The Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia ( la, Vicariatus Apostolicus Arabiæ Meridionalis) is an apostolic vicariate of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

with territorial jurisdiction for

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

and

Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...

. The vicar apostolic of the vicariate is Paolo Martinelli, OFM Cap. It was first established in 1888 (as the

Apostolic Vicariate of Aden The Apostolic Vicariate of Aden was the ''First Vicariate'' created in Arabia, It was established in 1888 and in 1889, it was dissolved and renamed into the Apostolic Vicariate of Arabia. History The territory was originally part of the Vicar ...

) and took its current name in 2011. The

see See or SEE may refer to: * Sight - seeing Arts, entertainment, and media * Music: ** ''See'' (album), studio album by rock band The Rascals *** "See", song by The Rascals, on the album ''See'' ** "See" (Tycho song), song by Tycho * Television * ...

of the vicar apostolic is in St. Joseph's Cathedral in

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area. ...

. Since 1916 it has been in the care of the

Capuchins Capuchin can refer to: *Order of Friars Minor Capuchin The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. O.F.M. Cap.) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of Three " First Orders" that reformed from t ...

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

History

The territory was originally part of the Vicariate Apostolic of the Gallas, but it was separated into an

apostolic prefecture An apostolic prefect or prefect apostolic is a priest who heads what is known as an apostolic prefecture, a 'pre-diocesan' missionary jurisdiction where the Catholic Church is not yet sufficiently developed to have it made a diocese. Although it ...

by Pope Pius IX on 21 January 1875. On 25 April 1888,

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-old ...

made the

, located in Yemen. On the 28 June 1889, the name was changed to the Vicariate Apostolic of Arabia, responsible for the countries of the Arabian Peninsula and surrounding region:

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

Qatar Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it sh ...

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...

and

. On 29 June 1953, the then Apostolic Prefecture of Kuwait (which has become the Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Arabia) was separated from the

Apostolic Vicariate of Arabia The Apostolic Vicariate of Arabia ( la, Vicariatus Apostolicus Arabiæ) was an apostolic vicariate of the Catholic Church with territorial jurisdiction for Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen. The ...

. In 1973, the see of the jurisdiction was transferred from Aden to St. Joseph's Cathedral in

. A subsequent redrawing of boundaries in 2011 reduced its jurisdiction to the countries of Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen. The vicariate has been governed by the Capuchin friars since 1916.

Apostolic Vicars of Arabia

# Louis-Callixte Lasserre, OFM Cap. (1888 – April 1900) # Bernard Thomas Edward Clark, OFM Cap. (21 March 1902 – 18 June 1910) # Raffaele Presutti, OFM Cap. (13 September 1910 – 1915) #

Evangelista Latino Enrico Vanni ''Evangelista Latino Enrico Vanni'' OFM Cap. (28 December 1878 – 9 May 1962) was an Italian Bishop and missionary who served as the Apostolic Vicar of Arabia from 1916 to 1927 and the Archbishop of Agra from 1937 to 1955. He also served ...

, OFM Cap. (15 April 1916 – 1925) #

Pacifico Tiziano Micheloni Pacifico Tiziano Micheloni OFM Cap. (8 March 1881 – 6 July 1936 ) was an Italian bishop and missionary who served as the Apostolic Vicar of Arabia from 25 April 1933 to 6 July 1936, he also served as the Titular Bishop of Lete. Life Mo ...

, OFM Cap. (25 April 1933 – 6 July 1936) # Giovanni Tirinnanzi, OFM Cap. (2 July 1937 – 27 January 1949) # Irzio Luigi Magliacani, OFM Cap. (25 December 1949 – 1969) # Giovanni Bernardo Gremoli, OFM Cap. (2 October 1975 – 21 March 2005) #

Paul Hinder Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

, OFM Cap. (21 March 2005 – 31 May 2011)

Apostolic Vicars of Southern Arabia

, OFM Cap. (31 May 2011 – 1 May 2022) # Paolo Martinelli, OFM Cap. (1 May 2022 – present)

Statistics

Area

* 929,969 km²

Population

*Total population: 42,948,063 *Total Catholic Population: 998,500 *Parishes: 16 *Diocesan priests: 17 *Priests belonging to Religious Institutes: 51 *Total Priests: 68 *Permanent deacons living in the diocese: 1 *Professed non-priest Men Religious belonging to Religious Institutes: 1 *Professed Women Religious belonging to Religious Institutes: 53

List of Churches under The Jurisdiction of The Vicar

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

- St. Joseph's Cathedral

Mussafah Muṣaffah ( ar, مُصَفَّح) or Musaffah is an industrial district to the southwest of Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates. Also known as ''Muṣaffah Aṣ-Ṣanāʿiyah'' ( ar, مُصّفَّح ٱلصّنَاعِيَة), it is one of the mo ...

