Roman Catholic Diocese of Aberdeen
Encyclopedia
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Aberdeen is a diocese
of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church
in Scotland
.
(1157), confirming to Bishop Edward the churches of Aberdeen and Saint Machar, with the town of Old Aberdeen and other lands.
The granite cathedral was built between 1272 and 1277. Bishop Thomas Spence founded a Franciscan house in 1480, and King's College was founded at Old Aberdeen by Bishop Elphinstone, for eight prebendaries, chapter, sacristan, organist, and six choristers, in 1505. The see was transferred to Old Aberdeen about 1125, and continued there until 1577, having had in that time a list of twenty-nine bishops.
restored the hierarchy of Scotland by the Bull
Ex supremo Apostolatus apice and Vicar-Apostolic John MacDonald
was translated to the restored See of Aberdeen as its first bishop.
The Bull made Aberdeen one of the four suffragan sees of the Archdiocese of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, and defined as its territory "the counties of Aberdeen
, Kincardine
, Banff
, Elgin or Moray, Nairn, Ross
(except Lewis
in the Hebrides
), Cromarty
, Sutherland
, Caithness
, the Orkney and Shetland Islands
, and that portion of Inverness
which lies to the north of a straight line drawn from the most northerly point of Loch Luing to the eastern boundary of the said county of Inverness, where the counties of Aberdeen and Banff join."
Abbey
at Fort Augustus
which had been raised to the rank of an abbey, immediately subject to the Holy See
, by a brief of Leo XIII in 12 December 1882. Its building was made possible by the financial backing of Lord Lovat
.
OSB. In area the diocese is 29068 square kilometres (11,223.2 sq mi) approximately one fifth of the land mass of Scotland. Proportionately it has the smallest Catholic population of any diocese in the United Kingdom
. In 2006 the Catholic population of 20,000 out of a total population of 700,000 (2.9%) was served by 44 priests and 12 deacons in 41 parishes.
:
Vicars Apostolic of the Highland District
Vicars Apostolic of the Northern District
Bishops of Aberdeen
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...
of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
Foundation
The see was founded in 1063 at Mortlach by Blessed Beyn. The earliest mention of the old See of Aberdeen is in the charter of the foundation, by the Earl of Buchan, of the Church of Deer (c. 1152), which is witnessed by Nectan, Bishop of Aberdeen. The first ecclesiastical record of the see is in a Papal Bull of Pope Adrian IVPope Adrian IV
Pope Adrian IV , born Nicholas Breakspear or Breakspeare, was Pope from 1154 to 1159.Adrian IV is the only Englishman who has occupied the papal chair...
(1157), confirming to Bishop Edward the churches of Aberdeen and Saint Machar, with the town of Old Aberdeen and other lands.
The granite cathedral was built between 1272 and 1277. Bishop Thomas Spence founded a Franciscan house in 1480, and King's College was founded at Old Aberdeen by Bishop Elphinstone, for eight prebendaries, chapter, sacristan, organist, and six choristers, in 1505. The see was transferred to Old Aberdeen about 1125, and continued there until 1577, having had in that time a list of twenty-nine bishops.
Restoration of the Diocese
The Scottish Church officially broke allegiance with the Roman church in 1560, but continued intermittently having bishops until 1689. In 4 March 1878, Pope Leo XIIIPope Leo XIII
Pope Leo XIII , born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci to an Italian comital family, was the 256th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, reigning from 1878 to 1903...
restored the hierarchy of Scotland by the Bull
Papal bull
A Papal bull is a particular type of letters patent or charter issued by a Pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the bulla that was appended to the end in order to authenticate it....
Ex supremo Apostolatus apice and Vicar-Apostolic John MacDonald
John Macdonald
John Macdonald may refer to:*John S. MacDonald, co-founder of MacDonald Dettwiler*John Macdonald , New Zealand forensic psychiatrist who coined the MacDonald triad of sociopathy- Government :...
was translated to the restored See of Aberdeen as its first bishop.
