{{short description, None The Catholic Church in Morocco, Mauritania and Western Sahara (which is occupied and claimed by Morocco; all three share a Franco-Spanish colonial past) is composed only of a Latin hierarchy (no

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 ...

), without a single

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 ...

, as all are exempt, i.e. directly dependent on 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 ...

, comprising: * two non-metropolitan archbishoprics, both in Morocco; * a bishopric for all Mauritania; and * an apostolic prefecture for all Western Sahara. Neither country has its own

episcopal conference An episcopal conference, sometimes called a conference of bishops, is an official assembly of the bishops of the Catholic Church in a given territory. Episcopal conferences have long existed as informal entities. The first assembly of bishops to ...

either, but * Morocco and Western Sahara are covered by the Regional Episcopal Conference of North Africa, with seat in Rabat (Morocco), which also includes states

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

(Ecclesiastical Province of Alger),

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Suda ...

and

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

(both entirely exempt), hence covering the Great Maghreb (western region of the Arab world) except Mauritania. * Mauritania is covered by the Episcopal Conference of Senegal, Mauritania, Cape Verde and Guinea-Bissau, with seat in Dakar (Senegal). There is an Apostolic Nunciature (embassy level) to Morocco (in national capital Rabat) and an Apostolic Delegation (lower level) to Mauritania (actually vested in the Apostolic Nunciature to Senegal, in its capital Dakar) as papal diplomatic representations, none for Western Sahara.

Current (Latin) dioceses

(Regional Episcopal Conference of North Africa)

Morocco

(both exempt, not Metropolitan) * Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Rabat * Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Tanger

Mauritania

Roman Catholic Diocese of Nouakchott The Diocese of Nouakchott is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church situated in Nouakchott, Mauritania. It is the only Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Mauritania. The Cathedral of St. Joseph is located i ...

, exempt, for the whole country

(Regional Episcopal Conference of Senegal, Mauritania, Cape Verde and Guinea-Bissau)

Western Sahara

* Apostolic Prefecture of Western Sahara, exempt, for the whole country

Defunct sees

Only Morocco has two

titular bishopric A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbish ...

s, both of the episcopal (lowest) rank, being former suffragan sees, but both were suppressed as titular sees as well. *

Fez Fez most often refers to: * Fez (hat), a type of felt hat commonly worn in the Ottoman Empire * Fez, Morocco (or Fes), the second largest city of Morocco Fez or FEZ may also refer to: Media * ''Fez'' (Frank Stella), a 1964 painting by the moder ...

* Marocco (now Marrakech) All other defunct jurisdictions have current successor sees.

Sources and external links

GCatholic.org - Morocco

* * *

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...

Catholic dioceses Catholic dioceses Catholic dioceses