Diocese of Suwon
Suvonen(sis)
Suffragan diocese · Latin Church · Suwon, South Korea
Latin-rite diocese covering much of Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, erected in 1963 and suffragan of the Archdiocese of Seoul. Its seat is Jeongja-dong Cathedral in Suwon, with Jowon-dong Cathedral also serving the see city. In December 2025 Pope Leo XIV appointed Germanus Kwak Jin-sang as auxiliary bishop of the diocese.
The see
- Rank
- Suffragan diocese
- Tradition
- Latin Church
- Erected
- 7 October 1963
- Latin
- Suvonen(sis)
- Patron
- Queen of Peace
- Annuario code
- 001003133
The see in figures
- Catholics
- 928,650
- Population
- 8,417,575
- Catholic shareof the people living within its bounds
- 11.0%
- Priests
- 575
- Catholics per priest
- 1,615
- Extent
- 5,371 km²
- Catholics per km²
- 173
Figures as recorded in the register, from the Annuario Pontificio and the see's own published statements. Shares and ratios are computed from the two figures shown beside them.
The bishop
- Bishop
- Matthias Ri Iong-hoon
- Born
- 13 September 1951
- Birthplace
- Hwaseong
A see whose chair stands empty is recorded as vacant rather than filled with a guess. On what a bishop is, see the bishop.
The cathedral
Jeongja-dong Cathedral, Suwon stands in Suwon, the church that holds the cathedra from which this see takes its name.
On what a cathedral is, see the cathedral; every see church on earth is gathered at the cathedrals.
The province of Seoul
A suffragan of Archdiocese of Seoul.
The sees of this province:
- Archdiocese of SeoulSeoul
- Diocese of ChuncheonChuncheon
- Diocese of DaejeonDaejeon
- Diocese of HamhƒngHamhƒng
- Diocese of IncheonIncheon
- Diocese of P'yŏng-yangP'yŏng-yang
- Diocese of UijeongbuUijeongbu
- Diocese of WonjuWonju
On how the Church is ordered into provinces, see the diocese.
History
Pope Paul VI erected the see of Suwon on October 7, 1963, carving its territory from the Archdiocese of Seoul, to which it remains suffragan. A particular church of the Latin Church, the Diocese of Suwon (Lat.: Dioecesis Suvonensis) has its bishop's seat at Jeongjadong Cathedral in Suwon, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea.
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The see's own website · Wikipedia
Compiled from the published statements of the see and the references of the Holy See, among them the Annuario Pontificio. Corrections: hello@catholicintelligence.com.