Diocese of Sale
| Diocese of Sale Dioecesis Saliensis | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Country | Australia |
| Territory | South Eastern and Gippsland regions of Victoria |
| Coordinates | 38°06′40″S 147°03′47″E / 38.11111°S 147.06306°E |
| Statistics | |
| Area | 44,441 km2 (17,159 sq mi) |
| Population Total Catholics |
(as of 2004) 372,979 92,746 ( 24.9%) |
| Parishes | 25 |
| Information | |
| Denomination | Catholic |
| Sui iuris church | Latin Church |
| Rite | Roman Rite |
| Established | 10 May 1887 |
| Cathedral | St Mary's Cathedral |
| Current leadership | |
| Pope | Leo XIV |
| Bishop | Gregory Bennet |
| Map | |
| File:Bistum Sale.svg | |
| Website | |
| sale.catholic.org.au | |
Diocese of Sale — The Roman Catholic Diocese of Sale is a suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of Melbourne, that covers the south east of Victoria, Australia. The diocese was established in 1887.
Gregory Bennet was appointed bishop of Sale on 27 June 2020.
History
The Diocese of Sale was established by Pope Leo XIII on 26 April 1887. The first bishop of the Diocese, James Francis Corbett, was a priest of the Diocese of Limerick, Ireland, who was responsible for the Mission (later Parish) of St Kilda and Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Melbourne at the time of his appointment. Corbett was consecrated bishop on 25 August 1887 in St Mary's Church, East St Kilda, by Archbishop of Melbourne, Thomas Carr. Bishop Corbett consecrated St Patrick's Cathedral, Melbourne, on account of his superior vocal ability.
The second Bishop of Sale, Patrick Phelan, saw to the establishment of a school system in the Diocese. The fourth bishop, Patrick Lyons, saw the 1959 change to the boundaries of the Diocese, which incorporated into Sale from the Melbourne Archdiocese the parishes of Berwick, Cranbourne, Pakenham, Iona, Maryknoll, Koo Wee Rup, Dalyston and Korrumburra. These parishes, while they were mainly rural areas at the time, have seen rapid growth and are now considered outer suburbs of the Melbourne metropolitan area.
Bishops
Ordinaries
The following individuals have served as Roman Catholic Bishop of Sale:[1]
Coadjutor bishop
- Patrick Francis Lyons (1956–1957)
Other priests of this diocese who became bishops
- Patrick Mary O'Donnell, appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Brisbane in 1948
- Noel Desmond Daly, appointed Bishop of Sandhurst in 1979
- Michael Joseph McKenna, appointed Bishop of Bathurst in 2009
Cathedral
St Mary's Cathedral, Sale is the cathedral church of the diocese, under the patronage of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. Purpose-built as a cathedral, St Mary's boasts a Romanesque onyx high altar, notable stained glass windows and a large statue of Mary Help of Christians as its features. Four of Sale's bishops are buried in the cathedral: Bishop Corbett lies in the main section of the church beneath the front rows of pews on the right hand side and Bishops Ryan, Lyons and Fox are interred in the Lady Chapel.
Boundaries
The diocese covers south east Victoria, from the eastern suburbs of Melbourne to the New South Wales border, including all of Gippsland.
See also
Canonical status and jurisdiction
Roman Catholic Diocese of Sale is a diocese of the catholic church of the Catholic Church.[2]
External links
From the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia
Diocese of Sale — (SALIENSIS)
Diocese in Victoria, Australia, comprises all the territory known as Gippsland. In 1840 Count Strzelecki, an expatriated Polish scientist, accompanied by a young Irishman named James Riley and some attendants, first penetrated this region, which they found to be singularly fertile and teeming with resources, though hitherto regarded as a trackless waste. Its scenery is remarkably beautiful, and it is often called the "Garden of Australia". Still it was colonized but slowly, as the native inhabitants were regarded as fierce and warlike, while many natural obstacles to settlement were offered by the dense forests, lofty mountain ranges, and swift torrents. At the present time, however, it is one of the regions of Australia best known to tourists. It is rich in pasture and timber lands, while its vast mineral wealth is still only partly developed.
The capital is Sale, now the seat of the episcopal see erected in 1887 at the request of the plenary synod. Its first bishop was the present titular Rt. Rev. James Francis Corbett. He was born at Limerick in 1840; his theological studies were made in France, and on his return he worked for some years as a priest in his native diocese. He went to Australia at the invitation of Archbishop Goold of Melbourne, to whom he acted as diocesan secretary while fulfilling the duties of pastor of St. Kilda's. He was assistant secretary of the synod of 1885, and on his appointment to the new see was consecrated by Archbishop Carr of Melbourne 25 August, 1887, in the Church of St. Kilda which he himself had built. On his arrival in his diocese there were within its limits three parochial districts and four priests, three of whom afterwards returned to their former Diocese of Melbourne. There are now (1911) 9 parishes, 18 priests, 47 churches or chapels, and 10 schools with 830 pupils. The Catholic population is 13,521, and there are 61 sisters of Notre Dame de Sion.
Moran, Hist. of Cath. Church in Australia (Sydney, s. d.); Battandier, Annuaire, Pont. (1911).
References
- Back to citation "Diocese of Sale". The Hierarchy of the Catholic Church. 21 May 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
- Back to citation Roman Catholic Diocese of Sale, official website