The Roman Catholic Diocese of Astorga ( la, Asturicensis) is a diocese whose

seat A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but also headquarters in a wider sense. Types of seat The following are examples of different kinds of seat: * Armchair (furniture), ...

is in the city of Astorga, in the province of León,

Castile and León Castile and León ( es, Castilla y León ; ast-leo, Castiella y Llión ; gl, Castela e León ) is an autonomous community in northwestern Spain. It was created in 1983, eight years after the end of the Francoist regime, by the merging of the ...

, Spain."Diocese of Astorga"
'' Catholic-Hierarchy.org''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved February 29, 2016"Diocese of Astorga"
''GCatholic.org''. Gabriel Chow. Retrieved February 29, 2016 The diocese is a part of the ecclesiastical province of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Oviedo since 1954. It traces its foundation to the 3rd century, making it one of the oldest in Spain.

History

The first bishop for whom there is any documentary evidence was Belisarius, who served during the reign ( from 249 to 251) of the Emperor Decius and faced the persecution waged under this ruler. The bishop was dismissed from his position, accused of having been a ''libellaticus'', i.e., a Christian who had offered sacrifice to the Roman gods to avoid arrest. The bishop was re-instated after the intervention of the prominent African bishop, Cyprian, and Pope Stephen I. It was a

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Anglican Communion, a suffragan bishop is a bishop who is subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop (bishop ordinary) and so is not normally jurisdictiona ...

of the

Archdiocese of Braga The Archdiocese of Braga ( la, Archidioecesis Bracarensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Portugal. It is known for its use of the Rite of Braga, a use of the liturgy distinct from the Roma ...

The next bishop, Sabinus, led the Christian community through the persecution of the Emperor Valerian. The Christians martyred during this period included the schoolboys saints, Justus and Pastor, as well as their aunt, Martha, who became the patron saint of the diocese. The diocese was represented at the Synod of Elvira (ca. A.D. 305), the first major assembly of the Church in Hispania. During the waves of invasion of the peninsula by the Germanic tribes, one bishop was the noted Turibio. He documented the conversion of the Suebic King Resimund to

Arianism Arianism ( grc-x-koine, Ἀρειανισμός, ) is a Christological doctrine first attributed to Arius (), a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt. Arian theology holds that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who was begotten by God ...

, and worked to restore the churches destroyed by the Visigothic King Theodoric II. The bishop was able to travel to Rome, from which he brought back what is believed to be a

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...

of the True Cross, for which he founded the Monastery of

Santo Toribio de Liébana The Monastery of Santo Toribio de Liébana is a Roman Catholic monastery located in the district of Liébana, near Potes in Cantabria, Spain. Located in the Cantabrian Mountains in northern Spain, the monastery is one of the five places in Christ ...

, where it is still preserved.

Present

The diocese maintains its own school of formation for its clergy, the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception, which was founded on 1 November 1766, with the current structure being built in 1799.

Prelates

* Pedro da Fonseca (5 Jun 1413 – 7 Jun 1419 Resigned) :''. . .'' *

Bernardino López de Carvajal y Sande Bernardino is a name of Italian, Hispanic, or Portuguese origin, which can refer to: Given name * Bernardino Baldi (1533–1617), Italian mathematician and writer *Bernardino Bertolotti (born 1547), Italian composer and instrumentalist *Bernard ...

(27 Aug 1488 – 23 Jan 1489 Appointed Bishop of Badajoz) * Juan Ruiz de Medina (1489–1493 Appointed Bishop of Badajoz) * Diego Meléndez de Valdés (1493–1494 Appointed Bishop of Zamora)" Bishop Diego Meléndez de Valdés"
'' Catholic-Hierarchy.org''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved July 18, 2016 * Juan de Castilla (1494–1498 Appointed

Diego Ramírez de Fuenleal Diego Ramírez de Fuenleal (7 December 1459 – 11 August 1537) (also known as Diego Ramírez de Haro, Diego Ramírez de Villaescusa, or Diego Ramírez de Arellano) was a Roman Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Cuenca (1518–1537), Bisho ...

(1498 – 7 Feb 1500 Appointed

Bishop of Malaga 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 ca ...

)"Bishop Diego Ramírez de Fuenleal"
'' Catholic-Hierarchy.org''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved August 26, 2016 * Francisco Desprats (9 Feb–4 Dec 1500 Appointed Bishop of León) * Sancho Pérez Rodríguez de Acebes (4 Dec 1500 – 21 Apr 1515 Died) * Alvaro Osorio, O.P. (1 Jun 1515 – 10 Apr 1539 Died) *

Esteban Almeida Esteban () is a Spanish male given name, derived from Greek Στέφανος (Stéphanos) and related to the English names Steven and Stephen. Although in its original pronunciation the accent is on the penultimate syllable, English-speakers tend t ...

