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Orders of women and men religious had begun ministering in western New York long before a portion of the area was formally
established as the Diocese of Rochester in 1868.
Rochester’s rst bishop, Bernard J. McQuaid, furthered connections with local religious soon after his installation in July of that year. In the fall of 1868, Bishop McQuaid was looking for teachers to staff the tuition-free parochial elementary schools he wanted to establish. He asked a small group of women religious from the Buffalo Diocese who were then ministering in Canandaigua to remain in the Rochester
Diocese and begin a teaching order to staff his edgling Catholic-school system.
Since that time, many religious orders have made their homes in the Rochester Diocese and ministered to its people. Members of these orders continue to serve in a variety of ministries, such as teaching in Catholic schools, serving at diocesan parishes, feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, providing health care to the uninsured, offering retreats and spiritual direction, and serving as chaplains and campus ministers.
Chapter 6
Religious orders Religious orders have enriched diocese
BASILIAN FATHERS
The Basilian order originated in France in 1822 and, three decades later, established a presence in Toronto, Canada. Basilians rst served in the Rochester Diocese as teachers at Aquinas Institute from 1927-32, and assumed leadership of the high school in 1937.
The Basilians founded St. John Fisher College in Pittsford in 1948 and in 1976 took over priestly staf ng at Christ the King Church in Irondequoit. The Basilians began covering additional churches in Irondequoit in 2010 when pastoral planning led to the formation of Blessed (now St.) Kateri Tekakwitha Parish.
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