Lentorama 2012: Know Your Diocese

Day 40: Archdiocese of Boston

Of course we were going to wind up here. The basics: founded in the early 1800s, split off from Baltimore. Grew tremendously with all of the Irish and Italian immigrants that came in later that century. Had a significant problem with priests abusing boys (hopefully the use of the past tense is appropriate), thanks in no small part to an enabling cardinal who got the most golden of parachutes when he was reassigned to Rome after resigning as head of the archdiocese. Current guy seems to be doing well, like that he keeps wearing his monastic robe rather than moving into fancier cardinal duds.

Honestly, this Lentorama did not go well. A couple of entertaining bits, but mostly a slog. I do already have an idea for 2013, which I think will at least be more fun to write.

Lentorama 2012: Know Your Diocese


Day 39: Diocese of Dubrovnik


While bishops sat at Dubrovnik going back to the sixth century, it didn't get diocese status until 990. For roughly 700 years it was an archdiocese, but it was demoted in 1828, which I assume had something to do with the end of the Republic of Ragusa, of which Dubrovnik was capital. There's not much else I can find about it, especially as the diocese website is (a) in Croatian, and (b) seems optimized to crash my browser.

Lentorama 2012: Know Your Diocese

Day 38: Diocese of Poona

OK, language question. From what I can tell, Poona is also Pune. I was thinking that Poona was some sort of bastardization created by the English, but when I click through to the diocese website they use Poona. But then it lists Pune as one of the areas it covers. So maybe it's the Vatican that needs to update its usage?

Anyway, the diocese was formed in 1886, developed from work done by various priests sent to the area to offer service to Catholics in the military. There aren't that many Catholics in the area, and it seems like every time there was significant growth in the diocese a chunk would get cut off and moved to somewhere else. I'd be a little irritated if I were the bishop of Poona. Or Pune for that matter.

Lentorama 2012: Know Your Diocese


Day 37: Diocese of Tulsa


This diocese was formed in 1972, freeing it from the 1930s creation of a diocese of Oklahoma City and Tulsa. It covers 31 counties in eastern Oklahoma. Not surprisingly, it can trace its history even earlier to French monks who arrived in the area to put down a Catholic footprint and convert the natives.

Really, there's not much else to say about them.

Lentorama 2012: Know Your Diocese

Day 36: Diocese of Fulda

OK, I was actually looking to see if there was a diocese of Tulsa (there is), but my inability to type led me to this German diocese, which traces its roots to an 8th century monastery that Pope Zachary put under direct papal control. St. Boniface asked to be buried at Fulda, which helped it gain standing among other, larger northern European diocese. At some point the diocese was also run as a principality, a status that lasted until 1802. The diocese also enjoyed expanded power over other monasteries and was for a time an important center of science in the Holy Roman Empire.

Things got a little tougher in the 19th century, as the diocese was run by an administrator rather than a bishop for a time, and during the Kulturkampf the bishop's seat was vacant for eight years.  Then in the aftermath of World War II, parts of Fulda were in East Germany, leading to some practical issues of governance. In 1973 a new diocese was created out of the parts of other diocese now in East German territory. They were by and large not returned after reunification. One odd outlier in the whole Cold War period is the curate of Ostheim, which is technically still part of Fulda but is actually run by another diocese.

I suspect Tulsa will not be quite so interesting.