The Apostolic Prefecture of French Colonies in India (sometimes confusingly called 'of Pondicherry') was an exempt pre-diocesan jurisdiction for Latin Catholic missions in the colonial enclaves constituting
French India
French India, formally the ( en, French Settlements in India), was a French colony comprising five geographically separated enclaves on the Indian Subcontinent that had initially been factories of the French East India Company. They were ''de ...
.
History
In 1777 it was established as
Apostolic Prefecture
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 the
French Colonies
From the 16th to the 17th centuries, the First French colonial empire stretched from a total area at its peak in 1680 to over , the second largest empire in the world at the time behind only the Spanish Empire. During the 19th and 20th centuri ...
in
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, not entitled to a
titular bishop
A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese.
By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...
, without a direct predecessor.
On 1886.09.01 it was suppressed, its territory being reassigned to the previously co-existent Metropolitan
Archdiocese of Pondicherry (now Metropolitan Archdiocese of Pondicherry and Cuddalore).
Ordinaries
(all
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 ...
and missionary priests from Europe, notably from Latin congregations)
;''Apostolic Prefects of the French Colonies in India''
* Sebastien de Nevers,
Capuchin Franciscans
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.) (born
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, as probably most of his successors) (1776.09.28 – 1980.11.27)
* Donatus Aurelinensis, O.F.M. Cap. (1780.11.27 – 1786.09.11)
* Hilarius Pictaviensis, O.F.M. Cap. (1786.09.11 – 1788.11.24)
* Damasus d’Oleron, O.F.M. Cap. (1788.11.24 – ?)
* Benedictus di Monterotundo, O.F.M. Cap. (1792.02.21 – ?)
* Pierre-Jean-Norbert Calmels, (1828.06.14 – 1859)
* Pierre Brunie (1859 – ?)
See also
*
Goa Inquisition
The Goa Inquisition ( pt, Inquisição de Goa) was an extension of the Portuguese Inquisition in Portuguese India. Its objective was to enforce Catholic Orthodoxy and allegiance to the Apostolic See of Rome (Pontifex). The inquisition primaril ...
*
List of Catholic dioceses in India
With the establishment of Syro Malabar eparchies of Shamshabad and Hosur in October 2017, the Catholic Church in India includes 174 dioceses, of which 132 are Roman, 31 are Syro-Malabar, and 11 are Syro-Malankara. These are organised into 29 ecc ...
*
Persecution of Hindus
Hindus have experienced both historical and ongoing religious persecution and systematic violence, in the form of forced conversions, documented massacres, genocides, demolition and desecration of temples, as well as the destruction of ed ...
*
Roman Catholicism in India
The Catholic Church in India is part of the worldwide Catholic Church under the leadership of the Pope (''Romanus Pontifex''). There are over 20 million Catholics in India,
Source and external links
* Adrien Launay
''Histoire des Missions de l'Inde. Pondicherry, Maissour, Coimbatour'' 5 volumes, Paris 1898
{{DEFAULTSORT:French Colonies in India, Apostolic Prefecture
Former Roman Catholic dioceses in India
Apostolic prefectures
French India
Religious organizations established in 1777
Religious organizations disestablished in 1886