The Roman Catholic Diocese of Rarotonga (
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
: ''Dioecesis Rarotongana'') in the
Cook Islands
)
, image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg
, capital = Avarua
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Avarua
, official_languages =
, lan ...
is a suffragan diocese of the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Suva
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Suva (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Suvana'') is a Metropolitan Archdiocese in Fiji. It is responsible for the suffragan dioceses of Rarotonga and Tarawa and Nauru and —as of 21 March 2003—the Mission '' ...
in neighbouring
Fiji
Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
. It was erected as the
Prefecture Apostolic
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 ...
of Cook and Manihiki in 1922, elevated to the
Vicariate Apostolic of Cook Islands in 1948 and elevated as the Diocese of Rarotonga in 1966.
Bishops
*
Bernardin Castanié,
C.I.M. (1923–1939)
*
John David Hubaldus Lehman, C.I.M. (1939–1959)
*
Hendrick Joseph Cornelius Maria de Cocq
Hendrick Joseph Cornelius Maria de Cocq, SS.CC. (6 May 1906 – 22 January 1998) was a Dutch prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of the Diocese of Rarotonga from 1966 until his resignation in 1971.
Biography
Early life ...
,
SS.CC. (1964–1971)
*
John Hubert Macey Rodgers,
S. M. (1973–1977)
*
Denis George Browne (1977–1983)
*
Robin Walsh Leamy, S. M. (1984–1996)
*
Stuart France O'Connell, S. M. (1996–2011)
*
Paul Donoghue,
S.M. (2011– )
Education
Primary Schools
Saint Josephs School, Rarotonga
Saint Mary's School, Mauke Island (now closed down)
Secondary (High) School
Nukutere College
Nukutere College is a Roman Catholic secondary List of Christian Brothers schools, school located in Avarua, Roman Catholic Diocese of Rarotonga, Rarotonga, Cook Islands. It is the country’s only Catholic secondary school and has an important e ...
, Rarotonga
Churches
Catholic Cathedral of Rarotonga (and the Cook Islands)
Saint Joseph's Cathedral is the only Catholic Cathedral in the Cook Islands. The Cathedral is located in
Avarua.
Three Catholic churches in Rarotonga also serve the local faithful: St Mary's in
Arorangi Village, St Paul's in Titikaveka Village and Sacred Heart in
Matavera village.
External links and references
*
Catholic Church in the Cook Islands
Catholic Church in Niue
Rarotonga
Rarotonga is the largest and most populous of the Cook Islands. The island is volcanic, with an area of , and is home to almost 75% of the country's population, with 13,007 of a total population of 17,434. The Cook Islands' Parliament buildings a ...
Rarotonga
1922 establishments in Oceania
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