Archdiocese of Lagos
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Archdiocese of Lagos Archidioecesis Lagosensis |
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|---|---|
| Location | |
| Country |  Nigeria |
| Territory | Lagos State |
| Coordinates | 6°27′11″N 3°23′45″E / 6.45306°N 3.39583°E |
| Information | |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Rite | Latin Rite |
| Cathedral | Holy Cross Cathedral, Lagos |
| Current leadership | |
| Pope | Francis |
| Archbishop | Most Rev. Alfred Adewale Martins |
| Suffragans | Abeokuta, Ijebu-Ode |
| Map | |
 Lagos State shown in red |
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| Website | |
| www.archdioceseofLagos.org | |
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos {Lagosen(sis) in Latin} is the Metropolitan See for the Ecclesiastical province of Lagos in Nigeria.
The origin of the Archdiocese of Lagos dates back to the effort of Irish and French missionaries of the Society of African Missions (SMA) to plant the seed of Catholicism in West Africa. The first venture by SMA to establish an African Mission in West Africa began in 1858 under the leadership of a Lyon based father, Melchior Joseph de Marion Bresillac. A member of the Paris Foreign Missions Society, Bresillac had spent time in India and his desire for the new society was to spread the church and train Africans as priests to continue the work of the mission. The proposal was originally opposed by Pope Pius IX but with Bresillac's determination, the propaganda prefect approved the mission. When the mission's objective was granted in 1856, Dahomey was chosen as location. In November 1858, when the first batch of missionaries sailed for West Africa, the location was changed to Sierra Leone as Dahomey was considered too dangerous. The missionaries consisted of two French fathers, Reymond and Bresson and one Brother. The missionaries arrived in January 1859. The news of their safe arrival reached Bresillac and in March, Bresillac and two other missionaries sailed for West Africa. Bresillac arrived Freetown in May 1859 but his expedition ended in gloom; Reymond and Bresillac died weeks after his arrival. Bresillac's assistant in Lyon, Augustin Planque took his position as Superior General, but unlike Bresillac, Planque stayed in Europe to provide support for the mission and in the eyes of the pope to ensure credibility of the mission. A third missionary expedition was approved, the superior of the mission was an Italian priest, Father Francesco Borghero. In 1860, Father Borghero traveled to Africa to start new a mission in Dahomey. The missions' first location was at Whydah, the second Church was in Porto Novo and in 1868, the third location was Lagos.
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Wikipedia