Roman Catholic Diocese of Prince George

Diocese of Prince George Dioecesis Principis Georgensis
Location
Country	Canada
Territory	Northern British Columbia
Ecclesiastical province	Archdiocese of Vancouver
Statistics
Area	345,600 km2 (133,400 sq mi)
Population - Catholics	51,200 (as of 2004)
Information
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Rite	Roman Rite
Established	July 13, 1967
Cathedral	Sacred Heart Cathedral
Current leadership
Bishop	Gerald William Wiesner
Website
pgdiocese.bc.ca

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Prince George (Latin: Dioecesis Principis Georgensis) was created as the Vicariate Apostolic of Prince Rupert on January 14, 1944, when the Vicariate Apostolic of Yukon-Prince Rupert was split. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Vancouver. It was elevated on July 13, 1967.

Diocesan Demographics

The diocese consists of 1 bishop, 5 religious & 16 diocesan priests, 4 brothers, 17 sisters, all serving 51,200 Catholics in 18 parishes, 20 missions & 8 schools.

History

The first priest to baptise in the area of Fort George was Father Demers in 1842. In 1885, Father Adrien-Gabriel Morice, OMI, served the Carrier and Sekani First Nations from Stuart Lake. He invented the Carrier syllabics (the written grammar of the language) and translated the Carrier prayer book, which is still used today. Father Morice was also credited with the first map of the interior of British Columbia and published by the government in 1907.

On January 14, 1944, the Vicariate Apostolic of Yukon-Prince Rupert split into the Vicariate Apostolic of Prince Rupert and the Vicariate Apostolic of Whitehorse. The Peace Region of BC, which was part of the old Archdiocese of Grouard-MacLennan, became part of the newly formed Vicariate of Prince Rupert. Emile-Marie Bunoz became the first bishop of the newly formed territory.

in 1956, Bishop John Fergus O'Grady, OMI, became the third bishop of the Vicariate. Under his leadership the number of schools were greatly increased to thirteen. The Frontier Apostolate was created by Bishop O'Grady to help staff the schools and administrations. 1960, Prince George College (later known as O'Grady Catholic High School) was built and staffed by the Sisters of Mercy, of Ireland.

On July 13, 1963, Vicariate Apostolic of Prince Rupert was elevated to a diocese and changed its name to Diocese of Prince George. The administration moved from Prince Rupert to Prince George.

During the 1980 & 1990's the diocese suffered financial setbacks. The diocese had to sell of property and its debt was paid off by 1996. Immigration Canada changed its rules around recruiting from other countries and the Frontier Apostolate, which helped bring immigration to the area, came to an end. Low registration also forced the closure of O'Grady Catholic High School in Prince George in 2001 and in 2008, St. Joseph's elementary in Vanderhoof.

Ordinaries

• Emile-Marie Bunoz, O.M.I. (1944–1945)
• Anthony Jordan, O.M.I. (1945–1955)
• John Fergus O'Grady, O.M.I. (1955–1986)
• Hubert Patrick O'Connor, O.M.I. (1986–1991) - Bishop Emeritus
• Gerald William Wiesner, O.M.I. (1992 - )

Churches

Prince George Sacred Heart Cathedral Saint Mary's Parish Christ our Saviour Parish Immaculate Conception Parish St. Theresa’s Mission (Ft. Babine, Ft. Ware, TsayKeh, Takla) Burns Lake Immaculata Parish Grassy Plains Mission Chetwynd Our Lady of Peace Parish Holy Cross Mission (Tumbler Ridge) St. Theresa’s Mission (Camp Emile) Dawson Creek Notre Dame Parish St. Anne Mission (Kelly Lake) Fort St. James Our Lady of the Snows St. Cecilia Mission (Tache) Portage Mission Fort St. John Church of the Resurrection Doig Mission Halfway Mission Blueberry Mission

Fraser Lake St. Andrew’s Parish Nadleh Mission Stellaquo Mission Kitimat Christ the King Parish McBride St. Patrick’s Parish Mackenzie St. Peter’s Parish New Hazelton St. Mary’s Parish St. Felix Mission, (Stewart) Holy Rosary Mission, (Moricetown) Prince Rupert Annunciation Parish Our Lady of the Islands Mission (Queen Charlottes) Smithers St. Joseph’s Parish St. Anthony’s Mission (Houston) Terrace Sacred Heart Parish Vanderhoof St. Joseph’s Parish Stoney Creek Mission

Education

Catholic high schools

• O'Grady Catholic High School, of Prince George, was opened in 1960 & closed 2001.

Catholic elementary schools

School	City	Est.	Website
Sacred Heart	Prince George	1949	http://www.shspg.com/
Immaculate Conception	Prince George	1981	http://www.icschool.ca/
St. Mary’s	Prince George	1960	http://www.stmaryspg.org/
Notre Dame	Dawson Creek	1944	http://www.notredamedc.org/
St. Anthony’s	Kitimat	1957	http://www.catholickitimat.ca/
Annunciation	Prince Rupert		n/a
St. Joseph’s	Smithers		n/a
Veritas	Terrace		http://www.sacredheartnews.ca/

• St. Joseph's Elementary, of Vanderhoof, closed in 2008.

Religious Orders

Religious communities of men

Religious communities of women

Cemeteries

Charities

Health Care

• Bulkley Valley District Hospital, of Smithers, was established 1933 & closed in 1969.

Saints, Blessed & Venerables

Rose Prince may become Canada's 1st First Nation's saint.

See also

Lejac Residential School - School & memorial site of Rose Prince.

Notes

• The Northern Catholic News is published by the diocese for the community.

References

• CBC Article: Grave of B.C. First Nations woman draws pilgrims seeking miracles Oct. 16, 2008
• Diocese of Prince George - Annual Lejac Pilgramage

Footnotes

External links

• Diocese of Prince George official site
• "Diocese of Prince George". Catholic-Hierarchy. http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/dprge.html. Retrieved 2007-03-14. 
• Rose Prince
• The road to Catholic sainthood: one miracle at a time

Retrieved 2009-05-10