Archdiocese of Asunción

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of the Blessed Assumption (Latin: Archidioecesis Sanctissimae Assumptionis) is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in Paraguay. It was created as the Diocese of Paraguay by Pope Paul III on July 1, 1547, and was elevated to the rank of a metropolitan archdiocese by Pope Pius XI on May 1, 1929, with the suffragan sees of Benjamín Aceval, Caacupé, Carapeguá, Ciudad del Este, Concepción, Coronel Oviedo, Encarnación, San Juan Bautista de las Misiones, San Lorenzo, San Pedro, and Villarrica del Espíritu Santo. The archdiocese's mother church and thus seat of its archbishop is the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption. As the only metropolitan in Paraguay, it is the principal episcopal see of that country. The archdiocese has 1.58 million Catholics (90.6%) in 2012. Archbishop Flores succeeded to the see on March 6, 2022. Bishops Ordinaries Diocese of Paraguay Erected: 1 July 1547 Latin Name: de Paraguay Juan de los Barrios, O.F.M. (1547–1552), appointed Bishop of Santa Marta, Colombia Pedro de la Torre, O.F.M. (1554–1573) Alfonso Guerra (bishop), O.P. (1579–1592), appointed Bishop of Michoacán, México Thomas Vásquez de Liaño (1596–1599) Martín Ignacio de Loyola (1601–1608) Reginaldo de Lizárraga, O.P. (1609) Lorenzo Pérez de Grado (1615–1619), appointed Bishop of Cuzco, Peru Tomás de la Torre Gibaja, O.P. (1620–1628), appointed Bishop of Córdoba (Tucumán), Argentina Cristóbal de Aresti Martínez de Aguilar, O.S.B. (1629–1635), appointed Bishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina Francisco de la Serna, O.E.S.A. (1635–1638), appointed Bishop of Popayán, Colombia Bernardino de Cárdenas Ponce, O.F.M. (1640–1666), appointed Bishop of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia Gabriel de Guilléstegui, O.F.M. (1666–1670), appointed Bishop of La Paz, Bolivia Ferdinandus de Valcácer (1672) Faustino Casas Hernández, O. de M. (1674–1686) Sebastián de Pastrana, O. de M. (1693–1700) Pedro Díaz de Durana (1704–1718) José Luis Palos Bord, O.F.M. (1724–1738) José Cayetano Paravicino, O.F.M. (1738–1747), appointed Bishop of Trujillo, Peru Bernardo José Pérez de Oblitas (1747–1756), appointed Bishop of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia Manuel Antonio de la Torre (1756–1762), appointed Bishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina Emmanuel López de Espinosa (1762–1770) Juan José Priego y Caro, O.P. (1772–1779) Luis Velasco y Maeda, O.F.M. (1779–1792) Lorenzo Suarez de Cantillana (1797–1799) Nicolás Videla del Pino (1802–1806), appointed Bishop of Salta, Argentina Pedro García de Panés, O.F.M. (1807–1838) Basilio López (1844–1859) Juan Gregorio Urbieta (1860–1865) Manuel Antonio Palacios (1865–1868) Pietro Giovanni Aponte (1879–1891) Juan Sinforiano Bogarín (1894–1929), elevated along with the diocese (see below) Archdiocese of Asunción Elevated: 1 May 1929 Latin Name: Sanctissimae Assumptionis Juan Sinforiano Bogarín (1929–1949) Juan José Aníbal Mena Porta (1949–1970) Ismael Blas Rolón Silvero, S.D.B. (1970–1989) Felipe Santiago Benítez Ávalos (1989–2002) Pastor Cuquejo, C.Ss.R. (2002–2014) Edmundo Valenzuela, S.D.B. (2014–2022) Adalberto Martínez Flores (2022–present) Coadjutor bishops Martín de Sarricolea y Olea (1720), did not take effect José Luis Palos Bord, O.F.M. (1721–1724) Manuel Antonio Palacios (1863–1865) Juan José Aníbal Mena Porta (1941–1949) Edmundo Ponziano Valenzuela Mellid, S.D.B. (2011–2014) Auxiliary bishops Marco Antonio Maiz (1844–1848) Juan Gregorio Urbieta (1856–1860), appointed Bishop here Juan José Aníbal Mena Porta (1936–1941), appointed Coadjutor here Ramón Pastor Bogarín Argaña (1954–1957), appointed Bishop of San Juan Bautista de las Misiones Aníbal Maricevich Fleitas (1957–1965), appointed Bishop of Concepción y Chaco Felipe Santiago Benitez Avalos (1961–1965), appointed Bishop of Villarrica (later returned here as Archbishop) Julio Benigno Laschi González (1965–1969) Juan Moleón Andreu (1967–1972), appointed Bishop of Paraguay, Military Jorge Adolfo Carlos Livieres Banks (1976–1987), appointed Prelate of Encarnación Eustaquio Pastor Cuquejo Verga, C.Ss.R. (1982–1992), appointed Bishop of Paraguay, Military (later returned here as Archbishop) Claudio Giménez Medina, P. Schönstatt (1991–1995), appointed Bishop of Caacupé Ricardo Jorge Valenzuela Rios (1993–2003), appointed Bishop of Paraguay, Military Adalberto Martínez Flores (1997–2000), appointed Bishop of San Lorenzo Other priests of this diocese who became bishops Juan González Melgarejo, appointed Bishop of Santiago de Chile in 1743 Joaquín Hermes Robledo Romero (priest here, 1975–2000), appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Carapeguá in 2009 See also Roman Catholicism in Paraguay List of Roman Catholic dioceses in Paraguay References External links Official site Catholic-Hierarchy GCatholic.org