Roman Catholic Diocese of Geraldton

Catholic ecclesiastical territory

28°46′38″S 114°36′50″E / 28.77722°S 114.61389°E / -28.77722; 114.61389StatisticsArea1,318,310 km² (509,000 sq mi)Population
- Total
- Catholics(as of 2006)

114,662

27,135 (

23.7%)Parishes

12InformationDenominationCatholic ChurchSui iuris churchLatin ChurchRiteRoman RiteEstablished30 January 1898CathedralSt Francis Xavier CathedralCurrent leadershipPopeFrancisBishopMichael Henry MorrisseyMetropolitan ArchbishopTimothy CostelloeBishops emeritusJustin Joseph BianchiniWebsiteCatholic Diocese of Geraldton

The Diocese of Geraldton is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or diocese of the Catholic Church covering the Mid West, Western Australia. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Perth.

Its cathedral episcopal see is St Francis Xavier Cathedral, in Geraldton.

History

Established on 30 January 1898 as Diocese of Geraldton / Geraldtonen(sis) (Latin), on territory split off from the then Diocese of Perth (now its Metropolitan).

Statistics

As of 2014^[update], it pastorally served 29,700 Catholics (23.1% of 128,800 total) on 131,831 km² in 16 parishes and 24 missions with 18 priests (12 diocesan, 6 religious), 35 lay religious (10 brothers, 25 sisters), 3 seminarians.

Parishes

The diocese has fifteen parishes with regular liturgical services held in the following locations, with churches dedicated to particular saints:^[1]

Geraldton (Cathedral of St Francis Xavier), Greenough (St Peter), and Rangeway (St John)
Bluff Point (St Lawrence) and Wonthella (St Patrick)
Carnarvon (St Mary Star of the Sea) and Exmouth (St John)
Dongara (Our Lady Star of the Sea) and Leeman (Mary Queen of Peace)
Karratha (St Paul), Dampier (St Peter), and Wickham (Our Lady of the Pilbara)
Leonora (Sacred Heart), Laverton (Christ the Redeemer), and Leinster
Morawa (Holy Cross)
Mt Magnet (St Brigid), Meekatharra (Christ the King), and Cue (St Patrick)
Mullewa (Our Lady of Mt Carmel) and Mingenew (St Joseph)
Newman (St Joseph)
Northampton (Our Lady in Ara Coeli), Kalbarri (Our Lady Help of Christians), and Nanson (Our Lady of Fatima)
Port Hedland (St Cecilia)
South Hedland (St John the Baptist)
Three Springs (St Paul), Perenjori (St Joseph), Coorow (Our Lady Queen of Peace), and Carnamah (St Andrew)
Tom Price (St Thomas) and Paraburdoo (St Theresa)

Bishops

Episcopal ordinaries

The following individuals have been elected as Bishops of Geraldton:^[2]

Order	Name	Date enthroned	Reign ended	Term of office	Reason for term end
1	William Bernard Kelly †	21 March 1898	26 December 1921	23 years, 280 days	Died in office
2	Richard Ryan, Congregation of the Mission (C.M.)	30 January 1923, previously Apostolic Vicar of Kimberley in Western Australia (1894–1909)	10 March 1926	3 years, 39 days	Appointed Bishop of Sale (Australia) (10 March 1926 – 16 June 1957)
3	James Patrick O'Collins †	11 February 1930	23 December 1941	11 years, 315 days	Appointed Bishop of Ballarat (Australia) (23 December 1941 – 1 May 1975)
4	Alfred Gummer †	24 February 1942	5 April 1962	20 years, 40 days	Died in office
5	Francis Xavier Thomas †	18 June 1962	31 July 1981	19 years, 43 days	Retired as Bishop Emeritus of Geraldton
6	William Foley †	13 July 1981	26 October 1983	2 years, 105 days	Elevated as Metropolitan Archbishop of Perth (26 October 1983 – 10 February 1991)
7	Barry Hickey	22 March 1984	23 July 1991	7 years, 123 days	Elevated as Metropolitan Archbishop of Perth (23 July 1991 – 20 February 2020), also Vice-President of Australian Catholic Bishops Conference (5 May 2006 – 4 May 2012)
8	Justin Joseph Bianchini	25 March 1992	15 May 2017	32 years, 37 days	Retired as Bishop Emeritus of Geraldton
9	Michael Morrissey	15 May 2017	incumbent	6 years, 352 days

