Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York

The ordinary of the Archdiocese of New York is an archbishop whose cathedra is located in Cathedral of St. Patrick (commonly St. Patrick's Cathedral) in Manhattan, New York. The Archbishop of New York is also the metropolitan of the larger Ecclesiastical Province of New York, which consists of the eight dioceses that comprise the State of New York with the exception of a small portion (Fishers Island) that belongs to the Province of Hartford. As such, the metropolitan archbishop possesses certain limited authority over the suffragan sees of the province (see ecclesiastical province).

R. Luke Concanen became the first Bishop of the (then) Diocese of New York in 1808. The current archbishop of New York is Timothy Michael Cardinal Dolan.

On November 26, 1784, Pope Pius VI erected the Apostolic Prefecture of United States of America with the territory of what was then the entire United States of America. On November 6, 1789, the same pope raised this prefecture to a diocese and changed its title to Diocese of Baltimore headed by the first American bishop, John Carroll.[6]

At the time, there was a dearth of priests to minister to the large territory. The first Catholic Church in New York City was St. Peter's Church on Barclay Street. The land was purchased from Trinity Church with community donations and a gift of 1,000 pieces of silver from King Charles III of Spain. The church was built in the federal style. Among its regular worshippers were Elizabeth Ann Seton and Pierre Toussaint.[7]

On April 8, 1808, Pope Pius VII erected the Diocese of Philadelphia, the Diocese of Boston, the Diocese of Bardstown, and the Diocese of New York, taking their territory from the Diocese of Baltimore. He simultaneously elevated the Diocese of Baltimore to a metropolitan archdiocese and assigned all four new sees as its suffragans. The initial territory of the Diocese of New York encompassed all of the State of New York and Sussex, Bergen, Morris, Essex, Somerset, Middlesex, and Monmouth counties in northeastern New Jersey.[8]

The first appointed Bishop of New York could not set sail from Italy due to the Napoleonic blockade, so a Jesuit priest, Anthony Kohlmann, was chosen as administrator pending his arrival. He was instrumental in organizing the diocese and preparing for its original Cathedral of St. Patrick to be built on Mulberry Street.[9]

In 1840-1842 Bishop John J. Hughes led a political battle to secure funding for the Catholic schools. He rallied support from both the Tammany Hall Democrats, and the opposition Whig Party, whose leaders, especially Governor William H. Seward supported Hughes. He argued Catholics paid double for schools--they paid taxes to subsidize private schools they could not use and also paid for the parochial schools they did use. Catholics could not use Public School Society schools because they forced students to listen to readings from the Protestant King James Bible which were designed to undermine their Catholic faith. With the Maclay Act in 1842, the New York State legislature established the New York City Board of Education. It gave the city an elective Board of Education empowered to build and supervise schools and distribute the education fund. It provided that no money should go to the schools that taught religion, so Hughes lost his battle.[10] Hughes turned inward: he founded an independent Catholic school system in the city. His new system included the first Catholic college in the Northeast, St. John's College, now Fordham University.[11] By 1870 19 percent of the city's children were attending Catholic schools.[12]

The difficulties faced by Catholics at the time included anti-Catholic bigotry in general and in the New York school system and a strong Nativist movement that failed to keep Catholics out of the country but warned that control by "the Papacy" was a threat to American republicanism.[6]

On April 23, 1847, Pope Pius IX erected the Diocese of Albany and Diocese of Buffalo, taking their initial territory from the Diocese of New York.[13][14][15][16]

On July 19, 1850, the same pope elevated the Diocese of New York to an archdiocese.

On July 29, 1853, the same pope erected the Diocese of Newark, with territory taken from the Diocese of New York and the Diocese of Philadelphia, and the Diocese of Brooklyn, with territory taken from the Diocese of New York.[17][18][19]

On February 16, 1872, the Diocese of Ogdensburg was established.

On July 25, 1885, the same pope annexed the territory of The Bahamas to the Archdiocese of New York, establishing their first permanent Catholic presence, due to their proximity to New York's busy port. The Archdiocese of New York constructed and administered churches and schools in the Bahamas until Pope Pius XI erected the Apostolic Prefecture of Bahama on March 21, 1929, enabled a transition. By 1932, The Bahamas were no longer under the spiritual jurisdiction of New York.[20] This established the present territory of the Archdiocese of New York.

