The Cathedral of St. Philip the Apostle in Puerto Plata ( es, Catedral de San Felipe Apóstol ) Also known as Puerto Plata Cathedral, and as St. Philip the Apostle Cathedral is a

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 ...

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 ...

that is located in Calle José del Carmen Ariza 36 of the city of Puerto Plata part of the province of the same name to the north of the island of

Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ; es, La Española; Latin and french: Hispaniola; ht, Ispayola; tnq, Ayiti or Quisqueya) is an island in the Caribbean that is part of the Greater Antilles. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and th ...

and the Caribbean country of the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...

, It should not be confused with other cathedrals of the same name (''San Felipe Apóstol'') in

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

and

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

. The earlier wooden church was destroyed by a fire in 1863 during the " Dominican War of Restoration" (''Guerra de Restauración''). Construction of the present church began in 1870 under Pedro Tomás de Mena. Reconstruction of the church began in 1929 and was completed in 1956. The reconstruction took longer than expected due to an earthquake in 1946. In 2003 yet another earthquake damaged the structure, which was fully repaired by 2008. The cathedral, built in a modern Victorian style, and is the mother (or main church) of the Diocese of Puerto Plata (''Dioecesis Portus Argentarii'') which was created by the then

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

in 1996 through the papal bull "Venerabilis Frater" from territory formerly belonging to the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santiago de los Caballeros The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santiago de los Caballeros ( la, Archidioecesis Sancti Iacobi Equitum) is a Latin rite Metropolitan Archdiocese in the Dominican Republic. History * Established on 25 September 1953 as the Diocese of Santiago de ...

. It is under the pastoral responsibility of

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Julio César Corniel Amaro Julio is the Spanish equivalent of the month July and may refer to: *Julio (given name) *Julio (surname) *Júlio de Castilhos, a municipality of the western part of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil * ''Julio'' (album), a 1983 compilation albu ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:St. Philip the Apostle Cathedral, Church Roman Catholic cathedrals in the Dominican Republic Roman Catholic churches completed in 1956 Buildings and structures in Puerto Plata Province Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings Victorian architecture

See also

References