Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo

The Diocese of Buffalo covers {{convert|6455|sqmi|km2}} .

As of 2018, the diocese has a Catholic population of 725,125.{{cite web| url=https://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/dbuff.html| title=Buffalo (Diocese)| publisher=Catholic-Hierarchy| access-date=July 17, 2021}} The diocese had 161 parishes, 15 high schools, 52 elementary schools, seven colleges and universities, one seminary and four hospitals.

In 1678, Louis Hennepin, accompanying French explorer René-Robert La Salle, celebrated the first mass in present day Buffalo.

During the British rule of the Province of New York in the 18th century, Catholics were banned from the colony.{{Cite web |title=Parish History (New) |url=https://stpathuntington.org/parish-history |access-date=2023-04-08 |website=Church of St. Patrick - Huntington, NY |language=en-GB}} Richard Coote, the first colonial governor, passed a law at the end of the 17th century that mandated a life sentence to any Catholic priest. The penalty for harboring a Catholic was a £250 fine plus three days in the pillory. In 1763, Catholic bishop Richard Challoner of London stated that:

“...in New York, one may find a Catholic here and there, but they have no opportunity of practicing their religion as no priest visits them, and … there is not much likelihood that Catholic priests will be permitted to enter these provinces."

In 1784, the Vatican erected the Prefecture Apostolic of United States of America, covering the entire new nation. This action was necessary to remove the American church from British jurisdiction.{{Cite web |title=Baltimore (Archdiocese) [Catholic-Hierarchy] |url=https://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/dbalt.html |access-date=2023-08-29 |website=www.catholic-hierarchy.org}} The Vatican in 1789 converted the prefecture into the Diocese of Baltimore. It was the first diocese in the United States, covering the entire country.

In 1808, as the population of the country grew, the Vatican created several new dioceses, including the Diocese of New York. Western New York and the Southern Tier would be part of the Diocese of New York, followed by the Archdiocese of New York, for the next 39 years.

By 1820, many Catholic Alsatians had moved to Western New York. The Diocese of New York had few priests in region; resident Catholics might not see a priest for weeks or months. Some Catholics would travel with their children to Albany or Michigan to have them baptised. Most of the time, they would wait to receive sacraments until a priest showed up in their town.

Bishop John Connolly of New York sent Patrick Kelly on a trip to Buffalo in 1821 to minister to these people. He celebrated one mass in a small building in the city.

Stephen Badin, a missionary from Kentucky, spent six weeks in Buffalo as the guest of Louis Le Couteulx, a French businessman.{{Cite web |title=Louis Le Couteulx |url=https://exhibitions.nysm.nysed.gov/albany/bios/l/lolecout.html |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=exhibitions.nysm.nysed.gov}} Badin celebrated public masses at Le Couteulx's home, urging the attendees to form a congregation.{{Cite book |last= |first= |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KL4YAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA390 |title=The Catholic Church in the United States of America: Undertaken to Celebrate the Golden Jubilee of His Holiness, Pope Pius X. V. 1-3 ... |date=1914 |publisher=Catholic Editing Company |location=New York |language=en}} Le Couteulx donated a site for construction of a church, cemetery, and rectory. He later donated land for the Deaf Mute Institute, the Infant Asylum, Immaculate Conception Church, and the Buffalo orphan asylum.

After visiting Buffalo in 1829, Bishop John Dubois of New York sent John Mertz to Buffalo to become its first resident priest, assisted by Alexander Pax. Mertz in 1832 constructed the Lamb of God Church, the first Catholic church in the city. Over the next five years, Mertz formed congregations in Lancaster, Williamsville, North Bush, East Eden, and Lockport.{{Cite web |title=CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Buffalo |url=https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03037a.htm |access-date=2023-08-31 |website=www.newadvent.org}}

Dubois sent Mertz to Europe to raise funds for the diocese and dispatched John Neumann to Buffalo in 1836 to assist Pax.[https://www.pabook.libraries.psu.edu/literary-cultural-heritage-map-pa/bios/Neumann__Saint_John " St. John Neumann", Pennsylvania Center for the Book, The Pennsylvania State University] Based out of Williamsville, Neumann served in the Erie County for four years. He walked many miles over rough roads and through woods carrying his vestments, to minister to parishioners.

Bernard O'Reilly ministered to laborers on the Erie Canal and in constructing the canal locks at Lockport. Thomas McEvoy of Java worked with Catholics in Allegany, Wyoming, Steuben, and Chautauqua counties in the Southern Tier of New York.

In 1837, the English-speaking parishioners at Lamb of God withdrew from the church as it was primarily a German-speaking parish. They formed a separate congregation, renting the second floor of a building in Buffalo where Charles Smith celebrated mass once a month. The congregation later purchased property to build their own church.

File:Bishop John Timon.jpg

File:D'youville College.JPG

In 1847, Pope Pius IX erected the Diocese of Buffalo, taking its territory from the Archdiocese of New York. He appointed Reverend John Timon as its first bishop. Timon was fluent in Gaelic, which helped him minister to the Irish community in Buffalo.{{Cite web |title=Bishop John Timon |url=https://buffaloah.com/h/timon/timon.html |access-date=2023-08-31 |website=buffaloah.com}} He appointed O'Reilly as his vicar general. The diocese rented several buildings near construction sites in the region to serve their workers. In 1848, the Sisters of Charity Order opened the first public hospital in Buffalo, Sisters of Charity Hospital.{{Cite web |title=An Invitation |url=http://www.sistershospitalfoundation.org/docs/SMSBrochure.pdf |accessdate=6 December 2015 |website=Sisters Hospital Foundation |publisher=Sister Mattingly Society}}

Timon laid the cornerstone of St. Joseph Cathedral in 1851. During its construction, a storm destroyed several homes in the area. Timon allowed displaced families to set up tents in the shelter of the cathedral's walls for several weeks. The cathedral was usable, but not complete, when it was dedicated in 1855.{{cite web| title=History of St. Joseph RC Cathedral| last=Napora| first=James| url=http://www.buffaloah.com/a/franklin/50/napora.html| publisher=Buffalo Architecture and History| year=2005| accessdate=2018-08-16}} In 1851, Lucas Caveng, a German Jesuit, founded St. Michael's Church in Buffalo.

