The Roman Catholic Diocese of Saint Joseph at Irkutsk ( la, Ircutscana Sancti Iosephi) is a

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...

located in the city of Irkutsk, which is part of the

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian Churches with traditional hierarchical structure, including Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity. In general, an ecclesiastical province consists of seve ...

of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mother of God at Moscow in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

. The Diocese of Irkutsk is the largest geographical Catholic bishopric on earth, covering an area of 9,960,000 km². The Catholic population of the diocese is estimated to be about 53,000 persons. It has 42 parishes served by about 42 priests. The bishop is

Cyryl Klimowicz Bishop Cyryl Klimowicz (russian: Кирилл Леопольдович Климович; born November 5, 1952 in Amangeldy, near Almaty, Kazakhstan) is the Ordinary of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Saint Joseph at Irkutsk. Life and career Klimow ...

, a Pole. The diocese is divided into five deaneries: Irkutsk,

Krasnoyarsk Krasnoyarsk ( ; rus, Красноя́рск, a=Ru-Красноярск2.ogg, p=krəsnɐˈjarsk) (in semantic translation - Red Ravine City) is the largest city and administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It is situated along the Yeni ...

Yakutsk Yakutsk (russian: Якутск, p=jɪˈkutsk; sah, Дьокуускай, translit=Djokuuskay, ) is the capital city of the Sakha Republic, Russia, located about south of the Arctic Circle. Fueled by the mining industry, Yakutsk has become one ...

Vladivostok Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, c ...

and Magadan.

History

* May 18, 1999: Established as Apostolic Administration of Siberia Orientale from Apostolic Administration of Siberia * February 11, 2002: Promoted as Diocese of Saint Joseph (located at San Giuseppe an Irkutsk)

Special churches

*Former cathedral ** Church of the Most Holy Mother of God in

Episcopal ordinaries

(all Roman Rite)

Apostolic Administrators of Siberia Orientale

Jerzy Mazur Jerzy Mazur (born 5 August 1953) is a Polish Roman Catholic bishop, being the head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ełk since 2003. He was previously a missionary, as well as a bishop in Siberia and the titular bishop of Tabunia. Biography Ear ...

SVD ''Svenska Dagbladet'' (, "The Swedish Daily News"), abbreviated SvD, is a daily newspaper published in Stockholm, Sweden. History and profile The first issue of ''Svenska Dagbladet'' appeared on 18 December 1884. During the beginning of the ...

(18 May 1999 – 11 February 2002)

Bishops of Saint Joseph at Irkutsk

, SVD (11 February 2002 – 17 April 2003) #

(17 April 2003 – )

Sources