franciscan leadership in the archdiocese: both predecessors, Cardinals Paulo Evaristo Arns and

Cláudio Hummes Cláudio Hummes, OFM (; born Auri Alfonso Hummes; 8 August 1934 – 4 July 2022) was a Brazilian prelate of the Catholic Church. He was prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy from 2006 to 2010, having served as Archbishop of Fortaleza f ...

, belonged to that

Order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of ...

. Its

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 ...

episcopal see, the Catedral Metropolitana Nossa Senhora da Assunção e São Paulo, in the metropolis São Paulo, was dedicated to the Assumption of Mary on September 5, 1964. The city also has three

minor basilica In the Catholic Church, a basilica is a designation given by the Pope to a church building. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectural sense (a rectangular ...

s : Basílica de Nossa Senhora da Assunção, Basílica de Nossa Senhora do Carmo (both also Marian) and Basílica do Santíssimo Sacramento (dedicated to the Holly Sacrament).

History

* The Diocese of São Paulo was erected by

Pope Benedict XIV Pope Benedict XIV ( la, Benedictus XIV; it, Benedetto XIV; 31 March 1675 – 3 May 1758), born Prospero Lorenzo Lambertini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 17 August 1740 to his death in May 1758. Pope Be ...

on 6 December 1745, on vast territory split off from the then Diocese of São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro. * It lost territories on April 27, 1892 to establish the Diocese of Curitiba and on August 9, 1907 to establish the Diocese of Campanha. * It became a Metropolitan Archdiocese on June 7, 1908, having lost more territories to establish the Dioceses of Botucatu,

Campinas Campinas (, ''Plains'' or ''Meadows'') is a Brazilian municipality in São Paulo State, part of the country's Southeast Region. According to the 2020 estimate, the city's population is 1,213,792, making it the fourteenth most populous Brazilian ...

, Ribeirão Preto, São Carlos do Pinhal and Taubaté. * It lost further territories to establish more Dioceses :

Sorocaba Sorocaba () is a municipality in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. Sorocaba is the eighth-largest city in the state of São Paulo. Outside the Greater São Paulo region, it ranks behind only Campinas, São José dos Campos and Ribeirão Preto. ...

Santos,

Bragança Paulista Bragança Paulista is a municipality in the state of São Paulo (state), São Paulo in Brazil. The population is 170,533 (2020 est.) in an area of 512.6 km². The elevation is 817 m. The city is famous for its traditional sausages, with seve ...

, Santo André, Metropolitan Aparecida,

Diocese of Mogi das Cruzes The Roman Catholic Diocese of Mogi das Cruzes ( la, Dioecesis Crucismogiensis) is a diocese located in the city of Mogi das Cruzes in the Ecclesiastical province of São Paulo in Brazil. History * 9 June 1962: Established as Diocese of Mogi d ...

Jundiaí Jundiaí is a municipality in the state of São Paulo, in the Southeast Region of Brazil, located north of São Paulo. The population of the city is 423,006 (2020 est.), with an area of 431.21 km². The elevation is 761 m. The GDP of the ...

, Campo Limpo, Osasco, Santo Amaro and São Miguel Paulista. * It enjoyed papal visits 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 and

in May 2007.

Bishops

Ordinaries

;''Bishops of São Paulo'' * Bernardo Rodrigues Nogueira (1745–1748 ) * Antônio da Madre de Deus Galvão, O.F.M. (1750–1764) * Manuel da Ressurreição, O.F.M. (1771–1789) * Miguel da Madre de Deus da Cruz, O.F.M. (1791–1795), appointed Archbishop of Braga (Portugal) * Mateus de Abreu Pereira (1795–1824) * Manuel Joaquim Gonçalves de Andrade (1827–1847) * Antônio Joaquim de Melo (1851–1861) * Sebastião Pinto do Rego (1861–1868) * Lino Deodato Rodrigues de Carvalho (1871–1894) * Joaquim Arcoverde de Albuquerque Cavalcanti (1894–1897), appointed Archbishop of São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro (

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...

in 1905) * Antônio Cândido Alvarenga (1898–1903 * José de Camargo Barros (1903–1906) * Leopoldo Duarte e Silva (1906–1908) ;''Archbishops of São Paulo'' * Leopoldo Duarte e Silva (1908–1938) * José Gaspar d'Afonseca e Silva (1939–1943) * Cardinal Carlos Carmelo de Vasconcelos Motta (1944–1964), appointed Archbishop of Aparecida * Cardinal

Agnelo Rossi Agnelo Rossi (4 May 1913 – 21 May 1995) was a Brazilian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church and dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals. Biography Rossi was born on 4 May 1913 in Joaquim Egidio, Brazil, in the Diocese of Campinas. In 1933 h ...

