About Diocese of Saint Thomas
The Chaldean Eparchy of Saint Thomas the Apostle of Detroit (Latin: Eparchia Sancti Thomas Apostoli Detroitensis Chaldaeorum) is a Chaldean Catholic eparchy of the Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with Rome, covering the eastern half of the United States. Erected by Pope John Paul II in 1982 as the Apostolic Exarchate for the Chaldeans in the United States and elevated to an eparchy in 1985, it is headquartered in Southfield, Michigan, and exercises the East Syro-Oriental (Chaldean) Rite in Classical Syriac. The eparchy is exempt, meaning it reports directly to the Holy See through the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, with Mother of God (Our Lady of Chaldeans) Cathedral in Southfield as its episcopal seat. It currently ministers to roughly 150,000–181,000 faithful through thirteen parishes and one mission across Michigan, Illinois, and Massachusetts.
- Bishop (Eparch)
- Francis Yohana Kalabat
- Established
- 1982
- Cathedral
- Mother of God Cathedral (Our Lady of Chaldeans Cathedral), 25585 Berg Road, Southfield, Michigan
- Territory
- The eastern United States, including Michigan, Illinois, Massachusetts, and the remaining states east of the Mississippi not assigned to the Eparchy of Saint Peter the Apostle of San Diego
- Parishes
- 12 parishes + 1 mission (Immaculate Conception Mission, Boston, MA)
- Province
- Exempt — immediately subject to the Holy See (Dicastery for the Eastern Churches); also dependent on the Chaldean Catholic Patriarchate of Babylon
About the Chaldean Church
The Patriarchate of the Chaldean Catholic Church resides in Baghdad, Iraq, with eparchies (dioceses) across the world. The largest population of Chaldean Catholics outside the Middle East lives in Michigan, and the cathedral parish — Mother of God / Our Lady of Chaldeans in Southfield — is the spiritual heart of that community. Chaldeans are descendants of the pre-Arabic indigenous Christian population of Mesopotamia, tracing their faith back to the evangelization traditionally attributed to Saint Thomas the Apostle. The Chaldean Catholic Church is one of the 23 Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with Rome and celebrates the East Syro-Oriental (Chaldean) Rite in Classical Syriac, a dialect of Aramaic.
- Patriarchate of Babylon, Baghdad
- Chaldean (East Syro-Oriental) Rite in Classical Syriac/Aramaic
- Largest diaspora community: metro Detroit, Michigan
- Part of the Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with Rome
History of the Eparchy
The eparchy was erected by Pope John Paul II on January 11, 1982 as the Apostolic Exarchate of the United States of America for the Chaldeans, covering all fifty states. On August 3, 1985 it was elevated to the Eparchy of Saint Thomas the Apostle of Detroit under its first ordinary, Bishop Ibrahim Namo Ibrahim. On May 21, 2002 the western states were split off to form the Eparchy of Saint Peter the Apostle of San Diego. Bishop Francis Yohana Kalabat was appointed as the second ordinary on May 3, 2014 and installed June 14, 2014, by Patriarch Louis Raphaël I Sako.
- 1982.01.11 — Established as Apostolic Exarchate of the U.S.A.
- 1985.08.03 — Promoted to Eparchy of Saint Thomas the Apostle of Detroit
- 2002.05.21 — Lost western territory to establish the Eparchy of Saint Peter the Apostle of San Diego
- 2014.05.03 — Bishop Ibrahim's resignation accepted; Bishop Kalabat appointed
- 2014.06.14 — Bishop Kalabat ordained and installed
- 2017.08.09 — Bishop Kalabat additionally named Apostolic Administrator of the Eparchy of Mar Addai of Toronto
Bishop Francis Yohana Kalabat
Bishop Frank (Francis Yohana) Kalabat was born in Kuwait on May 13, 1970, part of the Iraqi Christian diaspora of the Gulf era. He emigrated to the United States in 1989 and began priestly formation at the St. Francis de Sales Center for Priestly Formation in San Diego, completing his theological studies at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, where he was the second Chaldean seminarian. Ordained to the priesthood on July 5, 1995 by Bishop Ibrahim Namo Ibrahim, he served as parochial vicar of Mother of God Cathedral in Southfield (1995–2001) and then as pastor of St. Thomas Chaldean Church in West Bloomfield, director of vocations for the eparchy, and director of the Center for Re-Evangelization. Pope Francis appointed him the second Eparch of St. Thomas the Apostle on May 3, 2014; he was ordained a bishop and installed on June 14, 2014 by Patriarch Louis Raphaël I Sako, with co-consecrators Archbishop Allen Henry Vigneron and Bishop Ibrahim Namo Ibrahim. He speaks Arabic, English, and Chaldean (Aramaic), and also knows Spanish. In 2017 he was additionally named Apostolic Administrator of the Eparchy of Mar Addai of Toronto.
