Roman Catholic Diocese of Fall River

Diocese of Fall River Dioecesis Riverormenensis
Location
Country	United States
Territory	Counties of Barnstable, Bristol, Dukes, Nantucket, and Plymouth (specifically, the towns of Mattapoisett, Marion, and Wareham)
Ecclesiastical province	Archdiocese of Boston
Metropolitan	Fall River, Massachusetts
Population - Catholics	347,385
Information
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Rite	Roman Rite
Established	March 12, 1904
Cathedral	Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption
Patron saint	Saint Mary of the Assumption
Current leadership
Pope	Benedict XVI
Bishop	George William Coleman Bishop of Fall River
Metropolitan Archbishop	Seán Patrick O'Malley, OFM Cap Archbishop of Boston
Map
Website
fallriverdiocese.org

Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Fall River (Latin: Dioecesis Riverormensis) is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the New England region of the United States. It is led by the prelature of a bishop administering the diocese from the mother church St. Mary's Cathedral in Fall River, Massachusetts.

The diocese was canonically erected by Pope Saint Pius X on March 12, 1904, taking its territories from the Diocese of Providence in Rhode Island. It comprises the counties of Bristol, Barnstable, Dukes, and Nantucket, as well as 3 towns in Plymouth County.

Diocesan statistics

Religious include the bishop, 147 priests currently serving in parishes, 90 permanent deacons, 16 religious brothers and 295 religious sisters. There are 96 parishes, 11 missions, a health care center, and 5 nursing homes.

The total Catholic population of the area is approximately 357,075.^{[citation needed]}

Education

There is one college, Stonehill, 5 high schools (Bishop Connolly High School in Fall River, Bishop Stang High School in Dartmouth, Bishop Feehan High School in Attleboro, Coyle and Cassidy High School in Taunton, and Pope John Paul II High School, in Hyannis), 2 middle schools, 25 elementary schools and 1 Nursery school.

Bishops

1. William Stang (1904–1907)
2. Daniel Francis Feehan (1907–1934)
3. James Edwin Cassidy (1934–1951)
4. James Louis Connolly (1951–1970)
5. Daniel Anthony Cronin (1970–1991)
6. Seán Patrick O'Malley, O.F.M. Cap. (1992–2002)
7. George William Coleman (2003 - )

Father William Stang was the first bishop of Fall River. On March 12, 1904, the day the diocese was erected. He died in office. Bishop Stang High School was named in his memory.

On July 2, 1907, Father Daniel Feehan was appointed Bishop of Fall River. Ordained a bishop on September 19, 1907, by Bishop Thomas Daniel Beaven, he served until incapacitation and died on July 19, 1934, in office. Bishop Feehan High School was named in his honor.

Feehan was succeeded by James E. Cassidy, his Coadjutor Bishop and Vicar General for many years. In 1945 Bishop Cassidy received the assistance of a Coadjutor Bishop, the Most Reverend James L. Connolly, who would later succeed him. Bishop Cassidy High School, now known as Coyle and Cassidy High School was named in his honor.

Bishop James Louis Connolly was born in Fall River, Massachusetts in 1894 and graduated from B. M. C. Durfee High School in 1913. In 1945, he was named Coadjutor Bishop of Fall River.

Following the death of Cassidy, Connolly became Bishop of Fall River in May 1951. One key to his tenure as Bishop was a special concern with providing secondary education in the four urban areas of the Diocese. As a result, four Catholic high schools were constructed under the guidance of Bishop Connolly. Bishop Connolly High School was dedicated in his name in 1967. He also founded the diocesan newspaper, The Anchor. Connolly attended all four sessions of the Second Vatican Council. He served as Bishop of Fall River until 1970 when he retired.

Daniel Anthony Cronin became the fifth Bishop in December 1970 upon the retirement of Bishop Connolly. Cronin carried on the work of implementing the decrees of the Second Vatican Council. He supported liturgical renewal, continuing education of the clergy and the restoration of the permanent diaconate. He devoted himself to the pastoral care of the sick in hospitals, to the expansion of Catholic Counseling and Social Services, to the Family Life Ministry and other various activities.^{[citation needed]} Late in 1991 Pope John Paul II appointed Bishop Cronin Archbishop of Hartford.

Landmarks

Another major church in the diocese is St. Anne's.

Suppressed parishes

• Holy Cross, Fall River - 1997
• St. Hedwig, New Bedford - ?
• St. Casimir, New Bedford - ?

Province of Boston

Further information: List of the Catholic bishops of the United States#Province of Boston

See also

• List of the Catholic bishops of the United States#Province of Boston
• List of the Catholic cathedrals of the United States
• List of the Catholic dioceses of the United States
• Category:Roman Catholic dioceses in the United States (including ecclesiastical provinces)
• Plenary Councils of Baltimore
• Roman Catholicism in the United States
• Catholic Church and politics in the United States
• History of Roman Catholicism in the United States

External references

• Roman Catholic Diocese of Fall River
• Catholic Hierarchy Profile of the Diocese of Fall River
• Catholic Encyclopedia
• Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption (Fall River)
• theCatholicDirectory.com