The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Owando is a jurisdiction 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 ...

in the

Republic of Congo The Republic of the Congo (french: République du Congo, ln, Republíki ya Kongó), also known as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic or simply either Congo or the Congo, is a country located in the western coast of Central Africa to the w ...

. On February 11, 2011,

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 ...

appointed Bishop Victor Abagna Mossa as Bishop of Owando. On May 30, 2020, the Diocese of Owando was raised to

Archdiocese 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 associate ...

, and Bishop Victor Abagna Mossa was elevated to

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

History

* December 21, 1950: Established as Apostolic Vicariate of Fort-Rousset * September 14, 1955: Promoted as Diocese of Fort-Rousset * December 3, 1977: Renamed as Diocese of Owando * May 30, 2020: Elevated to Archdiocese of Owando

Bishops

Vicars Apostolic of Fort-Rousset

# Emile-Elie Verhille,

C.S.Sp. , image = Holy Ghost Fathers seal.png , size = 175px , caption = The seal of the Congregation depicting the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Trinity. , abbreviation ...

(1951–1955), title changed to Bishop of Fort-Rousset

Bishops of Fort-Rousset

# Emile-Elie Verhille,

(1955–1968) # Georges Benoit Gassongo (Apostolic Administrator 1968-1970)

Bishops of Owando

# Georges-Firmin Singha (1972–1988), appointed Bishop of Pointe-Noire #

Ernest Kombo Ernest Kombo (March 27, 1941 – October 22, 2008) was a Congo-Brazzaville religious official born in 1941 in Pointe-Noire, French Equatorial Africa. He was ordained a Catholic priest for the Society of Jesus (S.J.) on July 6, 1973. On December 5, 1 ...

, S.J. (1990–2008) #

Louis Portella Mbuyu Louis Portella Mbuyu (born 28 July 1942) is the Catholic Bishop emeritus of Kinkala, in Republic of Congo. Louis Portella Mbuyu was born on 28 July 1942 at Pointe-Noire, Pointe-Noire diocese, in the Kouilou Department. He was ordained in 1967 P ...

(Apostolic Administrator 2008-2011) # Victor Abagna Mossa (2011-2020), elevated to

Archbishops of Owando

# Victor Abagna Mossa (2020-present)

Former Auxiliary Bishops

* Georges Benoit Gassongo (1965-1981)

Suffragan Dioceses

Impfondo Impfondo is a town in the northeastern Republic of the Congo with a population of around 41,000 people, lying on the Oubangui River. It is home to an airport and is linked by river barge to Brazzaville and to Bangui. It is the administrative cen ...

* Ouesso

Sources

GCatholic - Metropolitan Archdiocese of Owando

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Owando Official Site
Roman Catholic dioceses in the Republic of the Congo Christian organizations established in 1950 Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 20th century 1950 establishments in French Equatorial Africa A {{Africa-RC-diocese-stub