The Bull made Aberdeen one of the four suffragan sees of the Archdiocese of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, and defined as its territory "the counties of Aberdeen
Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire is one of the 32 unitary council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy area.The present day Aberdeenshire council area does not include the City of Aberdeen, now a separate council area, from which its name derives. Together, the modern council area and the city formed historic...
, Kincardine
Kincardineshire
The County of Kincardine, also known as Kincardineshire or The Mearns was a local government county on the coast of northeast Scotland...
, Banff
Banffshire
The County of Banff is a registration county for property, and Banffshire is a Lieutenancy area of Scotland.The County of Banff, also known as Banffshire, was a local government county of Scotland with its own county council between 1890 and 1975. The county town was Banff although the largest...
, Elgin or Moray, Nairn, Ross
Ross-shire
Ross-shire is an area in the Highland Council Area in Scotland. The name is now used as a geographic or cultural term, equivalent to Ross. Until 1889 the term denoted a county of Scotland, also known as the County of Ross...
(except Lewis
Lewis
Lewis is the northern part of Lewis and Harris, the largest island of the Western Isles or Outer Hebrides of Scotland. The total area of Lewis is ....
in the Hebrides
Hebrides
The Hebrides comprise a widespread and diverse archipelago off the west coast of Scotland. There are two main groups: the Inner and Outer Hebrides. These islands have a long history of occupation dating back to the Mesolithic and the culture of the residents has been affected by the successive...
), Cromarty
Cromartyshire
Cromartyshire was a county in the Highlands of Scotland, consisting of a main portion between Sutherland and Ross-shire and a series of exclaves within Ross-shire. Ross-shire and Cromartyshire were combined as the single county of Ross and Cromarty by the Local Government Act 1889, and this...
, Sutherland
Sutherland
Sutherland is a registration county, lieutenancy area and historic administrative county of Scotland. It is now within the Highland local government area. In Gaelic the area is referred to according to its traditional areas: Dùthaich 'IcAoidh , Asainte , and Cataibh...
, Caithness
Caithness
Caithness is a registration county, lieutenancy area and historic local government area of Scotland. The name was used also for the earldom of Caithness and the Caithness constituency of the Parliament of the United Kingdom . Boundaries are not identical in all contexts, but the Caithness area is...
, the Orkney and Shetland Islands
Shetland Islands
Shetland is a subarctic archipelago of Scotland that lies north and east of mainland Great Britain. The islands lie some to the northeast of Orkney and southeast of the Faroe Islands and form part of the division between the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the North Sea to the east. The total...
, and that portion of Inverness
Inverness-shire
The County of Inverness or Inverness-shire was a general purpose county of Scotland, with the burgh of Inverness as the county town, until 1975, when, under the Local Government Act 1973, the county area was divided between the two-tier Highland region and the unitary Western Isles. The Highland...
which lies to the north of a straight line drawn from the most northerly point of Loch Luing to the eastern boundary of the said county of Inverness, where the counties of Aberdeen and Banff join."
Early Twentieth Century
In 1906 there were nearly 4,000 Catholics out of a population of 800,000. The clergy consisted of 48 secular priests, 24 regular priests, 57 churches, chapels, and stations; and various schools. There was a BenedictineBenedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
Abbey
Abbey
An abbey is a Catholic monastery or convent, under the authority of an Abbot or an Abbess, who serves as the spiritual father or mother of the community.The term can also refer to an establishment which has long ceased to function as an abbey,...
at Fort Augustus
Fort Augustus
Fort Augustus is a settlement in the Scottish Highlands, at the south west end of Loch Ness. The village has a population of around 646 ; its economy is heavily reliant on tourism....
which had been raised to the rank of an abbey, immediately subject to the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
, by a brief of Leo XIII in 12 December 1882. Its building was made possible by the financial backing of Lord Lovat
Lord Lovat
Lord Lovat is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1458 for Hugh Fraser. The title descended in a direct line for nine sequential generations until the death of the ninth Lord in 1696. He was succeeded by his great-uncle, the tenth Lord...
.
