Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Quebec facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Archdiocese of Québec Archidiœcesis Quebecensis Archidiocèse de Québec
Coat of arms
Location
Country	Canada
Territory	Quebec City
Ecclesiastical province	Quebec
Statistics
Area	35,180 km² (13,580 sq mi)
Population - Total - Catholics	(as of 2017) 1,277,354 1,015,815 (79.5%)
Parishes	40
Information
Denomination	Catholic Church
Sui iuris church	Latin Church
Rite	Roman Rite
Established	12 January 1658; 367 years ago
Cathedral	Notre-Dame de Québec
Patron saint	Immaculate Conception and Louis IX of France
Secular priests	737
Current leadership
Pope	Francis
Archbishop	Gérald Lacroix
Auxiliary Bishops	Marc Pelchat and Juan Carlos Londoño
Map

Notre-Dame de Québec Cathedral

The Archdiocese of Québec is a special area of the Catholic Church in Quebec, Canada. It is the oldest Catholic area in North America, north of Mexico. It is also the main Catholic area in Canada. The Archdiocese of Quebec is like the head of a group of other Catholic areas called suffragan dioceses. These include Chicoutimi, Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, and Trois-Rivières. The main church for the archdiocese is Notre-Dame de Québec in Quebec City.

History of the Archdiocese
Bishop's Palace and Chapel
Leadership
Recent Appointments
See also

History of the Archdiocese

Starting in New France

When New France was first being settled, the Church played a big role in how things were run. Even in the 1500s, priests traveled with explorers like Jacques Cartier. In 1608, Samuel de Champlain founded Québec City. This gave the Church a strong place to share its faith with the Indigenous people.

In 1615, missionaries called Recollets arrived in Québec. Ten years later, Jesuit missionaries came too. Their presence helped the colonies grow. It also gave the Church a lot of power in local decisions.

In 1658, the Church set up an "apostolic vicariate" (a special church area that reports directly to the Pope). This was done by Pope Alexander VII. The first leader of this area was François de Laval. As the head of the Church in Québec, Laval was a key member of the government council. He was in charge of spiritual matters, but he had a lot of influence. He also had a good relationship with King Louis XIV.

In 1663, Laval started the Seminary of Québec, a school for priests. By 1674, New France was growing fast. So, Pope Clement X changed the apostolic vicariate into a full "diocese" (a larger church area led by a bishop). This diocese reported directly to the Pope. This was important because it helped the diocese stay strong even after New France became part of Great Britain in 1760. At its biggest in 1712, the Diocese of Québec covered almost all of North America. Only the British colonies and Florida were not under its authority.

Under British Rule

When the British took over, Catholics in Québec faced challenges because of their faith and language. To get a job in the government, people had to take an oath that went against their Catholic beliefs. Since most people in Québec were French-speaking Catholics, this stopped them from being involved in local government.

However, in 1774, the British Parliament passed the Quebec Act. This law allowed Québec to use French laws for private matters. It also let the Church collect money from Catholic businesses and property. In 1819, the diocese became an "archdiocese," which is an even larger and more important church area. By 1840, the Church was officially recognized by political leaders. As the population grew, the Archdiocese of Québec was divided into new dioceses.

The Archdiocese Today

Over time, the Archdiocese of Québec gave up parts of its territory to form new dioceses. These included areas like Halifax (1817), Kingston (1817), Charlottetown (1829), St. Boniface (1844), and Montréal (1852).

It is common for the Archbishops of Québec to become a "cardinal" (a high-ranking official in the Catholic Church). This can happen while they are serving in Québec or if they move to a different important role.

Primate of Canada

Since 1956, the Archbishop of Quebec has a special title: "Primate of Canada." This title was given by Pope Pius XII. It means the Archbishop of Quebec holds a very respected position among all the bishops in Canada.

Bishop's Palace and Chapel

The Chapel of Bishop's Palace was built between 1693 and 1694. It was ordered by Jean-Baptiste de La Croix de Chevrières de Saint-Vallier. This chapel was a private place for the Bishop of Quebec to worship. It was located inside the Bishop's home, called the Bishop's Palace.

After the British took over, the chapel was used by the government for meetings from 1777 to 1833. The chapel was torn down in 1831 to build a new part of the building. This new part was used by the government from 1834 to 1839. The new addition and the Bishop's home were later torn down in 1852–1853. A new Bishop's home was built nearby from 1844 to 1847.

