page_title: Catholic Church in Mexico
section_title: Organization of the Church in Modern Mexico
hierarchical_section_title: Catholic Church in Mexico / Organization of the Church in Modern Mexico
caption_attribution_description: Miguel Hidalgo
context_page_description: The Catholic Church in Mexico is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope, his Curia in Rome and the national Mexican Episcopal Conference. The history of the Catholic Church in Mexico dates from the period of the Spanish conquest and it has continued as an institution in Mexico into the twenty-first century. In the late 20th century, Eastern Catholic jurisdictions were established in Mexico.
context_section_description: The Catholic Church is the world's largest Christian church, and its largest religious grouping. The 2010 census reported that Mexico had some 101,456,786 Catholics among the population aged five and above, which equates to around 91% of the total population, making it the second largest Catholic country in the world after Brazil. The country is divided into 18 Ecclesiastical provinces, containing a total of 90 dioceses. There are 15,700 diocesan priests and 46,000 men and women in religious orders.
  José Garibi y Rivera was the first Mexican cardinal of the Catholic Church. Javier Lozano Barragán having served 10 years as a cardinal-deacon, was promoted to Cardinal Priest of Santa Dorotea by Pope Francis on 12 June 2014. Pope Francis selected 15 new cardinals for the Church in January 2015, one of whom was for Mexico in the archdiocese of Morelia. Alberto Suárez Inda is Morelia's first cardinal. According to an Associated Press story, he "has helped mediate political conflicts and kidnappings in one of Mexico's most violence-plagued states". On 7 December 2017, Pope Francis named Cardinal Carlos Aguiar Retes Archbishop of Mexico to succeed Norberto Rivera Carrera, "a pastor who had as many detractors as supporters" after 22 years in the post. His installation was scheduled for 5 February 2018. The Tablet said the appointment was not a surprise because Aguiar is "a towering ecclesial figure in Central and Latin America".
caption: Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla with Our Lady of Guadalupe
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