From 1919 to 1983, the Archbishops of New York held the collateral position of Apostolic Vicar of the Military Vicariate of the United States.[17] Pope John Paul II terminated this arrangement, first by appointing Bishop John Joseph O'Connor as Archbishop of New York but as Apostolic Administrator of the Military Vicariate of the United States on 26 January 1984 to oversee the transition and, subsequently, by reconstituting the Military Vicariate of the United States as the present Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, with its own archbishop and its see relocated to Washington, DC on 21 July 1986.

In 2008, the Archdiocese of New York celebrated its bicentennial anniversary of its establishment as a diocese. To mark the occasion, Pope Benedict XVI visited the archdiocese from April 18 to April 20. During his visit, Benedict visited St. Patrick's Cathedral, The United Nations, Ground Zero, St. Joseph's Parish in Yorkville, St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers and celebrated a Mass at Yankee Stadium in The Bronx.

In 2009, Timothy Dolan was named the 10th Archbishop of New York. He was made a Cardinal in February 2012.

Since the start of the 21st century, The Archdiocese of New York, like other dioceses around the country and the world, has been dealing with a decline in priestly vocations. This has led to a number of parishes being closed and/or merged, and in some cases priests are being asked to take care of multiple parishes at once.[21]

As of 2023, the Catholic population of the archdiocese was 2,642,740. These Catholics were served by 320 archdiocesan priests, 195 priests of religious orders, and 140 international priests. Also laboring in the diocese were 228 permanent deacons, and 443 men and women religious.[22]

As of 2023, the archdiocese currently has around 60 men enrolled in its priestly formation program.

For comparison, in 1929, the Catholic population of the archdiocese was 1,273,291 persons. There were 1,314 clergy ministering in the archdiocese and 444 churches. There were also 170,348 children in Catholic educational and welfare institutions.[23]

• January 4 – Memorial of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, native of New York
• January 5 – Memorial of Saint John Neumann, ordained a priest of New York
• March 17 – Solemnity of Saint Patrick, Patronal Feast of both the archdiocese and the cathedral
• April 8 – Anniversary of the establishment of the Diocese of New York (1808)
• July 14 – Memorial of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, born near Albany in territory which was once part of the Diocese of New York
• September 5 – Memorial of Saint Teresa of Calcutta, who did missionary work in the Bronx
• October 5 – Anniversary of Dedication of the current Cathedral of Saint Patrick (1910)
• November 13 – Memorial of Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, missionary in New York

Below is a list of individuals who have led the Archdiocese of New York and its antecedent jurisdictions since its founding.[24][25]

The headquarters of the archdiocesan school system is in the New York Catholic Center Terrence Cardinal Cooke Building in Midtown Manhattan.[28]

The following cemeteries are under the auspices of Calvary & Allied Cemeteries, Inc.:

• Calvary Cemetery - Established in 1847; located in Queens. The cemetery, while located in the Diocese of Brooklyn, is property of the Archdiocese of New York as it was established before the Diocese of Brooklyn was canonically erected.
• Cemetery of the Ascension - Located in Airmont in Rockland County.
• Cemetery of the Resurrection - Located in Staten Island.
• Gate of Heaven Cemetery - Located in Valhalla in Westchester County.
• St. Ann Cemetery - Located in Kingston in Ulster County. Acquired by Calvary & Allied Cemeteries in 2021.
• St. Mary Cemetery - Located in Rye Brook in Westchester County. Established in 1863 by Our Lady of Mercy Church in Port Chester; transferred to Calvary & Allied Cemeteries in 2018.

Many parishes have their own cemeteries, or their own sections in private cemeteries. An incomplete list of those cemeteries follows:

