| Cathedral of St. Paul | |
|---|---|
 | |
  | |
| 42°07′41.15″N80°05′15.42″W / 42.1280972°N 80.0876167°W Coordinates: 42°07′41.15″N80°05′15.42″W / 42.1280972°N 80.0876167°W | |
| Location | 134 W. Seventh St. Erie, Pennsylvania |
| Country | United States |
| Denomination | Episcopal Church in the United States of America |
| Website | www |
| History | |
| Founded | March 17, 1827 |
| Architecture | |
| Style | Gothic Revival |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Diocese of Northwestern Pennsylvania |
| Clergy | |
| Bishop(s) | Rt. Rev. Sean W. Rowe |
| Dean | Very Rev. John P. Downey |
The Cathedral of St. Paul is an Episcopal cathedral in Erie, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the seat of the Diocese of Northwestern Pennsylvania. St. Paul's Church was founded on St. Patrick's Day in 1827. [1] The church became the cathedral for the Diocese of Erie on February 21, 1915. [2] The diocese changed its name to Northwestern Pennsylvania in 1981.
A cathedral is a Christian church which contains the cathedra of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. The equivalent word in German for such a church is Dom ; see also Duomo in Italian, Dom(kerk) in Dutch, and cognates in many other European languages. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations with an episcopal hierarchy, such as the Catholic, Anglican, Orthodox, and some Lutheran and Methodist churches. Church buildings embodying the functions of a cathedral first appeared in Italy, Gaul, Spain and North Africa in the 4th century, but cathedrals did not become universal within the Western Catholic Church until the 12th century, by which time they had developed architectural forms, institutional structures and legal identities distinct from parish churches, monastic churches and episcopal residences.
Erie is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. Named for the lake and the Native American Erie people who lived in the area until the mid-17th century, Erie is the fourth-largest city in Pennsylvania, as well as the largest city in Northwestern Pennsylvania, with a population of 101,786 at the 2010 census. The estimated population in 2017 had decreased to 97,369. The Erie metropolitan area, equivalent to all of Erie County, consists of 276,207 residents. The Erie-Meadville, PA Combined Statistical Area has a population of 369,331, as of the 2010 Census.
The Episcopal Diocese of Northwestern Pennsylvania, originally the Episcopal Diocese of Erie is one of the 100 Dioceses of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. The diocese is made up of 34 congregations located in the 13 contiguous counties of northwest Pennsylvania. The diocese itself is split into four deaneries: Northeast, Northwest, Southeast, and Southwest. Its diocesan offices are located at 145 West Sixth Street, Erie, PA 16501, across the street from Gannon University. Its cathedral church is the Cathedral of Saint Paul, located at 134 West Seventh Street, Erie, PA 16501.
