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Archdiocese of Toamasina

Toamasinen(sis)

Metropolitan see · Latin Church · Toamasina, Madagascar

The Archdiocese of Toamasina is a Latin rite metropolitan archdiocese in eastern Madagascar, originating as the Apostolic Prefecture of Vatomandry in 1935 and elevated to archdiocese in 2010. It is led by Cardinal Désiré Tsarahazana, with its see at the Cathédrale Saint-Joseph.

The see

Rank
Metropolitan see
Tradition
Latin Church
Erected
26 February 2010
Latin
Toamasinen(sis)
Patron
Saint Joseph
Annuario code
001003239

The see in figures

Catholics
620,022
Population
1,800,000
Catholic shareof the people living within its bounds
34.4%
Priests
93
Catholics per priest
6,667
Extent
23,690 km²
Catholics per km²
26

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

Archbishop
Désiré Tsarahazana
Born
13 June 1954
Birthplace
Amboangibe

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

Cathédrale Saint-Joseph stands in Toamasina, 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 Toamasina

This see is the metropolitan of its province.

The sees of this province:

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

History

Madagascar counts five Latin metropolitan archdioceses, among them the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Toamasina (Latin: Toamasinen(sis)), which nonetheless depends on the missionary Roman Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. Pope Benedict XVI raised it to the rank of Metropolitan Archdiocese on Friday, February 26, 2010. Its archiepiscopal see is the Cathédrale Saint Joseph, dedicated to Saint Joseph, in the city of Toamasina.

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Sources

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.