Roman Catholic Diocese of Bettiah

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bettiah (Latin: Bettiahen(sis)) is a diocese located in the city of Bettiah in the Ecclesiastical province of Patna in India.

Diocese of Bettiah Dioecesis Bettiahensis बेतिया के सूबा
Location
Country	India
Ecclesiastical province	Patna
Metropolitan	Patna
Statistics
Area	16,089 km^2 (6,212 sq mi)
Population - Total - Catholics (including non-members)	(as of 2012) 15,891,000 5,810 (0.0%)
Parishes	12
Information
Rite	Latin Rite
Cathedral	Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Bettiah
Current leadership
Pope	Francis
Bishop	Fr. Peter Sebastian Goveas
Metropolitan Archbishop	William D'Souza

Some of the communicants within this diocese are Bettiah Christians, one of the oldest ethnoreligious Christian communities in the northern Indian subcontinent.[1] Newaris of the Catholic Christian faith who settled in Chuhari in the 1700s after being expelled from Nepal, are part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bettiah as well; they are known as Newar Christians.[1] Other Catholic Christian communities who are served by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Betetiah include those of scheduled castes and tribal people.[1]

History

• 1892: Established as the Apostolic Prefecture of Bettiah from the Diocese of Allahabad
• 1917: Suppressed to the Apostolic Vicariate of Patna
• June 27, 1998: Restored as Diocese of Bettiah from the Diocese of Muzaffarpur

Leadership

• Bishops of Bettiah (Latin Rite)
  • Fr. Peter Sebastian Goveas, Vicar General of Bhagalpur Diocese,[2] is elected new Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Bettiah on 22 July 2017[2]
  • Bishop Victor Henry Thakur (June 27, 1998 – July 3, 2013); elevated to Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Raipur, in Raipur, India, by Pope Francis
• Prefects Apostolic of Bettiah (Latin Rite)
  • Fr. Eugenio Remigio Schwarz, O.F.M. Cap. (1892 – 1918)

See also

• Christianity in Bihar

References

1. John, Jose Kalapura (2000). Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, Vol. 61. Indian History Congress. p. 1011, 1016.
2. http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/07/22/pope_francis_appoints_new_bishop_in_india%E2%80%99s_bettiah_diocese/1326501

External links

• GCatholic.org ^{[self-published]}
• Catholic Hierarchy ^{[self-published]}