Serving God’s People — Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow
In 2008 the Archdiocese of Louisville celebrates 200 years as a Roman Catholic diocese. It shares the honor of being among the earliest dioceses in the United States with the Archdiocese of New York, the Archdiocese of Boston and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, which also were founded in 1808. Only the Archdiocese of Baltimore (1789) and the Archdiocese of New Orleans (1793) were established earlier. The Diocese of Bardstown was founded as the first inland diocese in the United States on April 8, 1808. Its see city moved to Louisville in 1841, and the Diocese of Louisville was elevated to an Archdiocese in 1937.
The Diocese of Bardstown included the states of Kentucky and Tennessee. The first bishop of the diocese, Benedict Joseph Flaget, was given pastoral responsibility for a huge territory to the north and west of Kentucky. Today, 44 dioceses in ten states have descended from the Diocese of Bardstown.
The theme for the bicentennial celebration is “Serving God’s People: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow.” Bicentennial events began in March 2007 and will continue throughout 2008.
The Archdiocese 