The Oblate Fathers in August 1851 founded a seminary and college in Buffalo. The financial Nicholas Devereux established St. Bonaventure College in Allegheny in 1855 as a Franciscan college for men. Today it is St. Bonaventure University.{{Cite web |title=CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Nicholas Devereux |url=https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/16033b.htm |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=www.newadvent.org}} In 1856, the Vincentian Order founded Our Lady of the Angels Seminary in Lewiston. Today it is Niagara University.{{Cite web |date=2022-06-24 |title=History Of Niagara University In Ontario |url=https://niagarau.ca/about-nu-ontario/nu-ontario-history/ |access-date=2023-08-31 |language=en-US}}

In 1861, the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia established a Home for the Aged. Two years later, the sisters in Buffalo formed a separate congregation, the Sisters of St. Francis Third Order Regular of Buffalo.Lafort 1914, p. 176 The Grey Nuns order in 1865 founded The Holy Angels Infirmary Academy for girls in Buffalo; today it is D'Youville University.{{Cite web |title=D'Youville University - Nonprofit Incorporation |url=https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_ny/27952 |access-date=December 24, 2020 |website=Open Corporates}} In 1870, the Jesuit Order founded Canisius College in Buffalo to educate the sons of German immigrants.{{cite web |title=St. Michaels' RC Church |url=http://buffaloah.com/a/washngtn/651/651.html |access-date=18 August 2017 |website=buffaloah.com}}{{Cite news |date=September 29, 2001 |title=ST. MICHAEL'S CHURCH, JESUITS' ORIGINAL BASE; IN AREA, TO MARK 150TH YEAR WITH MASS |work=Buffalo News |url=https://buffalonews.com/news/st-michaels-church-jesuits-original-base-in-area-to-mark-150th-year-with-mass/article_05bb700a-5d2e-571f-b75e-b4cb71ad9385.html |access-date=March 5, 2016}}

File:Bishop Stephen Vincent Ryan of Buffalo, New York.jpg

After Timon's death in 1867, Pope Pius IX named Reverend Stephen V. Ryan from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia as the second bishop of Buffalo.{{cite news |title=Bishop Stephen Vincent Ryan, C.M. |work=Catholic-Hierarchy.org |url=http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bryanst.html}} That same year, the pope erected the Diocese of Rochester, taking the eastern counties from the Diocese of Buffalo.{{Cite web |title=Buffalo (Diocese) [Catholic-Hierarchy] |url=https://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/dbuff.html |access-date=2023-08-31 |website=www.catholic-hierarchy.org}} Ryan unified the Catholic school system in the diocese and established a commission to supervise it.{{cite book |title=The Catholic Church in the United States of America |date=1914 |publisher=The Catholic Editing Company |location=New York}} He founded the diocesan newspaper, The Catholic Union.{{cite web |year=2009 |title=Most Rev. Stephen V. Ryan, CM |url=http://www.buffalodiocese.org/Chancery/MattersofInterest/DiocesanBishopsPresentPast/MostRevStephenVRyanCM/tabid/258/Default.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090730083039/http://www.buffalodiocese.org/Chancery/MattersofInterest/DiocesanBishopsPresentPast/MostRevStephenVRyanCM/tabid/258/Default.aspx |archive-date=July 30, 2009 |access-date=August 14, 2019 |website=BuffaloDiocese.org}} Ryan died in April 1896. Soon after his death, the diocese moved the four Southern Tier counties (Steuben, Schuyler, Chemung, and Tioga) from the Diocese of Buffalo to the Diocese of Rochester.Lafort 1914, p. 458 In December 1896, Pope Leo XIII appointed James Edward Quigley as bishop of Buffalo.{{Cite book |last=Faculty of Niagara University |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8jFGAAAAYAAJ&dq=Bishop+James+Edward+Quigley&pg=PA134 |title=History of the Seminary of Our Lady of Angels: Niagara University, Niagara County, N.Y., 1856-1906 |date=1906 |publisher=Matthews-Northrup Works |location=Buffalo |pages=134 |language=en}}

In 1899, the Longshoremen's Union, representing 1,500 workers in Buffalo who hauled grain out of grain ships into the grain silos, went on strike against the Lake Carriers Association. The Association paid these men through saloon keepers, who would subtract charges for room, board and drinks from the workers' wages, leaving them very little. When the saloon keepers raised their fees, the workers went on strike. Quigley opened St. Bridget Church as a base for the strikers, gave them strategic support, and acted as a mediator. The strike ended when the carriers agreed to pay their workers directly.{{Cite book |last=Czarnecki |first=Anthony |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sFswAQAAMAAJ&dq=Bishop+James+Edward+Quigley+++Buffalo&pg=PA386 |title=The World Today |date=1903 |publisher=Current Encyclopedia Company |edition=IV |location=Chicago |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=The Dock Strike of 1899 - WNY Heritage |url=https://www.wnyheritage.org/content/the_dock_strike_of_1899/index.html |access-date=2022-05-15 |website=www.wnyheritage.org}}

File:Archbishop Quigley.jpg

In 1902, Quigley embarked on a public campaign against what he termed "socialism" in labor unions in Buffalo. He claimed that Catholic workers felt that some union regulations were unjust and oppressive. Quigley wrote a pastoral letter in German to be read in ethnic German parishes that called on union members to assert their rights regarding union governance. He also spoke at mass meetings. While claiming to support the union movement, Quigley denounced socialism and gave his interpretation of why the Catholic Church opposed it. As a result of his anti-socialism campaign in Buffalo, Quigley gained a national reputation.{{Cite web |title=CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Buffalo |url=https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03037a.htm |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=www.newadvent.org}}{{Cite book |last= |first= |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KL4YAAAAYAAJ&dq=Archbishop+James+Edward+Quigley&pg=PA458 |title=The Catholic Church in the United States of America: Undertaken to Celebrate the Golden Jubilee of His Holiness, Pope Pius X. |date=1914 |publisher=Catholic Editing Company |edition=1-3 |pages=458 |language=en}} In 1905, Quigley became archbishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago.

The fourth bishop of Buffalo was Charles H. Colton of New York, selected in 1903 by Pope Leo XIII.{{cite news |title=Bishop Charles Henry Colton |work=Catholic-Hierarchy.org |url=http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bcolton.html}} During his tenure, the diocese had 72 churches, 18 combination school-churches, 30 schools, 12 academies, 13 hospitals and charitable institutions, six convents, and 28 rectories.{{cite news |title=Most Rev. Charles H. Colton |work=Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo |url=http://www.buffalodiocese.org/Chancery/MattersofInterest/DiocesanBishopsPresentPast/MostRevCharlesHColton.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100613083246/http://buffalodiocese.org/Chancery/MattersofInterest/DiocesanBishopsPresentPast/MostRevCharlesHColton.aspx |archive-date=2010-06-13}} In 1904, the Sisters of Mercy opened Mercy Hospital to serve residents of the south side of Buffalo.{{cite web |title=Our History - Catholic Health - The Right Way to Care |url=https://www.chsbuffalo.org/about-us/our-history |website=www.chsbuffalo.org}}

After Colton died in 1915, Pope Benedict XV named Bishop Dennis Dougherty from the Diocese of Jaro in the Philippines as Colton's successor in Buffalo.{{cite web |last=Miranda |first=Salvador |title=DOUGHERTY, Denis |url=https://cardinals.fiu.edu/bios1921.htm#Dougherty |website=The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church}} At the time of Dougherty's arrival, the diocese was burdened with a $1.6 million debt from the construction of the new cathedral.{{cite news |date=February 27, 1921 |title=AMERICA'S NEW RED HAT |work=The New York Times |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1921/02/27/112673746.html?pageNumber=96}} He dramatically reduced the debt by taxing the diocese's parishes according to their means.{{cite book |last=Thornton |first=Francis B. |date=1963 |title=Our American Princes: The Story of the Seventeen American Cardinals|publisher=G. P. Putnam's Sons|pages=100–118 |chapter=Chapter 5: Dennis Cardinal Dougherty}}{{rp|110}} During his tenure, he also established 15 new parishes and supported the World War I effort through liberty bond campaigns and Red Cross drives.{{cite news |date=June 1, 1951 |title=The Life Story Of His Eminence, The Cardinal |work=The Catholic Standard & Times |url=https://thecatholicnewsarchive.org/?a=d&d=cst19510601-01.1.1&}} In 1918, Dougherty became archbishop of Philadelphia.

