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Diocese of Fall River

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Diocese of Fall River
Dioecesis Riverormenensis
Catholic
Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption
Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption
Location
Country United States
Territory Massachusetts counties of Barnstable, Bristol, Dukes, Nantucket, and the towns of Marion, Mattapoisett, and Wareham on the south coast of Plymouth County[1]
Episcopal conference United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
Ecclesiastical region Region I
Ecclesiastical province Boston
Metropolitan Boston
Coordinates 41°42′39″N 71°08′50″W / 41.71083°N 71.14722°W
Statistics
Area 3,107 km2 (1,200 sq mi)[1]
Population
Total
Catholics 		(as of 2021)
825,540[2]
275,290[2] (33.3%)
Parishes 78[2]
Information
Denomination Catholic
Sui iuris church Latin Church
Rite Roman Rite
Established March 12, 1904
Cathedral Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption
Patron saint Saint Mary of the Assumption[3]
Secular priests 123 plus 63 religious priests[1]
Current leadership
Pope Leo XIV
Bishop Edgar Moreira da Cunha
Metropolitan Archbishop Richard Henning
Map
Website
www.fallriverdiocese.org

The Diocese of Fall River (Latin: Dioecesis Riverormensis) is a diocese of the Catholic Church in southeastern Massachusetts in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Boston. The mother church is St. Mary's Cathedral in Fall River. The bishop is Edgar Moreira da Cunha.

Diocesan statistics

The Diocese of Fall River spans Barnstable, Bristol, Dukes, and Nantucket Counties. It also includes the towns of Marion, Mattapoisett, and Wareham along the coast of Plymouth County. The diocese covers Cape Cod and the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.[4]

History

1700 to 1808

Before the American Revolution, the British Province of Massachusetts Bay, which included southern Massachusetts and Cape Cod, had enacted laws prohibiting the practice of Catholicism in the colony. It was even illegal for a priest to reside there. To gain the support of Massachusetts Catholics to fight against the British, revolutionary leaders were forced to enact religious freedom for Catholics in 1780.[5]

After the Revolution ended in 1783, Pope Pius VI erected in 1784 the Prefecture Apostolic of the United States, encompassing the entire territory of the new nation. Pius VI created the Diocese of Baltimore, the first diocese in the United States, to replace the prefecture apostolic in 1789.[6]

1808 to 1900

Pope Pius VII erected the Diocese of Boston on April 8, 1808, including all of New England in its jurisdiction.[7] Bishop Jean-Louis de Cheverus of Boston established St Lawrence's Church, the first Catholic church in New Bedford in 1821,with the assistance of Portuguese sailors and Irish laborers.[8] The first Catholic church on Cape Cod was St. Peter's, constructed in Sandwich in 1830. Fall River received it first Catholic church in 1837 when St. John the Baptist was completed.[8] In 1869, the first Portuguese language parish in the country was erected in Fall River.[9]

The Diocese of Providence was erected by Pope Pius IX on February 17, 1872. The pope removed the counties of Bristol, Barnstable, Dukes and Nantucket in Massachusetts from the Archdiocese of Boston.[10] The present day Diocese of Fall River area would remain part of the Diocese of Providence for the next 32 years.

1900 to 1950

Pope Pius X erected the Diocese of Fall River on March 12, 1904. He took all of the Massachusetts counties from Diocese of Providence for the new diocese, making it a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Boston. William Stang of Providence was the first bishop.[10] At the time of his appointment, the new diocese had 44 parishes serving 130,000 Catholics.[8]

On May 8, 1904, St. Mary's Cathedral was packed with worshipers for Stang's first mass, with police detachments controlling the crowd, estimated at 25,000 people, on the street outside the building.[11][12] During his tenure, Stang established eleven parishes and founded Saint Anne's Hospital in Fall River. One of the new parishes was St. Boniface, a German parish in New Bedford.[13]

