 Following a recommendation from the first plenary council of Australia and New Zealand in 1885 , in May 1887 Pope Leo XIII elevated the Diocese of Adelaide to an Archdiocese and metropolitan see . As a suffragan diocese to Adelaide , the Pope established the rural Diocese of Port Pirie , naming O 'Reilly as its inaugural bishop . Upon his appointment , O 'Reilly travelled to Adelaide , where he met with the Archbishop of Adelaide Christopher Reynolds and the Cardinal of Sydney Patrick Moran to discuss the formation of the new diocese . The poor financial state of the Archdiocese made the discussions contentious , with O 'Reilly concerned about the amount of debt Port Augusta would inherit from Adelaide . To ensure a sufficiently large population for the new diocese , Moran suggested that its boundaries be altered from those drawn up by the Pope , but Reynolds opposed this plan . Dissatisfied with the outcome of the discussions , O 'Reilly decided to travel to Sydney to deliberate further with the Cardinal , prompting Reynolds to write to Moran : 