Benedict XV in 1919 appointed Reverend William Turner as the next bishop of Buffalo.{{Cite book |last= |first= |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H3YoAAAAMAAJ&dq=William+Turner+(bishop+of+Buffalo)&pg=PA258 |title=Publications of the Buffalo Historical Society |date=1920 |publisher=Bigelow Brothers |edition=Volume 24 |language=en}} 1922, Turner helped lay the cornerstone of the Basilica of Our Lady of Victory in Lackawanna. Turner was a supporter of the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul, and in 1924 began a Catholic Charities chapter in Buffalo. He established more than 30 new parishes during his administration,{{cite news |title=Most Rev. William Turner |work=Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo |url=https://www.buffalodiocese.org/bishop-turner}} including Our Lady of Czestochowa Parish in North Tonawanda.

File:HilbertFranHall.jpg

File:Canisius College - Quad 2.jpg

Turner died in 1937. His successor was Bishop John A. Duffy from the Diocese of Syracuse, appointed by Pope Pius XI that same year.{{Cite news |date=1937-01-10 |title=BISHOP OFSYRACUSE SENT TO BUFFALO; Duffy Gets a Diocese With 130,000 More Communicants and Big Schools. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1937/01/10/archives/bishop-ofsyracuse-sent-to-buffalo-duffy-gets-a-diocese-with-130000.html |access-date=2023-09-01 |issn=0362-4331}} During his tenure, Duffy established the Diocesan Fund for the Faith for those impacted by the Great Depression and erected parishes in rural areas of the diocese. He organized the Catholic Youth Organization, the Bishop's Committee for Christian Home and Family, the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, and Newman Clubs at the local universities.{{cite news |title=Diocesan Bishops Through the Years |work=Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo |url=https://www.buffalodiocese.org/diocesan-bishops-of-the-past/most-reverend-john-a-duffy/}} Duffy died in 1944.

Pope Pius XII selected Auxiliary Bishop John O'Hara of the United States Military Ordinariate as the next bishop of Buffalo in 1945.{{Cite web |title=John Francis Cardinal O'Hara [Catholic-Hierarchy] |url=https://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/boharaj.html |access-date=2023-09-02 |website=www.catholic-hierarchy.org}} O'Hara expanded Catholic education in the diocese, and eliminated racial segregation in schools and churches. He became archbishop of Philadelphia in 1951. To replace O'Hara, Pius XII in 1952 named Auxiliary Bishop Joseph A. Burke, the first native of the diocese to become its bishop.

During his 10-year-long administration, Burke supported Holy Name Society, missions, the Pre-Cana program, Puerto Rican migrants, and displaced persons. He also continued the expansion and construction of educational institutions, including St. John Vianney Seminary in East Aurora, New York.{{cite news |title=Most Rev. Joseph A. Burke |work=Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo |url=http://www.buffalodiocese.org/Chancery/MattersofInterest/DiocesanBishopsPresentPast/MostRevJosephABurke.aspx |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100613083143/http://buffalodiocese.org/Chancery/MattersofInterest/DiocesanBishopsPresentPast/MostRevJosephABurke.aspx |archivedate=2010-06-13}}

In 1957, the Franciscan Sisters of St. Joseph founded Hilbert College in Hamburg to train its novices to become teachers. It is today a coed Liberal Arts college.{{Cite web |title=History & Traditions {{!}} Hilbert College |url=https://www.hilbert.edu/about/history |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=www.hilbert.edu}} The Sisters of Mercy opened Trocaire College in Buffalo in 1958 to provide college courses for religious sisters.{{Cite web |title=Our History |url=https://trocaire.edu/about/our-history/ |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=About |language=en-US}}

After Burke died in 1962, Pope John XXIII in 1963 appointed Bishop James A. McNulty from the Diocese of Paterson as the tenth bishop of Buffalo.{{Cite web |title=Bishop James Aloysius McNulty [Catholic-Hierarchy] |url=https://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bmcnulty.html |access-date=2023-09-02 |website=www.catholic-hierarchy.org}} He reduced the diocesan debt, which was approximately $30 million, through a three-year Diocesan Development Fund.{{Cite web |title=Most Reverend James A. McNulty {{!}} Diocese of Buffalo. |url=https://www.buffalodiocese.org/diocesan-bishops-of-the-past/most-reverend-james-a-mcnulty/ |access-date=2023-09-02 |website=www.buffalodiocese.org}} McNulty oversaw the implementation the Second Vatican Council reforms in the diocese, including the establishment of a priests' senate. McNulty promoted religious vocations and expanded inner city ministry. He established the Liturgical Commission, the Pastoral Council, a lay steering committee to oversee finances, and the Communications Office. McNulty began the television program The Bishop Visits Your Home.

File:Auditorium (with statue of Pope John Paul II), Villa Maria College, Cheektowaga, New York - 20211130.jpg

File:Trocaire College courtyard.jpg

McNulty died in 1972; Pope Paul VI then appointed Auxiliary Bishop Edward D. Head of New York as the next bishop of Buffalo.{{Cite web |title=Bishop Edward Dennis Head [Catholic-Hierarchy] |url=http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bhead.html |access-date=2023-09-02 |website=www.catholic-hierarchy.org}} Head established the Religious Education Coordinators Council, the Priests' Retirement Board, the Center for Church Vocations, the Western New York Catholic Hospital Health Care Council, the Peace and Justice Commission, the Office of Vicar for Religious and the Permanent Diaconate Program.[http://www.buffalodiocese.org/BishopMalone/DiocesanBishopsofthePast/MostRevEdwardDHead.aspx Most Rev. Edward D. Head], Diocese of Buffalo, Buffalo, NY: Diocese of Buffalo, 2014, Retrieved 3 January 2014. Head ordained 124 priests and confirmed 50,000 people during his 22 years in Buffalo.[http://www.buffalodiocese.org/bishopofbuffalo/NewsReleases2005/BishopHeadDies.aspx Bishop Head dies] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140104204156/http://www.buffalodiocese.org/bishopofbuffalo/NewsReleases2005/BishopHeadDies.aspx|date=2014-01-04}}, Diocese of Buffalo, Buffalo, NY: Diocese of Buffalo, 2014, Retrieved 3 January 2014.{{Cite web |date=2005-04-05 |title=Funeral Mass Held for Bishop Head |url=https://www.wbfo.org/2005-04-05/funeral-mass-held-for-bishop-head |access-date=2023-09-02 |website=WBFO |language=en}} Head retired in 1995.