After Stang's death in 1907, Pius X appointed Daniel Feehan from the Diocese of Springfield in Massachusetts as the second bishop of Fall River that same year.[14] During his 27-year tenure, Feehan established 36 parishes. To assist Feehan, Pope Pius IX named Auxiliary Bishop James Cassidy of Providence as coadjutor bishop of the diocese in 1934. Feehan died in office later that year and Cassidy automatically succeeded him as bishop.[15] Bishop Feehan High School in Attleboro was named in his honor.[16]

1950 to 1970

As bishop, Cassidy founded several homes for senior citizens.[17] In 1945, Pope Pius XII appointed James Connolly of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul to serve as coadjutor bishop to assist Cassidy.[18] In 1948, the Congregation of Holy Cross founded Stonehill College in Easton.[19] In early 1951, Cassidy published a pastoral letter forbidding girls cheerleading at Catholic high schools in the diocese, citing what he termed the indecency of their outfits. He also banned football games at night.[20]

Following Cassidy's death in 1951, Connolly automatically became the new bishop.[18] Bishop Cassidy High School in Taunton, later renamed Coyle and Cassidy High School following its merger with the all-male Monsignor Coyle High School, was named in Cassidy's honor. As bishop, one of Connolly's special concerns was with providing secondary education in the four urban areas of the diocese. He constructed four Catholic high schools during his tenure. Bishop Connolly High School[21] was dedicated to him in 1967. He also founded the diocesan newspaper, The Anchor.[22]

1970 to 2002

After Connolly retired in 1970, Pope Paul VI appointed Auxiliary Bishop Daniel Cronin of Boston as the fifth bishop of Fall River.[23] Cronin continued the work of implementing the decrees of the Second Vatican Council of the early 1960s. He supported liturgical renewal, continuing education of the clergy and the restoration of the permanent diaconate. Cronin expanded the Catholic Counseling and Social Services as well as the Family Life Ministry.[24] Late in 1991, Pope John Paul II appointed Cronin as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Hartford.[23]

To replace Cronin, John Paul II appointed Bishop Seán O'Malley of the Diocese of St. Thomas in 1992 as the new bishop of Fall River.[25] He established an office for AIDS Ministry and two new residences for women and reorganized the diocesan administration. O’Malley created the Office of Pastoral Planning to assist him on merging parishes and assigning priests.[8]

2002 to present

In 2002, John Paul II named O'Malley as bishop of the Diocese of Palm Beach and appointed George Coleman of Fall River as his successor.[25][26] In March 2005, Bernard Kelly, pastor of St. Joseph's Church in Barnstable, was indicted on embezzlement and filing false tax returns. He was accused of stealing over $500,000 from his church.[27] In May 2005, the diocese settled a lawsuit against Kelly for $1.3 million.[28] Kelly pleaded guilty in 2006 and was sentenced to seven years of probation.[29]

In 2007, Coleman dedicated Pope John Paul II High School in Hyannis, the first Catholic high school on Cape Cod.[30] He also created a directorship of Faith Formation, a youth ministry and a marriage and family ministry.[8] Coleman retired as bishop of Fall River in 2014.[26]

On July 3, 2014, Pope Francis appointed Auxiliary Bishop Edgar Moreira da Cunha from the Archdiocese of Newark as the eighth bishop of Fall River.[31] The diocese in May 2025 announced the closure of five parishes due to the shortage of priests:

  • St. Francis of Assisi Parish in New Bedford
  • St. Theresa of the Child Jesus Parish in Attleboro
  • Our Lady of Grace, St. George, and St. John the Baptist Parishes in Westport[32]

As of 2026, Da Cunha is the current bishop of Fall River.

Sexual abuse

In the early 1990s, revelations surfaced about how the Diocese of Fall River protected the priest James Porter from charges of sexual abuse between 1960 and 1964. In 1960, the priest had been assigned to St. Mary's grammar school. Parents soon started filing complaints against him with the diocese. The diocese took no action until 1963; by that time, at least four parents had complained. The diocese then moved Porter to a parish in Fall River without notifying police or the new parish about the allegations. More complaints were made against Porter.[33] In 1964, he was arrested on sex abuse charges.[34] He was then sent for inpatient hospital treatment. He left the priesthood in 1974 and started a family. He was arrested several times in the following years and served multiple prison terms.[35][36] He died in prison in 2005.[33]

