The Roman Catholic Diocese of Reykjavík is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church which covers the whole of the country of Iceland, which had 10,207 Catholics on January 1, 2011.[1] It reports directly to the Holy See of Rome.[2]
The Apostolic Prefecture of Iceland was created in 1923 and this was elevated to an Apostolic Administration in 1929, which in turn was elevated to the status of a diocese in 1968. The current bishop is H.E. Msgr. Pierre Bürcher,[3] the fourth bishop of the diocese, who participates in the Scandinavian Bishops Conference. The vicar general is Fr. Patrick Breen, rector of Landakot Cathedral, Christ the King Parish.
The Diocese of Reykjavík is a modern creation. The medieval church was represented by the sees of Skálholt (created 1056) and Hólar (1106), but these became Lutheran during the Reformation. (These two sees were amalgamated in 1801 into a single diocese under the Bishop of Iceland in the Lutheran Church of Iceland.) Iceland remained without Roman Catholic prelates until the Apostolic Prefecture was established at Reykjavík in 1923.[4]