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Roman Catholic Diocese of Bruges

Diocese of Bruges
Dioecesis Brugensis
Diocèse de Bruges (French)
Bistum Brügge (German)
Bisdom Brugge (Dutch)
Turm St Salvator.JPG
Location
Country  Belgium
Ecclesiastical province Mechelen-Brussels
Metropolitan Archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels
Statistics
Area 3,145 km2 (1,214 sq mi)
Population
- Total
- Catholics
(as of 2015)
1,178,265
968,000 (82.2%)
Information
Denomination Roman Catholic
Sui iuris church Latin Church
Rite Roman Rite
Established 27 May 1834
Cathedral St. Salvator's Cathedral in Bruges
Current leadership
Pope Francis
Bishop Lode Aerts
from 4 December 2016
Metropolitan Archbishop Jozef De Kesel
Emeritus Bishops Roger Vangheluwe, Bishop Emeritus (1984-2010)
Map
The diocese of Bruges, coextensive with the province of West Flanders
The diocese of Bruges, coextensive with the province of West Flanders

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bruges, (Bisdom Brugge in native Dutch) is a suffragan diocese in ecclesiastical province of the primatial Metropolitan archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels (which covers all the Roman Catholic church in Belgium).

The Renaissance diocese since 1558 was suppressed in 1834 during the Napoleonic and Dutch eras and restored in 1834 a pre-diocesan stage as Apostolic vicariate since 1832. Its territory coincides with West Flanders.

Its cathedral episcopal see is the Sint-Salvator Cathedral, dedicated to Our Savior, in Bruges (Brugge), West Flanders province, a minor basilica a minor World Heritage Site. Its patron saint however is Saint Donatian, hence the cathedral is also known as Sint-Salvators- en Donaaskathedraal after both saints.

As per 2014, it pastorally serves 965,000 Catholics (82.1% of 1,174,752 total) on 3,145 km² in 362 parishes and 65 missions with 708 priests (499 diocesan, 209 religious), 91 deacons, 1,986 lay religious (290 brothers, 1,696 sisters) and 7 seminarians.

An earlier diocese of Bruges was established on 12 May 1558, on territory split off from the Diocese of Tournai, as part of the great Habsburg reform of the church in the then Spanish Low Countries. Its cathedral see, St. Donatian's Cathedral, was destroyed in a fire in 1799 during the aftermath of the French Revolution.


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Wikipedia

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