A lawsuit was filed in 2014 against Archbishop Cronin of Hartford by two men who claimed they were sexually abused as minors by Maurice Souza, a priest in East Falmouth. The plaintiffs claimed that Cronin, then bishop of Fall River, failed to properly supervise Souza, who allegedly molested the boys during the 1980's in East Falmouth and on athletic trips out of town.[37] In January 2019, Cronin and the two men reached a settlement, with each man to receive $200,000.[38]

In December 2020, a grand jury at Barnstable Superior Court indicted Mark R. Hession, a diocesan priest, on two counts of rape, one count of indecent assault and battery on a child under age 14, and one count of intimidation of a witness.[39] Hession had worked closely with the Kennedy family and delivered the homily at Senator Ted Kennedy's funeral in 2009.[39] The diocese in January 2021 released a list of 75 priests with credible accusations of sexual abuse, going back to 1904.[40]

The diocese in May 2023 settled a lawsuit brought by Jason Medeiros. Three years early, Medeiros had alleged that the priest Richard DeGagne had sexually assaulted him when he was 12 and 13 years old in the 1980's at St. Anthony of Padua Parish in New Bedford. The diocese suspended DeGagne from his priestly duties in 2019.[41]

The diocese in May 2025 removed Jay Mello as pastor of Saint Michael's and Saint Joseph's Parishes and suspended him from ministry. This was due to two credible allegations of sexual abuse from 2011.[42]

Bishops

Bishops of Fall River

  1. William Stang (1904–1907)
  2. Daniel Francis Feehan (1907–1934)
  3. James Edwin Cassidy (1934–1951; coadjutor bishop 1934)
  4. James Louis Connolly (1951–1970; coadjutor bishop 1945–1951)
  5. Daniel Anthony Cronin (1970–1992), appointed Archbishop of Hartford
  6. Seán Patrick O'Malley (1992–2002), appointed Bishop of Palm Beach and later Archbishop of Boston (created Cardinal in 2006)
  7. George William Coleman (2003–2014)
  8. Edgar Moreira da Cunha (2014–present)

Auxiliary Bishops of Fall River

  • James Edwin Cassidy (1930–1934), appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Fall River (see above)
  • James Joseph Gerrard (1959–1976)

Other diocesan priests who became bishops

Education

Schools

Colleges

Stonehill College – Easton[46]

Landmarks

In addition to St. Mary's Cathedral, two other major churches in the diocese are St. Anthony of Padua in New Bedford, Santo Christo Church and Shrine, and St. Anne's both in Fall River.

The Diocese of Fall River is also home to the National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette, owned and operated by the Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette.

Canonical status and jurisdiction

Diocese of Fall River is a diocese of the catholic church of the Catholic Church.[47]

From the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia

Diocese of Fall River (RIVERORMENSIS), U.S.A.

A suffragan see of the Province of Boston; comprises the counties of Bristol, Barnstable, Dukes, and Nantucket, with the towns of Marion, Mattapoisett and Wareham in Plymouth county, Massachusetts, an area of 1194 square miles. It was created 12 March, 1904, by a division of the Diocese of Providence, which had included the entire State of Rhode Island and a portion of south-eastern Massachusetts, and has the distinction of being the first diocese erected by Pope Pius X. The total population of the diocese is 309,438, of which 151,633 are Catholics. Among the latter are Americans, Irish, French-Canadians, Portuguese, Poles, and Italians, with some few Greeks and Syrians. The heavy immigration in years past of the Irish and French-Canadian people has caused them to far outnumber the Catholics of other nationalities; but this immigration is now at a standstill, while that of Portuguese and Poles is steadily on the increase. The diocese, by reason of recent creation, has no history of its own, its records being included in the history of the Dioceses of Boston, Hartford, and Providence (q. v.), in each of which its territory has successively been included.

