Diocese of Amarillo

Territory

The Diocese of Amarillo consists of the following 26 counties: Armstrong, Briscoe, Carson, Castro, Childress, Collingsworth, Dallam, Deaf Smith, Donley, Gray, Hall, Hansford, Hartley, Hemphill, Hutchinson, Lipscomb, Moore, Ochiltree, Oldham, Parmer, Potter, Randall, Roberts, Sherman, Swisher, and Wheeler.

History

1800 to 1926

The Texas Panhandle was under several different Catholic jurisdictions before the creation of the Diocese of Amarillo:

• Prefecture Apostolic of Texas (1841 to 1847)
• Vicariate Apostolic of Texas (1847 to 1874)
• Diocese of Galveston (1874 to 1914)
• Dioceses of Dallas and San Antonio (1914 to 1926)

The first Catholic priests in the Panhandle came from Kansas and New Mexico during the 1870s, serving the small Catholic population in periodic visits. The first Catholic church in the Panhandle was St. Mary's, dedicated in Clarendon in 1892, to serve Irish and German railroad workers. In 1903, construction started on St. Mary's, the first Catholic church in Amarillo.

1903 to 1941

Pope Pius XI founded the Diocese of Amarillo on August 3, 1926, taking its territory from the Dioceses of Dallas and San Antonio. The new diocese contained large areas of northern Texas. The pope named Rudolph Gerken of Dallas as the first bishop of Amarillo. During his tenure in Amarillo, Gerken oversaw the construction of thirty-five churches. He also founded Price Memorial College, a secondary school in Amarillo, and served as its first president. In 1933, Gerken became archbishop of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe.

The second bishop of Amarillo was Robert Lucey of the Diocese of Los Angeles, named by Pius XI in 1934. He established the Texas Panhandle Register as the diocesan newspaper. Lucey was elevated to archbishop of San Antonio in 1941. That same year, Pope Pius XII appointed Monsignor Laurence FitzSimon of San Antonio as the next bishop of Amarillo.

1941 to 1980

During Fitzsimon's 17-year-long tenure as bishop, the number of churches, priests, schools, and institutions in the diocese more than doubled. In September 1945, after the end of World War II, FitzSimon wrote a letter to US Congressman Francis E. Worley protesting the conditions at the Italian prisoner of war camp in Hereford, Texas. FitzSimon had visited the camp in July 1945 and saw that prisoners were receiving low rations of substandard quality. They also told him stories of beatings and other mistreatment by guards. Fitzsimon died in 1958.

Auxiliary Bishop John Morkovsky was the next bishop of Amarillo, named by Pius XII in 1958. The Vatican in 1961 erected the Diocese of San Angelo, taking 21 counties from the Diocese of Amarillo. Morkovsky became coadjutor bishop of the Diocese of Galveston-Houston in 1963. Pope John XXIII in 1963 named Monsignor Lawrence De Falco of the Diocese of Fort Worth as the fifth bishop of Amarillo.

During his 16-year-long tenure, De Falco worked to implement the Second Vatican Council reforms, establishing pastoral councils and senates of priests, nuns, and permanent deacons. He also reduced diocesan debt, but was forced to close several schools and hospitals. St. Laurence Church in Amarillo replaced Sacred Heart as the diocesan cathedral in 1975. De Falco retired due to poor health in 1979.

1980 to present

In 1980, Pope John Paul II appointed Leroy Matthiesen of Amarillo as bishop of that diocese. In 1981, in protest of the assembly of the neutron bomb at a facility in Pantex, Matthiesen called for workers there to resign their jobs in protest. None were reported to have obeyed his call.

The Vatican in 1983 erected the Diocese of Lubbock, taking 23 counties from the southern part of the Diocese of Amarillo. Matthiesen retired in 1997. The next bishop of Amarillo was Auxiliary Bishop John Yanta of San Antonio, appointed by John Paul II in 1997. Yanta retired in 2008.

As of 2023, the bishop of Amarillo is Patrick Zurek from San Antonio, named by Pope Benedict XVI in 2008.

Sex abuse

During his tenure as bishop, Bishop Matthiesen admitted eight priests into the Diocese of Amarillo after they had undergone treatment following accusations of sexual impropriety. The most controversial individuals were John Salazar and Ed Graff. Salazar in 1987 went to prison in California for abusing two teenage boys in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Archbishop Roger Mahony of Los Angeles had notified the Vatican. Graff was dismissed from the Diocese of Allentown due to accusations of sexual abuse. After Matthiesen accepted Graff into the Diocese of Amarillo, Bishop Thomas Welsh of Allentown expressed his concern that Matthiesen never consulted him about the transfer.