Other priest of this diocese who became bishop

Bryan Gallagher †, appointed Bishop of Port Pirie in 1952

Catholic Education

School	Location	Details
St Francis Xavier Catholic Primary School	Geraldton	Primary K–6
St Lawrence's School	Bluff Point	Primary K–6
St John's School	Rangeway	Primary K–7
St Paul's School	Karratha	Primary K–7
Our Lady of Mt Carmel	Mullewa	Primary K–7
St Mary's School	Northampton	Primary K–7
St Mary's Star of the Sea Catholic School	Carnarvon	Combined Primary and Secondary, K–10
St Cecilia's Catholic Primary School	Port Hedland	Primary K–7
Nagle Catholic College	Geraldton	Secondary Day school, 7–12
St Luke's College	Karratha	Secondary Day school, 8–12
Christian Brothers Agricultural School	Tardun	Secondary Day school, 8–10

References

^ "Parishes of the Garaldton Diocese". Catholic Diocese of Geraldton. Archived from the original on 5 October 2011. Retrieved 9 October 2011.
^ "Diocese of Geraldton". The Hierarchy of the Catholic Church. 20 February 2011. Retrieved 9 October 2011.

Sources and external links

Catholic Diocese of Geraldton
GCatholic, with Google map & satellite photo – data for most sections

Catholic Church in Australia

A list of the Catholic dioceses, chapels, churches, and cathedrals in Australia.

Province of Sydney

Metropolitan Archdiocese of Sydney	Cathedral Church and Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Mother of God, Help of Christians St Philip Howard, Kingston St Anne's, North Bondi St Anne's, South Strathfield St Brigid's, Millers Point St Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, Paddington Cardinal Cerretti Chapel Garden Island Naval Chapel Mary Immaculate, Waverley Mary Mackillop Memorial Chapel and Museum Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Randwick St Patrick's, The Rocks St Peter Julian's, Sydney
Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle	Cathedral of the Sacred Heart
Diocese of Armidale	Cathedral of Saint Mary and Saint Joseph
Diocese of Bathurst	Cathedral of Saint Michael and Saint John St Mary's, Mudgee
Diocese of Lismore	Cathedral of Saint Carthage
Diocese of Wagga Wagga	Cathedral of Saint Michael Our Lady of Pompeii, Yoogali
Diocese of Wilcannia-Forbes	Cathedral of the Sacred Heart St Ignatius, Bourke
Diocese of Wollongong	Cathedral of Saint Francis Xavier St John Vianney Co-Cathedral St Francis Xavier's, Berrima St John's, Campbelltown St Michael's, Nowra
Diocese of Parramatta	Cathedral of Saint Patrick St Thomas Aquinas, Springwood
Diocese of Broken Bay	Cathedral of Our Lady of the Rosary

Province of Melbourne

Metropolitan Archdiocese of Melbourne	Cathedral Church and Minor Basilica of Saint Patrick Our Lady of Victories Basilica, Camberwell Sacred Heart, St Kilda St Ambrose, Brunswick St Ignatius', Richmond St Mary of the Angels, Geelong St Mary's, Williamstown St Mary Star of the Sea, West Melbourne St Francis', Melbourne
Diocese of Sale	Cathedral of Saint Mary
Diocese of Sandhurst	Cathedral of the Sacred Heart
Diocese of Ballarat	Cathedral of Saint Patrick