Twenty First Century
The current bishop of the diocese is the Right Reverend Hugh GilbertHugh Gilbert (bishop)
The Right Reverend Hugh Edward Gilbert, OSB is the Bishop of Aberdeen. He was appointed by Pope Benedict XVI on 4 June 2011. He had previously served as abbot of Pluscarden Abbey. He was ordained bishop by Cardinal Keith O'Brien on 15 August 2011.Edward Gilbert was born in 1952 in Emsworth to an...
OSB. In area the diocese is 29068 square kilometres (11,223.2 sq mi) approximately one fifth of the land mass of Scotland. Proportionately it has the smallest Catholic population of any diocese in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. In 2006 the Catholic population of 20,000 out of a total population of 700,000 (2.9%) was served by 44 priests and 12 deacons in 41 parishes.
Past and present ordinaries
The following is a list of the modern Bishops of Aberdeen and its precursor officesVicars Apostolic of the Highland District
- Alexander John GrantAlexander John GrantAlexander John Grant was a Roman Catholic clergyman who briefly served as the Vicar Apostolic of the Highland District, Scotland.Educated at the Scots College in Rome, he was appointed the first Vicar Apostolic of the Highland District and Titular Bishop of Sura by the Holy See on 16 September 1727...
(appointed 16 September 1727 – died 19 September 1727) - Hugh MacDonald (appointed 12 February 1731 – died 12 March 1773)
- John MacDonaldJohn MacDonald (vicar apostolic)John MacDonald was a Roman Catholic bishop who served as the Vicar Apostolic of the Highland District of Scotland.Born in Ardnamurchan, Argyllshire in 1727, he was ordained a priest on 1 April 1752. He was appointed the Coadjutor Vicar Apostolic of the Highland District and Titular Bishop of...
(succeeded 12 March 1773 – died 9 May 1779) - Alexander MacDonaldAlexander MacDonald (vicar apostolic)Alexander MacDonald was a Roman Catholic bishop who served as the Vicar Apostolic of the Highland District, Scotland.Born in Bornish, South Uist in 1736, he was ordained a priest on 10 August 1764. He was appointed the Vicar Apostolic of the Highland District and Titular Bishop of Polemonium by...
(appointed 30 September 1779 – died 9 September 1791) - John Chisholm (appointed 8 November 1791 – died 8 July 1814)
- Aeneas ChisholmAeneas Chisholm (vicar apostolic)Aeneas Chisholm was a Roman Catholic bishop who served as the Vicar Apostolic of the Highland District, Scotland.Born in Strathglass, Inverness in 1759, he was ordained a priest in 1783. He was appointed the Coadjutor Vicar Apostolic of Highland District and Titular Bishop of Diocaesarea in...
(succeeded 8 July 1814 – died 31 July 1818) - Ranald MacDonaldRanald MacDonald (bishop)Ranald MacDonald was a Roman Catholic bishop who served as the Vicar Apostolic of the Highland District from 1819 to 1827, then the Vicar Apostolic of the Western District from 1827 to 1832....
(appointed 27 August 1819 – translated to the Western District 13 February 1827)
Vicars Apostolic of the Northern District
- James KyleJames Kyle (bishop)James Francis Kyle was a Roman Catholic bishop who served as the first Vicar Apostolic of the Northern District of Scotland.Born in Edinburgh on 22 September 1788, he was ordained a priest on 21 March 1812...
(appointed 13 February 1827 – died 23 February 1869) - John MacDonaldJohn MacDonald (bishop of Aberdeen)John MacDonald was a Scottish clergyman who served as the Roman Catholic Bishop of Aberdeen from 1878 to 1889.-Early life:Born in Strathglass, Inverness on 2 July 1818, he was the son William MacDonald and Harriet MacDonald...
(succeeded 23 February 1869 – became Bishop of Aberdeen 15 March 1878)
Bishops of Aberdeen
- John MacDonaldJohn MacDonald (bishop of Aberdeen)John MacDonald was a Scottish clergyman who served as the Roman Catholic Bishop of Aberdeen from 1878 to 1889.-Early life:Born in Strathglass, Inverness on 2 July 1818, he was the son William MacDonald and Harriet MacDonald...
