The Roman Catholic Diocese of Subotica ( la, Dioecesis Suboticana, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Subotička biskupija, Суботичка бискупија, hu, Szabadkai Egyházmegye) is a

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, 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 Roman province, pro ...

of the

Roman 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 ...

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

. It is subject to the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Belgrade The Catholic Archdiocese of Belgrade ( la, Archidioecesis Belogradensis; sh, Beogradska nadbiskupija; hu, Belgrádi főegyházmegye) is an archdiocese located in the city of Belgrade in Serbia. History In order to regulate status of local Cath ...

. The Diocese is centered in the city of

Subotica Subotica ( sr-cyrl, Суботица, ; hu, Szabadka) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the North Bačka District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. Formerly the largest city of Vojvodina region, ...

Territory

The Diocese of Subotica encompasses the

n part of the

Bačka Bačka ( sr-cyrl, Бачка, ) or Bácska () is a geographical and historical area within the Pannonian Plain bordered by the river Danube to the west and south, and by the river Tisza to the east. It is divided between Serbia and Hungary ...

region, which is situated in the Autonomous Province of

Vojvodina Vojvodina ( sr-Cyrl, Војводина}), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia. It lies within the Pannonian Basin, bordered to the south by the national capital ...

. The diocese's

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

is the

Cathedral of Saint Teresa of Avila , image = Subotica_(Szabadka,_%D0%A1%D1%83%D0%B1%D0%BE%D1%82%D0%B8%D1%86%D0%B0)_-_catholic_cathedral.JPG , imagealt = Photo of the church , coordinates = , location = Subotica , country ...

in Subotica, dating back to 1779. The diocese is multi-ethnic and has members primarily from the sizable Hungarian,

Croat The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic, Ge ...

and

Bunjevci Bunjevci ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Bunjevci, Буњевци, ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, label=, separator=" / ", Bunjevac, Буњевац, sh-Latn-Cyrl, label=, separator=" / ", Bunjevka, Буњевка) are a South Slavic sub-ethnic group living ...

communities, among others.

History

Until the end of

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the territory of the present-day Diocese of Subotica belonged to the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kalocsa Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

. After the collapse of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

, region of Southern Bačka was incorporated into newly formed

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes Kingdom commonly refers to: * A monarchy ruled by a king or queen * Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy Kingdom may also refer to: Arts and media Television * ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 2007 British television drama s ...

(later known as

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

). On 10 February 1923, the ''Apostolic Administration of Yugoslav Bačka'' was created. Before the end of

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, there was a sizable number of Roman Catholic Germans in the region of Bačka. On 25 January 1968, apostolic administration was elevated into the rank of diocese as "Diocese of Subotica". In 1986, it was placed under metropolitan jurisdiction of Roman Catholic Archbishop of Belgrade. From the middle 1980s, and especially during the 1990s, number of Catholics in the territory of this diocese decreased due to various reasons, including low birth rates among local Roman Catholics, economic emigration, and ethnic tensions of the

Yugoslav wars The Yugoslav Wars were a series of separate but related#Naimark, Naimark (2003), p. xvii. ethnic conflicts, wars of independence, and Insurgency, insurgencies that took place in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, SFR Yugoslavia from ...

Administrators and bishops

Apostolic Administrators of Jugoslavenska Bačka

*(1923–1958) Lajčo Budanović, since 1927 as titular bishop of Cisamus *(1958–1968)

Matija Zvekanović Matija is a South Slavic masculine and feminine given name, a variant of Matthew. Notable people with the name include: * Matija Ahacel (1779–1845), Carinthian Slovene philologist, publicist, and collector of folk songs * Matija Antun Relković ...

, titular bishop of Burca

Diocesan Bishops

*(1968–1989)

*(1989–2020)

János Pénzes János Pénzes (; born 10 August 1943 in Bajmok, Kingdom of Hungary) was the Hungarian-born Roman Catholic Emeritus Bishop of Subotica between 1989 and 2020. On June 29, 1968, Pénzes was ordained a priest. On April 25, 1989, Pope John Paul II ...

*(2020–2022)

Slavko Večerin Bishop Alojzije Slavko Večerin ( sr-cyr, Славко Вечерин; 6 June 1957 – 26 August 2022) was a Serbian Roman Catholic prelate who served as the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Subotica in Serbia from 8 September 2020 until his de ...

Auxiliary bishop

*(1955–1958)

, titular bishop of Burca

Education

The diocese runs the only Catholic high school in the country, the Paulinum gymnasium.

Press

Hitélet is the oldest Roman Catholic monthly magazine of the diocese in Hungarian, founded by László Huzsvár, the later bishop of

Zrenjanin Zrenjanin ( sr-Cyrl, Зрењанин, ; hu, Nagybecskerek; ro, Becicherecu Mare; sk, Zreňanin; german: Großbetschkerek) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Central Banat District in the autonomous pro ...

. Hírviviő is the weekly Roman Catholic magazine of the diocese in Hungarian.

Zvonik ''Zvonik'' is a Roman Catholic magazine founded by Croat priests from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Subotica. It is published in Croatian. History and mission It was founded on September 19, 1994, in Bač, "in the shadow of the campanile of a ...

is a Roman Catholic magazine founded by Croat priests from Roman Catholic Diocese of Subotica. It's being published in Croatian.

Notable individuals

Blessed Mary of Jesus Crucified Petković solicited for help in this Diocese and founded children's homes (for poor and abandoned children) and monasteries of her Order, Order of Daughters of Mercy.

External links

Bishopric of Subotica
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roman Catholic Diocese Of Subotica

Bačka Subotica