Roman Catholic Diocese of Maasin
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Diocese of Maasin Dioecesis Maasinensis Diyosesis sa Maasin |
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Cathedral in Maasin
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| Location | |
| Country |  Philippines |
| Territory | Southern Leyte and Fifth Congressional District of Leyte |
| Ecclesiastical province | Cebu |
| Metropolitan | Cebu |
| Statistics | |
| Area | 2,505 km2 (967 sq mi) |
| Population - Total - Catholics |
(as of 2004) 630,966 572,905 (90.8%) |
| Information | |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Sui iuris church | Latin Church |
| Rite | Roman Rite |
| Established | 23 March 1968 |
| Cathedral | Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption in Maasin |
| Current leadership | |
| Pope | Francis |
| Bishop | Precioso D. Cantillas |
| Metropolitan Archbishop | Jose S. Palma |
| Vicar General | Urcisino A. Luzon |
| Episcopal Vicars | Oscar A. Cadayona Amado D. Olayvar |
| Website | |
| Website of the Diocese | |
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Maasin (Lat: Dioecesis Maasinensis) is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines.
Erected in 1968, the diocese was created from territory in the Archdiocese of Palo.
The diocese has experienced no jurisdictional changes, and is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Cebu.
The current bishop is Precioso D. Cantillas, appointed in 1998.
On August 14, 1968, the Diocese of Maasin was canonically erected through a papal decree issued March 23, 1968. In June of the same year, the Most Reverend Vicente T. Ataviado, D.D. who was up to then a parish priest of Masbate, Masbate, was appointed as its first bishop. He was consecrated on August 8, 1968, and installed as the First Bishop of Maasin on August 14 at Our Lady of Assumption Parish Church in Maasin, the capital of Southern Leyte.
From 1595 to 1910, the area which now comprises the Diocese of Maasin belonged to the diocese of Cebu. From 1910 to 1937 it belonged to the Diocese of Calbayog. From 1937 to 1968 it came under the jurisdiction of the Diocesan of Palo in Leyte. Today it is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Cebu.
The diocese comprises the entire province of Southern Leyte, and the towns of Matalom, Bato, Hilongos, Hindang, Inopacan and Baybay in the province of Leyte, with the Maasin Parish Cathedral as the seat of the diocese. Distributed within its 2,505 square kilometers of land are 42 parishes and one mission station. To facilitate administration these parishes have been grouped under seven vicariates.
The province of Southern Leyte is located in the southeastern portion of the island of Leyte. And the small island of Limasawa off its southern coast is historically significant as the place where Magellan landed, after having sailed from the island of Homonhon in Samar, to celebrate the first Catholic mass in the Philippines. The chieftain of Limasawa, Kolambu and his men, with Magellan and his men, attended that first mass celebrated by Father Pedro Valderrama. Until 1960, the island of Limasawa belonged to the island province of Leyte.
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Wikipedia