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| caption = Cathedral of St. Augustine
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| cathedral = [[Cathedral of Saint Augustine in Bridgeport|Cathedral of Saint Augustine]]
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| patron = [[
| priests = <!-- Number of priests in the diocese -->
<!---- Current leadership ---->
| pope = {{Incumbent pope}} <!-- DO NOT CHANGE. This will update the Popes Automatically as they change -->
| bishop = [[Frank J. Caggiano]]
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The '''Diocese of Bridgeport''' ({{lang-la|Dioecesis Bridgeportensis}}) is a [[Latin Church]] ecclesiastical jurisdiction or diocese of the [[Catholic Church]] located in the southwestern part of the state of [[Connecticut]] in the United States. It is a [[suffragan diocese]] in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hartford|Archdiocese of Hartford]].
The Diocese of Bridgeport includes all of [[Fairfield County, Connecticut]] and has 82 parishes. Its cathedral is [[St. Augustine Cathedral (Bridgeport, Connecticut)|St. Augustine Cathedral]] in Bridgeport. As of 2023, the diocese is led by Bishop [[Frank Joseph Caggiano|Frank Caggiano]].
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*[[Seminary|Seminarians]] for priesthood: 35
*Priests ordained in 2011: one
Subsidiary Organizations from 2022:<ref>{{Cite web |last=Carney |first=Dan |date=2015-10-27 |title=Audited Financial Statements |url=https://www.bridgeportdiocese.org/finance-services/diocesan-financial-reports/ |access-date=2023-05-18 |website=Diocese of Bridgeport |language=en-US}}</ref>
* 76 parishes, four quasi-parishes and one shrine
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===Languages===
While all the diocesan parishes offer mass in English, other languages are offered depending on the needs of a particular congregation. These include Brazilian, Latin, [[Creole language|Creole]], French, [[Igbo language|Igbo]]/Nigerian, Italian, [[Korean language|Korean]], Polish, Portuguese, [[Lithuanian language|Lithuanian]], Spanish, and Vietnamese.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bridgeportdiocese.org/mass-times/|title=Mass Times|website=Diocese of Bridgeport}}</ref>
Several parishes also offer the [[Tridentine Mass|Traditional Latin mass]], particularly [[Sts. Cyril and Methodius Church (Bridgeport, Connecticut)|Sts. Cyril and Methodius Parish]] in Bridgeport, which offers mass in no other language.
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===Seventeenth and eighteenth centuries===
In the 17th and much of the 18th centuries, [[Puritan]] ministers in the British [[Connecticut Colony|Province of Connecticut]] were vociferously anti-Catholic in their writings and preaching. They considered the Catholic Church to be a foreign political power, with Catholics only having loyalty to the Vatican.<ref>DiGiovanni, the Rev. (now Monsignor) Stephen M., ''The Catholic Church in Fairfield County: 1666–1961,'' 1987, William Mulvey Inc., New Canaan, Introduction: Catholic Roots in Fairfield County, page xxiv, hereafter '''DiGiovanni'''</ref> Catholics were prohibited from buying land or running for public office without first publicly disowning their church.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Parish History |url=https://stjohnbasilica.org/parish-history |access-date=2023-07-18 |website=The Basilica of Saint John the Evangelist |language=en-US}}</ref> This began to change with the onset of the American Revolution:<blockquote>"In the summer of 1781, French Marshal [[Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau|Jean-Baptiste Rochambeau]] and his army marched through Connecticut, encamping in the [[Ridgebury, Connecticut|Ridgebury]] section of [[Ridgefield, Connecticut|Ridgefield]], where the first Catholic mass [in Fairfield County] was offered. His troops were mostly Catholic and were ministered to by Reverend Fathers Robin, Gluson, Lacy, and Saint Pierre."<ref>[http://www.bridgeportdiocese.com/column7.15.06.shtml] Lori, Bishop William E., "Happy Birthday, General Rochambeau!" article (part of Lori's regular column) ''Fairfield County Catholic,'' July 15, 2006, accessed July 27, 2006</ref> </blockquote>After the [[American Revolution]], between 1780 and 1781 in [[Lebanon, Connecticut|Lebanon]]
The [[Connecticut General Assembly]] passed an act of toleration in 1784, allowing any [[Protestantism|Protestant]] to avoid paying taxes to support the local [[Congregational church|Congregational Church]], provided that they could prove membership and regular attendance at another Protestant church. In 1791, the Assembly granted the same right to all Christians, including Catholics. However, the act had little practical effect for Catholics as there were no parishes then in the state.<ref>DiGiovanni, p. xxiv</ref>
===Nineteenth century===
The first Catholic church in Connecticut was established in 1829 in [[Hartford, Connecticut|Hartford]]. In 1830,
* St. Joseph's (German)
* St. Anthony of Padua (French)
* St. Stephen
* St. John Nepomucene (Slovak)
===Twentieth century===
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Pope Pius XII erected the Diocese of Bridgeport on August 6, 1953, removing its territory from the Diocese of Hartford.<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=QP1OAAAAIBAJ&sjid=aQEEAAAAIBAJ&pg=7376,877530&dq=st+patrick%27s+church+bridgeport Racial Justice Among Top Goals of Cardinal-Designate; Archbishop Shehan Called Well-Read, Energetic, Priestly, Scholarly, Tactful], ''[[Toledo Blade]]'', January 25, 1965. Page 22.</ref> The pope named Auxiliary Bishop [[Lawrence Shehan]] of the Archdiocese of Baltimore as the first bishop of Bridgeport.
