Catholic IntelligenceA work of service to the Church

Diocese of Batticaloa

Batticaloaën(sis)

Latin diocese on the east coast of Sri Lanka, created on 3 July 2012 from the Diocese of Trincomalee-Batticaloa, suffragan of the Archdiocese of Colombo. Its cathedral is St. Mary's Cathedral in Batticaloa; the see is currently administered by Apostolic Administrator Anton Ranjith Pillainayagam following Bishop Joseph Ponniah's tenure (2012-2024).

The see

Rank
Suffragan diocese
Tradition
Latin Church
Erected
3 July 2012
Latin
Batticaloaën(sis)
Annuario code
001000857

The see in figures

Catholics
55,225
Population
1,199,966
Catholic shareof the people living within its bounds
4.6%
Priests
60
Catholics per priest
920
Extent
7,269 km²
Catholics per km²
7.6

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

The register holds no ordinary for this see. Where a chair is vacant the vacancy is the fact, and it is recorded rather than filled in. See the bishop.

The cathedral

St. Mary's Cathedral, Batticaloa stands in Batticaloa, 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 Colombo

A suffragan of Archdiocese of Colombo.

The sees of this province:

On how the Church is ordered into provinces, see the diocese.

History

South-eastern Sri Lanka is served by the Diocese of Batticaloa (Latin: Dioecesis Batticaloaensis, Tamil: மட்டக்களப்பு மறைமாவட்டம்), a jurisdiction of the Latin Catholic Church.

How to reach it

Diocesan offices
Bishop’s House, P.O. Box 43, Batticaloa 30000, Sri Lanka
Telephone
[065]2222.723; fax 2224.667

This see keeps no website of its own, so the address of its diocesan offices is published here: withholding it would protect nothing and leave a reader with nowhere to go. Where a see publishes its own site, the register sends you there instead.

Catholic Intelligence

Get early access

We are indexing the whole visible Church: every diocese and parish on earth, searchable and mapped, with Mass times, clergy, and diocesan contacts. Launching soon. Sign up to be first in when it opens, starting with [object Object].

One email at launch. Nothing else.

Sources

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.