Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Porto Alegre

Archdiocese of Porto Alegre Archidioecesis Portalegrensis in Brasilia
Cathedral of Our Lady, Mother of God, Porto Alegre
Location
Country	Brazil
Territory	Gravataí, Glorinha, Alvorada, Cachoeirinha, Viamão, Guaíba, Arambaré, Arroio dos Ratos, Barão do Triunfo, Barra do Ribeiro, Butiá, Camaquã, Cerro Grande do Sul, Charqueadas, Chuvisca, Cristal, Eldorado do Sul, General Câmara, Mariana Pimentel, Minas do Leão, São Jerônimo, Sentinela do Sul, Sertão Santana e Tapes, Canoas, Esteio, Sapucaia do Sul, Nova Santa Rita and Porto Alegre.
Ecclesiastical province	Porto Alegre
Statistics
Area	13,530 km2 (5,220 sq mi)
Population - Total - Catholics	(as of 2013) 3,395,000 2,527,000 (74.4%)
Parishes	156
Information
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Rite	Latin Rite
Established	7 May 1848 (170 years ago)
Cathedral	Catedral Metropolitana Nossa Senhora Madre de Deus
Patron saint	Mother of God
Secular priests	362
Current leadership
Pope	Francis
Archbishop	Jaime Spengler Archbishop of Porto Alegre (appointed 18 September 2013, by Pope Francis; installed 15 November 2013; formerly, an Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese)
Auxiliary Bishops	Leomar Antônio Brustolin Aparecido Donizete de Souza Rev. Fr. Adilson Pedro Busin, C.S. (Auxiliary Bishop-elect)[1][2]
Emeritus Bishops	Altamiro Rossato, C.Ss.R.
Website
arquidiocesepoa.org.br

The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Porto Alegre (Latin: Archidioecesis Portalegrensis in Brasilia) is a Latin Rite Metropolitan Archbishopric of the Roman Catholic Church in Rio Grande do Sul state, southernmost Brazil.

The archdiocese's mother church and Metropolitan seat of its archbishop is the Catedral Metropolitana Nossa Senhora Madre de Deus, dedicated to Our Lady (Virgin Mary), Mother of God, in Porto Alegre. Archbishop Emeritus Dadeus Grings was succeeded by the current incumbent, Archbishop Jaime Spengler, who was appointed on 18 September 2013 by Pope Francis, and installed on 15 November 2013.^[3]

History

• It was erected as the Diocese of São Pedro do Rio Grande by Pope Pius IX on 7 May 1848, on territory split off from the Diocese of São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro.
• It was elevated by Pope Pius X on 15 August 1910 to the rank of a Metropolitan archdiocese/ Portalegren(sis) in Brasilia (Latin), having lost territories to establish Diocese of Pelotas, Diocese of Santa Maria and Diocese of Uruguaiana.
• Lost territories on 1934.09.08 to establish the Diocese of Caxias and Territorial Prelature of Vacaria
• 1957.01.18: Gained territory back from above Territorial Prelature of Vacaria
• Lost territories repeatedly : on 1959.06.20 to establish Diocese of Santa Cruz do Sul, on 1959.08.15 to above Diocese of Caxias, on 1971.02.01 to above Diocese of Caxias do Sul, on 1980.02.02 to establish the Diocese of Novo Hamburgo, as its suffragan, on 1999.11.10 to establish the Diocese of Osorio, as its suffragan, and on 2008.07.02: to establish the Diocese of Montenegro, as its suffragan
• It enjoyed a Papal visit from Pope John Paul II in July 1980.

Statistics

As per 2014, it pastorally served 2,547,000 Catholics (74.4% of 3,423,000 total) on 13,530 km² in 156 parishes and 739 missions with 359 priests (203 diocesan, 156 religious), 59 deacons, 1,450 lay religious (341 brothers, 1,109 sisters) and 44 seminarians.

Ecclesiastical province

Besides administering his own Archbishopric, the Metropolitan supervises the following Suffragan Sees :

• Roman Catholic Diocese of Caxias do Sul
• Roman Catholic Diocese of Montenegro, its daughter
• Roman Catholic Diocese of Novo Hamburgo, its daughter
• Roman Catholic Diocese of Osório, its daughter

Episcopal ordinaries

Suffragan Bishops of São Pedro do Rio Grande

• Feliciano Rodrigues de Araujo Prates (1851.05.05 – death 1858.05.27)
• Sebastião Dias Laranjeira (1860.09.28 – death 1888.08.13)
• Cláudio Gonçalves Ponce de Leon, Lazarists (C.M.) (1890.06.26 – 1910.08.15 see below), previously Bishop of Goiás (Brazil) (1881.05.13 – 1890.06.26)
  • Coadjutor Bishop: João Antônio Pimenta (1906.02.21 – 1911.03.07), Titular Bishop of Pentacomia (1906.02.21 – 1911.03.07); next Bishop of Montes Claros (Brazil) (1911.03.07 – 1943.07.20)

Metropolitan Archbishops of Porto Alegre

• Cláudio Gonçalves Ponce de Leon, Lazarists (C.M.) (see above 1910.08.15 – retired 1912.01.09), emeritate as Titular Archbishop of Anazarbus (1912.01.09 – death 1924.05.26)
• João (Batista) Becker (1912.01.09 – 1946.12.30), previously Bishop of Santa Catarina (Brazil) (1908.05.03 – 1912.08.01)
• Alfredo Scherer (1946.12.30 – 1981.08.29), previously Titular Bishop of Hemeria (1946.06.13 – 1946.12.30) as Auxiliary Bishop of Porto Alegre (1946.06.13 – 1946.12.30)
• João Colling (1981.08.29 – retired 1991.07.17), died 1992; previously Titular Bishop of Corone (1949.12.12 – 1951.03.23) as Auxiliary Bishop of Santa Maria (Brazil) (1949.12.12 – 1951.03.23), Bishop of Passo Fundo (Brazil) (1951.03.23 – 1981.08.29)
• Altamiro Rossato, Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (Redemptorists, C.Ss.R.) (1991.07.17 – retired 2001.02.07)); died 13 May 2014; previously Bishop of Marabá (Brazil) (1985.12.08 – 1989.03.15), Coadjutor Archbishop of Porto Alegre (1989.03.15 – succession 1991.07.17)
• Dadeus Grings (2001.02.07 – retired 2013.09.18); previously Bishop of São João da Boa Vista (Brazil) (1991.01.23 – 2000.04.12), Coadjutor Archbishop of Porto Alegre (2000.04.12 – succession 2001.02.07)
• Jaime Spengler (18 September 2013– ...), previously Titular Bishop of Patara (2010.11.10 – 2013.09.18) as Auxiliary Bishop of Porto Alegre (2010.11.10 – 2013.09.18)
  • Auxiliary Bishop (2015.01.07 – ...) Leomar Antônio Brustolin, Titular Bishop of Tigava
  • Auxiliary Bishop (2015.12.30 – ...) Aparecido Donizete de Souza,Titular Bishop of Macriana minor
  • Auxiliary Bishop (2016.01.27 – ...) Adilson Pedro Busin, C.S., Titular Bishop of Guardialfiera

See also

• List of Catholic dioceses in Brazil
• Roman Catholicism in Brazil

References

Sources and external links

• GCatholic.org, with Google map & - satellite photo - data for all sections
• Catholic-Hierarchy
•  Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Archdiocese of Porto Alegre". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

Coordinates: 30°02′02″S 51°13′48″W / 30.0338°S 51.2301°W / -30.0338; -51.2301