(18 Aug 1539 – 2 Jun 1542 Appointed Bishop of León) * Diego Alava Esquivel (8 Jun 1543 – 7 May 1548 Appointed Bishop of Ávila) * Pedro Acuña Avellaneda (4 Jun 1548 – 5 Jun 1555 Appointed

Francisco Sarmiento Mendoza Francisco Sarmiento de Mendoza (Burgos, 10 July 1525 - Jaén, 9 June 1595) was a Spanish canon lawyer and bishop. Life Mendoza was born into a noble family at Burgos. At the age of 21 years he already occupied a professorial chair in canon law ...

(4 Jun 1574 – 27 May 1580 Appointed Bishop of Jaén) *

Alfonso Delgado Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic kingdom in the Iberian peninsula. ...

(22 Jun 1580 – 21 Aug 1583 Died) *

Antonio Torres (bishop) Antonio Torres may refer to: * Antônio Torres, Brazilian writer. * António Torres (rower), Portuguese rower * Antonio Alberto Torres (born 1994), Mexican footballer * Antonio de Torres Jurado (1817–1892), Spanish guitarist and luthier * Ant ...

(9 Jan 1584 – 14 Feb 1588 Died) *

Alberto Aguayo Alberto is the Romance version of the Latinized form (''Albertus'') of Germanic ''Albert''. It is used in Italian, Portuguese and Spanish. The diminutive forms are ''Albertito'' in Spain or ''Albertico'' in some parts of Latin America, Albe ...

, O.P. (8 Aug 1588 – 16 Dec 1589 Died) * Juan Zarzola (17 Apr 1589 – 1 Nov 1590 Died) *

Pedro Rojas Henríques Pedro is a masculine given name. Pedro is the Spanish language, Spanish, Portuguese language, Portuguese, and Galician language, Galician name for ''Peter (given name), Peter''. Its French equivalent is Pierre while its English and Germanic fo ...

, O.S.A. (6 Mar 1591 – 30 Aug 1595 Appointed Bishop of Osma) * Antonio de Cáceres, O.P. (8 Nov 1595 – 18 Aug 1615 Died) *

Alfonso Mesía de Tovar Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic kingdom in the Iberian peninsula. ...

(27 Feb 1616 – 13 Jul 1636 Died) * Luis García Rodríguez (9 Feb 1637 – 18 Apr 1638 Died) *

Diego Salcedo Benacos Bishop Diego Salcedo Benacos (May 30, 1575 – April 2, 1644) was a Spanish bishop. He became Roman Catholic bishop of Astorga The Roman Catholic Diocese of Astorga ( la, Asturicensis) is a diocese whose seat is in the city of Astorga, in the ...

(11 Apr 1639 – 28 Mar 1644 Died) * Bernardo Atayde de Lima Perera (14 Nov 1644 – 5 Oct 1654 Appointed Bishop of Ávila) *

Nicolás Martinez (bishop) Nicholas Martinez, Nicolás Martínez, or Nick Martinez may refer to: * Nick Martinez (baseball player) (born 1990), American professional baseball player * Nicolás Martínez (footballer, born 1984), Argentine defender * Nicolás Martínez (footb ...

, O.S.H. (9 Nov 1654 – 21 Jun 1660 Appointed Bishop of Osma) *

Juan Vallejo ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of '' John''. It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking communities around the world and in the Philippines, and also (pronounced differently) in the Isle of Man. In Spanis ...

(20 Sep 1660 – 8 Oct 1661 Died) * Nicolás Rodríguez Hermosino (5 Jun 1662 – 23 Jan 1669 Died) * Matías de Moratinos y Santos (5 Aug 1669 – 3 Oct 1672 Appointed

Bishop of Segovia 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 ca ...

) *

Rodrigo de Mandia y Parga Rodrigo is a Spanish, Portuguese and Italian name derived from the Germanic name '' Roderick'' (Gothic ''*Hroþareiks'', via Latinized ''Rodericus'' or ''Rudericus''), given specifically in reference to either King Roderic (d. 712), the last ...

(12 Dec 1672 – 20 Oct 1674 Died) *

Diego de Silva y Pacheco Diego is a Spanish masculine given name. The Portuguese equivalent is Diogo. The name also has several patronymic derivations, listed below. The etymology of Diego is disputed, with two major origin hypotheses: ''Tiago'' and ''Didacus''. ...

