Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Buenos Aires

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Metropolitan Archdiocese of Buenos Aires

Archidioecesis Metropolitae Bonaerensis

Arquidiócesis Metropolitana de Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires Metropolitan Cathedral
Location
Country Argentina
TerritoryBuenos Aires
Ecclesiastical provinceBuenos Aires
Statistics
Area78 sq mi (200 km2)
Population
- Total
- Catholics
(as of 2012)
2,917,000
2,671,000 (91.6%)
Parishes186
Information
DenominationCatholic Church
Sui iuris churchLatin Church
RiteRoman Rite
Established6 April 1620
CathedralBuenos Aires Metropolitan Cathedral
Patron saintNuestra Señora del Buen Aire
Secular priests471
Current leadership
PopeFrancis
ArchbishopJorge Ignacio García Cuerva
Metropolitan ArchbishopJorge Ignacio García Cuerva
Auxiliary Bishops
Bishops emeritusMario Aurelio Poli
Map
Website
arzbaires.org.ar

The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Buenos Aires (Archidioecesis Metropolitae Bonaerensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Argentina. It is a metropolitan archdiocese with 13 suffragan sees in the country, including two Eastern Catholic eparchies.

The Metropolitan Archbishopric of Buenos Aires is the Primatial see (protocollary first-rank) of Argentina,[1][2][3] although the incumbent Metropolitan may be outranked by Cardinals or more senior ones. On 13 March 2013, then-Archbishop Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected as Pope, under the name of Francis. The current archbishop, since 26 May 2023, is Jorge Ignacio García Cuerva.

Statistics and extent[edit]

At the beginning of the twentieth century, Buenos Aires was the second largest Catholic city in the world after Paris.[4][5] In 2014 the Archdiocese pastorally served 2,721,000 Catholics (91.6% of 2,971,000 total) in an area of 205 km2 in 186 parishes and 183 missions with 783 priests (456 diocesan, 327 religious), 11 deacons, 1,915 lay religious (477 brothers, 1,438 sisters) and 53 seminarians. It is divided into the four zonal vicaries—Flores, Devoto, Belgrano and Centro—which are further subdivided into 20 deaconates.

Special churches[edit]

  • Its cathedral mother church is the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Cathedral, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, in the autonomous city of Buenos Aires, the national capital of Argentina.
  • It also has the following Minor basilicas, all in the metropolitan Buenos Aires area: Basílica de Nuestra Señora de Buenos Aires, Basílica de Nuestra Señora de la Merced, Buenos Aires, Basílica de Nuestra Señora de la Piedad, Basílica de Nuestra Señora del Pilar, Basílica de Nuestra Señora del Rosario, Basílica de Nuestra Señora del Socorro, Basílica de San Antonio de Padua, Basílica de San Carlos Borromeo y María Auxiliadora, Basílica de San Francisco de Asís, Basílica de San José de Flores, Basílica de San Nicolás de Bari (a National Shrine), Basílica de Santa Rosa de Lima, Basílica del Espíritu Santo, Basílica del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús, Buenos Aires and Basílica del Santísimo Sacramento.

Ecclesiastical province[edit]

The archdiocese has eleven suffragan sees, of which nine are Latin:

It also has two Eastern Catholic suffragans :

History[edit]

Ordinaries[edit]

Bishops of Buenos Aires
  1. Pedro Carranza Salinas, O.Carm. (1620–1632)
  2. Cristóbal de Aresti Martínez de Aguilar, O.S.B. (1635–1641)
  3. Cristóbal de la Mancha y Velazco, O.P. (1641–1673)
  4. Antonio de Azcona Imberto (1676–1700)
  5. Gabriel de Arregui, O.F.M. (1712–1716), appointed Bishop of Cuzco
  6. Pedro de Fajardo, O.SS.T. (1713–1729)
  7. Juan de Arregui, O.F.M. (1730–1736)
  8. José de Peralta Barrionuevo y Rocha Benavídez, O.P. (1738–1746), appointed Bishop of La Paz
  9. Cayetano Marcellano y Agramont (1749–1757), appointed Bishop of Trujillo and later Archbishop of La Plata
  10. José Antonio Basurco y Herrera (1757–1761)
  11. Manuel Antonio de la Torre (1762–1776)
  12. Sebastián Malvar y Pinto, O.F.M. (1777–1783), appointed Archbishop of Santiago de Compostela
  13. Manuel Azamor y Ramírez (1785–1796)
  14. Pedro Inocencio Bejarano (1797–1801), appointed Bishop of Sigüenza
  15. Benito Lué y Riega (1802–1812)
  16. Mariano Medrano y Cabrera (1829–1851)
Archbishops of Buenos Aires
  1. Mariano José de Escalada Bustillo y Zeballos (1854–1870)
  2. Federico León Aneiros (1873–1894)
  3. Uladislao Castellano (1895–1900)
  4. Mariano Antonio Espinosa (1900–1923)
  5. José María Bottaro y Hers, O.F.M. (1926–1932)
  6. Cardinal Santiago Copello (1932–1959), appointed Chancellor of the Holy Roman Church
  7. Fermín Emilio Lafitte (1959)
  8. Cardinal Antonio Caggiano (1959–1975)
  9. Cardinal Juan Carlos Aramburu (1975–1990)
  10. Cardinal Antonio Quarracino (1990–1998)
  11. Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio, S.J. (1998–2013), elected Pope Francis
  12. Cardinal Mario Poli (2013–2023)
  13. Jorge García Cuerva (2023–present)

Coadjutor archbishops[edit]

Auxiliary Bishops of Buenos Aires[edit]

Other priests of this diocese who became bishops[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Diócesis de Argentina". Conferencia Episcopal Argentina. Retrieved 1 April 2018.
  2. ^ "El nuevo arzobispo de Buenos Aires es Mons. Mario Poli". AICA.org. 28 March 2013. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
  3. ^ "El Esquiu.com domingo 16 diciembre 2012 by Editorial El Esquiú". ISSUU.com. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
  4. ^ Ivereigh, Austen (2016). Catholicism and Politics in Argentina, 1810-1960. Springer. p. 76. ISBN 9781349136186. Buenos Aires was the second largest Catholic city in the world (after Paris)
  5. ^ Clark, Francis Edward (1907). The Continent of Opportunity. Princeton University Pree. p. 208. ... BUENOS AYRES second largest Roman Catholic city in the world, the largest Spanish-speaking city in the world...

Sources and external links[edit]