The Diocese of Montreal is a diocese of the Ecclesiastical Province of Canada of the Anglican Church of Canada, in turn a province of the Anglican Communion. The diocese comprises the 21,400 square kilometres (8,300 sq mi) encompassing the City and Island of Montreal, the Laurentians, the South Shore opposite Montreal, and part of the Eastern Townships. The See city is Montreal, and the cathedral is Christ Church. The diocese maintains approximately 9,000 on its parish rolls[2] in about seventy parishes.
Diocese of Montreal Diocèse de Montréal | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | |
| Country | Canada |
| Ecclesiastical province | Canada |
| Statistics | |
| Parishes | 68 (2022)[1] |
| Members | 7,017 (2022)[1] |
| Information | |
| Denomination | Anglican Church of Canada |
| Rite | Anglican |
| Established | 1850 |
| Cathedral | Christ Church Cathedral |
| Current leadership | |
| Bishop | Mary Irwin-Gibson |
| Dean | Bertrand Olivier |
| Website | |
| www | |
History
The diocese was established in 1850, having been carved off from the Diocese of Quebec (where there was a suffragan bishop of Montreal from 1836). The first synod was organised nine years later. Its first bishop, Francis Fulford, was influenced by the Oxford Movement.
In 1866, there was one archdeaconry: J. Scott was Archdeacon of Montreal.[3]
Present status
While Montreal was the largest Canadian city and the centre of commerce in the country, the diocese thrived. In recent decades, however, as these attributes have shifted to Toronto, the English-Canadian population in the diocese has shrunk dramatically, forcing the merger and the closure of parishes. The diocese's original membership of 25,000 150 years ago has shrunk by over one-third, even as the total population in the civil region has expanded from about 70,000 to over 3,000,000[4]—a 9000% decrease in its proportional importance. The diocese's decline thus far exceeds Montreal's relative loss of prestige to Toronto.
With both the dioceses of Montreal and Quebec now having less than 10,000 members, and decreasing membership, discussions are underway for the eventual merger of the two fading dioceses, beginning with an exploration of opportunities for combined administration.[2]
Today, like the Anglican Church of Canada generally, liberal theology dominates, with the bishop approving a form for blessings for same-sex unions in 2010.[2]
The present bishop is Mary Irwin-Gibson.
Archdeaconries, deaneries and parishes
Bedford and the Richelieu
Bedford and Brome-Shefford
- Ascension Anglican Church, West Brome, Brome Lake
- All Saints Anglican Church, Dunham
- All Saints Anglican Church, North Ely, Sainte-Christine
- Bishop Stewart Memorial Church, Frelighsburg
- Grace Church, Sutton
- Holy Trinity Anglican Church, Iron Hill, Brome Lake
- St. James Anglican Church, Brome Lake
- St. George's Anglican Church, Granby
- St. James Anglican Church, Bedford
- St. James the Apostle Anglican Church, Stanbridge East
- St. James the Apostle and Martyr Anglican Church, Farnham
- St. Luke's Anglican Church, Waterloo
- St. Paul's Anglican Church, Abbotsford, Saint-Paul-d'Abbotsford
- St. Paul's Anglican Church, Knowlton
- St. Thomas Anglican Church, Noyan
- Trinity Anglican Church, Nelsonville, Cowansville
South Shore
- Christ Church, Sorel
- St. Francis Anglican Mission Church, Odanak
- St. Barnabas Anglican Church, Saint-Lambert
- St. George's Anglican Church, Châteauguay
- St. James Anglican Church, Ormstown
- St. John's Anglican Church, Huntingdon
- St. Joseph of Nazareth Church, Brossard
- St. Margaret of Antioch, Saint-Hubert, Longueuil
- St. Martin's House, Otterburn Park
- St. Paul's Anglican Church, Greenfield Park, Longueuil
- St. Stephen's with St. James, Chambly
- St. Thomas Anglican Church, Rougemont
- Trinity Church, Havelock
- Trinity Church, Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville
Montreal
Hochelaga
- Christ Church Cathedral, Downtown Montreal
- St John the Evangelist, Downtown Montreal
- St. George's Anglican Church, Downtown Montreal
- St Jax Church, Downtown Montreal
- St. Hilda Anglican Church, Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie, Montreal
- St. Matthias' Anglican Church, Westmount
Western Montreal
- Anglican Church of St. Mark and St. Peter, Saint-Laurent, Montreal
- Church of the Epiphany, Verdun, Montreal
- St. Lawrence Anglican Church, Lasalle, Montreal
- St. Paul's Anglican Church, Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Montreal
- St. Philip's Anglican Church, Montreal West
- St. Simon and Bartholomew Anglican Church, Laval
- St. Thomas' Anglican Church, Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Montreal
St. Lawrence
Pointe-Claire
- All Saints by the Lake, Dorval
- St. John the Baptist Anglican Church, Pointe-Claire
- St Stephen's Anglican Church, Lachine, Montreal
St. Anne
- Christ Church, Beaurepaire, Beaconsfield
- St. Barnabas Anglican Church, Pierrefonds-Roxboro, Montreal
- St. George's Anglican Church, Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue
- St. James Anglican Church, Parish of Vaudreuil, Hudson
- St. Mary's Anglican Church, Parish of Vaudreuil, Como, Hudson
- St. Michael and All Angels Anglican Church, Pierrefonds-Roxboro, Montreal
St. Andrew
Laurentians
- All Saints Church, Deux-Montagnes
- Christ Church, Rawdon
- Église de la Nativité, Rosemère
- Holy Trinity Calumet, Grenville-sur-la-Rouge
- St. Margaret Anglican Church, Mascouche
- St. Matthew's Anglican Church, Grenville
Regional Ministry of the Laurentians
- Christ Church, Mille-Isles
- Grace Anglican Church, Arundel
- Holy Trinity Church, Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts
- St Paul's Anglican Church, Dunany, Gore
- St. John the Baptist Anglican Church, Kilkenny, Saint-Hippolyte
- St. Francis of the Birds Anglican Church, Saint-Sauveur
- St Simeon's Anglican Church, Lachute
- Trinity Church, Morin-Heights
Other facilities
- Mile-End Community Mission, Le Plateau Mont-Royal, Montreal
- Montreal Diocesan Theological College, Ville-Marie, Montreal
- Ste-Anne's Hospital Chapel, Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue
Bishops of Montreal
See also
References
Further reading
- Howard, Oswald (1963). The Montreal Diocesan Theological College: A History from 1873 to 1963. Montreal: McGill University Press.