, O.S.B. (27 May 1675 – 22 Mar 1677 Died) * Francisco Aguado (13 Sep 1677 – 14 Feb 1688 Died) *

Antonio de Brizuela y Salamanca Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language-speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular m ...

(13 Sep 1688 – 13 Apr 1693 Appointed Bishop of Jaén) * Antonio Sanjurjo Miranda, O.P. (8 Jun 1693 – Jan 1707 Died) *José Aparicio y Navarro (28 Nov 1707 – 30 Jan 1723 Died) *Crisóstomo Vargas, O. Cist. (30 Aug 1723 – 14 May 1728 Died) *José Francisco Bermúdez Mandía (15 Nov 1728 – 3 Mar 1736 Died) *Pedro Cáceres Casado (27 Jan 1738 – 15 Sep 1747 Died) *Matías Escalzo Acedo (4 Mar 1748 – 11 Nov 1749 Died) *Francisco Javier Sánchez Cabezón (27 Apr 1750 – 27 Jan 1767 Died) *Juan Manuel Merino y Lumbreras (1 Jun 1767 – 5 Aug 1782 Died) *Antonio Andrés López Arroyo, O.F.M. (15 Dec 1783 – 14 Mar 1787 Died) *

Manuel Abad y Lasierra Manuel Abad y Lasierra (1729–1806) was a Spanish people, Spanish bishop and writer who was Grand Inquisitor of Enlightenment in Spain, Spain from 1793 to 1794. Biography Manuel Abad y Lasierra was born in Estadilla on December 24, 1729. His fa ...

, O.S.B. (28 Sep 1787 – 9 Apr 1791 Resigned) *Francisco Isidoro Gutiérrez Vigil (11 Apr 1791 – 13 Oct 1805 Died) *Manuel Vicente Martínez y Jiménez (31 Mar 1806 – 22 Jul 1816 Appointed Archbishop of Zaragoza) *Santiago Bencomo y Rodríguez (1 Oct 1817 – 2 Mar 1818 Died) *Guillermo Martínez Riaguas (29 Mar 1819 – 24 Oct 1824 Died) *Manuel Bernardo Morete Bodelón (21 Mar 1825 – 2 Jan 1828 Died) *Leonardo Santander y Villavicencio (23 Jun 1828 – 30 Apr 1832 Died) * Félix Torres Amat (20 Jan 1834 – 29 Dec 1847 Died) *Juan Nepomuceno Cascallana y Ordóñez (7 Jan 1850 – 5 Sep 1851 Confirmed,

) *Benito Forcelledo Tuero (18 Mar 1852 – 23 Jun 1858 Died) *Fernando Argüelles Miranda (23 Dec 1858 – 2 Sep 1870 Died) *Mariano Brezmes y Arredondo (17 Sep 1875 – 11 Nov 1885 Died) *Juan Bautista Grau y Vallespinos (10 Jun 1886 – 18 Sep 1893 Died) *Vicente Alonso y Salgado, Sch. P. (21 May 1894 – 25 Jun 1903 Appointed

Bishop of Cartagena The Diocese of Cartagena ( la, Carthaginen(sis) in Hispania) is the diocese of the city of Cartagena in the Ecclesiastical province of Granada in Spain.Bishop of Segovia 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 ca ...

) *Julián de Diego y García Alcolea (14 Nov 1904 – 18 Jul 1913 Appointed

Bishop of Salamanca The Roman Catholic Diocese of Salamanca ( la, Dioecesis Salmantina) is a diocese located in the city of Salamanca in the Ecclesiastical province of Valladolid in Spain.Marcelo González Martín Marcelo González Martín (16 January 1918 – 25 August 2004) was a cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church and Archbishop of Toledo and Primate of Spain. González Martín was born in Villanubla, Valladolid Province as the son of Marcelo Gonz� ...

(31 Dec 1960 – 21 Feb 1966 Appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Barcelona) *Antonio Briva Mirabent (18 May 1967 – 20 Jun 1994 Died) *

Camilo Lorenzo Iglesias Camilio Lorenzo Iglesias (7 August 1940 – 13 July 2020) was a Spanish Catholic bishop. Lorenzo Iglesias was born in Spain and was ordained to the priesthood in 1966. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Astorga The Roman Catholic Diocese of ...

(14 Jun 1995 – 18 Nov 2015 Retired) * Juan Antonio Menéndez Fernandez (18 Nov 2015 – 15 May 2019 Died) * Jesús Fernández González (8 Jun 2020 – Present)

References

External links

GCatholic.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Astorga Roman Catholic dioceses in Spain Dioceses established in the 3rd century

History

Present

Prelates

See also

References

External links