The Roman Catholic Diocese of Varanasi ( la, Varanasien(sis)) is a Latin

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Anglican Communion, a suffragan bishop is a bishop who is subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop (bishop ordinary) and so is not normally jurisdictiona ...

diocese in the Ecclesiastical province of Agra in northern India' s vast state Uttar Pradesh. Its cathedral episcopal see is St. Mary's Cathedral in the city of Varanasi.

History

* Established on 11 July 1946 as Apostolic Prefecture of Gorakhpur, on territory split off from the Diocese of Allahabad, exempt, i.e. directly subject to the Holy See * 17 September 1958: Renamed as Apostolic Prefecture of Benares-Gorakhpur * Promoted on 5 June 1970 as Diocese of

Banaras Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic tra ...

(Benares), losing its exempt status by becoming a

of the Metropolitan

Archdiocese of Agra The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Agra ( la, Agraën(sis)) is a Latin Metropolitan archdiocese in northern India's Uttar Pradesh state. It comproses the following districts in Uttar Pradesh: Agra, Aligarh, Auraiya, Budaun, Bulandshahr, Etah, E ...

* 14 May 1971: Renamed as Diocese of Varanasi (as the city had changed its name).

Ordinaries

(all Latin,

Roman Rite The Roman Rite ( la, Ritus Romanus) is the primary liturgical rite of the Latin Church, the largest of the ''sui iuris'' particular churches that comprise the Catholic Church. It developed in the Latin language in the city of Rome and, while dist ...

) ; ''Apostolic Prefects of Gorakhpur'' * Father Joseph Emil Malenfant,

Capuchin Friars The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. O.F.M. Cap.) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of Three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFM Obs., now OFM) ...

(O.F.M. Cap.) (6 June 1947 – 17 September 1958 ''see below'') ; Apostolic Prefects of ''Benares-Gorakhpur'' * Joseph Emil Malenfant, O.F.M. Cap. (''see above'' 17 September 1958 – 1970) ; ''Bishops of Banaras'' * Patrick Paul D'Souza (5 June 1970 – 14 May 1971 ''see below'') ; Bishops of ''Varanasi'' * Patrick Paul D'Souza (''see above'' 14 May 1971 – 24 February 2007), Vice-President of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (1996 – 1998) * Raphy Manjaly (24 February 2007 – 2013.10.17), later Bishop of

Allahabad Allahabad (), officially known as Prayagraj, also known as Ilahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi (Benares). It is the administrat ...

(India, in the same province) (2013.10.17 – ...) * Eugene Joseph (2015.05.30 – ...)

References

External links

Diocese of Varanasi Official Website

Catholic Hierarchy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Varanasi, Diocese Roman Catholic dioceses in India Christianity in Uttar Pradesh Religion in Varanasi Christian organizations established in 1946 Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 20th century 1946 establishments in India