The Catholic Church in Libya is part of the worldwide

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

, under the spiritual leadership of the

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

Characteristics

Among the Catholics are Italian Libyans and Maltese Libyans. Thousands of Filipino Catholic nurses moved to Libya during the 1980s and 1990s. The Italians were the majority of the Catholics in Libya until their expulsion in 1969 by Colonel

Gaddafi Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi, . Due to the lack of standardization of transcribing written and regionally pronounced Arabic, Gaddafi's name has been romanized in various ways. A 1986 column by ''The Straight Dope'' lists 32 spellin ...

. There are no dioceses in Libya, but there are four territorial jurisdictions - three

Apostolic Administration 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 admi ...

s and one

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 ...

. * Apostolic Vicariate of Benghazi * Apostolic Vicariate of Derna *

Apostolic Vicariate of Tripoli The Apostolic Vicariate of Tripoli ( la, Vicariatus Apostolicus Tripolitanus) is a Latin Church missionary territory or apostolic vicariate of the Catholic Church in Tripolitania, Libya. It is immediately exempt to the Holy See, depending on t ...

* Apostolic Prefecture of Misrata

History

Christianity has been present in Libya since Roman times. Saint

Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, better known as Saint Francis of Assisi ( it, Francesco d'Assisi; – 3 October 1226), was a mystic Italian Catholic friar, founder of the Franciscans, and one of the most venerated figures in Christianit ...

brought his faith to Tripoli in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

. The Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli (Our Lady of the Angels) in the Old City - Medina of Tripoli was founded in 1645 and, with the permission of the Sultan of

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

, the Church of the Immaculate Conception was founded in Benghazi in 1858. Before

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

the number of Catholics increased in Libya due to its status as an Italian colony, but the Catholic Cathedral of Tripoli (built in the 1920s) was converted to a

mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

in the 1990s by

Muammar Gaddafi Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi, . Due to the lack of standardization of transcribing written and regionally pronounced Arabic, Gaddafi's name has been romanized in various ways. A 1986 column by '' The Straight Dope'' lists 32 spellin ...

's regime. The other Catholic cathedral in Libya, the

Benghazi Cathedral Benghazi Cathedral is a former Roman Catholic church in the city of Benghazi, Libya. It is located in the city center. History Benghazi Cathedral was built between 1929 and 1939 on land formerly occupied by Arabs, and was one of the largest chur ...

is under renovation as a stock exchange.

Current

There are currently two Catholic churches in Libya, the Church of San Francesco in Tripoli (led until 2017 by

Giovanni Innocenzo Martinelli Giovanni Innocenzo Martinelli OFM (5 February 1942, in El Khadra, Libya – 30 December 2019, in Saccolongo, Italy) was an Italian Roman Catholic prelate, who was a Vicar Apostolic of Tripoli and the Titular Bishop of Tabuda. Life Martinelli ...

) and the Maria Immacolata Parish Church in

Benghazi Benghazi () , ; it, Bengasi; tr, Bingazi; ber, Bernîk, script=Latn; also: ''Bengasi'', ''Benghasi'', ''Banghāzī'', ''Binghāzī'', ''Bengazi''; grc, Βερενίκη ('' Berenice'') and ''Hesperides''., group=note (''lit. Son of he Ghaz ...

, both of which are led by

Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

priests from the Province of St. Paul the Apostle (

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

). Each church is made up of "personal parishes" based on language, with each personal parish assigned its own priest. In 2017 there were only 300 Catholics in Libya.Martinelli refuses to leave his last 300 Catholics (in Italian)
/ref>

Notes

External links

Official website of the Catholic Church in Libya
{{DEFAULTSORT:Catholic Church in Libya

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 ...

Characteristics

History

Current

See also

Notes

External links