Our Mission: “A Roman Catholic family of faith, centered in the Holy Eucharist, faithful to the Church's teachings, bringing the Light of Christ to each other and to our community.”

The Diocese of Allentown was formed on January 28, 1961, when Pope John XXIII signed a document separating the counties of Berks, Carbon, Lehigh, Northampton and Schuylkill from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. The news became public February 15. The following April 11, Bishop Joseph McShea, then auxiliary bishop of Philadelphia, was installed as the first Bishop of Allentown by Archbishop Egidio Vagnozzi, Apostolic Delegate to the United States in the new Cathedral Church of Saint Catharine of Siena in Allentown.

Bishop Thomas Welsh succeeded Bishop McShea in 1983, followed by Bishop Edward Cullen in 1998 and Bishop John Barres in 2009. Like Bishop McShea, Bishops Welsh and Cullen were former Auxiliary Bishops of Philadelphia. Bishop Barres was a priest of the Diocese of Wilmington, DE, when he was appointed. He became the first priest ordained a Bishop in Allentown’s Cathedral of St. Catharine of Siena. Seven-and-a-half years later, he became the first Allentown Bishop to be transferred when Pope Francis appointed him the Fifth Bishop of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, NY.

On June 27, 2017, Pope Francis appointed Monsignor Alfred A. Schlert as the Fifth Bishop of Allentown. Bishop Schlert is the first priest ordained for the Diocese of Allentown to be appointed Bishop of the Diocese. He was ordained a Bishop and installed as Bishop of Allentown on August 31, 2017.

Catholics form the largest single religious group in the five counties of the Diocese. In the 78 parishes of the Diocese, there are more than 205,000 registered Catholics, representing more than 20 percent of the general population.

Coat of Arms of the Diocese of Allentown

The golden ring on the silver bar symbolizes St. Catharine of Siena, the titular saint of the Cathedral of the Diocese of Allentown. The ring designates her mystical marriage to Christ, a ring given to her by our Lord in an apparition. The red background of the diocesan shield signifies the sufferings of Catharine at the hands of her parents, and recalls her devotion to the Church leading to the persuasion of Pope Gregory XI to return from Avignon to Rome. The two silver fleurs-de-lis are taken from the coat of arms of His Holiness, Pope John XXIII, to honor the Pontiff who established the Diocese of Allentown. The silver roundel bearing the red cross is derived from the coat of arms of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia to commemorate the See which gave the Counties of Berks, Carbon, Lehigh, Northampton, and Schuylkill to form the entire territory of the Diocese of Allentown.