WILLIAM STANG, the first bishop, was born in 1854 in Langenbrücken, in the Grand Duchy of Baden, Germany. His early education was received in the gymnasia of his native land and the petit séminaire at Saint-Nicolas, Belgium. In October, 1875, he began the study of theology at the American College, Louvain, Belgium, where he was ordained priest in 1878. In September of the same year he emigrated to America, to labour in the Diocese of Providence, where his first assignment was to the cathedral. In 1884 he assumed charge of St. Ann's parish, Cranston, Rhode Island. Shortly after he was named rector of the cathedral and chancellor of the diocese, positions which he ably filled until 1895. In April of that year he went to Louvain to become vice-rector of the American College. Georgetown University, in 1887, had conferred upon him the degree of doctor of theology; but a greater recognition awaited him. In August, 1898, the Belgian bishops as the governing board of the University of Louvain, to which the American College is affiliated, named him professor of fundamental moral theology in the schola minor of the university. In April, 1899, he returned to Providence, to become head of the diocesan Apostolate Band. While still head of the latter, in 1901, he was made pastor of St. Edward's church, Providence, and on 12 March, 1904, he was appointed bishop of the newly erected See of Fall River. His consecration took place in the cathedral, Providence, 1 May, 1904. In the short space of two years and nine months he proved himself to be a zealous, indefatigable worker, and charitable to an extreme. He died 2 February, 1907, in St. Mary's Hospital, Rochester, Minnesota. Bishop Stang was the author of a number of works, notably: "Pastoral Theology" (1896); "Historiographia Ecclesiastica" (1897); "Business Guide for Priests" (1899); "Pepper and Salt" (1901); "Socialism and Christianity" (1905); "Medulla Fundamentalis Theologiae Moralis" (1906). He also left many pamphlets and essays and contributed frequently to the "American Ecclesiastical Review".

DANIEL FRANCIS FEEHAN, the second incumbent of the see, was b. in 1855, at Athol, Massachusetts. His classical and philosophical studies were pursued in St. Mary's College, Montreal, Canada, from which he was graduated in June, 1876. During the three following years he studied theology at St. Joseph's Seminary, Troy, New York, where he was ordained priest 20 December, 1879. Parish work in West Brighton and Fitchburg in the Diocese of Springfield engaged his energies until 1889, when he was made permanent rector of St. Bernard's, Fitchburg. He was in charge there when, on 2 July, 1907, he was appointed second Bishop of Fall River, and consecrated 19 September following.

The diocese has a well-equipped educational system. There are 28 parochial schools with a staff of 191 teachers and an enrolment of 10, 451 pupils, 4464 boys and 5987 girls. There are three convent boarding schools conducted by the Religious of the Holy Union of the Sacred Hearts, the Sisters of St. Dominic, and the Sisters of Jesus and Mary, respectively. A boarding college for boys and young men pursuing classical and commercial courses is under the guidance of the Fathers of the Sacred Heart. The Christian Brothers have a well-established commercial day school with a register of 363 pupils. An industrial school for girls is conducted by the Franciscan Missionary Sisters of Mary.

Charity is also well organized. A large hospital, St. Ann's, at Fall River, is presided over by the Dominican Sisters of Charity of the Presentation. Three orphan asylums directed by the Sisters of Mercy, the Sisters of Charity (Grey Nuns), and the Sisters of St. Francis, respectively, shelter 600 orphans. In connexion with one of these asylums is maintained a home for the aged. Admirable work has also been done by the St. Vincent de Paul Society.

There are 108 secular and 20 regular priests labouring in the diocese. Of the secular clergy 57 are English-speaking, 30 French-speaking, 15 Portuguese, 5 Poles, and 1 Italian. The Dominican Fathers of the Sacred Hearts, and the Christian Brothers have communities, as also have the Sisters of Charity (Grey Nuns), Dominican Sisters of Charity of the Presentation, Sisters of St. Dominic, Felician Sisters, Franciscan Missionaries of Mary, Sisters of the Holy Ghost, Sisters of Holy Cross and Seven Dolors, Religious of the Holy Union of the Sacred Hearts, Sisters of Jesus and Mary, Sisters of Mercy, Sisters of St. Joseph (Le Puy), and Sisters of St. Francis.