(1964–1970), appointed Prefect of Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith and later President of Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See * Cardinal Paulo Evaristo Arns, O.F.M. (1970–1998) * Cardinal

, O.F.M. (1998–2006), appointed Prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy * Cardinal

(2007–present)

Coadjutor Bishops

* Joaquim Arcoverde de Albuquerque Cavalcanti (1892–1894); future Cardinal * Antônio Maria Alves de Siqueira (1957-1966), did not succeed to see; appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Campinas, Sao Paulo

Auxiliary Bishops

* José Gaspar d'Afonseca e Silva (1935–1939), appointed Archbishop here * Antônio Maria Alves de Siqueira (1947-1957), appointed Coadjutor here * Paulo Rolim Loureiro (1948-1962), appointed Bishop of Mogi das Cruzes, Sao Paulo * Antônio Ferreira de Macedo, C.SS.R. (1955-1964), appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Aparecida, Sao Paulo * Vicente Angelo José Marchetti Zioni (1955-1964), appointed Bishop of Bauru, Sao Paulo * Romeu Alberti (1964-1965), appointed Bishop of Apucarana, Parana in 1965 *

Gabriel Paulino Bueno Couto In Abrahamic religions ( Judaism, Christianity and Islam), Gabriel (); Greek: grc, Γαβριήλ, translit=Gabriḗl, label=none; Latin: ''Gabriel''; Coptic: cop, Ⲅⲁⲃⲣⲓⲏⲗ, translit=Gabriêl, label=none; Amharic: am, ገብ ...

, O. Carm. (1965-1966), appointed Bishop of Jundiaí, Sao Paulo * Paulo Evaristo Arns, O.F.M. (1966-1970), appointed Archbishop here (Cardinal in 1973) * Bruno Maldaner (1966-1971), appointed Bishop of Frederico Westphalen, Rio Grande do Sul * José Thurler (1966-1992) *

Lucas Moreira Neves Lucas Moreira Neves O.P. (16 September 1925 – 8 September 2002) was a Brazilian Cardinal Bishop and Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops. Biography Moreira Neves was born in São João del Rei, in Minas Gerais state, Brazil. He was ord ...

, O.P. (1967-1974), appointed Vice President of the Pontifical Council for the Laity; future Cardinal * Benedito de Ulhôa Vieira (1971-1978), appointed Archbishop of Uberaba, Minas Gerais *

Angélico Sândalo Bernardino Angélico Sândalo Bernardino (born 19 January 1933 in Saltinho de Piracicaba, Brazil) is a retired Roman Catholic Roman Catholic Diocese of Blumenau, bishop of Blumenau. Life Angélico Sândalo Bernardino received on 12 July 1959 the sacrament of ...

(1974-2000), appointed Bishop of Blumenau, Santa Catarina * Mauro Morelli (1974-1981), appointed Bishop of Duque de Caxias, Rio de Janeiro * Joel Ivo Catapan, S.V.D. (1974-1999) * Francisco Manuel Vieira (1974-1989), appointed Bishop of Osasco, Sao Paulo * Antônio Celso Queiroz (1975-2000), appointed Bishop of Catanduva, Sao Paulo * Luciano Pedro Mendes de Almeida, S.J. (1976-1988), appointed Archbishop of Mariana, Minas Gerais * Fernando José Penteado (1979-2000), appointed Bishop of Jacarezinho, Parana *

Alfredo Ernest Novak Alfred Ernest Novak, C.Ss.R. (Portuguese: Alfredo Ernesto Novak)(June 2, 1930 – December 3, 2014) was an American member of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, commonly referred to as the Redemptorists, who worked as a missionary i ...