• All Souls Cemetery (Pleasantville) - Belongs to Holy Innocents Church in Pleasantville.
• Assumption Cemetery (Cortlandt Manor) - Belongs to Assumption Church in Peekskill.
• Calvary Cemetery (Newburgh) - Belongs to St. Patrick Church in Newburgh.
• Calvary Cemetery (Poughkeepsie) - Belongs to St. Martin de Porres Church in Poughkeepsie.
• Holy Mount Cemetery (Eastchester) - Belongs to Immaculate Conception-Assumption Parish in Tuckahoe.
• Holy Sepulchre Cemetery (New Rochelle) - Belongs to Blessed Sacrament Church in New Rochelle.
• Mount Calvary Cemetery (White Plains) - Belongs to St. John the Evangelist Church in White Plains.
• Sacred Heart Cemetery (Barrytown) - Belongs to St. Christopher Church in Red Hook. The parish has a mission chapel in Barrytown.
• St. Anastasia Cemetery (Harriman) - Belongs to St. Anastasia Church in Harriman.
• St. Denis Cemetery (Hopewell Junction) - Belongs to St. Denis Church in Hopewell Junction.
• St. Francis of Assisi Cemetery (Mount Kisco) - Belongs to St. Francis of Assisi Church in Mount Kisco.
• St. Joachim Cemetery (Beacon) - Belongs to St. Joachim-St. John the Evangelist Church in Beacon. The cemetery consists of an old section and a new section.
• St. John Cemetery (Goshen) - Belongs to St. John the Evangelist Church in Goshen.
• St. John Cemetery (Pawling) - Belongs to St. John the Evangelist Church in Pawling.
• St. Joseph Cemetery (Florida) - Belongs to St. Joseph Church in Florida.
• St. Joseph Cemetery (Middletown) - Belongs to St. Joseph Church in Middletown.
• St. Joseph Cemetery (Millbrook) - Belongs to St. Joseph Church in Millbrook.
• St. Joseph Cemetery (Wurtsboro) - Belongs to St. Joseph Church in Wurtsboro.
• St. Joseph Cemetery (Yonkers) - Belongs to St. Joseph Church in Yonkers.
• St. Lucy Cemetery (Cochecton) - Belongs to St. Francis Xavier Church in Narrowsburg. There was formerly a mission church in Cochecton.
• St. Mary Cemetery (Bangall) - Belongs to Immaculate Conception Church in Bangall.
• St. Mary Cemetery (Port Jervis) - Belongs to St. Mary Church in Port Jervis.
• St. Mary Cemetery (Wappingers Falls) - Belongs to St. Mary Church in Wappingers Falls.
• St. Mary Cemetery (Washingtonville) - Belongs to St. Mary Church in Washingtonville.
• St. Mary Cemetery (Yonkers) - Belongs to St. Mary Church in Yonkers.
• St. Patrick Cemetery (Millerton) - Belongs to Immaculate Conception Church in Amenia. The parish has a mission chapel in Millerton.
• St. Patrick Cemetery (Newburgh) - Belongs to St. Patrick Church in Newburgh.
• St. Peter Cemetery (Kingston) - Belongs to St. Peter Church in Kingston.
• St. Peter Cemetery (Poughkeepsie) - Belongs to St. Peter Church in Hyde Park. The church was formerly located in Poughkeepsie.
• St. Raymond Cemetery (The Bronx) - Belongs to St. Raymond Church in the Bronx. The cemetery consists of an old section and a new section.
• St. Stephen Cemetery (Warwick) - Belongs to St. Stephen-St. Edward Church in Warwick.
• St. Sylvia Cemetery (Tivoli) - Belongs to St. Sylvia Church in Tivoli.
• St. Thomas Cemetery (Cornwall-on-Hudson) - Belongs to St. Thomas of Canterbury Church in Cornwall-on-Hudson.

• Elizabeth Ann Seton – founder of American branch of Sisters of Charity; first canonized saint from New York; first native-born U.S. citizen canonized a saint
• Frances Xavier Cabrini – founder of Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus; first U.S. citizen canonized a saint
• Isaac Jogues – Jesuit missionary, active in northern New York State before establishment of Diocese of New York
• John Nepomucene Neumann – New York diocesan priest, later a Redemptorist; fourth Bishop of Philadelphia; first U.S. bishop canonized; founder of first Catholic diocesan school system in the U.S.
• Kateri Tekakwitha – first Native American (U.S.) canonized a saint
• Fulton Sheen – archbishop; prominent radio and television preacher
• Pierre Toussaint – Haitian slave; New York businessman and philanthropist
• Isaac Hecker – Redemptorist priest; founder of Paulist Fathers
• Vincent Capodanno – Maryknoll missionary; U.S. Navy chaplain; Vietnam War hero; Medal of Honor recipient
• Dorothy Day – social activist and radical; co-founder of Catholic Worker movement and newspaper
• Terence Cooke – archbishop and cardinal; founder of many charitable programs
• Rose Hawthorne Lathrop – founder of Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne, as Mother Mary Alphonsa

• St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Shrine, at 701 Fort Washington Avenue in Hudson Heights, Manhattan, with a facade on Cabrini Boulevard, next to the former Mother Cabrini High School.
• Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton, in the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary, at 7 State Street in the Financial District, Manhattan.
• National Shrine of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, at 70 Carmelite Drive in Middletown, Orange County, New York.[29]
• Salesian National Shrine of Mary Help of Christians, 174 Filors Lane, Stony Point, New York.[30]

