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Second Synod of the Diocese of Philadelphia

The Second Synod was convoked by Bishop Francis P. Kenrick in 1842.  Fifty-five priests attended the synod and the four-day retreat that preceded it.  Legislation was prepared beforehand by various committees, and presented to the priests at the synod sessions for discussion.  The bishop urged his priests to offer suggestions for modifications based on their experiences in parish and missionary work.

The Synod opened on May 22, 1842, at Saint John's Church in Philadelphia, which at the time was the pro-cathedral church.  Rev. Francis X. Gartland, later the Bishop of Savannah (Georgia), acted as secretary to the Synod, which concluded on May 26.

The Synod re-promulgated the decrees of the Second Provincial Council of Baltimore (1840), and made the new ritual books presented at the Council obligatory in the diocese.  Other decrees dealt with:

bulletstrict observance of parish boundaries;
bulletrelationships between pastors and assistants;
bulletregulations for confession and confessionals;
bulletapproval of new Catechisms in English and German;
bulletobligations of priests to attend clergy conferences four times a year.

 

Overview / I:1832 / II:1842 / III:1847 / IV:1853 / V:1855 / VI:1857 / VII:1886 / VIII:1912 / IX:1934

 
    
The Archdiocese of Philadelphia serves over 1.4 million Catholics in the five counties of
Philadelphia, Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery
 in the southeastern part of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. 
The archdiocesan website is http://www.archphila.org
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Last revision: 29 May 2003