During his tenure in Bridgeport, Shehan established 18 new parishes, built 24 new churches, and founded three high schools.<ref name="bridgeport">{{cite news |title=The Bishops of Bridgeport |work=
John XXIII named Auxiliary Bishop [[Walter William Curtis|Walter Curtis]] of the [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark|Archdiocese of Newark]] as the next bishop of Bridgeport in 1961. As bishop, Curtis established the following schools in the diocese:
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[[Pope John Paul II]] named Auxiliary Bishop [[Edward Egan]] of the Archdiocese of New York as the next bishop of Bridgeport in 1988. During his tenure, Egan oversaw the reorganization of Catholic schools. He also raised $45 million for diocesan schools through a fundraising campaign, "Faith in the Future." The diocesan [[Catholic Charities]] under his tenure, became the largest private [[Social work|social service]] agency in the county. To support the 12 Hispanic [[Parish (Catholic Church)|parishes]] in the diocese, he brought [[Spanish language|Spanish-speaking]] priests to Bridgeport from [[Colombia]]. Egan also established a home for retired priests and a school for children with [[special needs]].
=== Twenty
After John Paul II named Egan as archbishop of New York, the pope appointed Auxiliary Bishop [[William E. Lori]] from the [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington|Archdiocese of Washington]] as the new bishop of Bridgeport. While serving in Bridgeport, Lori refused to release the names of diocesan priests who were being sued for sexual abuse of minors. The [[Supreme Court of the United States|US Supreme Court]] ruled against Lori in 2009 and the diocese was forced to release the names.<ref>[https://www.baltimoresun.com/opinion/op-ed/bs-ed-op-1206-lori-accountability-20181205-story.html DeGeorge, Vincent. "Can Baltimore's archbishop bring accountability to West Virginia's Catholic Church?", ''The Baltimore Sun'', December 5, 2018]</ref> [[Pope Benedict XVI]] named Lori as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Baltimore in 2012.
In 2014, Caggiano convoked the 4th Synod of the Diocese of Bridgeport, the first in 32 years (themed "Building Bridges to the Future Together").<ref name="cathpar">[https://www.thecathedralparish.org/our-bishop "Our Bishop: The Most Reverend Frank J. Caggiano", The Cathedral Parish]</ref> In an interview with ''[[America (magazine)|America Magazine]]'', Caggiano said that one of his first priorities as bishop
As of 2023, Caggiano is the bishop of Bridgeport.
====Reports of sex abuse====
{{main|Sexual abuse scandal in Bridgeport diocese}}
In 1993, 23 lawsuits were filed against the Diocese of Bridgeport, alleging sexual abuse by priests. The diocese settled all 23 claims in 2001.<ref name=nytcoverage /> Five priests were suspended from the ministry.<ref name=nytcoverage>{{Cite web |url=http://216.47.165.199/NYTCoverage.shtml |title=Diocese of Bridgeport |date=August 10, 2011 |website= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110810174708/http://216.47.165.199/NYTCoverage.shtml |archive-date=10 August 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
Kieran Ahearn of [[Bethel, Connecticut|Bethel]] was arrested in January 1993 on charges of indecent assault on a minor. While on a ski trip to the [[Berkshire Mountains]] in Massachusetts, he brought a 16-year-old boy to his motel room. Ahern said the boy approached him, saying he had run away from a state school; Ahearn said he brought the boy to the motel to counsel him.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Priest Pleads Not Guilty New England News in Brief, Boston Globe, January 22, 1993 |url=https://www.bishop-accountability.org/news3/1993_01_22_BostonGlobe_PriestPleads_Thomas_Kieran_Ahearn_2.htm |access-date=2023-07-18 |website=www.bishop-accountability.org}}</ref> Ahearn was acquitted of sexual abuse, but convicted of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Priest Gets Acquitted of Molestation Charge, Hartford Courant, March 8, 1994 |url=https://www.bishop-accountability.org/news3/1994_03_08_HartfordCourant_PriestGets_Thomas_Kieran_Ahearn_3.htm |access-date=2023-07-18 |website=www.bishop-accountability.org}}</ref> He was sentenced to two years of probation.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Conn. Priest Avoids Jail in Encounter with Boy, 16, Associated Press, carried in Boston Globe, March 10, 1994 |url=https://www.bishop-accountability.org/news3/1994_03_10_AP_ConnPriest_Thomas_Kieran_Ahearn_5.htm |access-date=2023-07-18 |website=www.bishop-accountability.org}}</ref>
In May 2001, John J. Castaldo of Stamford was charged in New York with the attempted dissemination of indecent material to a minor. He was accused of sending sexually explicit messages to a police investigator posing as a 14-year-old boy.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2001-05-26 |title=Priest Faces Charge In Internet Sex Case |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/05/26/nyregion/priest-faces-charge-in-internet-sex-case.html |access-date=2023-07-18 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> He pleaded guilty and received one weekend in jail and five years of probation.