In August 2018, the archdiocese reported that between 2016 and 2018, its Independent Reconciliation and Compensation Program paid nearly $60 million to 278 victims of sex abuse by clergy.[31] On September 26, 2018, it was reported that the Archdiocese of New York, and the three other dioceses where Theodore McCarrick served as a bishop, were facing an investigation by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops for McCarrick's alleged sex abuse.[32] On January 28, 2019, the New York state Assembly and Senate passed a law allowing prosecutors to bring criminal charges until a victim turned 28, and permitting victims to sue until age 55.[33] New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the bill into law on February 14, 2019.[34]

On April 26, 2019, the Archdiocese released a list of 120 Catholic clergy accused of committing acts of sexual abuse.[35] Some of those on the list, which includes both male and female church workers, have been convicted and many are deceased.[36] The list was accompanied by a letter of apology from Cardinal Dolan, who asked for forgiveness.[37]

On August 14, 2019, James Grien, who has accused McCarrick of sexually abusing him when McCarrick was an auxiliary bishop of New York (1977-1981), filed a lawsuit against the Archdiocese of New York.[38][39] In his lawsuit, Grien also stated that McCarrick's status as a friend of his family allowed the former New York Auxiliary Bishop to continue to visit and sexually abuse him after being transferred to New Jersey's Diocese of Metuchen in 1981 and later the Archdiocese of Newark in 1986.[40]

On September 30, 2019, Dolan released a report written by Barbara S. Jones, a former judge and prosecutor.[41][42] Her report stated, among other things, that the Archdiocese had completed the process of removing all of its remaining accused clergy from active ministry.[43][44][42] In the same report, Jones recommended that the Archdiocese should also hire a sex abuse "czar" to vet all complaints.[45][44][42] Jones, who was commissioned by Dolan in 2018 to conduct the review of the church's handling of abuse allegations,[46] also recommended hiring "a compliance officer for the Office of Priest Personnel to monitor its functions and oversee the new document management system".[45] Dolan also backed the Jones Report and stated at a press conference that the archdiocese was expanding its sex abuse policy as well.[42]

On October 10, 2019, it was announced that Pope Francis had accepted the resignation of Bronx-based Auxiliary Bishop John Jenik following an accusation of sex abuse.[47] Appointed Auxiliary Bishop by Pope Francis in 2014, Jenik also served as vicar for the Northwest Bronx, appointed by Dolan's predecessor Edward Egan in 2006.[48] Jenik, who submitted his resignation letter upon turning 75 in March 2019,[47] had stepped out of public ministry in October 2018 after the allegation surfaced.[49]

On May 8, 2020, Cuomo extended the 2019 New York Child Victim Act's statewide statute of limitations deadline to file sex abuse lawsuits, which was originally set for August 14, 2020, to January 14, 2021.[50]

On July 27, 2020, it was revealed that a Catholic priest who served the Archdiocese of New York in upstate New York's Orange County was named in a new sex abuse lawsuit.[51] In the lawsuit, eight men alleged that longtime Orange County priest George Boxelaar, who died in 1990, sexually abused them when they were children (1970s-80s), adding their claims to those of at least three other accusers of the late Boxelaar who have sued.[51] These three other accusers had filed lawsuits through the state Supreme Court in Orange County in late 2019, with one also naming the Archdiocese of New York and two churches - Holy Cross in Wawaynda and Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Middletown - as defendants.[52] In addition to these new lawsuits, a Scarsdale Catholic school teacher identified as Edwin Gaylor also confessed to committing acts of sex abuse.[53]

On December 3, 2020, New York City priest Fr. George Rutler, the prestigious pastor of the Church of St. Michael in Manhattan was accused by a female security guard, who worked at Rutler's parish for two shifts, of watching pornography and "aggressively" groping her.[54] Rutler, considered a popular conservative priest, has made numerous appearances on EWTN and has written 30 books.[55] Following the accusations, he maintained his innocence but offered to temporarily step down as pastor during the subsequent investigation. In May 2021, the District Attorney of Manhattan declined to bring charges, dismissing the accusations and allegedly calling them "baseless."[56]

• Irish Americans in New York City
• Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn
• History of education in New York City
• History of the Catholic Church in the United States

• Category:People of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York
• John P. Chidwick – New York diocesan priest; chaplain on USS Maine
• Sisters of Life – founded in 1991 by John Joseph O'Connor, Cardinal Archbishop of New York

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York.

• Official website
  • Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York at the Wayback Machine (archive index) (ny-archdiocese.org archive)
• Catholic New York
• Catholic Encyclopedia article
• New York State Catholic Conference