, C.SS.R. (1979-1989), appointed Bishop of Paranaguá, Parana * Décio Pereira (1979-1997), appointed Bishop of Santo André, Sao Paulo * Antônio Gaspar (1982-2000), appointed Bishop of Barretos, Sao Paulo * Gil Antônio Moreira (1999-2004), appointed Bishop of Jundiaí, Sao Paulo * Odilo Pedro Scherer (2001-2007), appointed Archbishop here (Cardinal later in the year) * Benedito Beni dos Santos (2001-2006), appointed Bishop of Lorena, Sao Paulo * Manuel Parrado Carral (2001-2008), appointed Bishop of São Miguel Paulista, Sao Paulo * Pedro Luiz Stringhini (2001-2009), appointed Bishop of Franca, Sao Paulo * José Benedito Simão (2001-2009), appointed Bishop of Assis, Sao Paulo * José María Pinheiro (2003-2005), appointed Bishop of Bragança Paulista, Sao Paulo * Tomé Ferreira da Silva (2005-2012), appointed Bishop of São José do Rio Preto, Sao Paulo *

Joaquim Justino Carreira Joaquim Justino Carreira (29 January 1950 − 1 September 2013) was a Portuguese-born Brazilian Roman Catholic bishop. Born in Leiria, Portugal and ordained to the priesthood in 1977, Carreira was named bishop in 2005. In 2011, he was named bi ...

(2005-2011), appointed Bishop of Guarulhos, Sao Paulo * João Mamede Filho, O.F.M. (2006-2010), appointed Bishop of Umuarama, Parana * Tarcísio Scaramussa, S.D.B. (2008-2014), appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Santos, Sao Paulo * Milton Kenan Júnior (2009-2014), appointed Bishop of Barretos, Sao Paulo * Edmar Perón (2009-2015), appointed Bishop of Paranaguá, Parana * Júlio Endi Akamine, S.A.C. (2011-2016), appointed Archbishop of Sorocaba, Sao Paulo * Sérgio de Deus Borges (2012-2019), appointed Bishop of Foz do Iguaçu, Parana * Devair Araújo da Fonseca (2014-) * José Roberto Fortes Palau (2014-2019), appointed Bishop of Limeira, Sao Paulo * Carlos Lema Garcia (2014-) * Eduardo Vieira dos Santos (2014-) * Luiz Carlos Dias (2016-) * José Benedito Cardoso (2019-) * Jorge Pierozan (2019-) * Ângelo Ademir Mezzari, R.C.J. (2020-

Other priests of this diocese who became bishops

* José Marcondes Homem de Melo, appointed Bishop of Belém do Pará in 1906 * Francisco de Campos Barreto, appointed Bishop of Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul in 1911 * Sebastião Leme da Silveira Cintra, appointed Auxiliary Bishop of São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro in 1911; future Cardinal * Benedito Paulo Alves de Souza, appointed Bishop of Espírito Santo in 1918 * Manuel da Silveira d’Elboux, appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Ribeirão Preto in 1940 *

Antônio de Castro Mayer Antônio de Castro Mayer (20 June 1904 – 25 April 1991) was a Brazilian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. A Traditionalist Catholic and ally of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, he was Bishop of Campos from 1949 until his resignation in 1 ...

, appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Campos, Rio de Janeiro in 1948 * José Lafayette Ferreira Álvares, appointed Bishop of Bragança Paulista, Sao Paulo in 1971 *

Geraldo Majella Agnelo Geraldo Majella Agnelo (born 19 October 1933) is a Brazilian Roman Catholic Cardinal. He is Archbishop Emeritus of São Salvador da Bahia and Primate Emeritus of Brazil. Early life and ordination Agnelo was born in Juiz de Fora. He was ordaine ...

, appointed Bishop of Toledo, Parana in 1978; future Cardinal * Antônio Carlos Rossi Keller, appointed Bishop of Frederico Westphalen, Rio Grande do Sul in 2008 * José Aparecido Gonçalves de Almeida (priest here, 1986-1989), appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Brasília, Distrito Federal in 2013

Province

Its

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 ...

comprises the Metropolitan's own Archdiocese and these

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 ...

bishoprics, mostly Latin too, ''but also a few Eastern Catholic, notably

Byzantine Rite The Byzantine Rite, also known as the Greek Rite or the Rite of Constantinople, identifies the wide range of cultural, liturgical, and canonical practices that developed in the Eastern Christian Church of Constantinople. The canonical hours a ...

: * Diocese of Campo Limpo * Diocese of Guarulhos *

* Diocese of Osasco * Diocese of Santo Amaro * Diocese of Santo André * Diocese of Santos * Diocese of São Miguel Paulista *'' Maronite Eparchy of Nossa Senhora do Líbano em São Paulo'' *'' Eparchy of Nossa Senhora do Paraíso em São Paulo

References

Sources and external links

*
GCatholic.org with incumbent biography links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sao Paulo, Archdiocese Roman Catholic dioceses in Brazil Roman Catholic ecclesiastical provinces in Brazil Religious organizations established in 1745 Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 18th century 1745 establishments in Brazil