A new government building was finished in 1854, but it burned down soon after. The government then met in other places in Quebec City. The building was rebuilt by 1860 and used by the government until 1866. In 1867, it became the Parliament building for the new province of Quebec. This building also burned down in 1883. A new Parliament building, which had started construction in 1877, became the new home for the government. The old burned-out building was removed by 1894. Today, the site of the old Parliament is a park called Parc Montmorency.

Leadership

Ordinaries

Here is a list of the leaders of the Archdiocese of Quebec and its earlier forms since it began.

Apostolic Vicars of New France

Saint François de Montmorency-Laval, the first bishop of Quebec

François de Laval (1658–1674)

Bishops of Québec

François de Laval (1674–1688)
Jean-Baptiste de la Croix de Chevrières de Saint-Vallier (1688–1727)
Louis-François Duplessis de Mornay (1727–1733)
Pierre-Herman Dosquet (1733–1739)
François-Louis de Pourroy de Lauberivière (1739–1740)
Henri-Marie Dubreil de Pontbriand (1741–1760)
Jean-Olivier Briand (1766–1784)
Louis-Philippe Mariauchau d'Esgly (1784–1788)
Jean-François Hubert (1788–1797)
Pierre Denaut (1797–1806)
Joseph-Octave Plessis (1806–1819)

Archbishops of Québec

Joseph-Octave Plessis (1819–1825)
Bernard-Claude Panet (1825–1833)
Joseph Signay (1833–1850)
Pierre-Flavien Turgeon (1850–1867)
Charles-François Baillargeon (1867–1870)
Cardinal Elzéar-Alexandre Taschereau (1870–1898)
Cardinal Louis Nazaire Bégin (1898–1925)
Paul-Eugène Roy (1925–1926)
Cardinal Felix-Raymond-Marie Rouleau (1926–1931)
Cardinal Jean-Marie-Rodrigue Villeneuve (1931–1947)
Cardinal Maurice Roy (1947–1981)
Cardinal Louis-Albert Vachon (1981–1990)
Maurice Couture (1990–2002)
Cardinal Marc Ouellet (2002–2010), appointed Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops
Cardinal Gérald Lacroix (2011–present)

Coadjutor Archbishops

A "coadjutor bishop" is an assistant bishop who is guaranteed to become the main bishop when the current one leaves or passes away. Almost all coadjutor bishops listed below later became the head of the Archdiocese of Quebec.

Louis-François Duplessis de Mornay (1713–1727), as coadjutor bishop
Pierre-Herman Dosquet (1729–1733), as coadjutor bishop
Louis-Philippe Mariauchau d'Esgly (1772–1784), as coadjutor bishop
Jean-François Hubert (1785–1788), as coadjutor bishop
Charles-François Bailly de Messein (1788–1794), as coadjutor bishop; did not become the main bishop
Pierre Denaut (1794–1797), as coadjutor bishop
Joseph-Octave Plessis (1800–1806), as coadjutor bishop
Bernard-Claude Panet (1806–1825)
Joseph Signay (1826–1833)
Pierre-Flavien Turgeon (1834–1850)
Charles-François Baillargeon (1851–1867)
Louis Nazaire Bégin (1892–1898); later became a Cardinal
Paul-Eugène Roy (1920–1925)

Auxiliary Bishops

An "auxiliary bishop" is also an assistant bishop, but they do not automatically become the main bishop. Four of the auxiliary bishops listed here later became the Archbishop of Quebec.