- St. Paul's Church Al Ain - St. Mary's Church

Ruwais ''Ar-Ruwais'' ( ar, ٱلـرُّوَيْـس, lit=The Small head) is a city located some west of Abu Dhabi City, in the Western Region of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. "Al Ruwais" is largely dropped in relation to the Ruwais Refinery and other i ...

- St. John the Baptist Church

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

- St. Mary's Church

Jebel Ali Jebel Ali ( ar, جبل علي) is a port town south-west of Dubai. The Jebel Ali Port is located there. Al Maktoum International Airport has been constructed just outside the port area. Jebel Ali is connected to Dubai via the UAE Exchange (fo ...

- St. Francis of Assisi Church

Sharjah Sharjah (; ar, ٱلشَّارقَة ', Gulf Arabic: ''aš-Šārja'') is the third-most populous city in the United Arab Emirates, after Dubai and Abu Dhabi, forming part of the Dubai-Sharjah-Ajman metropolitan area. Sharjah is the capital ...

- St. Michael's Church

Ras Al Khaimah Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) ( ar, رَأْس ٱلْخَيْمَة, historically Julfar) is the largest city and capital of the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates. It is the sixth-largest city in UAE after Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Al Ain ...

- St. Anthony of Padua Church

Fujairah Fujairah City ( ar, الفجيرة) is the capital of the emirate of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates. It is the seventh-largest city in UAE, located on the Gulf of Oman (part of the Indian Ocean). It is the only Emirati capital city on the ...

- Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...

Muscat Muscat ( ar, مَسْقَط, ) is the capital and most populated city in Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is s ...

- Holy Spirit Church, Sts. Peter and Paul Church

Salalah Salalah ( ar, صَلَالَة, Ṣalālah) is the capital and largest city of the southern Omani governorate of Dhofar. Its population in 2009 was about 197,169. Salalah is the third-largest city in the Sultanate of Oman, and the largest city ...

- St. Francis Xavier Church Sohar - St. Anthony's Church

Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...

Aden -

Proto-Cathedral St. Francis of Assisi, Aden The St. Francis of Assisi Church ( ar, كنيسة القديس فرنسيس الأسيزي) or the Proto-Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi, or simply Church of St. Francis, is a religious building that is affiliated with the Catholic Church and ...

Hodeidah Al-Hudaydah ( ar, الْحُدَيْدَة, al-ḥudayda), also transliterated as Hodeda, Hodeida, Hudaida or Hodeidah, is the fourth-largest city in Yemen and its principal port on the Red Sea. As of 2004, its population was 402,560 and it is ...

- Sacred Heart Church

Sana'a Sanaa ( ar, صَنْعَاء, ' , Yemeni Arabic: ; Old South Arabian: 𐩮𐩬𐩲𐩥 ''Ṣnʿw''), also spelled Sana'a or Sana, is the capital and largest city in Yemen and the centre of Sanaa Governorate. The city is not part of the Gover ...

St. Mary Help of Christians Church, Sanaa The St. Mary Help of Christians Church or simply Sanaa Catholic church is a religious building that is located in the city of Sanaa, the capital of the Asian country of Yemen. The church follows the Roman Catholic or Latin rite and depends on the ...

Taiz Taiz ( ar, تَعِزّ, Taʿizz) is a city in southwestern Yemen. It is located in the Yemeni Highlands, near the port city of Mocha on the Red Sea, at an elevation of about above sea level. It is the capital of Taiz Governorate. With a popula ...

- St. Therese of the Child Jesus Church

References

External links

Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia
* ttp://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/darab.html Catholic Hierarchy.org entrybr>GCatholic.orgVideo explaining the history of The OFM Cap. in Arabia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Southern Arabia Apostolic vicariates Catholic Church in Oman Catholic Church in the United Arab Emirates Catholic Church in Yemen Catholic Church in Somaliland Roman Catholic dioceses in the Middle East Religious organizations established in 1888 Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 19th century Catholic Church in the Middle East Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia

History

Apostolic Vicars of Arabia

Apostolic Vicars of Southern Arabia

Statistics

Area

Population

List of Churches under The Jurisdiction of The Vicar

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...

Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...

See also

References

External links