Paul Gotta was arrested in 2013 and charged with sexually abusing a teenage boy. He forced the boy to strip naked and performed sexual acts on him. However, the sexual abuse charges were dropped as part of a [[plea deal]]. The diocese removed Gotta from ministry in 2013. In 2017, Gotta was convicted of having another teenage boy purchase thousands of rounds of handgun ammunition and giving that boy explosives. Gotta was sentenced to nine months in prison.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Perkins |first=Julia |date=2019-03-31 |title=Connecticut priest accused of sexual assault also helped teen build pipe bomb |url=https://www.ctpost.com/local/article/Connecticut-priest-accused-of-sexually-assault-13730016.php |access-date=2023-07-18 |website=Connecticut Post |language=en-US}}</ref>
In November 2014, the diocese revealed a list of 14 clergy with credible accusations of sexual abuse of children.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bridgeportdiocese.org/safe-environments/list-of-credibly-accused-diocesan-priests-accused-religious-order-priests-who-served-in-the-diocese-of-bridgeport/|title=List Of Credibly Accused Diocesan Priests & Accused Religious Order Priests Who Served In The Diocese Of Bridgeport|first=Erik|last=Shanabrough|website=Diocese of Bridgeport}}</ref>
In May 2014, Bishop Caggiano removed John Stronkowski from his post at St. Margaret Mary Alacoque Church in [[Shelton, Connecticut|Shelton]], citing [[absenteeism]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bridgeportdiocese.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/25-VI-2016-Stronkowski.pdf|title=Statement of Bishop Caggiano, June 25, 2016}}</ref> He was not re-assigned to another post. In June 2016, citing credible accusations of sexual abuse, Caggiano suspended Stronkowski from ministry.<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 25, 2016 |title=John Strongkowski |url=https://www.bridgeportdiocese.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/25-VI-2016-Stronkowski.pdf |access-date=July 18, 2023 |website=Diocese of Bridgeport}}</ref>
In October 2018, the diocese released a report of financial settlements with abuse victims. The majority of the cost of settlements (approximately 92%) was provided through the sale of diocesan property, insurance recoveries and other co-defendants.<ref name="financialrevolution">{{Cite web|url=https://www.bridgeportdiocese.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Financial-Accountability-Report.pdf|title=Financial Report, Diocese of Bridgeport}}</ref> The diocese paid approximately $52.5 million to settle 156 abuse cases dating back to 1953.<ref name="1953andmore">{{Cite web|url=https://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/bridgeport-diocese-launches-web-site-to-address-sex-abuse/162839/|title=Bridgeport Diocese Shares Names of Accused Priests and Financial Data of Settlements on Church Sex Abuse Claims}}</ref> In March 2019, ten additional names were later added to the original 2014 list.<ref name="1953andmore" />
In October 2019, former [[Connecticut Superior Court]] Judge Robert Holzberg released the results of his investigation, commissioned by
==Bishops==
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# [[Lawrence Shehan]] (1953–1961), appointed [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore|Coadjutor Archbishop of Baltimore]] and subsequently succeeded to that see, created [[Cardinal (Catholic Church)|cardinal]] in 1965
# [[Walter William Curtis]] (1961–1988)
# [[Edward Egan]] (1988–2000), appointed [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York|Archbishop of New York]] and subsequently created cardinal in 2001
# [[William E. Lori]] (2001–2012), appointed [[Archbishop of Baltimore]]
# [[Frank J. Caggiano]] (2013–present)
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===Primary and secondary level===
The Diocese of Bridgeport sponsors 32 regional elementary schools (with 9,974 students), including [[All Saints Catholic School (Norwalk, Connecticut)|All Saints Catholic School]] in [[Norwalk, Connecticut|Norwalk]] and five diocesan high schools (with 2,627 students). Two other Catholic high schools in the diocese are directed by religious communities. Altogether, these schools educate nearly 14,000
===High schools===
* [[Convent of the Sacred Heart (Connecticut)|Convent of the Sacred Heart]]*
* [[Fairfield College Preparatory School]]*
* [[Immaculate High School]]
* [[Kolbe Cathedral High School]]
* [[Notre Dame Catholic High School (Connecticut)|Notre Dame Catholic High School]]
* [[St. Joseph High School (Connecticut)|St. Joseph High School]]
* [[Trinity Catholic High School (Connecticut)|Trinity Catholic High School]]
: *Independently operated with approval of the diocese
: **Closed in 2020 due to dwindling enrollment
===Higher education===
These three
*[[Fairfield University]] – Fairfield
*Sacred Heart University – Fairfield
*St. Vincent's College
==Social services==
===
The Diocese of Bridgeport sponsors nursing homes in Danbury, Stamford, and Trumbull
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"Catholic Charities of Fairfield County, with 25 program offices throughout the county, provides the largest private network of social services in southwestern Connecticut," according to the diocese.<ref name=diocesewhoweare/>
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