Diocesan Archives, Catholic Directory (Milwaukee, 1908); Missiones Catholicae (Rome, 1907); American College Bulletin (Louvain), April, 1907, Catholic Union (New Bedford, Feb., 1908).

References

  1. Back to citation occurrence 1.0 Back to citation occurrence 1.1 Back to citation occurrence 1.2 "Diocese of Fall River". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. David M. Cheney. March 17, 2024. Retrieved March 26, 2024.
  2. Back to citation occurrence 2.0 Back to citation occurrence 2.1 Back to citation occurrence 2.2 Annuario Pontificio (2022) via Catholic-Hierarchy.org "Diocese of Fall River". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. David M. Cheney. March 17, 2024. Retrieved March 26, 2024. "A Look at the Diocese". Diocese of Fall River. Retrieved 2013-11-05.
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  5. Back to citation "Freedom of Religion Comes to Boston | Archdiocese of Boston". www.bostoncatholic.org. Retrieved 2023-02-25.
  6. Back to citation "Our History". Archdiocese of Baltimore. Archived from the original on July 24, 2008. Retrieved 2009-03-30.
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  9. Back to citation "ST. MICHAEL PARISH HISTORY". St. Michael & St. Joseph Parishes. Retrieved 2026-04-27.
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  11. Back to citation "OVATION FOR BISHOP STANG; Crowds Gather for the Celebration of His First Mass". The New York Times. 1904-05-09. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-06-02.
  12. Back to citation Conley, Patrick T. (2019). "Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame". Leaders of Rhode Island's Golden Age, The. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4671-4148-2.
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  16. Back to citation "Bishop Daniel Feehan". www.bishopfeehan.com. Retrieved 2026-04-27.
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  19. Back to citation "History of Stonehill". Stonehill College. Retrieved 2026-04-27.
  20. Back to citation "Fall River Bishop Bars Girls as Cheerleaders". The New York Times. 1950-01-28. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-06-02.
  21. Back to citation "History". Bishop Connolly High School. Retrieved 2013-11-05.
  22. Back to citation "About The Anchor". The Anchor. Retrieved 2016-03-03.
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  25. Back to citation occurrence 25.0 Back to citation occurrence 25.1 "Seán Patrick Cardinal O'Malley [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved 2026-04-27.
  26. Back to citation occurrence 26.0 Back to citation occurrence 26.1 "Bishop George William Coleman [Catholic-Hierarchy]". www.catholic-hierarchy.org. Retrieved 2026-04-27.
  27. Back to citation Lehmert, Amanda (March 9, 2005). "Priest indicted on theft charges". Cape Cod Times. Retrieved 2026-04-27.
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  29. Back to citation "Regional digest". The Worcester Telegram & Gazette. Retrieved 2026-04-27.
  30. Back to citation "Foundations | St. John Paul II School". Retrieved 2026-04-27.
  31. Back to citation "Pope Francis appoints new bishop for Fall River Diocese". Taunton Daily Gazette. Taunton, Mass. July 3, 2014. Retrieved July 4, 2014; Allard, Deborah (July 4, 2014). "Da Cunha named new bishop of Fall River diocese". Taunton Daily Gazette. Taunton, Mass. Retrieved July 4, 2014; "Bishop Edgar Moreira da Cunha". Retrieved 5 January 2013.
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  33. Back to citation occurrence 33.0 Back to citation occurrence 33.1 "Pedophile priest James Porter dies at 70". NBC News. New York City: NBCUniversal. Associated Press. February 11, 2005. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
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  39. Back to citation occurrence 39.0 Back to citation occurrence 39.1 Bastile, Robert (December 11, 2020). "BREAKING HN VIDEO: Priest who delivered homily at Senator Kennedy's funeral indicted on rape charges". Hyannis News. Retrieved January 3, 2020.
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  41. Back to citation "Diocese of Fall River and priest reach settlement with sexual abuse victim". NBC 10 News. WJAR. 2023-05-09. Retrieved 2023-07-04.
  42. Back to citation Haynes, Veronica (2025-07-03). "Massachusetts diocese removes priest over sexual misconduct claims". WCVB. Retrieved 2026-04-27.
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