Pope John Paul II appointed Auxiliary Bishop Henry J. Mansell of New York as the twelfth bishop of Buffalo in 1995.{{Cite web |date=2013-10-30 |title=Archbishop Mansell of Hartford Retires |url=https://www.cny.org/stories/archbishop-mansell-of-hartford-retires,10160 |access-date=2023-09-02 |website=Catholic New York |language=en}} Mansell established the Catholic Health Care System of Western New York, combining the local Catholic hospitals, nursing homes, and other health care facilities. In 1996, he instituted the diocese's vicariate structure and in 1997 celebrated the diocese's 150th anniversary.[https://www.buffalodiocese.org/bishop-mansell "Most Rev. Henry J. Mansell", Diocese of Buffalo] He instituted a televised "Daily Mass" celebrated from a chapel at St. Joseph Cathedral.{{Cite web |date=2003-12-10 |title=Bishop Mansell Reflects on His Eight Years in Buffalo |url=https://www.wbfo.org/2003-12-10/bishop-mansell-reflects-on-his-eight-years-in-buffalo |access-date=2023-09-02 |website=WBFO |language=en}} Mansell became archbishop of the Archdiocese of Hartford in 2004.

To replace Mansell in Buffalo, John Paul II appointed Bishop Edward Kmiec from the Diocese of Nashville as the next bishop of Buffalo.{{Cite web |title=Bishop Edward Urban Kmiec [Catholic-Hierarchy] |url=http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/bishop/bkmiec.html |access-date=2022-12-25 |website=www.catholic-hierarchy.org}} In 2007, Kmiec announced that the diocese had a balanced budget, after spending cuts reduced a $2.1 million deficit from the previous year.{{cite news |date=September 5, 2007 |title=Bishop says diocesan budget is balanced |newspaper=Business Business First |url=http://www.bizjournals.com/buffalo/stories/2007/09/03/daily15.html |access-date=December 22, 2010}}

In August 2009, the Buffalo News reported the removal of Fred R. Voorhes as administrator of St. Teresa's Parish in South Buffalo and the subsequent dismissal of Marc J. Pasquale, as its business administrator and director of religious education. Parishioners expressed in interviews their discontent with these removals. Pasquale had gone to the Erie County District Attorney's Office prior to his dismissal to raise concerns about questionable financial practices in the diocese.{{Cite web |title=Diocese Ousts St Teresas Priest and Finance Chief, Jay Tokasz, The Buffalo News, August 27, 2009 |url=http://www.bishop-accountability.org/news2009/07_08/2009_08_27_Tokasz_DioceseOusts.htm |website=www.bishop-accountability.org}}

File:Richard J. Malone (Buffalo).jpg

File:Niagara University sign.jpg

Kmiec was heavily criticized for downsizing the diocese from 274 parishes and missions in 2005 to 170 in 2011. He also oversaw the closures of 25 elementary schools.{{Cite web |date=2011-06-09 |title=At 75, Kmiec reaches a crossroads - News - The Buffalo News |url=https://buffalonews.com/incoming/article443552.ece |access-date=2023-09-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110609022222/https://buffalonews.com/incoming/article443552.ece |archive-date=June 9, 2011 }}[http://www.buffalonews.com/incoming/article614179.ece Honoring a bishop who weathered the storms], Buffalo News, October 30, 2011.{{Cite web |last=O'Shei |first=Tim |date=September 11, 2006 |title=Sole power |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/buffalo/stories/2006/09/11/story4.html |access-date=2023-09-02 |website=bizjournals.com}} The diocese under Kmiec ordained only 18 priests from 2004 to 2011. He retired in 2012.

In 2012, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Bishop Richard Malone of the Diocese of Portland as bishop of Buffalo.{{cite press release |url=https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2012/05/29/0314/00741.html |access-date=December 3, 2019 |title=Rinunce e Nomine, 29.05.2012 |date=May 29, 2012 |publisher=Holy See Press Office |language=it}} In 2015, he issued a letter condemning the 2015 film Fifty Shades of Grey. In his statement, Malone spoke of:

"...the beauty of the Church's teaching on the gift of sexual intimacy in marriage, the great dignity of women, and the moral reprehensibility of all domestic violence and sexual exploitation."{{Cite web |last=Malone |first=Richard |date=February 4, 2015 |title=Bishop Malone Letter to Bishops Fifty Shades of Grey |url=http://www.usccb.org/_cs_upload/issues-and-action/marriage-and-family/167842_1.pdf |website=usccb.org}}

In October 2019, the Congregation for Bishops in Rome assigned Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio from the Diocese of Brooklyn to lead an apostolic visitation, or investigation, of the Diocese of Buffalo. After the visitation, Pope Francis accepted Malone's resignation as bishop in December 2019.{{cite press release |access-date=December 4, 2019 |date=December 4, 2019 |publisher=Holy See Press Office |url=https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2019/12/04/191204e.html |title=Resignations and Appointments, 04.12.2019}}{{cite news |last=Otterman |first=Sharon |date=December 4, 2019 |title=Buffalo Bishop Resigns After Scandal Over Secret List of Abusive Priests |work=New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/04/nyregion/buffalo-bishop-catholic-church-abuse.html |access-date=December 4, 2019}} The CBS television program 60 Minutes Overtime reported that month that Malone's resignation was linked to documents leaked in 2018 by his executive assistant, Siobhan O'Connor, detailing his concealment of sexual abuse by priests.{{cite news |date=December 8, 2019 |title=Bishop Richard Malone of Buffalo resigns after leaked records, reported on by 60 Minutes |publisher=60 Minutes Overtime |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bishop-richard-malone-of-buffalo-resigns-after-leaked-records-reported-on-by-60-minutes-2019-12-08/ |access-date=December 12, 2019}}

With Malone gone, the pope named Bishop Edward B. Scharfenberger from the Diocese of Albany as apostolic administrator to manage the diocese.{{cite press release |access-date=December 12, 2019 |date=December 4, 2019 |publisher=Holy See Press Office |url=https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2019/12/04/191204e.html |title=Resignations and Appointments, 04.12.2019}}{{cite news |last=Harlan |first=Chico |date=December 4, 2019 |title=Buffalo Bishop Malone resigns following accusations that he mishandled sex abuse cases |newspaper=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/buffalo-bishop-malone-resigns-following-accusations-that-he-mishandled-sex-abuse-cases/2019/12/04/ef45e372-161d-11ea-80d6-d0ca7007273f_story.html |access-date=December 12, 2019}} In February 2020, the Diocese of Buffalo filed for bankruptcy as a result of the numerous sexual abuse lawsuits.{{Cite web |date=February 28, 2020 |title=Catholic Diocese of Buffalo files for bankruptcy, acknowledges over 500 claims of clergy abuse |url=https://www.wgrz.com/article/news/special-reports/diocese-in-crisis/diocese-bankruptcy-buffalo/71-4aa2e5f9-2a87-45ac-a565-27ab324fd89c |access-date=2020-03-01 |website=WGRZ}} The diocese in March 2020 announced the closing of Christ the King Seminary in East Aurora.{{Cite web |title=Buffalo diocese to shutter Christ the King Seminary |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/buffalo/news/2020/02/04/buffalo-diocese-to-shutter-christ-the-king.html |access-date=2020-03-01 |website=www.bizjournals.com}} The diocese in April 2020 appointed Mary McCarrick{{Cite web |title=Sr. Mary McCarrick Honored by NYS Catholic Charities Directors |url=https://www.ccwny.org/news/article/current/2018/01/30/100180/sr.-mary-mccarrick-honored-by-nys-catholic-charities-directors |access-date=July 1, 2020 |website=www.ccwny.org}}{{Cite web |last=O'Shei |first=Tim |date=March 30, 2018 |title=Catholic Charities leader Mary McCarrick looks to next chapter in life of service |url=https://buffalonews.com/news/local/catholic-charities-leader-mary-mccarrick-looks-to-next-chapter-in-life-of-service/article_92bc7b40-9135-59ff-86f7-860f0d3091ad.html |access-date=July 1, 2020 |website=Buffalo News}} as its first chief operating officer (COO).{{cite web |title=Buffalo Catholic Diocese appoints COO {{!}} WBFO |url=https://news.wbfo.org/post/buffalo-catholic-diocese-appoints-coo |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200510204142/https://news.wbfo.org/post/buffalo-catholic-diocese-appoints-coo |archive-date=May 10, 2020}}