- Born: May 13, 1970, Kuwait City, Kuwait
- Priestly ordination: July 5, 1995
- Episcopal ordination: June 14, 2014
- Motto: 'Blessed be the name of Jesus, both now and forever. Amen.'
- Also Apostolic Administrator of Mar Addai of Toronto since 2017
Bishop Emeritus Ibrahim Namo Ibrahim
Bishop Ibrahim Namo Ibrahim — the founding bishop of the eparchy — was born in Telkaif, a village about eight miles northeast of Mosul (ancient Nineveh), the ancestral home of most metro Detroit Chaldeans. He studied at the Chaldean seminary in Mosul, then at the Seminary of St. Sulpice in Paris. Ordained a priest on December 30, 1962 in Baghdad, he served as professor of dogmatic theology and rector of the Chaldean Major Seminary in Baghdad. He earned a doctorate in theology from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (the Angelicum) in Rome in 1975. He founded St. Paul Chaldean Parish in Los Angeles in 1979 while pastoring St. Peter Chaldean Parish in San Diego. Pope John Paul II named him the first Chaldean bishop for the United States on January 22, 1982; he was ordained to the episcopate on March 7, 1982, in Baghdad, and led the eparchy for 32 years, retiring on May 3, 2014.
- First Apostolic Exarch and first Eparch of St. Thomas the Apostle
- Native of Telkaif, near ancient Nineveh
- Ordained priest Dec. 30, 1962; consecrated bishop March 7, 1982
- Retired May 3, 2014 after 32 years of episcopal ministry
- Speaks Chaldean, Arabic, English, French, and Italian
Mother of God Cathedral (Our Lady of Chaldeans)
Mother of God Parish — also known by its cathedral title Our Lady of Chaldeans — is the episcopal seat of the Eparchy of St. Thomas the Apostle, located at 25585 Berg Road in Southfield, Michigan. It was the first Chaldean Catholic church in Michigan, purchased on January 9, 1948 and consecrated August 15, 1948 under the pastorship of Fr. Toma Bidawid. Originally at Euclid and Hamilton Streets in Detroit, it later moved to Hamilton Road and was reconsecrated there in 1956; the present Southfield property was acquired in 1964, the hall and rectory built in 1972, and the Byzantine Revival church begun in 1979 and completed in 1980, when Patriarch Mar Paulus Cheikho consecrated the new building. Two years later it became the cathedral when the eparchy was erected. The cathedral offers four weekend Masses, including one in Arabic and two in Chaldean/Aramaic.
- Address: 25585 Berg Rd, Southfield, MI 48033
- Founded: January 9, 1948; consecrated August 15, 1948
- Current building completed 1980 in Byzantine Revival style
- 75th anniversary celebrated February 29, 2024
- First Chaldean Catholic church in Michigan
- Cathedral of the eparchy since 1982
Parishes and Missions
The eparchy operates twelve parishes and one mission across three states, with ten parishes in Michigan and two in Illinois. The newest pastoral initiative is the Immaculate Conception Mission in Boston, Massachusetts, established in 2017, reflecting the geographic spread of young Chaldean professionals beyond the historic Midwest concentration.
- Mother of God (Cathedral), Southfield, MI — Est. 1948
- Sacred Heart, Warren, MI — Est. 1975
- Mar Addai, Oak Park, MI — Est. 1979
- Holy Martyrs, Sterling Heights, MI — Est. 1981
- Mart Maryam, Northbrook, IL — Est. 1986
- St. Thomas, West Bloomfield, MI — Est. 1999
- St. George, Shelby Township, MI — Est. 2000
- Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Warren, MI — Est. 2010
- St. Joseph, Troy, MI — Est. 2013
- St. Paul, Grand Blanc, MI — Est. 2014
- Holy Cross, Farmington Hills, MI
- St. Ephrem, Chicago, IL
- Immaculate Conception Mission, Boston, MA — Est. 2017
Vicar General and Staff
The chancery of the eparchy is led by the bishop together with his vicar general and diocesan curia.
