Roman Catholic Diocese of Angra

Roman Catholic Diocese of Angra
Dioecesis Angrensis
Diocese de Angra

The Sé Cathedral of Angra, located on the island of Terceira in the UNESCO-designated World Heritage city of Angra do Heroísmo
Location
Country  Portugal
Territory  Azores
Ecclesiastical province Lisbon
Metropolitan Patriarchate of Lisbon
Coordinates Coordinates: 38°39′19.04″N 27°13′15.41″W / 38.6552889°N 27.2209472°W / 38.6552889; -27.2209472
Statistics
Area 2,243 km2 (866 sq mi)
Population
- Total
- Catholics		 (as of 2012)
246,746
236,746 (95.9%)
Parishes 164
Information
Denomination Roman Catholic
Rite Roman rite
Established 5 November 1534
Cathedral Cathedral of the Holy Savior in Angra do Heroísmo
Patron saint São Salvador do Mundo
Blessed John Baptist Machado
Current leadership
Pope Francis
Bishop João Lavrador
Metropolitan Archbishop Manuel III
Map
Website
Website of the Diocese

The Roman Catholic diocese of Angra (Portuguese: Diocese de Angra, Latin: Dioecesis Angrensis) is a Roman Catholic diocese comprising the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores. The see is located in Angra do Heroísmo, in the Terceira island. The current bishop is João Lavrador, who succeeded António de Sousa Braga in 2016.[1]

History

The Sé Cathedral as it appeared in 1903

The Azores, like all the islands and lands discovered during the Portuguese Age of Discoveries, began as jurisdictions of the Order of Christ, under the direction of the vicar of Tomar (Latin: vicarius nullius).

Upon the creation of the Bishopric of Funchal, in 1514, the communities of the Azores began to fall within the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Funchal. As the result of a petition by King John III of Portugal, Pope Clement VII created the Bishopric of São Miguel (São Salvador), but this patriarch died (31 January 1533) before a Papal bull was issued. The request to Clement VII included the creation of two new Dioceses, one for the islands of the Azores and the other for the settlements established along the coast of Western African (or its frontiers).

A papal bull entitled Æquum reputamus, was issued by Pope Paul III on 3 November 1534, that reorganized the religious jurisdiction of the nascent Empire of Portugal in the lines of the original petition (retroactively to the original Clement VII bull): based on John III's petition and creating the Diœcesis Angrensis for the Azores.[2] The bull was part of a group of decrees and concessions to the Portuguese clergy, beginning with the bull Dum diversas on 18 June 1452.[3]

The following year, Pope Paul III elevated the Bishopric of São Salvador, reclassified the Church of São Salvador as a Cathedral and placed it under the suffragan of the Archbishop of Funchal.[4][5] In 1550, the Diocese was transferred to the suffragan of the metropole of Lisbon. It was vacant from 1637 to 1671.

Bishops of Angra

Since its creation, the Diocese of Angra has been governed by the following bishops:

Diocese

The cathedral as it appeared at the end of the 20th century

The episcopal see remains a suffragan of the patriarch of Lisbon, Cardinal Manuel Clemente, and serves the entirety of the archipelago of the Azores.[1][5]

See also

References

Notes
  1. 1 2 Cheney, David M. (4 March 2012). "Diocese of Angra". Kansas, United States. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  2. ↑ Paiva Domingues, Gabriel de (1982). Oração de Andre de Resende Pronunciada No Colégio Das Artes em 1551 (in Portuguese). UC Biblioteca Geral 1.
  3. ↑ "Bulas relativas a Portugal" (in Portuguese).
  4. ↑ "Retratos dos bispos de Angra" (PDF) (in Portuguese). Angra do Heroímso (Azores), Portugal.
  5. 1 2 Christensen, Michael (1907). "Angra". New Advent. New York, New York: Robert Appleton Company.
Sources

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "article name needed". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton. 

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