The Apostolic Vicariate (or Vicariate Apostolic) of San Miguel de Sucumbíos ( la, Apostolicus Vicariatus Sancti Michaëlis de Sucumbios) is a missionary entity of the

Roman 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 ...

. Its cathedral see, the Catedral Nuestra Señora del Cisne, is located in the city of Nueva Loja,

Sucumbíos Province Sucumbíos () is a province in northeast Ecuador. The capital and largest city is Nueva Loja (normally referred to as Lago Agrio). It is the fifth largest province in the country, with an area of 18,084 km2. In 2010, it had a population of ...

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...

History

On 16 April 1924

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI ( it, Pio XI), born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti (; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939), was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 to his death in February 1939. He was the first sovereign of Vatican City f ...

established the Prefecture Apostolic of San Miguel de Sucumbíos from the

Apostolic Vicariate of Napo The Apostolic Vicariate (Vicariate Apostolic) of Napo ( la, Apostolicus Vicariatus Napensis) is a missionary circonscription (quasi-diocese) of the Roman Catholic Church. Its cathedral see, Catedral San José, is located in the city of Tena, capi ...

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 ...

elevated it to an Apostolic Vicariate on 2 July 1984. It remains exempt, i.e. directly subject to the Holy See, not part of an ecclesiastical province.

Nomination conflict with the Ecuadorian state

In October 2010, after López Marañon of the

Discalced Carmelites The Discalced Carmelites, known officially as the Order of the Discalced Carmelites of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel ( la, Ordo Fratrum Carmelitarum Discalceatorum Beatae Mariae Virginis de Monte Carmelo) or the Order of Discalced Carme ...

retired at the mandatory age of 75, the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

appointed Rafael Ibarguren, of the

Heralds of the Gospel The Heralds of the Gospel ( pt, Arautos do Evangelho; la, Evangelii Praecones, abbreviated to EP) is a Roman Catholic International Association of Pontifical Right based in Brazil. Founded by Msgr. João Scognamiglio Clá Dias, the organizat ...

Apostolic Administrator An Apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic adm ...

(''ad interim'' for the Ordinary) of the Vicariate Apostolic. Ecuadorian President

Rafael Correa Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado (; born 6 April 1963), known as Rafael Correa, is an Ecuadorian politician and economist who served as President of Ecuador from 2007 to 2017. The leader of the PAIS Alliance political movement from its foundation ...

objected to the nomination as he considered Ibarguren 'ultraconservative and fundamentalist', he also feared that Ibarguren would destroy all the social work his predecessor had achieved. Correa asserted that he could veto the nomination of Ibarguren on the basis of a ''

Modus vivendi ''Modus vivendi'' (plural ''modi vivendi'') is a Latin phrase that means "mode of living" or " way of life". It often is used to mean an arrangement or agreement that allows conflicting parties to coexist in peace. In science, it is used to descr ...

'' agreement between Ecuador and the

. The

Episcopal Conference of Ecuador Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese * Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United Stat ...

asserted otherwise. Relations between the two entities were strained and believers within Sucumbíos were divided in those supporting the Heralds of the Gospel and those who did not. On 5 December 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 sovereig ...

named Paolo Mietto Apolostic Administrator. This member of the missionary Congregation of Saint Joseph was succeeded by a fellow Josephite Celmo Lazzari, the former Apostolic Vicar of neighbouring 'mother vicariate' Napo, as Apostolic vicar.

Incumbent Ordinaries

;Apostolic prefects (all

(O.C.D.) *Pacifico del Carmine, O.C.D. † (21 May 1937 – 1954) *Manuel Gomez Frande, O.C.D. † (18 November 1955 – 1968) * Gonzalo López Marañon, O.C.D. † (26 June 1970 – ''see below) ;Apostolic vicars * Gonzalo López Marañon, O.C.D. † (''see above'' – 30 October 2010) *''Apostolic Administrator'' Rafael Ibarguren Schindler (30 October 2010 – 10 February 2012) *''Apostolic Administrator'' Paolo Mietto, C.S.I. (10 February 2012 – 21 November 2013) * Celmo Lazzari, C.S.I. (21 November 2013 – incumbent)

Sources and References

Roman Catholic dioceses in Ecuador Christian organizations established in 1924 {{Ecuador-RC-diocese-stub

History

Nomination conflict with the Ecuadorian state

Incumbent Ordinaries

See also

Sources and References