- Bishop (Eparch): Francis Yohana Kalabat
- Vicar General: Rev. Fawaz Elia Kako
- Administrative Director: Candice Raban
- Office Administrator: Nadia Kallabat (niece of Bishop Emeritus Ibrahim)
- 22 diocesan priests, 1 deacon, 14 seminarians (per GCatholic)
Faith Formation, Liturgy and Language
The eparchy offers classes in the Chaldean Liturgy and Aramaic language for anyone interested — particularly altar servers, subdeacons, and those discerning clerical vocations — held at Sacred Heart Church (Warren) on Mondays and St. Thomas Church on Wednesdays. The Chaldean Rite is celebrated in Classical Syriac, the liturgical descendant of the Aramaic spoken in the time of Jesus, and the eparchy continues to teach and transmit this living tradition alongside English and Arabic. Retreats are a hallmark of the eparchy's spiritual life: roughly 60% of weekend Masses are in English and 40% in Arabic or modern Chaldean, while the cathedral offers Chaldean-language Masses for older generations who first learned the faith in that tongue.
- Chaldean Liturgy and Aramaic classes (ages 12+) at Sacred Heart and St. Thomas
- Mass offered in English, Arabic, and Chaldean (Aramaic)
- East Syro-Oriental (Chaldean) Rite in Classical Syriac
- Sub-deacon formation tracks
Retreats, Evangelization and Youth Ministry
The eparchy has become known for its robust retreat ministry. Once hosting only two or three retreats a year, the diocese now offers 15 to 17 retreats annually, including silent retreats, marriage preparation, women's and men's retreats, and high school programs such as 'Two Foundations' (high school girls). The Eastern Catholic Re-Evangelization Center (ECRC) in Bloomfield Hills coordinates youth and adult evangelization. In 2023 the eparchy revived the former Queen of the Family Retreat Center in Oxford, Michigan, as a year-round facility for youth, parish staff, confirmation classes, Kairos groups, and young adults. Youth programs include a Chaldean sports league, a youth summer camp, and 'The Call,' the eparchy's annual high school youth conference.
- Eastern Catholic Re-Evangelization Center (ECRC), Bloomfield Hills
- Year-round retreat center at Oxford, MI (former Queen of the Family)
- 'The Call' annual youth conference
- Two Foundations retreat for high school girls
- Silent retreats, marriage preparation, men's and women's retreats
- Chaldean Catholic sports league and youth summer camp
Media, Podcast and Digital Outreach
Supported by the USCCB Catholic Home Missions Appeal, the eparchy has built out a modern digital communications program, including a weekly livestream program — 'The Shepherd's Call' — hosted by Bishop Kalabat on the ECRC's YouTube and Facebook pages, addressing topics from natural family planning to evangelization. A 'Bible in a Year' podcast features reflections and readings from Bishop Kalabat; the eparchy also maintains a website at chaldeanchurch.org and active social media channels.
- 'The Shepherd's Call' livestream program
- 'Bible in a Year' podcast with Bishop Kalabat
- Website: https://chaldeanchurch.org
- Eastern Catholic Re-Evangelization Center YouTube and Facebook
Seminarians and Religious Life
Chaldean seminarians have studied at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit since 1989, when Bishop Ibrahim sent his first seminarian there. Bishop Kalabat was himself the second Chaldean seminarian to attend Sacred Heart. The eparchy currently has 14 seminarians in formation. A community of the Daughters of Mary Immaculate — a Chaldean religious institute — has 12 sisters and 6 novices based in the territory, providing consecrated religious witness alongside the diocesan clergy.
- Sacred Heart Major Seminary, Detroit (since 1989)
- 14 seminarians currently in formation
- Daughters of Mary Immaculate: 12 sisters and 6 novices
Refugee Outreach and Pastoral Care
Since the 2014 ISIS persecution in northern Iraq, the eparchy has welcomed Chaldean refugees — including families who witnessed violence and trauma — providing ESL, resettlement assistance, trauma-informed pastoral care, and sacramental ministry. The diocese teaches about modern Chaldean martyrs such as Fr. Ragheed Ganni, killed in Mosul in 2007 alongside three subdeacons, as part of its faith formation and youth programs.
- Refugee resettlement and trauma care post-2014 ISIS persecution
- Memorial of Fr. Ragheed Ganni (killed 2007) and modern Chaldean martyrs
- Welcoming Iraqi Christian families into the Southfield community
Contact and Office
The diocesan chancery sits alongside the cathedral on Berg Road in Southfield, Michigan.
- Address: 25603 Berg Road, Southfield, MI 48033
- Phone: (248) 351-0440
- Fax: (248) 351-0443
- Website: https://chaldeanchurch.org
