The Catholic Church in Iran is part of the worldwide

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 ...

, under the spiritual leadership of the

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. There are about 21,380 Catholics in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

out of a total population of about 78.9 million. They follow the Chaldean,

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

and

Latin Rite Latin liturgical rites, or Western liturgical rites, are Catholic rites of public worship employed by the Latin Church, the largest particular church ''sui iuris'' of the Catholic Church, that originated in Europe where the Latin language once ...

s. Aside from some Iranian citizens, Catholics include foreigners in Iran like Spanish-speaking people (

Latin Americans Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-ethn ...

and

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

), and other

Europeans Europeans are the focus of European ethnology, the field of anthropology related to the various ethnic groups that reside in the states of Europe. Groups may be defined by common genetic ancestry, common language, or both. Pan and Pfeil (2004) ...

Dioceses and Eparchies

* Armenian Catholic Eparchy of Ispahan/Esfáan * Chaldean Catholic Archdiocese of Tehran/Teheran * Chaldean Catholic Archdiocese of Urmyā/Rezayeh/Urmia * Chaldean Catholic Archeparchy of Ahvaz/Ahwaz * Chaldean Catholic Diocese of Salmas/Shahpour *

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Teheran-Isfahan The Latin Archdiocese of Teheran-Isfahan ( la, Archidioecesis Teheranensis-Hispahanensis Latinorum) is a particular church of the Catholic Church in Iran.

Cathedrals

New Julfa New Julfa ( fa, نو جلفا – ''Now Jolfā'', – ''Jolfâ-ye Now''; hy, Նոր Ջուղա – ''Nor Jugha'') is the Armenian quarter of Isfahan, Iran, located along the south bank of the Zayande River. Established and named after the old ...

, Iran (Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Isfahan) * Cathedral of the Consolata in Tehran, Iran (Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Isfahan) * Cathedral of St. Joseph in Tehran, Iran (Chaldean Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Tehran) * Cathedral of St. Lazarus (Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Isfahan) * Cathedral of St. Mary the Mother of God in Urmia, Iran (Chaldean Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Urmyā) GCatholic.org
Cathedrals in Iran
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Diplomatic relations

In October 2010, an Iranian official delivered a letter from President

Ahmadinejad Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ( fa, محمود احمدی‌نژاد, Mahmūd Ahmadīnežād ), born Mahmoud Sabbaghian ( fa, محمود صباغیان, Mahmoud Sabbāghyān, 28 October 1956),

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

in which the President said he hoped to work closely with the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...

to help stem religious intolerance, the breakup of families and the increase of secularism and materialism. A return letter from Pope Benedict was hand-delivered by Jean-Louis Cardinal Tauran, president of the

Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue The Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, previously named Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID), is a dicastery of the Roman Curia, erected by Pope Paul VI on 19 May 1964 as the Secretariat for Non-Christians, and renamed by Pope ...

, according to Passionist Father Reverend Ciro Benedettini, vice-director of the

Vatican Press Office The Holy See Press Office ( la, Sala Stampa Sanctae Sedis; it, Sala Stampa della Santa Sede, links=http://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/) publishes the official news of the activities of the Pope and of the various departments of the ...

in a statement issued November 10, 2010. The papal letter's contents were not disclosed. Cardinal Tauran met with the Iranian leader while Tauran was participating in a three-day meeting on Islamic–Christian relations, along with Iranian Catholic leaders. The meeting was a joint initiative of the

and the

Teheran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most populo ...

-based

Islamic Culture and Relations Organization Public diplomacy in the Islamic Republic of Iran refers to the public relations efforts to disseminate information about the Islamic Republic of Iran. Such efforts seek to communicate with foreign publics in order to establish a dialogue designed to ...

* Holy See–Iran relations * List of Persian saints

References

GCatholic.org

{{Asia topic, Christianity in

Dioceses and Eparchies

Cathedrals

Diplomatic relations

Related pages

References