Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish

Diocese of Antigonish Dioecesis Antigonicensis
Coat of Arms of the Diocese of Antigonish
Location
Country	Canada
Ecclesiastical province	Halifax
Population - Catholics	129,905 (56.4%)
Information
Denomination	Roman Catholic
Rite	Roman Rite
Established	August 23, 1886
Cathedral	St. Ninian's Cathedral
Current leadership
Pope	Francis
Bishop	Brian Joseph Dunn
Metropolitan Archbishop	Archbishop of Halifax
Emeritus Bishops	Colin Campbell
Website
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The Roman Catholic Diocese of Antigonish (Latin: Dioecesis Antigonicensis) is a Latin Rite diocese in Nova Scotia, Canada.

It had been established on 22 September 1844, on territory split off from the Diocese of Halifax, under the name of Roman Catholic Diocese of Arichat, having its first cathedral (now Église Notre Dame de l’Assomption) in that natural port town, Arichat.

On 23 August 1886, it was renamed as Diocese of Antigonish, where it got its present episcopal see, St. Ninian’s Cathedral.

On September 26, 2009 Pope Benedict XVI accepted the resignation of Bishop Raymond John Lahey, one day after a warrant was issued for his arrest by the Ottawa Police Service relating to child pornography charges (cf. sexual abuse scandal in Antigonish diocese). The bishop pleaded guilty to child pornography charges and was jailed.

Archbishop Anthony Mancini of the Archdiocese of Halifax was named the Apostolic Administrator effective September 26, 2009 and remained in that position until the installation of Bishop Brian Dunn on January 25, 2010.

The Diocese of Antigonish covers 18,800 square kilometers, comprising the counties of Pictou, Antigonish, Guysborough, Inverness, Victoria, Richmond and Cape Breton.

As of 2006, the diocese contained 123 parishes, 119 active diocesan priests, 8 religious priests, and 129,905 Catholics. It also has 290 women religious, 12 religious brothers and 1 permanent deacon.

The Bishop of Antigonish serves ex officio as Chancellor of St. Francis Xavier University.