Roman Catholic Diocese of Belley-Ars
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Diocese of Belley–Ars Dioecesis Bellicensis–Arsensis Diocèse de Belley–Ars |
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| Location | |
| Country |  France |
| Ecclesiastical province | Lyon |
| Metropolitan | Archdiocese of Lyon |
| Statistics | |
| Area | 5,554 km2 (2,144 sq mi) |
| Population - Total - Catholics |
(as of 2012) 584,000 354,600 (60.7%) |
| Parishes | 340 |
| Information | |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Sui iuris church | Latin Church |
| Rite | Roman Rite |
| Established | 5th Century |
| Cathedral | Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Belley |
| Patron saint | St. John the Baptist |
| Current leadership | |
| Pope | Francis |
| Bishop | Pascal Marie Roland |
| Metropolitan Archbishop | Cardinal Philippe Barbarin |
| Emeritus Bishops | Guy Claude Bagnard, Bishop Emeritus (1987-2012) |
| Map | |
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| Website | |
| Website of the Diocese | |
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Belley–Ars (Latin: Dioecesis Bellicensis–Arsensis; French: Diocèse de Belley–Ars) is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church in France. Erected in the 5th century, the diocese was renamed in 1988 from the former Diocese of Belley to the Diocese of Belley–Ars. Coextensive with the civil department of Ain, in the Region of Rhône-Alpes, the diocese is a suffragan see of the Archdiocese of Lyon. The seat of the bishop is at Belley Cathedral. The current bishop is Guy Claude Bagnard, appointed in 1987.
Although suppressed at the time of the Napoleonic Concordat (1801), the Diocese of Belley was re-established in 1822 and took from the Archdiocese of Lyon the arrondissements of Belley, Bourg, Nantua and Trévoux, and from the Archdiocese of Chambéry the Arrondissement of Gex.
Local tradition maintains that Belley was evangelized in the 2nd century by the martyrs Marcellus and Valerian, companions of St. Pothinus. The first bishop of historic certainty is Vincentius, mentioned in 552. Others who occupied the see were St. Hippolytus, Abbot of Condat (8th century); St. Anthelm (1163–78), seventh General of the Carthusian Order; St. Arthaud (1179–90), founder of the Carthusians at Arvières; Camus (1609–29), a noted preacher and romancist; and Monseigneur François M. Richard (1872–75), later Cardinal Archbishop of Paris.
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