Pierre-Herman Dosquet (1727–1729), later became coadjutor of this archdiocese
Aeneas Bernard MacEachern (1819–1821), later Bishop of Charlottetown
Jean-Jacques Lartigue (1820–1836), later Bishop of Montréal
Pierre-Antoine Tabeau (1834); did not take effect
Joseph Norbert Provencher (1820–1844), later Vicar Apostolic of North-West
Paul-Eugène Roy (1908–1920), later coadjutor of this archdiocese
Joseph Alfred Langlois (1924–1926), later Bishop of Valleyfield
Joseph-Omer Plante (1927–1948)
Georges Léon Pelletier (1942–1947), later Bishop of Trois-Rivières
Charles-Omer Garant (1948–1962)
Lionel Audet (1952–1983)
Laurent Noël (1963–1975), later Bishop of Trois-Rivières
Louis-Albert Vachon (1977–1981), later Archbishop of this archdiocese; also became a Cardinal
Jean-Paul Labrie (1977–1995)
Maurice Couture (1982–1988), later Bishop of Baie-Comeau; then returned as Archbishop of this archdiocese
Marc Leclerc (1982–1998)
Joseph Paul Pierre Morissette (1987–1990), later Bishop of Baie-Comeau
Clément Fecteau (1989–1996), later Bishop of Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière
Eugène Tremblay (1994–2004), later Bishop of Amos
Jean-Pierre Blais (1994–2008), later Bishop of Baie-Comeau
Jean Gagnon (1998–2002), later Bishop of Gaspé
Pierre-André Fournier (2005–2008), later Archbishop of Rimouski
Gilles Lemay (2005–2011), later Bishop of Amos
Gérald Lacroix (2009–2011), later Archbishop of this archdiocese; also became a Cardinal
Paul Lortie (2009–2012), later Bishop of Mont-Laurier
Denis Grondin (2011–2015), later Archbishop of Rimouski
Louis Corriveau (2016–2019), later Bishop of Joliette
Martin Laliberté (2019–2022)
Marc Pelchat (2016–present)

Other Priests Who Became Bishops

Many priests from this diocese have gone on to become bishops in other places.

Thomas Maguire, appointed Coadjutor Vicar Apostolic of Nova Scotia in 1819; did not take effect
Rémi Gaulin, appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Kingston, Ontario in 1833
Michael Power, appointed Bishop of Toronto, Ontario in 1841
William Dollard (Dullard), appointed Bishop of New Brunswick in 1842
Francis Xavier Norbert Blanchet, appointed Vicar Apostolic of Oregon Territory, USA in 1843
John Charles Prince, appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Montréal, Québec in 1844
Augustin Magloire Alexandre Blanchet, appointed Bishop of Walla Walla, Oregon, USA in 1846
Joseph La Rocque, appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Montréal, Québec in 1852
Charles LaRocque, appointed Bishop of Saint-Hyacinthe, Québec in 1866
Jean-Pierre-François Laforce Langevin, appointed Bishop of Rimouski (St. Germain of), Québec in 1867
Olivier Elzéar Mathieu, appointed Bishop of Regina, Saskatchewan in 1911
Arthur Douville, appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Saint-Hyacinthe, Québec in 1939
Bruno Desrochers, appointed Bishop of Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, Québec in 1951
Paul Bernier, appointed titular Archbishop in 1952
Louis Joseph Jean Marie Fortier, appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, Québec in 1960
Jean-Guy Couture, appointed Bishop of Hauterive, Québec in 1975
Noël Simard, appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Sault Sainte Marie, Ontario in 2008

Recent Appointments

On February 22, 2011, Pope Benedict XVI named Bishop Gérald Lacroix as the new Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Quebec. He was 53 years old and had been an Auxiliary Bishop (assistant bishop) in Quebec since 2009. He also became the Primate of Canada.

Archbishop Lacroix took over from Marc Ouellet, who became a high-ranking official in the Vatican in 2010. Lacroix was born in Saint-Hilaire-de-Dorset, Quebec, on July 27, 1957. His family moved to Manchester, USA, when he was 8. He went to school there.

In 1975, he joined the Pius X Secular Institute. He made his final promises in 1982 and became the secretary general of the institute. He earned a master's degree in theology from Laval University. From 1985 to 1987, he directed a center for Christian training. He became a priest on October 8, 1988. He was made an Auxiliary Bishop of Quebec on May 24, 2009.

On December 12, 2011, Pope Benedict appointed Gaetan Proulx and Denis Grondin Jr. as new Auxiliary Bishops for Archbishop Lacroix. They became bishops on February 25, 2012.

On May 4, 2015, Pope Francis appointed Bishop Grondin as the Archbishop of Rimouski. On July 2, 2016, Pope Francis appointed Bishop Proulx as the Bishop of Gaspé. On October 25, 2016, Pope Francis appointed Louis Corriveau and Marc Pelchat as Auxiliary Bishops for the Archdiocese of Quebec. In 2019, Bishop Corriveau moved to a different diocese. On November 25, Pope Francis appointed Martin Laliberté as an auxiliary bishop here.