The Diocese of Ferns () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in south-eastern Ireland. It is one of three suffragan dioceses in the ecclesiastical province of Dublin and is subject to the Archdiocese of Dublin.Diocese of Ferns . Catholic-Hierarchy. Retrieved 2 June 2011.Archdiocese of Dublin . Catholic-Hierarchy. Retrieved 26 April 2010.Diocese of Ferns – Catholic Encyclopedia article. Retrieved 2 June 2011. The incumbent Ordinary is Gerard Nash.
Geographical remit The See covers most of County Wexford and some of County Carlow and County Wicklow. The major towns are Enniscorthy, Gorey, New Ross and Wexford, along with its namesake town of Ferns.
It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Dublin.
History
W. H. Grattan Flood, author of the History of the Diocese of Ferns,Grattan Flood, History, title page. illustrates the origin of the Diocese, by stating:
Ordinaries
The following is a list of the most recent post-Reformation Catholic bishops and vicars apostolic.Diocese of Ferns . Catholic Hierarchy. Retrieved on 7 September 2009.
Thomas Furlong (1857–1875) Michael Warren (1876–1884) James Browne (1884–1917) William Codd (1917–1938) James Staunton (1938–1963) Donal Herlihy (1964–1983) Brendan Oliver Comiskey, SS.CC. (1984–2002) Denis Brennan (2006–2021) Gerard Nash (2021–present)
Sex abuse controversy The October 2005 Report of the Ferns Inquiry has outlined the serious levels of clerical sex abuse in the diocese since 1962.https://www.bishop-accountability.org/reports/2005_10_Ferns/ferns_0_0_title_exec_intro.pdf pg.2 It strongly criticised the former bishops of Ferns, Donal Herlihy and Brendan Comiskey for their inability to deal with the allegations of sexual abuse made against a number of priests. Comiskey resigned as Bishop on 1 April 2002.
See also St. Aidan's Cathedral Catholic Church in Ireland
References
Sources Grattan Flood, W.H. History of the Diocese of Ferns. Waterford: Downey & Co., 1916.
External links Ferns.ie – Official site Diocese of Ferns (GCatholic.org) Catholic-Hierarchy.org – Diocese Profile