Ruthenian Catholic Apostolic Exarchate of Czech Republic
Apostolic Exarchate of Czech Republic Reipublicae Cechae Apoštolský exarchát v České republice | |
---|---|
Coat of arms | |
Location | |
Country | Czech Republic |
Metropolitan | Immediately Subject to the Holy See |
Population - Catholics |
(as of 2013) 170,000 |
Information | |
Sui iuris church | Ruthenian Catholic Church |
Rite | Byzantine Rite |
Established | 18 January 1996 |
Cathedral | St. Clement's Cathedral in Prague |
Current leadership | |
Pope | Francis |
Bishop | Ladislav Hučko |
Emeritus Bishops | Ján Eugen Kočiš Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus |
Website | |
www |
The Ruthenian (Greek) Catholic Apostolic Exarchate of Czech Republic, also known as the Apostolic Exarchate in the Czech Republic, is an Eastern Catholic institution overseeing Catholics of the Ruthenian Catholic Church. It uses the localized Byzantine Rite in archaic Slavonic language and is based in the Czech Republic.
Its cathedral episcopal see is Katedrála sv. Klimenta, located in the Czech national capital, Prague.
History
On March 13, 1996, Pope John Paul II proclaimed a new Apostolic Exarchate (exempt pre-diocese) for Eastern Catholics of the Byzantine Rite in the Czech Republic under the rule of the Apostolic See. The church was built on territory previously covered by the Byzantine Rite, the Slovak Catholic Metropolitanate sui juris of Prešov.
The Apostolic Exarchate provides a legal organization for Catholics of the Ruthenian Church living in the Czech Republic. The head of the church is a bishop, who has the same rights as a diocesan bishop. An exarchate is the initial stage of an eparchy (the equivalent of a diocese in the Latin rites), which is exempt, i.e. not part of any ecclesiastical province but directly subject to the Holy See. It is supervised by the Roman Congregation for the Eastern Churches, a Roman Curia dicastery acting on behalf of the Pope.
Statistics
According to the 2011 census there were 9,927 Byzantine Catholics in the Czech Republic.[1]
Apostolic Exarchs
The following is a list of the hierarchs of the Apostolic Exarchate and their terms of service :
- 1. Ivan Ljavinec, Titular Bishop of Acalissus (January 18, 1996 - April 23, 2003)[2][3]
- 2. Ladislav Hučko, Titular Bishop of Horæa (April 24, 2003 - ), also Secretary General of Czech Bishops’ Conference (2005 – 2011.07.01)[2][3]
- 3. Ján Eugen Kočiš, Auxiliary Exarch, Titular Bishop of Abrittum (April 24, 2004 - October 7, 2006)[2][3]
See also
- List of Catholic dioceses (structured view)
- Ruthenian Catholic Metropolitan Church of Pittsburgh, the Ruthenian Catholic's only province, in Northern America
References
- ↑ Obyvatelstvo podle náboženské víry podle krajů - podrobné údaje - population according to religious faith according to regions
- 1 2 3 "Apostolic Exarchate". http://www.navstevapapeze.cz. External link in
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(help) - 1 2 3 "Apostolic Exarchate of Czech Republic (Ruthenian)". http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/. External link in
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Sources and External links
- GigaCatholic.org, with incumbent biography links
- Apoštolský exarchát řeckokatolické církve v České republice (Czech language)
- Profile at catholic-hierarchy.org