The Catholic Church in

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest List of ci ...

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 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, under the spiritual leadership of the

Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. Catholicism arrived in Ivory Coast through the arrival of

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

settlers. The Catholic Church is the world's largest Christian church, and its largest religious grouping. There are an estimated 2.8 million baptised Catholics in Ivory Coast, 17.2% of the population (according to the 2014 Census), in 15

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, 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 Roman province, prov ...

s. There are 2,000

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

s and 1,200 men and women in religious orders. The

Basilica of Our Lady of Peace of Yamoussoukro The Basilica of Our Lady of Peace (, ) is a Catholic minor basilica dedicated to Our Lady of Peace in Yamoussoukro, the administrative capital of Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast). Guinness World Records lists it as the largest church in the world, h ...

Yamoussoukro Yamoussoukro (; , locally ) is the capital city of Ivory Coast and an autonomous district. As of the 2014 census, Yamoussoukro is the fifth most populous city in the Ivory Coast, with a population of 212,670. Located north-west of Abidjan, the ...

, is the largest church in the world, larger even than

St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican (), or simply St. Peter's Basilica (; ), is a church of the Italian High Renaissance located in Vatican City, an independent microstate enclaved within the city of Rome, Italy. It was initiall ...

in Rome.

History

Origins

In 1634, the first missionaries, six Capuchin firars from

Saint-Malo Saint-Malo (, , ; Gallo language, Gallo: ; ) is a historic French port in Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany (administrative region), Brittany. The Fortification, walled city on the English Channel coast had a long history of piracy, earning much wealth ...

, landed at Abiany, today called

Assinie Assinie-Mafia is a coastal resort town in south-eastern Ivory Coast. It is a sub-prefecture of Adiaké Department in Sud-Comoé Region, Comoé District. Geography Assinie-Mafia is located 80 kilometres east of Abidjan along the coast of th ...

. Though they were initially welcomed by the locals, the mission failed as four of the priests died due to fever and the remaining two fled to the Portuguese fort in

Axim Axim is a coastal town and the capital of Nzema East Municipal district, a district in Western Region of South Ghana. Axim lies 64 kilometers west of the port city of Sekondi-Takoradi in the Western Region, west of Cape Three Points. Axim ha ...

in 1638.

Modernity

In 1961, upon invitation from local Catholics participating at the "International Meetings" at the

monastery of Toumliline The Monastery of Toumliline (French language, French: ''Monastère de Toumliline'') was a Benedictines, Benedictine monastery in Toumliline, Morocco. It was the only Benedictine monastery in Morocco and hosted the ''International Meetings'', an a ...

, the

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

established the monastery of St. Marie de Bouake. The Capuchins maintain again a presence in the country since December 1976, and the mission was proclaimed a Custody on 1 January 1984. Bernard Yago became the first cardinal of the country on 2 February 1983 when he was consecrated by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

Cardinal-Priest A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. ...

San Crisogono San Crisogono is a church in Rome (rione Trastevere) dedicated to the martyr Saint Chrysogonus. It was one of the tituli, the first parish churches of Rome, and was probably built in the 4th century under Pope Sylvester I (314–335). T ...

. He was one of the few priests in the Ivory Coast who openly opposed the construction of the gargantuan

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek Basiliké) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek Eas ...

, modeled on

in Vatican City, built by the former president

Félix Houphouët-Boigny Félix Houphouët-Boigny (; 18 October 1905 – 7 December 1993), affectionately called Papa Houphouët or Le Vieux ("The Old One"), was an Ivorian politician and physician who served as the first List of heads of state of Ivory Coast, pr ...

in his home village of

because of the enormous waste of hundreds of millions of dollars, and attempted to persuade Pope John Paul II from consecrating it during his visit to the country. Due to the presence of around 3,000 Lebanese

Maronites Maronites (; ) are a Syriac Christian ethnoreligious group native to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant (particularly Lebanon) whose members belong to the Maronite Church. The largest concentration has traditionally resided near Mount ...

, there is also a Maronite parish in Abidjan that was founded in 1954 by the

Lebanese Maronite Order The Baladites, formally known as the Lebanese Maronite Order (; abbreviated OLM), is a monastic order among the Levant-based, Catholic Maronite Church, which from the beginning has been specifically a monastic Church. The order was founded in 1 ...

. The parish belongs to the

Maronite Catholic Eparchy of the Annunciation The Eparchy of the Annunciation is an Eparchy of the Maronite Church immediately subject to the Holy See located in Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Senegal and Angola. Its current ordinary is Eparch Simon Faddoul. Territory a ...

Organisation

Within Ivory Coast the hierarchy consists of: *

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Abidjan The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Abidjan () is the Metropolitan bishop, Metropolitan Episcopal See, See for the ecclesiastical province of Abidjan in Côte d'Ivoire. History * June 28, 1895: Established as Apostolic Prefecture of Costa d'Avorio ...

** Roman Catholic Diocese of Agboville ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Grand-Bassam **

Roman Catholic Diocese of Yopougon The Roman Catholic Diocese of Yopougon () is a diocese located in the city of Yopougon in the ecclesiastical province of Abidjan in Côte d'Ivoire. History * June 8, 1982: Established as Diocese of Yopougon from the Metropolitan Archdiocese of A ...

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bouaké The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bouaké () is the Metropolitan bishop, Metropolitan Episcopal See, See for the ecclesiastical province of Bouaké in Côte d'Ivoire. History * 1951.05.17: Established as Apostolic Vicariate of Bouaké from the Ap ...

Roman Catholic Diocese of Abengourou The Roman Catholic Diocese of Abengourou () is a diocese located in the city of Abengourou in the ecclesiastical province of Bouaké in Côte d'Ivoire. History * September 13, 1963: Established as Diocese of Abengourou from the Metropolitan Arc ...

** Roman Catholic Diocese of Bondoukou **

Roman Catholic Diocese of Yamoussoukro The Roman Catholic Diocese of Yamoussoukro () is a diocese located in the city of Yamoussoukro in the ecclesiastical province of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bouaké, Bouaké in Côte d'Ivoire. History * March 6, 1992: Established as Diocese of ...

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Gagnoa The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Gagnoa () is the Metropolitan bishop, Metropolitan Episcopal See, See for the ecclesiastical province of Gagnoa in Côte d'Ivoire. History * 1956.06.25: Established as Diocese of Gagnoa from the Diocese of Daloa ...

Roman Catholic Diocese of Daloa The Roman Catholic Diocese of Daloa () is a diocese located in the city of Daloa in the ecclesiastical province of Gagnoa in Côte d'Ivoire. History * April 9, 1940: Established as Apostolic Vicariate of Sassandra from the Apostolic Vicariate o ...

Roman Catholic Diocese of Man The Roman Catholic Diocese of Man () is a diocese located in the city of Man, Côte d'Ivoire, Man in the ecclesiastical province of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Gagnoa, Gagnoa in Côte d'Ivoire. History * June 8, 1968: Established as Diocese of ...

** Roman Catholic Diocese of San Pedro-en-Côte d'Ivoire * Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Korhogo ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Katiola **

Roman Catholic Diocese of Odienné The Roman Catholic Diocese of Odienné () is a diocese located in the city of Odienné in the ecclesiastical province of Korhogo in Côte d'Ivoire. History * December 19, 1994: Established as Diocese of Odienné from the Diocese of Daloa, Dioce ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Catholic Church in Ivory Coast

History

Origins

Modernity

Organisation

See also

References