(appointed 15 March 1878 – died 4 February 1889) - Colin GrantColin Grant (bishop)Colin Grant was a Scottish clergyman who briefly served as the Roman Catholic Bishop of Aberdeen in 1889.Born in Glen Gairn on 3 February 1832, he was ordained a priest on 22 December 1855. He was appointed the Bishop of the Diocese of Aberdeen by the Holy See on 16 July 1889, and consecrated to...
(appointed 16 July 1889 – died 26 September 1889) - Hugh MacDonald, C.SS.R. (appointed 14 August 1890 – died 29 May 1898)
- Aeneas Chisholm (appointed 7 January 1899 – died 13 January 1918)
- George Henry BennettGeorge Henry Bennett (bishop)George Henry Bennett was a Roman Catholic clergyman who served as the Bishop of Aberdeen from 1918 to 1946.Born in St. John's on the island of Antigua in the Caribbean Sea on 24 June 1875, he was ordained a priest on 9 April 1898. He was appointed the Bishop of the Diocese of Aberdeen by the Holy...
(appointed 18 June 1918 – died 25 December 1946) - John Alexander MathesonJohn Alexander MathesonJohn Alexander Matheson was a Roman Catholic clergyman who served as the Bishop of Aberdeen from 1947 to 1950.Born in Tomintoul, Moray on 28 April 1901, he was ordained a priest on 7 March 1925. He was appointed the Bishop of the Diocese of Aberdeen by the Holy See on 2 August 1947, and...
(appointed 2 August 1947 – died 5 July 1950) - Francis Raymond WalshFrancis Raymond WalshFrancis Raymond Walsh, M. Afr., was a Roman Catholic clergyman who served as the Bishop of Aberdeen from 1951 to 1963.Born in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, England on 15 September 1901, he was ordained a priest on 7 March 1925. He was professed a member of the Missionaries of Africa on 9 September...
, M. Afr. (appointed 20 June 1951 – resigned 22 July 1963) - Michael FoylanMichael FoylanMichael Foylan was a Scottish clergyman who served as the Roman Catholic Bishop of Aberdeen from 1964 to 1976.Born in Shettleston, Glasgow, Lanarkshire on 29 June 1907, he was ordained a priest on 5 July 1931. He was appointed the Bishop of the Diocese of Aberdeen by the Holy See on 8 December...
(appointed 8 December 1964 – died 28 May 1976) - Mario Joseph ContiMario Joseph ContiMario Joseph Conti is the current Catholic Archbishop of the Metropolitan see of Glasgow, Scotland.-Life:Mario Joseph Conti was born on 20 March 1934, in Elgin, Moray, son of Louis Joseph Conti and Josephine Quintilia Conti...
(appointed 28 February 1977 – translated to the Archdiocese of GlasgowRoman Catholic Archdiocese of GlasgowThe Archdiocese of Glasgow is a diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland. Glasgow first became an archbishopric in 1492, eventually securing the dioceses of Galloway, Argyll and the Isles as suffragans....
15 January 2002) - Peter Antony MoranPeter Antony MoranPeter Antony Moran is the former Roman Catholic Bishop of the Diocese of Aberdeen, Scotland.He was born in Glasgow on 13 April 1935...
(appointed 13 October 2003 - resigned 4 June 2011) - Hugh GilbertHugh Gilbert (bishop)The Right Reverend Hugh Edward Gilbert, OSB is the Bishop of Aberdeen. He was appointed by Pope Benedict XVI on 4 June 2011. He had previously served as abbot of Pluscarden Abbey. He was ordained bishop by Cardinal Keith O'Brien on 15 August 2011.Edward Gilbert was born in 1952 in Emsworth to an...
OSB (incumbent, appointed 4 June 2011)
See also
- List of Roman Catholic dioceses in Scotland
- Diocese of AberdeenDiocese of AberdeenDiocese of Aberdeen was one of the 13 dioceses of the Scottish church, before the abolition of the episcopacy in 1689.-Early history:...
- Bishop of AberdeenBishop of AberdeenThe Bishop of Aberdeen was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Aberdeen, one of Scotland's 13 medieval bishoprics, whose first recorded bishop is an early 12th century cleric named Nechtan...