To replace Malone, Francis in December 2020 named Auxiliary Bishop Michael Fisher from the Archdiocese of Washington as the new bishop of Buffalo.{{Cite web |last=McShea |first=Keith |date=December 1, 2020 |title=Pope appoints Michael William Fisher 15th Bishop of Diocese of Buffalo |url=https://buffalonews.com/news/local/pope-appoints-michael-william-fisher-15th-bishop-of-diocese-of-buffalo/article_365727a4-33cc-11eb-a3bd-4b0c657c6976.html |access-date=December 1, 2020 |website=Buffalo News}}{{cite news |date=December 1, 2020 |title=Pope appoints new Bishop for Buffalo, USA |work=Vatican News |url=https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2020-12/pope-appoints-new-bishop-for-buffalo-usa.html |access-date=December 1, 2020}} As of 2023, Fisher is the current bishop of Buffalo.

In February 1986, Reverend Gerald C. Jasinski, a priest of St. Mary's Parish, was charged with first-degree sodomy, first-degree sexual abuse and unlawful dealing with a child.{{Cite web |title=Priest Faces Sex Charges, United Press International, June 7, 1986 |url=https://www.bishop-accountability.org/news13/1986_06_07_UnitedPressInternational_PriestFaces_Gerald_Jasinksi_1.htm |access-date=2023-09-02 |website=www.bishop-accountability.org}} He was accused of sexually assaulting two teenage boys at a cabin in Sheldon.{{Cite web |title=Three more Buffalo priests publicly accused of sexual abuse, by Mike Mcandrew, Buffalo News (March 13, 2018) |url=https://www.bishop-accountability.org/news2018/03_04/2018_03_13_Mike_News_Three_abuse.htm |access-date=2023-09-02 |website=www.bishop-accountability.org}} He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor sexual assault in August 1986, receiving five years of probation. The Vatican laicized Jasinski in 1988. In 2019, a man sued the diocese, claiming that Jasinski in 1969 had raped him in the rectory at St. John’s Church in Sinclairville.{{Cite web |title=Former Priest At Sinclairville Church Accused Of Sex Abuse, by John Whittaker, Post Journal (December 23, 2019) |url=https://www.bishop-accountability.org/news2019/11_12/2019_12_23_John_Journal_Former_Former.htm |access-date=2023-09-02 |website=www.bishop-accountability.org}}

Another priest, Reverend Benedict P. Barszcz, was arrested in Buffalo in 1999 on a misdemeanor charge of public lewdness. The parents of two teenage girls accused him of masturbating in his car in view of the girls. A visiting priest from Poland, Barszcz was immediately removed from ministry by the diocese.{{Cite web |date=July 23, 1999 |title=DIOCESE REASSIGNS PRIEST FACING PUBLIC LEWDNESS CHARGE |url=https://www.bishop-accountability.org/news555/1999_07_23_Buffalo_News_Diocese_Reassigns.pdf |access-date=September 2, 2023 |website=Buffalo News}}

In 2011, Bishop Kmiec suspended Reverend Art Smith, a priest who taught at St. Mary of the Lake School in Hamburg, from ministry. The school principal had asked the diocese to remove Smith after he posted a love message to an eighth-grade boy on Facebook. After his removal, Smith continued to show up around the school for the next several months. The diocese sent him to Philadelphia for treatment. In November 2012, Bishop Malone assigned him as chaplain to a nursing home in Clarence. However, after receiving complaints from two male workers, the administrators of the facility fired him. Smith was sent away again for treatment. In 2017, Malone assigned Smith to a parish in Depew, where an allegation of child sexual abuse soon arose.

Michael F. Whalen Jr in February 2018 accused Reverend Norbert F. Orsolits of sexually assaulting him in 1979 or 1980 during a ski trip. When Whalen's parents complained to the diocese, Malone called them and offered paid counseling to the boy.{{Cite web |title=Man Says He Was Abused As Teen by Buffaloarea Priest, by Aaron Besecker, Buffalo News, February 27, 2018 |url=https://www.bishop-accountability.org/news2018/01_02/2018_02_27_Besecker_ManSays.htm |access-date=2023-09-03 |website=www.bishop-accountability.org}} When interviewed by a Buffalo News reporter after Whalen's statement, Orsolits admitted to sexually abusing dozens of boys during his career, but claimed it was consensual. He said that he could not specifically remember Whalen.{{Cite web |last=Tokasz |first=Jay |date=2019-10-20 |title=Orsolits abused kids after Buffalo Diocese's cover-up of assault, lawsuits say |url=https://buffalonews.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/orsolits-abused-kids-after-buffalo-dioceses-cover-up-of-assault-lawsuits-say/article_3885f797-c5bb-515f-8994-15a6f28beffe.html |access-date=2023-09-03 |website=Buffalo News |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Tokasz |first=Jay |date=2019-10-20 |title=Lawsuit: Boy abused by second priest after he was molested by Orsolits |url=https://buffalonews.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/lawsuit-boy-abused-by-second-priest-after-he-was-molested-by-orsolits/article_6c4d9b26-05c4-5202-a43e-ba19b6bfd09d.html |access-date=2023-09-03 |website=Buffalo News |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=The Numerous Parishes Where Buffalo Priest Accused of Sexual Abuse Served, by Mike McAndrew, Buffalo News, March 1, 2018 |url=https://www.bishop-accountability.org/news2018/03_04/2018_03_01_McAndrew_TheNumerous.htm |access-date=2023-09-03 |website=www.bishop-accountability.org}}{{Cite web |title=Retired Buffaloarea Priest Admits Sexually Abusing Dozens of Boys, by Jay Tokasz and Aaron Besecker, Buffalo News, March 2, 2018 |url=https://www.bishop-accountability.org/news2018/03_04/2018_03_02_Besecker_RetiredBuffaloarea.htm |access-date=2023-09-03 |website=www.bishop-accountability.org}}

