Roman Catholic Diocese of Gallup

Diocese of Gallup Dioecesis Gallupiensis Diócesis de Gallup
Sacred Heart Cathedral
Coat of arms
Location
Country	United States
Territory	Navajo and Apache Counties in Arizona and San Juan, McKinley, Cibola, Catron and parts of Rio Arriba, Sandoval, Bernalillo, and Valencia Counties in New Mexico
Ecclesiastical province	Santa Fe
Statistics
Area	55,468 sq mi (143,660 km2)
Population - Total - Catholics (including non-members)	(as of 2006) 470,000 60,000 (12.8%)
Parishes	56
Information
Denomination	Catholic
Sui iuris church	Latin Church
Rite	Roman Rite
Established	December 16, 1939 (81 years ago)
Cathedral	Sacred Heart Cathedral
Patron saint	Our Lady of Guadalupe
Current leadership
Pope	Francis
Bishop	James S. Wall
Map
Website
dioceseofgallup.org

The Diocese of Gallup (Latin: Dioecesis Gallupiensis, Spanish: Diócesis de Gallup) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the southwestern region of the United States, encompassing counties in the states of Arizona (Navajo and Apache) and New Mexico (San Juan, McKinley, Cibola, Catron) and parts of Rio Arriba, Sandoval, Bernalillo, and Valencia Counties west of 106,52',41" meridian in New Mexico .^[1][2] The mother church is the Sacred Heart Cathedral in Gallup, New Mexico.^[1]

The Diocese of Gallup is one of four Latin Church Catholic dioceses in the United States to have territory in more than one federal entity; the Diocese of Wilmington and the Diocese of Norwich both have territory in two states and the Archdiocese of Washington contains the District of Columbia and five counties in Maryland.^{[citation needed]} The Diocese of Gallup is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Santa Fe.

History[]

Pope Pius XII canonically erected the diocese on December 16, 1939, taking its territory from the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, of which Gallup is a suffragan.^[2][3]

Sex Abuse and Bankruptcy[]

On the weekend of August 31-September 1, 2013, a letter from Bishop Wall was read at all Masses stating that the Diocese of Gallup, in order to address the rising number of sexual abuse claims being made, would seek protection under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code.^[4] It filed for bankruptcy November 12, 2013.^[5] In February 2017, it was announced that the Diocese had paid more than $17.6 million to 57 people who were sexually abused by clergy in the Diocese.^[6]

Bishops[]

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The list of bishops and their tenures of service:

Bishops of Gallup[]

1. Bernard T. Espelage (1940–1969)
2. Jerome J. Hastrich (1969–1990)
3. Donald Edmond Pelotte (1990–2008)
4. James Sean Wall (2009–present)

Coadjutor bishop[]

• Donald Edmond Pelotte (1986–1990)

High schools[]

• Gallup Catholic High School, Gallup, New Mexico (Closed in 2013)
• St. Michael High School, St. Michaels, Arizona

Arms[]

Coat of arms of Roman Catholic Diocese of Gallup hide

Notes Arms was designed and adopted when the diocese was erected Adopted 1939 Escutcheon The arms of the diocese are composed of a green field on which are displayed three red crosses below a silver star. Symbolism The most common and significant color of vital life in nature is green. To honor the heritage of the Native American peoples that inhabited the region around what is now Gallup, the field of the diocesan arms is green. Upon this field are three red crosses to signify the three priests—Fathers Francisco Letrado, Martin de Arvide, and Pedro de Avila y Ayala—who were martyred bringing the Gospel to the region. The Faith prevailed, and the Diocese of Gallup is under the patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who is signified by the single silver star that appears in the upper right of the diocesan arms.

References[]

External links[]

• Roman Catholic Diocese of Gallup Official Site
• Arizona Catholic Conference
• Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix
• Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson

Coordinates: 35°31′25″N 108°44′03″W / 35.52361°N 108.73417°W / 35.52361; -108.73417