Province of Brisbane

Metropolitan Archdiocese of Brisbane	Metropolitan Cathedral of Saint Stephen St Stephen's Chapel Corpus Christi, Nundah Our Lady of Victories, Bowen Hills Marist Brothers College, Rosalie Mary Immaculate Church, Annerley Mount Carmel Convent, Wynnum Mount St Mary's Convent, Toowong St Brigid's, Red Hill Church Convent St Brigid's Church, Rosewood St Francis Xavier, Goodna St Ignatius Loyola, Toowong St Mary's, Ipswich St Mary's, Maryborough St Mary's, South Brisbane St Patrick's, Fortitude Valley St Patrick's, Gympie St Patrick's, Mount Perry
Diocese of Toowoomba	Cathedral of Saint Patrick Our Lady of the Assumption, Warwick First Church Second Church Convent Presbytery St Patrick's, Rosevale
Diocese of Cairns	St Monica's War Memorial Cathedral Old Cathedral St Monica's Priory/Bishop's House Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Thursday Island St James', Malanda St Joseph's, Cairns St Mary's by the Sea Church, Port Douglas St Patrick's, Yungaburra
Diocese of Rockhampton	Cathedral of Saint Joseph Old St Patrick's, Brandon Our Lady Star of the Sea, Gladstone
Diocese of Townsville	Cathedral of the Sacred Heart St Brigid's, Stuart St Joseph's, North Ward St Mary's, Townsville St Patrick's, North Ward St Patrick's, Ravenswood

Province of Perth

Metropolitan Archdiocese of Perth	Metropolitan Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary Pro-Cathedral of Saint John Aquinas College Chapel New Norcia, Western Australia Redemptorist Monastery, North Perth St Brigid's, Perth St Denis, Joondanna St Mary Star of the Sea, Peppermint Grove St Patrick's Basilica, Fremantle St John the Baptist, Toodyay St John the Baptist, Toodyay (1863–1963) St Joseph's, Subiaco
Diocese of Broome	Cathedral of Our Lady Queen of Peace
Diocese of Bunbury	Cathedral of Saint Patrick
Diocese of Geraldton	Cathedral of Saint Francis Xavier

Province of Adelaide

Metropolitan Archdiocese of Adelaide	Metropolitan Cathedral of Saint Francis Xavier St Augustine's, Salisbury St Ignatius' Church, Norwood St Patrick's, Adelaide
Diocese of Port Pirie	Cathedral of Saint Mark
Diocese of Darwin	Cathedral of Saint Mary, Star of the Sea Christ the King, Tennant Creek

Immediately subject to the Holy See

Archdiocese of Hobart	Cathedral of Saint Mary Church of the Apostles, Launceston
Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn	Cathedral of Saint Christopher St Peter and Paul's, Goulburn Christ the King, Taralga
Military Ordinariate of Australia	Cathedral of Saint Christopher as Principal Church
Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross	Principal Parish of St Bede the Venerable

Immediately subject to a patriarch or major archbishop

Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Ss Peter and Paul	Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul
Maronite Catholic Eparchy of St Maroun	Cathedral of Saint Maroun
Melkite Catholic Eparchy of St Michael	Cathedral of Saint Michael and All the Angels
Chaldean Catholic Eparchy of St Thomas	St Thomas the Apostle Chaldean Catholic Church (Seat of the Eparch's Cathedra)
Syro-Malabar Catholic Eparchy of St Thomas	St Thomas Syro-Malabar Catholic Church (Seat of the Eparch's Cathedra)

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Province of Melbourne	Metropolitan Archdiocese of Melbourne Diocese of Ballarat Diocese of Sale Diocese of Sandhurst Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Saints Peter and Paul
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Province of Perth	Metropolitan Archdiocese of Perth Diocese of Broome Diocese of Bunbury Diocese of Geraldton
Province of Adelaide	Metropolitan Archdiocese of Adelaide Diocese of Darwin Diocese of Port Pirie
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