Ecclesiastical province Diocese of Chanthaburi Sui iuris church Latin Church Pope Francis Country Thailand | Denomination Roman Catholic Rite Roman Rite Area 34,000 km² Metropolitan archbishop Kriengsak Kovitvanit | |
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Population
- Total
- Catholics (as of 2006)
4,445,881
37,149 (0.8%) Cathedral Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Chanthaburi | ||
The (Roman Catholic) Diocese of Chanthaburi (Dioecesis Chanthaburiensis, Thai: สังฆมณฑลจันทบุรี) is located in eastern central Thailand. It is a suffragan diocese of the archdiocese of Bangkok.
Contents
The diocese covers an area of 34,000 km², covering the provinces - Chanthaburi, Chonburi, Prachinburi, Rayong, Sa Kaeo and Trat, as well as the parts east of the Bang Pa Kong River in Chachoengsao, and Nakhon Nayok except the district Ban Na.
As of 2009, of the 4.4 million citizen 38,918 are member of the Catholic Church. It is divided into 42 parishes, having 112 priests altogether.
History
On May 11, 1944 the Vicariate Apostolic of Chantaburi was split off from the Vicariate Apostolic of Bangkok. On December 18, 1965 it was elevated to a diocese.
Cathedral
The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (Thai: อาสนวิหารพระนางมารีอาปฏิสนธินิรมล) 12°36′33.5″N 102°7′7″E is the largest church of Thailand. A first missionary chapel was built at the site in 1711. After being enlarged and rebuilt four times during the nineteenth century, especially due to the immigration of Vietnamese Christian fleeing religious persecution in the homecountry. In 1909 it was rebuilt in its current Gothic style. It is located at the Chanthanimit Road on the left bank of the Chanthaburi River. During World War II the spires were taken down to make the church a less obvious navigational aid to allied bombers; they have since been replaced.
Controversies
In December 2007, the Diocese ordered the Father Ray Foundation, a charitable non-profit in Pattaya that operates an orphanage, school for the deaf, blind and disabled to vacate property owned by the Diocese within a matter of weeks. Representatives of the Foundation believe the Diocese plans to build a more profitable school there.
Bishops
Before the vicariate apostolic was elevated to a diocese, the bishops were assigned a titular see.