In September 2018, a diocesan database showed over 106 clergy with credible accusations of sexually abusing children. This number exceeded the list of 42 clergy that the diocese had released in March 2018.{{Cite web |date=2018-09-12 |title=7 I-TEAM: Secret database of accused priests |url=https://www.wkbw.com/longform/7-i-team-church-record-show-more-than-100-accused-priests-not-42-as-stated-by-bishop-malone |access-date=2023-08-31 |website=WKBW 7 News Buffalo |language=en}} The diocese said that the March list reflected "priests against whom we had substantiated allegations – meaning more than one allegation – and were accused of abusing minors, not adults."{{Cite web |last=Conlon |first=Rosa Flores, Kevin |date=2018-09-25 |title=Secret files suggest Catholic bishop shielded alleged 'predator priests' from the public |url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/09/25/us/buffalo-bishop-catholic-diocese-sex-abuse/index.html |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=CNN |language=en}} A few active clergy on the list were suspended.{{Cite web |date=2018-06-29 |title=Four more priests placed on leave by Diocese of Buffalo, one reinstated |url=https://www.wbfo.org/local/2018-06-29/four-more-priests-placed-on-leave-by-diocese-of-buffalo-one-reinstated |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=WBFO |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Suspended priest a Dunkirk native |url=https://www.observertoday.com/news/top-stories/2018/09/suspended-priest-a-dunkirk-native/ |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=observertoday.com |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=2018-09-24 |title=Ellicottville priest Mierzwa suspended for abuse |url=https://www.wkbw.com/news/i-team/ellicottville-priest-mierzwa-suspended-for-abuse-complaint |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=WKBW 7 News Buffalo |language=en}} In September 2018, Malone named Steven L. Halter, a former FBI investigator, as director of the diocese's newly created Office of Personal Responsibility, tasked with handling sex abuse complaints.{{Cite web |date=2018-09-29 |title=Diocese hires ex-FBI agent, SBU grad to review sex abuse complaints |url=https://www.oleantimesherald.com/news/diocese-hires-ex-fbi-agent-sbu-grad-to-review-sex-abuse-complaints/article_680834e6-c3a3-11e8-b303-abf601e8f235.html |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=Olean Times Herald |language=en}}{{Cite web |author=Staff reports |date=2018-09-28 |title=Buffalo Catholic Diocese hires ex-FBI agent |url=https://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/buffalo-catholic-diocese-hires-ex-fbi-agent/article_816c9cc0-8e3b-5d5f-ba2c-fd42f7f91321.html |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=Lockport Union-Sun & Journal |language=en}}

In February 2019, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the Child Victims Act. The law created a one-year lookback period in which victims of child sex abuse could file civil lawsuits against abusers that were previously barred by the statute of limitations.{{Cite web |last=Joseph |first=Elizabeth |date=February 14, 2019 |title='This is society's way of saying we are sorry,' New York Governor tells survivors of sex abuse before signing Child Victims Act into law |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/02/14/us/new-york-child-victims-act-signed/index.html |website=CNN}} In May 2019, the diocese announced that its voluntary compensation program had paid $17.5 million to 106 childhood victims of clergy sexual abuse; the diocese had rejected 135 applicants.{{Cite web |last=Tokasz |first=Jay |date=2019-05-28 |title=Buffalo Diocese pays $17.5M to 106 clergy sex abuse victims |url=https://buffalonews.com/news/local/buffalo-diocese-pays-17-5m-to-106-clergy-sex-abuse-victims/article_07b06375-c301-5d6e-bb28-c2f5a0a61b0c.html |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=Buffalo News |language=en}}

In May 2019, Paul K. Barr sued the diocese, claiming that he had been sexually abused by Reverend Michael Freeman, then posted at Sacred Heart Parish in Niagara Falls. Barr said that Freeman, who died in 2010, fondled his genitals one night in the rectory. Barr complained to the youth minister at the church, who did nothing.{{Cite web |date=2019-05-02 |title=Buffalo Diocese replaced one pedophile priest with another, lawsuit alleges |url=https://www.wkbw.com/news/i-team/buffalo-diocese-replaced-one-pedophile-priest-with-another-lawsuit-alleges |access-date=2023-09-02 |website=WKBW 7 News Buffalo |language=en}} In June 2019, James Bottlinger publicly accused Freeman of sexually abusing him in Lancaster in 1984. After he was assaulted, Bottinger said that he complained to Auxiliary Bishop Donald Trautman, who scolded him for making the accusation. Bottlinger said that he had rejected a $650,000 financial settlement offer from the diocese and was planning a lawsuit.{{Cite web |last=Tokasz |first=Jay |date=2019-06-20 |title=Top Buffalo diocese official allegedly scolded boy who accused priest of abuse |url=https://buffalonews.com/news/local/top-buffalo-diocese-official-allegedly-scolded-boy-who-accused-priest-of-abuse/article_27236db6-c4a8-5709-a59c-8798d8805038.html |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=Buffalo News |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Tokasz |first=Jay |date=2019-06-18 |title=Man who refused $650K settlement says diocese knew priest was predator |url=https://buffalonews.com/news/local/man-who-refused-650k-settlement-says-diocese-knew-priest-was-predator/article_3fab53c9-ea20-53ad-a2fe-2987681f33af.html |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=Buffalo News |language=en}}

By September 2019, 100 individuals had filed sexual abuse lawsuits against the diocese.{{Cite web |date=2019-09-24 |title=2 firms file 100 Child Victims Act lawsuits against Buffalo Diocese |url=https://www.wivb.com/news/local-news/buffalo/2-firms-file-100-child-victims-act-lawsuits-against-buffalo-diocese/ |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=News 4 Buffalo |language=en-US}} That same month, the diocese published an Adult Sexual Misconduct Policy and Procedures and a new Code of Pastoral Conduct for Clergy.{{Cite web |date=2019-09-24 |title=Buffalo Diocese releasing new policies for how it handles sex abuse claims |url=https://www.wivb.com/news/local-news/diocese-of-buffalo-promoting-policies-for-adult-sexual-misconduct/ |access-date=2023-09-01 |website=News 4 Buffalo |language=en-US}} After the apostolic visitation in October 2019, Malone retired in December 2019.

In February 2020, the diocese filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy amid numerous sex abuse lawsuits.{{cite news|url=https://www.wkbw.com/news/local-news/buffalo/no-one-that-wants-to-get-out-of-this-more-than-i-do-bishop-addresses-diocese-of-buffalo-bankruptcy-status|title='No one that wants to get out of this more than I do': Bishop addresses Diocese of Buffalo bankruptcy status|first=Sean|last=Mickey|publisher=WKBW|date=April 12, 2020|accessdate=April 26, 2024}} In April 2020, Bishop Scharfenberger, the apostolic administrator of the diocese, revealed that as part of the bankruptcy agreement, the diocese would halt cash payments and benefits to 23 diocesan priests suspended due to sex abuse allegations.{{cite news|url=https://buffalonews.com/2020/04/28/buffalo-diocese-stops-paying-priests-accused-of-abuse/|title=Buffalo Diocese stops paying 23 priests accused of abuse|publisher=Buffalo News|date=April 28, 2020|access-date=April 28, 2020}}{{cite news|url=https://wben.radio.com/articles/financial-support-halted-for-accused-priests|title=Financial Support Halted for Accused Priests|publisher=WBEN|date=April 28, 2020|access-date=April 28, 2020}} One of these 23 priests was Reverend Paul Salemi. In 2012, after having consumed alcohol at a dinner with a young man, Salemi suggested that he stay the night with him and engage in oral sex. The man fled the apartment, leaving his shoes behind. The diocese permanently removed Salemi from ministry. Although he moved to Georgia, the diocese continued to pay Salemi until April 2020{{Cite web|url=https://www.wkbw.com/news/i-team/buffalo-diocese-quietly-removed-and-paid-priest-accused-of-sexual-misconduct|title=Buffalo Diocese quietly removed and paid priest accused of sexual misconduct|date=May 6, 2020|website=WKBW|access-date=July 1, 2020}}

