Roman Catholic Diocese of Laredo

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Laredo (Latin: Dioecesis Laredanus, Spanish: Diócesis de Laredo) is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in South Texas in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese of the metropolitan Archdiocese of San Antonio

Diocese of Laredo

Dioecesis Laredanus

Diócesis de Laredo
San Agustin Cathedral
Coat of arms
Location
Country United States
TerritoryCounties of Dimmit, Jim Hogg, La Salle, Maverick, Webb, Zapata, and Zavala
Ecclesiastical provinceSan Antonio
Population
- Catholics
222,250 (74.5%)
Information
DenominationCatholic
Sui iuris churchLatin Church
RiteRoman Rite
EstablishedJuly 3, 2000
CathedralCathedral of San Agustin
Patron saintSaint Augustine of Hippo[1]
Current leadership
PopeFrancis
BishopJames Anthony Tamayo
Metropolitan ArchbishopGustavo Garcia-Siller
Map
Website
dioceseoflaredo.org

The Diocese of Laredo was founded on July 3, 2000. The San Agustin Cathedral in Laredo is the mother church of the diocese. James Tamayo is the first and current bishop.

Statistics

The Diocese of Laredo covers an area of 10,905 sq. mi with 32 parishes and 17 missions. It includes Dimmit, Jim Hogg, La Salle, Maverick, Webb, Zapata, and Zavala Counties. As of 2015, the diocese had 344,711 members with 48 priests and 33 deacons.[2]

History

During the 18th century, Texas was a province of the Spanish Empire. Five years after the founding of San Agustin de Laredo in 1755, its residents petitioned the Diocese of Guadalajara to provide them with a mission. In 1759, Bishop Francisco de San Buena Ventura visited the town; the next year, he sent a resident pries to Laredo to construct a small mission chapel. In 1778, a stone structure was erected to accommodate over two hundred families. In 1789, San Agustin parish was established in Laredo by the diocese.[3]

On July 3, 2000, the Diocese of Laredo was created by Pope John Paul II, with territory taken from the Diocese of Corpus Christi and the Archdiocese of San Antonio. The pope named Auxiliary Bishop James Tamayo of Diocese of Galveston-Houston as the first bishop of Laredo. As of 2023, Tamayo is the current bishop of the diocese.

Sex abuse

In 2002, Reverend Cyriacus Udegbulem, a Nigerian priest from the Diocese of Brooklyn, was arrested in Laredo on a New York warrant for rape. A woman had accused Udegbulem of sodomizing her during a counseling session at a Brooklyn church. After the Diocese of Brooklyn dismissed Udegbulem in January 2000, he said he would return to Nigeria. At the time, the woman declined to press charges. However, he ended up in Laredo two months later, working as a hospital chaplain and occasionally celebrating mass. The Diocese of Laredo dismissed Udegbulem in 2001.[4] His 2003 rape trial in New York ended with a hung jury.[5]

Bishops

James Anthony Tamayo (2000–present)

Parishes

Parishes of the Diocese of Laredo that came from the Archdiocese of San Antonio.

Schools

High schools

Saint Augustine High School – Laredo (diocesan), founded 1927

Elementary and middle schools

Media
  • La Fe magazine
  • KHOY radio

See also

References
  1. "Anniversary Prayer". 10 August 2020.
  2. "Diocese of Laredo History & Statistics". Diocese of Laredo. 13 August 2015. Retrieved 2021-06-17.
  3. "History and Statistics". Diocese of Laredo. 2015-08-13. Retrieved 2023-05-01.
  4. Newman, Andy (2002-06-22). "Priest Charged In Rape in 2000 In the Rectory". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-05-01.
  5. "Priest's Rape Trial Ends With Hung Jury". AP NEWS. Retrieved 2023-05-01.

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