The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Visakhapatnam/Vizag/Vishakhapatnam ( la, Visakhapatnamen(sis)) is an

archdiocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associat ...

located in the city of

Visakhapatnam , image_alt = , image_caption = From top, left to right: Visakhapatnam aerial view, Vizag seaport, Simhachalam Temple, Aerial view of Rushikonda Beach, Beach road, Novotel Visakhapatnam, INS Kursura submarine museu ...

in India.

History

* 16 March 1845: Established as the Apostolic Pro-Vicariate of Vizagapatam from the Apostolic Vicariate of Madras * 3 April 1850: Promoted as Apostolic Vicariate of Vizagapatam * 1 September 1886: Promoted as Diocese of Vizagapatam * 21 October 1950: Renamed as Diocese of Visakhapatnam * 16 October 2001: Promoted as Metropolitan Archdiocese of Visakhapatnam Claretian Missionary Fathers(CMF) entered the diocese in the year 1888. In 1845 Rome entrusted to the MSFS a vast area of Eastern and Central India with the headquarters at Visakhapatnam. The first group of MSFS landed on the East coast of India on 8 September 1845. The order of Friars Minor Capuchins. A Novitiate was opened in India in 1922 thus planting the order in the Indian soil.(Chinna Waltair) Society of Jesus(K.D. Peta) Congregation of the Missions (C.M) Vincentians (Ukkunagaram)

Leadership

* Arch

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 ...

s of Visakhapatnam (

Latin Rite Latin liturgical rites, or Western liturgical rites, are Catholic rites of public worship employed by the Latin Church, the largest particular church '' sui iuris'' of the Catholic Church, that originated in Europe where the Latin language onc ...

) ** Archbishop Prakash Mallavarapu; Archbishop; formerly Bishop of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Vijayawada The Roman Catholic Diocese of Vijayawada ( la, Viiayavadan(us)) is a diocese located in the city of Vijayawada in the Ecclesiastical province of Visakhapatnam in India. Administratively, the diocese encompasses the geographical Krishna distri ...

, India ** Archbishop Kagithapu Mariadas, M.S.F.S. (16 October 2001 – 3 July 2012); retired * Bishops of Visakhapatnam (Latin Rite) ** Bishop Kagithapu Mariadas, M.S.F.S. (later Archbishop) (10 September 1982 – 16 October 2001) ** Bishop Ignatius Gopu, M.S.F.S. (4 October 1966 – 2 August 1981) ** Bishop Joseph-Alphonse Baud, M.S.F.S. (21 October 1950 – 4 October 1966) * Bishops of Vizagapatam (Latin Rite) ** Bishop Joseph-Alphonse Baud, M.S.F.S. (23 March 1947 – 21 October 1950) ** Bishop Pierre Rossillon, M.S.F.S. (18 June 1926 – 22 March 1947) ** Bishop Jean-Marie Clerc, M.S.F.S. (19 February 1891 – 18 June 1926) ** Bishop

Jean Marie Tissot Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Je ...

, M.S.F.S. (1 September 1886 – 1890) * Vicars Apostolic ** Bishop

, M.S.F.S. (1862 – 1 September 1886) ** Bishop

Theophile Sebastian Neyret Theophilus is a male given name with a range of alternative spellings. Its origin is the Greek word Θεόφιλος from θεός (God) and φιλία (love or affection) can be translated as "Love of God" or "Friend of God", i.e., it is a theoph ...

, M.S.F.S. (3 April 1850–5 Nov 1862) * Pro-Vicars Apostolic ** Fr.

, M.S.F.S. (1847 – 3 April 1850) ** Fr.

Jacques Henri Gailhot Ancient and noble French family names, Jacques, Jacq, or James are believed to originate from the Middle Ages in the historic northwest Brittany region in France, and have since spread around the world over the centuries. To date, there are over ...

, (16 March 1845 – 1847)

Suffragan dioceses

Eluru Eluru is a city and the district headquarters of Eluru district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is one of the 14 municipal corporations in the state and the mandal headquarters of Eluru mandal in the Eluru revenue division. The cit ...

Guntur Guntur () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Guntur district in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Guntur is spread across 168.49 km square and is the third-largest city in the state. ...

Nellore Nellore is a city located on the banks of Penna River, in Nellore district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It serves as the headquarters of the district, as well as Nellore mandal and Nellore revenue division. It is the fourth most p ...

Srikakulam Srikakulam is a city and the headquarters of Srikakulam district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. census,. it has a population of 165,735. There are many other places of Buddhist Tourism such as Salihundam, Kalinga Patnam, Dabbaka Vaa ...

Vijayawada Vijayawada, formerly known as Bezawada, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and is a part of the state's Capital Region. It is the administrative headquarters of the NTR district. Its metropolitan region comprises N ...

References

Sources

GCatholic.org

Catholic Hierarchy

Official Website of the Archdiocese of Visakhapatnam
{{DEFAULTSORT:Visakhapatnam Roman Catholic dioceses in India Religious organizations established in 1850 Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 19th century Christianity in Andhra Pradesh 1850 establishments in India