The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Halifax–Yarmouth (Latin: Archidioecesis Halifaxiensis–Yarmuthensis) is a Latin Churcharchdiocese that includes part of the civil province of Nova Scotia.
In 1784, catholics in the town of Halifax decided to build a church after the penal statutes against popery were repealed. A small chapel, St. Peter's, was erected on a site at the south end of the town of Halifax in July of that year. The wardens of St. Peter's also petitioned Bishop John Butler of Cork, Ireland to send Father James Jones, who knew many Irish settlers in Halifax and had expressed interest in coming to serve the church in North America.[1]
In 1801, Bishop Pierre Denaut of Quebec, somewhat alarmed at the radical developments at St. Peter's parish in Halifax after Father James Jones' departure, had asked Father Edmund Burke, the Vicar General of Upper Canada, to move to Halifax to tackle the situation.
On territory originally a part of the Diocese of Quebec, including the whole of Nova Scotia, the future Diocese of Halifax was established on 4 September 1817 as the Apostolic Vicariate of Nova Scotia, a pre-diocesan jurisdiction entitled to a titular bishop and exempt (i.e., directly subject to the Holy See and not part of any ecclesiastical province), with Edmund Burke as the Vicar Apostolic of Nova Scotia. He was consecrated on July 5th 1818 as Titular Bishop of Sion by Bishop Joseph-Octave Plessis.
It was elevated to a bishopric on 15 February 1842 and on 22 September 1844 lost territory to establish the Roman Catholic Diocese of Arichat, now (as the Diocese of Antigonish) one of its suffragans.
In 1852, the Diocese of Halifax was elevated to an archdiocese[2] and an ecclesiastical province was also created from dioceses of Arichat, Charlottetown and Fredericton, along with the Archdiocese of Halifax. Bishop William Walsh became the first Archbishop of Halifax.[1]
The Archdiocese of Halifax enjoyed a papal visit from Pope John Paul II in September 1984; that year was the 200th anniversary of the precedent set by the laity of Halifax of forcing the repeal of the anti-Catholic legislation in Nova Scotia, and the British Empire.[1]
In December 2011, the Diocese of Yarmouth was merged back into the Archdiocese of Halifax, creating the Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth,[4] which was renamed by absorbing its title. The former cathedral became the St. Ambrose Co-Cathedral, in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia.
Extent and province
The Archdiocese of Halifax–Yarmouth covers 34,055 square kilometers. As of 2021, the archdiocese had 58 active diocesan priests, 7 religious priests, and 215,880 Catholics. It also had 87 women religious, 7 religious brothers, and 41 permanent deacons.[5]
William Fraser (1842.02.15 – 1844.09.27), later Bishop of Arichat (Canada) (1844.09.27 – 1851.10.04)
William Walsh (1844.09.21 – 1852.05.04), previously Titular Bishop of Maximianopolis (1842.02.15 – 1844.09.21) & Coadjutor Bishop of Halifax (Canada) (1842.02.15 – 1844.09.21 see below); promoted the first Metropolitan Archbishop of Halifax (Canada) (1852.05.04 – 1858.08.10)
Metropolitan Archbishops of Halifax
William Walsh ( see above 1852.05.04 – death 1858.08.10)
John Thomas McNally (1937.02.17 – death 1952.11.18), previously Bishop of Calgary (Canada) (1913.04.04 – 1924.08.12), Bishop of Hamilton (Canada) (1924.08.12 – 1937.02.17)
Joseph Gerald Berry (1953.11.28 – 1967.05.12), President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (1960 – 1964); previously Bishop of Peterborough (Canada) (1945.04.07 – 1953.11.28)
James Hayes (1967.06.22 – 1990.11.06), President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (1987 – 1989); previously Titular Bishop of Reperi (1965.02.05 – 1967.06.22) & Auxiliary Bishop of Halifax (1965.02.05 – 1967.06.22)
^"A History Of Our Church". Roman Catholic Diocese of Hamilton in Bermuda. The Diocese of Hamilton in Bermuda. Retrieved 28 August 2021. The Diocese of Hamilton in Bermuda was established in 12th June 1967. Bermuda was served by the Diocesan clergy of Halifax until 1953, after which pastoral responsibility transferred to the Congregation of the Resurrection.