By September 2002, eight priests had resigned from the diocese due to sexual abuse allegations. In 2003, the diocese settled the lawsuit for the woman impregnated by Herrera, providing approximately $27,000 for the child. In November 2004, the diocese settled a second lawsuit for $50,000. The female plaintiff had claimed that Herrera engaged in wrongful contact with her.

In 2004, Matthiessen stirred controversy when he started a private fundraising effort for three priests whom he had removed from public ministry.

In January 2019, the diocese released a list of 30 clergy with credible allegations of sexual abuse.

Bishops

Bishops of Amarillo

1. Rudolph Gerken (1926–1933), appointed Archbishop of Santa Fe
2. Robert Emmet Lucey (1934–1941), appointed Archbishop of San Antonio
3. Laurence Julius FitzSimon (1941–1958)
4. John Louis Morkovsky (1958–1963), appointed Bishop of Galveston-Houston
5. Lawrence Michael De Falco (1963–1979)
6. Leroy Theodore Matthiesen (1980–1997)
7. John Walter Yanta (1997–2008)
8. Patrick Zurek (2008–present)

Other diocesan priest who became a bishop

Thomas Joseph Drury, appointed Bishop of San Angelo in 1961 and later Bishop of Corpus Christi

Education

As of 2025, the Diocese of Amarillo had one high school, Holy Cross Catholic Academy in Amarillo, along with four elementary schools and one pre-school.

Former cathedrals

• Sacred Heart Cathedral, Amarillo 1927–1975
• St. Laurence Catholic Church, Amarillo 1975–2011

References

References

1. "About Us".
2. "Amarillo (Diocese) [Catholic-Hierarchy]".
3. Rooney, Sister Nellie. (November 1, 1994). "Amarillo, Catholic Diocese of".
4. "Cathedral History".
5. "History of the Diocese of Dallas". Diocess of Dallas.
6. "Diocese of Amarillo". Catholic-Hierarchy.
7. "Archbishop Rudolph Aloysius Gerken [Catholic-Hierarchy]".
8. WELCH, KAREN SMITH. "Diocese tears down Price College".
9. "ARCHBISH_0__PP R -- A. GERKEN; { Catholic Prelate at Santa Fe, 55, I Once Texas' School Teacher }".
10. Williams, p. 362.
11. "Bishop Laurence Julius FitzSimon". Catholic-Hierarchy.org.
12. "NAMED BISHOP IN TEXAS; Very Rev. L.J. FitzSimon Goes to Catholic See at Amarillo".
13. "FITZSIMON, LAURENCE JULIUS (1895-1958)". Texas State Historical Association.
14. Williams, Donald Mace. (2001). "Italian POWs and a Texas Church: The Murals of St. Mary's". Texas Tech University Press.
15. "Bishop John Louis Morkovsky [Catholic-Hierarchy]".
16. "Bishop Lawrence Michael De Falco". Catholic-Hierarchy.org.
17. "DEFALCO, LAWRENCE MICHAEL (1915-1979)". The Handbook of Texas Online.
18. Albracht, Chris. "St. Laurence Cathedral—History". Diocese of Amarillo.
19. "Bishop Leroy Theodore Matthiesen [Catholic-Hierarchy]".
20. (1981-09-08). "Religious Leaders Objecting to Nuclear Arms". The New York Times.
21. Association, Texas State Historical. "Amarillo, Catholic Diocese of".
22. "Bishop John Walter Yanta [Catholic-Hierarchy]".
23. "More Info".
24. (May 24, 2004). "Former Amarillo bishop solicits donations to aid dismissed priests {{!}} Lubbock Online {{!}}". [[Lubbock Avalanche-Journal]].
25. (15 August 2018). "Former Texas Panhandle priest named in Pennsylvania grand jury report".
26. Powers, Ashley. (December 30, 2013). "One troubled priest who got a second chance". Los Angeles Times.
27. Blaney, Betsy. (2002-09-02). "Amarillo Diocese Hit Hard by Sex Abuse". Washington Post.
28. "Diocese settles paternity lawsuit filed by teen girl" Houston Chronicle, February 28, 2003
29. (2004-11-29). "Amarillo diocese settles second suit involving former priest".
30. (2010-03-26). "Matthiesen, antinuclear activist-bishop, dies at 88".
31. Watkins, Matthew. (2019-01-31). "Amarillo Diocese releases names of 30 clergy accused of sexual assault of minors".
32. "Schools".