Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mérida in Venezuela

Updated on Dec 11, 2024

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Rite Latin Rite Area 8,109 km²		Pope Francis Country Venezuela
Population- Total- Catholics (as of 2004)603,464543,118 (90.0%) Established 16 February 1778 (239 years ago) Cathedral Catedral Basílica Menor de la Inmaculada Concepción de Mérida Auxiliary Bishops Luis Alfonso Márquez Molina, C.I.M. Bishop Baltazar Enrique Porras Cardozo

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mérida (Latin: Archidioecesis Emeritensis in Venetiola) is a Latin Metropolitan Archdiocese in western Venezuela.

Its cathedral archiepiscopal see is Catedral Basílica Menor de la Inmaculada Concepción de Mérida, a minor basilica located in the city of Mérida. It also has the Minor Basilica of Santa Lucía, in Timotes.

History

On 16 February 1778 Pope Pius VI established the Diocese of Mérida, on territories split off from the then Diocese of Caracas and Metropolitan Archdiocese of Santafé en Nueva Granada in Colombia.

It lost territory repeatedly :

on 1863.03.07 to establish the Dioceses of Barquisimeto (now a Metropolitan) and Calabozo

on 1897.07.28 to establish Diocese of Zulia

on 1922.10.12 to establish its suffragan Diocese of San Cristóbal de Venezuela

Pope Pius IX elevated the diocese to Metropolitan Archdiocese of Mérida on 11 June 11, 1923. It lost more territory to establish two mpre suffragans : on 1957.06.04 Trujillo, on 1965.07.23 Barinas

It enjoyed a papal visit from Pope John Paul II in January 1985.)

On 1994.07.07 it lost territory to establish the Diocese of El Vigía–San Carlos del Zulia

On 3 December 2015 it was assigned another suffragan see, the newly created Diocese of Guasdualito

Episcopal Ordinaries

(all Roman Rite)

Suffragans Bishops of Merida

Juan Manuel Antonio Ramos Lora, Friars Minor O.F.M. † (23 Sep 1782 - death 9 Nov 1790)

Cándido Manuel de Torrijos Riguerra, Dominican Order (O.P.) † (19 Dec 1791 - death 20 Nov 1794)

Antonio Ramón de Espinosa y Lorenzo, O.P. † (18 Dec 1795 - 23 Sep 1800)

Santiago Hernández Milanés † (20 July 1801 - 26 Mar 1812)

Rafael Lasso de la Vega † (8 March 1816 - 15 Dec 1828), Appointed, Bishop of Quito (Ecuador) (1827.05.21 – death 1831.04.16)

José Buenaventura Arias Bergara † (22 Dec 1828 - death 21 Nov 1831); previously Titular Bishop of Hiericho (1826.10.02 – 1831.11.21) & Auxiliary Bishop of Mérida (Venezuela) (1826.10.02 – 1828.12.22)

José Vicente de Unda † (11 July 1836 - death 19 July 1840)

Juan Hilario Bosset (Boset) † (27 Jan 1842 - death 1873)

? Thomas Zerpa † (29 Sep 1876 - ? )

Román Lovera † (20 Aug 1880 - death 1892)

Antonio Ramón Silva † (21 May 1894 - 11 June 1923 see below)

Metropolitan Archbishops of Mérida

BIOS TO BE ELABORATED

Antonio Ramón Silva † (see above 11 June 1923 - 1 Aug 1927)

Acacio Chacón Guerra † (1 Aug 1927 - 15 Dec 1966)

José Rafael Pulido Méndez † (22 Nov 1966 - 30 Aug 1972)

Angel Pérez Cisneros † (30 Aug 1972 - 20 Aug 1979)

Miguel Antonio Salas Salas, Eudists (C.I.M.) † (20 Aug 1979 - 30 Oct 1991)