The Armenian Catholic Eparchy of Isfahan (or Ispahan or Esfahan) is a
suffragan eparchy
Eparchy ( gr, ἐπαρχία, la, eparchía / ''overlordship'') is an ecclesiastical unit in Eastern Christianity, that is equivalent to a diocese in Western Christianity. Eparchy is governed by an ''eparch'', who is a bishop. Depending on the ...
(
Eastern Catholic
The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous (''sui iuris'') particular churches of ...
diocese), covering all of
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
, in the
ecclesiastical province
An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian Churches with traditional hierarchical structure, including Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity. In general, an ecclesiastical province consists of seve ...
'of Cilicia' of the
Armenian Catholic Patriarch, the head of the
Armenian Catholic Church
, native_name_lang = hy
, image = St Elie - St Gregory Armenian Catholic Cathedral.jpg
, imagewidth = 260px
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Saint Elias and Saint Gregory the Illuminat ...
(
Armenian Rite
The Armenian Rite () is an independent liturgy used by both the Armenian Apostolic and Armenian Catholic Churches.
Liturgy
The liturgy is patterned after the directives of Saint Gregory the Illuminator, first official head and patron sain ...
in the
Armenian language
Armenian ( classical: , reformed: , , ) is an Indo-European language and an independent branch of that family of languages. It is the official language of Armenia. Historically spoken in the Armenian Highlands, today Armenian is widely spoken th ...
).
Its
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 denominatio ...
episcopal see is in
Isfahan,
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
.
History
Established on 30 April 1850 as Eparchy (Diocese) of Ispahan (Esfáan), on territory previously without Ordinary for the
particular church
In metaphysics, particulars or individuals are usually contrasted with universals. Universals concern features that can be exemplified by various different particulars. Particulars are often seen as concrete, spatiotemporal entities as opposed to a ...
''sui iurus''.
Episcopal ordinaries
(all
Armenian Rite
The Armenian Rite () is an independent liturgy used by both the Armenian Apostolic and Armenian Catholic Churches.
Liturgy
The liturgy is patterned after the directives of Saint Gregory the Illuminator, first official head and patron sain ...
)
;''Eparchs (Bishops) of Ispahan
* John Baptist Apcar (1954.09.24 – death 1967.07.09)
* Léonce Tchantayan (1967.08.05 – 1972.01.16); later
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 ...
of
Sebastopolis in Armenia (1972.01.16 – death 1990.11.13) &
Auxiliary Eparch of
Cilicia of the Armenians (Lebanon) (1977 – 1990.11.13)
* Vartan Tékéyan,
Patriarchal Clergy Institute of Bzommar
Patriarchy is a social system in which positions of dominance and privilege are primarily held by men. It is used, both as a technical anthropological term for families or clans controlled by the father or eldest male or group of males a ...
(I.C.P.B.) (1972.12.06 – death 1999.04.12), also President of Iranian Episcopal Conference (1995 – 1999)
*
Neshan Karakéhéyan, I.C.P.B. (2000.09.27 – 2005.04.02), also
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 ...
of Greece of the Armenians (Greece) (2000.09.27 – 2015.03.21); previously Ordinary of
Greece of the Armenians (1991 – 2000.09.27); later Ordinary of
East Europe of the Armenians (Armenia) (2005.04.02 – retired 2010.01.06),
Patriarchal Administrator of Ispahan of the Armenians (2005.04.02 – retired 2015.10.01),
Titular Archbishop
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 ...
of
Adana of the Armenians (2005.04.02 – ...)
*
Sarkis Davidian, I.C.P.B. (2015.10.01 – ...)
See also
*
Catholic Church in Iran
The Catholic Church in Iran is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome. There are about 21,380 Catholics in Iran out of a total population of about 78.9 million. They follow the Chaldean, Arm ...
References
External links
GCatholic with incumbent biography links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Isfahan, Chaldean Catholic Eparchy
Armenian Catholic eparchies
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ' ...