Episcopal see of Carthage

This is a list of bishops and archbishops of Carthage, often referred to as Primate proconsular Africa, Numidia, Mauritania and Tripolitania. Until the seventh century, the bishops are recognized by the Orthodox Church and The Roman Church as their own. During the 3rd to the 7th century, the Bishop of Carthage has (unofficial) ecclesiastical primacy (as a Patriarch) over these suffragan provinces in Northern Africa:

From the 17th century, in the Catholic Roman Church, the Bishop of Carthage lay within the jurisdiction of the Pope, the Bishop of Rome, what some call the Patriarchate of the West.

The episcopal see largely became titular after the 7th century when the Exarchate of Africa, a Byzantine territory, fell to the Arab invasion. From the 17th century Carthage was under an apostolic vicariate. This was suppressed in 1798 and was only restored in 1843.

In 1884 the see was restored with the rank of archdiocese, but in 1964 it was reduced to that of territorial prelature, with its name changed to "Tunis". In 1995 the prelature became a diocese, followed by its elevation to an archdiocese in 2010.[1]

The present Archbishop of Tunis is Maroun Elias Lahham, since 2005.

Contents

Bishops, apostolic vicars, archbishops and prelates of the see

Bishops of Carthage

Apostolic Vicar of Tunis, c. 1650–1884

unknown; Suppressed in 1798 and restored in 1843

Archbishops of Carthage, 1884–1964

Prelate of Tunis, 1964–1995

Bishops of Tunis, 1995–2010

Archbishops of Tunis, since 2010

See also

Sources

  1. ^ "Elevazione della Diocesi di Tunis (Tunisia) ad Arcidiocesi" (in Italian). Holy See Press Office. 2010-05-22. http://press.catholica.va/news_services/bulletin/news/25612.php?index=25612&lang=en.