Also in April 2020, Cuomo extended the statute of limitations deadline to file sex abuse lawsuits in New York, originally set for August 2020 to January 2021.{{Cite web |last=Pozarycki |first=Robert |date=May 8, 2020 |title=Time limit extended for sex abuse victims to file claims under New York Child Victims Act |url=https://www.amny.com/manhattan/time-limit-extended-for-sex-abuse-victims-to-file-claims-under-new-york-child-victims-act/ |access-date=July 1, 2020 |website=amNewYork}} In response, the diocese filed an adversary motion to freeze the lawsuits, stating that it could not pay future sex abuse settlements if the lawsuits continued.{{Cite web |date=May 3, 2020 |title=Diocese of Buffalo files adversary proceeding to stop CVA cases from moving forward |url=https://www.wivb.com/news/diocese-of-buffalo-files-adversary-proceeding-to-stop-cva-cases-from-moving-forward/ |access-date=July 1, 2020}}{{Cite web |title=Buffalo Catholic Diocese Lawyers Ask for Abuse Lawsuits To Be Put on Hold |url=https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/buffalo/child-victims-act/2020/05/04/buffalo-catholic-diocese-lawyers-ask-for-abuse-lawsuits-to-be-put-on-hold-- |access-date=July 1, 2020 |website=spectrumlocalnews.com}}

In November 2020, New York Attorney General Letitia James sued the diocese, Malone, and Auxiliary Bishop Edward M. Grosz. She charged the defendants with the misuse of funds to cover up alleged sexual abuse by more than 24 priests. Her office released a 218-page report detailing the results of a two-year investigation into all the parties named in the lawsuit.{{cite news|url=https://buffalonews.com/news/local/ag-sues-buffalo-diocese-alleging-misuse-of-funds-in-covering-up-sex-abuse-cases/article_9c323614-2da9-11eb-aad2-7fc022a2ecae.html|title=AG sues Buffalo Diocese, alleging misuse of funds in covering up sex abuse cases|first=Jay|last=Tokasz|publisher=The Buffalo News|date=November 23, 2020|access-date=November 28, 2020}}

In March 2024, the diocese agreed to sell at least 22 properties for $9.8 million as part of its bankruptcy agreement. The properties included its headquarters.{{cite news|url=https://buffalonews.com/news/local/buffalo-diocese-headquarters-for-sale-for-9-8-million/article_e96d3066-dfce-11ee-8903-a7618d8f8c7b.html|title='Buffalo Diocese headquarters for sale for $9.8 million|first=Jay|last=Tokasz|publisher=Buffalo News|date=April 12, 2020|accessdate=April 26, 2024}}

The Diocese of Buffalo includes the following eight counties in Western New York:

{{div col|colwidth=18em}}

• Allegany
• Cattaraugus
• Chautauqua
• Erie
• Genesee
• Niagara
• Orleans
• Wyoming

{{div col end|4}}

File:BishopCharlesHColton.jpg

1. John Timon, C.M. (1847–1867)
2. Stephen V. Ryan, C.M. (1868–1896)
3. James Edward Quigley (1897–1903), appointed Archbishop of Chicago
4. Charles H. Colton (1903–1915)
5. Dennis Joseph Dougherty (1915–1918), appointed Archbishop of Philadelphia (elevated to Cardinal in 1921)
6. William Turner (1919–1936)
7. John Aloysius Duffy (1937–1944)
8. John Francis O'Hara, C.S.C. (1945–1951), appointed Archbishop of Philadelphia (elevated to Cardinal in 1958)
9. Joseph Aloysius Burke (1952–1962)
10. James Aloysius McNulty (1963–1972)
11. Edward Dennis Head (1973–1995)
12. Henry Joseph Mansell (1995–2003), appointed Archbishop of Hartford
13. Edward Urban Kmiec (2004–2012)
14. Richard Joseph Malone (2012–2019)
15. Michael William Fisher (2021–present)

• Joseph Aloysius Burke (1943–1952), appointed Bishop of Buffalo
• Leo Richard Smith (1952–1963), appointed Bishop of Ogdensburg
• Pius Anthony Benincasa (1964–1986)
• Stanislaus Joseph Brzana (1964–1968), appointed Bishop of Ogdensburg
• Bernard Joseph McLaughlin (1969–1988)
• Donald Walter Trautman (1985–1990), appointed Bishop of Erie
• Edward M. Grosz (1990–2020){{Cite web|url=https://buffalonews.com/news/local/pope-accepts-resignation-of-auxiliary-buffalo-bishop-edward-grosz/article_1099479e-5e2c-515c-b45f-4980588dc23b.html|title=Pope accepts resignation of Auxiliary Buffalo Bishop Edward Grosz|first=Keith|last=McShea|website=Buffalo News|date=March 2, 2020 |access-date=July 1, 2020}}

• Francis Xavier Krautbauer, appointed Bishop of Green Bay in 1875
• Thomas J. Walsh, appointed Bishop of Trenton in 1918 and later Bishop and Archbishop of Newark
• Edmund F. Gibbons, appointed Bishop of Albany in 1919
• John Joseph McMahon, appointed Bishop of Trenton in 1928
• James Johnston Navagh, appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Raleigh in 1952 and later Bishop of Ogdensburg and Bishop of Paterson
• Celestine Joseph Damiano, appointed Apostolic Delegate to South Africa and Titular Archbishop in 1952 and later Archbishop (personal title) of Camden
• John Joseph Fitzpatrick (priest here, 1942–1948), appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Miami in 1968 and later Bishop of Brownsville
• Robert Joseph Cunningham, appointed Bishop of Ogdensburg in 2004 and later Bishop of Syracuse

• Campus Ministries
• Catholic Charities
• Holy Name Society
• St. Vincent de Paul Society
• Office of Pro-Life Ministries

Catholic Health is a non-profit organization sponsored by the Diocese of Buffalo and the Franciscan Sisters of St. Joseph that operates the following hospitals in Western New York:{{Cite web |title=About Us |url=https://www.chsbuffalo.org/about-us/#:~:text=Formed%20in%201998%20under%20four,and%20other%20community%20based%20ministries. |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=Catholic Health - The Right Way To Care |language=en-US}}

• Kenmore Mercy Hospital – Kenmore{{Cite web |title=Locations |url=https://www.chsbuffalo.org/locations/ |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=Catholic Health - The Right Way To Care |language=en-US}}
• Lockport Memorial Hospital – Lockport
• Mercy Hospital of Buffalo – Buffalo
• Mount St. Mary's Hospital – Lewiston
• Sisters of Charity Hospital – Buffalo{{Cite web |title=Sisters of Charity Hospital |url=https://www.chsbuffalo.org/sisters-of-charity-hospital/ |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=Catholic Health - The Right Way To Care |language=en-US}}
• Sisters of Charity Hospital, St. Joseph Campus – Buffalo{{cite web |title=Hospitals |url=http://www.chsbuffalo.org/Facilities/Hospitals |access-date=December 10, 2014 |publisher=Catholic Health System}}

