Roman Catholic Archdiocese of La Serena

Archdiocese of La Serena Archidioecesis Serenensis Arquidiócesis de La Serena
Cathedral of Our Lady of Mercy
Location
Country	Chile
Ecclesiastical province	La Serena
Statistics
Area
Population - Total - Catholics	(as of 2004) 521,529 428,702 (82.2%)
Information
Rite	Latin Rite
Established	1 July 1840 (183 years ago)
Cathedral	Cathedral of Our Lady of Mercy in La Serena
Patron saint	Our Lady of the Rosary
Current leadership
Pope	Francis
Metropolitan Archbishop	René Osvaldo Rebolledo Salinas
Auxiliary Bishops	Luis Gleisner Wobbe
Emeritus Bishops	Manuel Gerardo Donoso Donoso Francisco José Cox Huneeus Bernardino Piñera Carvallo
Website
www.arzobispadodelaserena.cl

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of La Serena (Latin: Serenen(sis)) is an archdiocese located in the city of La Serena in Chile.

History

• 1 July 1840: Established as Diocese of La Serena from the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Santiago de Chile
• 29 May 1939: Promoted as Metropolitan Archdiocese of La Serena

Special churches

• Minor Basilicas:
  • Basílica - Santuario Nuestra Señora de Andacollo, Andacollo

Current Leadership

On Saturday, December 14, 2013, Pope Francis accepted the resignation from the pastoral governance of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of La Serena, presented by Archbishop Gerardo Manuel Donoso Donoso, SS.CC., in accordance with Canon 401.1 of the Latin-rite Code of Canon Law (Bishops must offer their resignations to the Pope for possible acceptance upon turning 75). Pope Francis appointed as the next Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of La Serena, Archbishop René Osvaldo Rebolledo Salinas, who until then had been Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Osorno, in Osorno, Chile.

Leadership

• Archbishops of La Serena (Roman rite)
  • Archbishop René Osvaldo Rebolledo Salinas (2013.12.14 - present)
  • Archbishop Manuel Gerardo Donoso Donoso, SS.CC. (1997.04.16 – 2013.12.14)
  • Archbishop Francisco José Cox Huneeus (1990.09.29 – 1997.04.16)
  • Archbishop Bernardino Piñera Carvallo (1983.07.01 – 1990.09.29)
  • Cardinal Juan Francisco Fresno Larraín (1971.07.28 – 1983.05.03)
  • Archbishop Alfredo Cifuentes Gómez (1943.06.05 – 1967.03.10)
  • Archbishop Juan Subercaseaux Errázuriz (1940.01.08 – 1942.08.09)
  • Cardinal José María Caro Rodríguez (1939.05.20 – 1939.08.28)
• Bishops of La Serena (Roman rite)
  • Cardinal José María Caro Rodríguez (1925.12.14 – 1939.05.20)
  • Bishop Carlos Silva Cotapos (1918.02.20 – 1925.12.14)
  • Bishop Ramón Angel Jara Ruz (1909.08.31 – 1917.03.09)
  • Bishop Florencio Eduardo Fontecilla Sánchez (1890.06.26 – 1909.03.03)

Suffragan dioceses

• Diocese of Copiapó
• Territorial Prelature of Illapel

Sources

• GCatholic.org
• Catholic Hierarchy
• Diocese website