A diocese, also known as a bishopric, is an administrative unit under the supervision of a bishop, of which there are currently 8 in the Belgian Catholic Church. The 8 dioceses are divided into 1 ecclesiastical province and 7 suffragan dioceses, but also one military ordinariate,[1] which was created as military vicariate in 1957, and elevated to a military ordinariate in 1986.[2]
Since December 1961, following the restructuring of the Catholic dioceses in Belgium, the Archdiocese of Mechelen was renamed the Archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels. This newly created archdiocese is the primatial see of Belgium and the centre of the ecclesiastical province governed by the Archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels, which covers the whole of Belgium.[3]
There are also a few former Roman Catholic dioceses in Belgium, including the Dioceses of Eupen-Malmedy and Ypres, but also the ancient Diocese of Thérouanne. The latter was split between the Dioceses of Saint-Omer, Boulogne and Ypres after the Council of Trent's reform of sees.
In Belgium, most dioceses coincide with a province, but there are a few exceptions.
List of Roman Catholic dioceses in Belgium
editEcclesiastical Province of Mechelen-Brussels
editExempt (directly subject to the Holy See)
editDiocese | Flag | Jurisdiction | Seat | Ordinary | Founded |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Military Ordinariate | Members of Belgian Armed Forces and their families | Church of St. James on Coudenberg | vested in the Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels | 1957 |
See also
editExternal links
editReferences
edit- ^ "Belgium - All Dioceses". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Military Ordianariate of Bisdom bij de Krijgsmacht". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels {Malines-Brussels}". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Cathedrals". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "De Bisschoppenconferentie van België". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "De Kathedraal". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Benoît XVI a nommé Mgr Johan Bonny nouvel évêque pour le diocèse d'Anvers (Belgique)". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Bisdom Antwerpen". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Sint-Salvatorskathedraal". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Bisdom Brugge". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Sint-Quintinuskerk - Sint-Quintinuskathedraal". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Bisdom Hasselt". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Sint-Baafskathedraal". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Bisdom Gent". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Cathédrale Saint-Paul de Liège". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Jean-Pierre Delville, nouvel évêque de Liège: "C'est une surprise" (vidéos)". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ "Bisdom Luik". Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ Decroubele, Peter (3 September 2023). "Luc Terlinden, de nieuwe aartsbisschop met een bijna onmogelijke missie". vrtnws.be (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 September 2023.