• Convent of the Franciscan Sisters of St. Joseph – Hamburg{{cite news| url=http://ampoleagle.com/religious-have-had-tremendous-impact-on-polonia-p370-124.htm| title=Religious have had tremendous impact on Polonia| work=Am-Pol Eagle| location=Cheektowaga, NY| access-date=December 10, 2014}}
• Villa Maria Motherhouse Complex, also known as the Felician Sisters Immaculate Heart of Mary Convent Chapel and Convent – Cheektowaga
• Sisters of St. Francis of Penance and Christian Charity at Stella Niagara Education Park, Stella Niagara, Lewiston

{{div col|colwidth=22em}}

• Canisius University, Buffalo
• D'Youville University, Buffalo
• Hilbert College, Hamburg
• Niagara University, Lewiston
• St. Bonaventure University, St. Bonaventure
• Trocaire College, Buffalo
• Villa Maria College of Buffalo, Buffalo{{cite web| title=Colleges & Universities| url=http://www.buffalodiocese.org/AbouttheDiocese/CollegesUniversities.aspx| publisher=Diocese of Buffalo| access-date=December 10, 2014}}

{{div col end}}

As of 2025, the Diocese of Buffalo operates 13 high schools:{{Cite web |title=Catholic High Schools {{!}} Diocese of Buffalo Catholic Schools |url=https://www.wnycatholicschools.org/catholic-high-schools |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=www.wnycatholicschools.org}}

{{div col|colwidth=22em}}

• Archbishop Walsh Academy, Olean
• Bishop Timon – St. Jude High School, Buffalo
• Buffalo Academy of the Sacred Heart, Amherst
• Canisius High School, Buffalo
• Cardinal O'Hara High School, Tonawanda
• Chesterton Academy of Buffalo, Lancaster
• Mount Mercy Academy, Buffalo
• Mount Saint Mary Academy, Kenmore
• Nardin Academy, Buffalo
• Notre Dame High School, Batavia
• Saint Francis High School, Athol Springs
• St. Joseph's Collegiate Institute, Buffalo
• St. Mary's High School, Lancaster

{{div col end}}

As of 2025, there are 34 Catholic primary schools in the Diocese of Buffalo{{Cite web |title=Catholic Elementary Schools {{!}} Diocese of Buffalo Catholic Schools |url=https://www.wnycatholicschools.org/catholic-elementary-schools |access-date=2025-03-03 |website=www.wnycatholicschools.org}}

{{div col|colwidth=22em}}

• Catholic Academy of Niagara Falls, Niagara Falls
• Catholic Academy of West Buffalo, Buffalo
• Christ the King School, Snyder
• DeSales Catholic School, Lockport
• Immaculate Conception School, East Aurora
• Nardin Academy Elementary and Montessori Divisions, Buffalo
• Nativity of our Lord School, Orchard Park
• Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary School, Clarence
• Northern Chautauqua Catholic School, Dunkirk
• Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament School, Depew
• Our Lady of Victory School, Lackawanna
• Queen of Heaven School, West Seneca
• Sacred Heart Villa School, Lewiston
• Notre Dame Academy, Buffalo
• Southern Tier Catholic School, Olean
• Southtowns Catholic School, Lake View
• SS. Peter and Paul School, Hamburg
• SS. Peter and Paul School, Williamsville
• St. Aloysius Regional School, Springville
• St. Amelia School, Tonawanda
• St. Benedict School, Amherst
• St. Christopher School, Tonawanda
• St. Gregory the Great School, Williamsville
• St. John the Baptist School, Alden
• St. John the Baptist School, Kenmore
• St. John Vianney School, Orchard Park
• St. Joseph School, Batavia
• St. Joseph University School, Buffalo
• St. Mark School, Buffalo
• St. Mary's Elementary School, Lancaster
• St. Mary's School, Swormville
• St. Peter School, Lewiston
• St. Stephen School, Grand Island
• Stella Niagara Education Park, Stella Niagara

{{div col end}}

In 2007, the diocese closed 14 Catholic schools. The closures included:

• Blessed Sacrament School, Kenmore
• Genesee-Wyoming Catholic School, Attica
• Infant of Prague, St. Josaphat, Kolbe Catholic, Resurrection, and St. Aloysius Gonzaga Schools, Cheektowaga
• Most Precious Blood School, Angola
• St. Agnes, St. Bernard, and St. Rose of Lima Schools, Buffalo
• St. Barnabas School, Depew
• St. Edmund School, Tonawanda
• St. Hyacinth School, Dunkirk{{cite press release| title=Diocese of Buffalo Announces Decision to Close 14 Schools as Part of Strategic Planning Process| date=January 19, 2007| publisher=Diocese of Buffalo| access-date=December 10, 2014| url=http://www.buffalodiocese.org/Portals/0/Docs/School%20closings%20Jan%2019%202007.pdf| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923195055/http://www.buffalodiocese.org/Portals/0/Docs/School%20closings%20Jan%2019%202007.pdf| archive-date=September 23, 2015| df=mdy-all}}

According to the diocese, in 2007 the average cost of teaching a student in the 14 schools was $4,738 while the schools only received an average tuition per student of $1,525. To assist parishes who had run out of money to support their schools, the diocese had contributed millions of dollars. In 2007, the diocese had a $2.1 million deficit, due in part to the school subsidies.{{cite journal| title=Visioning for the Future: Catholic Elementary Schools Strategic Plan Phase I| url=http://www.wnycatholicschools.org/documents/Revitalization/Visioning%20for%20the%20Future%20-%20Meitler%20Report%20November%202009.pdf| publisher=Diocese of Buffalo| date=November 2009| access-date=December 10, 2014| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141218012147/http://www.wnycatholicschools.org/documents/Revitalization/Visioning%20for%20the%20Future%20-%20Meitler%20Report%20November%202009.pdf| archive-date=December 18, 2014| url-status=dead| df=mdy-all}}

Many of the 14 schools had experienced declines in enrollment. Cheektowaga, which lost five schools in 2007, had suffered a large decline in its Catholic family population. One of its schools, Infant of Prague School, had an enrollment of 1,120 students in 1960. By 2007, the school had only 117 students. In Depew, St. Barnabas School had only 57 students enrolled in 2007.{{cite news| title=Cheektowaga area hardest hit by school closings| work=Western New York Catholic| date=February 2007| location=Buffalo, NY| last=Buechi| first=P.J.}}

{{Reflist|2}}

{{Catholic|wstitle=Buffalo}}

{{Commons category|Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo}}

• [http://www.buffalodiocese.org/ Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo Official Site]

{{Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo}}

{{Roman Catholic Ecclesiastical Province of New York}}

{{Authority control}}

{{Coord|42|54|17|N|78|50|58|W|source:plwiki|display=title}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo}}

Category:Culture of Buffalo, New York

Buffalo

Buffalo

Buffalo

Category:1847 establishments in New York (state)

Category:Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2020