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Roman Catholic Diocese of Maliana

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Diocese of Maliana

Dioecesis Malianensis

Diocese de Maliana
catholic
Location
CountryEast Timor
TerritoryBobonaro, Cova Lima, and Liquiçá municipalities
MetropolitanDili
Statistics
Area3,142 km2 (1,213 sq mi)
Population
- Total
- Catholics		(as of 2022)
Increase 297,620
Increase 290,850 (Increase 97.7%)
Parishes11
Information
DenominationCatholic Church
Sui iuris churchLatin Church
RiteRoman Rite
Established30 January 2010
CathedralSacred Heart Cathedral
Secular priests22 (2022)
Current leadership
PopeFrancis
BishopNorberto do Amaral
Vicar GeneralLucio Norberto de Deus
Map
Location of the diocese within East Timor
Location of the diocese within East Timor

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Maliana (Latin: Dioecesis Malianensis; Portuguese: Diocese de Maliana; Tetum: Dioseze Maliana) is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in East Timor. The newest of the country's three dioceses, it was established in 2010 by Pope Benedict XVI. It serves nearly 300,000 Catholics in the municipalities of Bobonaro, Cova Lima, and Liquiçá, covering a total area of 3,142 km2 (1,213 square miles). The current bishop since the diocese's founding is Norberto do Amaral.

The mother church of the diocese is Sacred Heart Cathedral in Maliana. The diocese has 11 parishes and 65 missions, and is served by 50 priests, 73 religious brothers, and 131 religious sisters. It operates a minor seminary, St. Joseph Seminary, and dozens of primary and secondary schools.

History

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Until the 1990s, the entirety of East Timor comprised one ecclesiastical territory, the Diocese of Dili.[1] In 1996, the Diocese of Baucau was formed.[1] After independence in 2002, the Holy See planned to create a third diocese centered in Same so that East Timor could form its own episcopal conference.[2][3] However, these plans stalled around 2005 amidst ongoing changes by the government to the country's administrative subdivision boundaries.[2][3]

The Vatican's plan to create a third diocese in East Timor materialized on 30 January 2010, when Pope Benedict XVI established the Diocese of Maliana, with territory taken from the Diocese of Dili.[1][4][5][6][7] Norberto do Amaral, chancellor of the Dili diocese, was appointed as Maliana's first bishop.[1][4][5][6] Amaral was consecrated on 24 April 2010 in Tasitolu, Dili, in a ceremony attended by Deputy Prime Minister José Luís Guterres, Supreme Court president Cláudio de Jesus Ximenes, attorney general Ana Pessoa Pinto, and other deputies, politicians, magistrates, diplomats, bishops, as well as thousands of priests, sisters, and laity.[8] Amaral was installed the following day in Maliana.[6]

Mass at Holy Cross Church in Maliana, 2016

At the time of its creation, the diocese consisted of just over 200,000 Catholics, representing 98% of the population, and served by 10 parishes, 31 priests (six diocesan and 25 religious), and 108 religious brothers and sisters.[4][9] The parish church of Maliana became the diocese's new cathedral, and the government provided funding and a building for a temporary residence for the bishop.[5][6] On 17 February 2019, a new episcopal palace and chancery building were inaugurated in a ceremony attended by bishops Amaral, Virgílio do Carmo da Silva of Dili, Basílio do Nascimento of Baucau, and former President Xanana Gusmão.[10] The new buildings were constructed with public funds provided by the prime minister's office.[10] As of 2022, the diocese has grown to nearly 300,000 Catholics, and now has 11 parishes and 65 missions served by 50 priests and 184 religious brothers and sisters.[1][7]

Structure

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The Diocese of Maliana is a suffragan diocese within the ecclesiastical province of Dili.[7][9] Along with the bishops of Baucau and Dili, the bishop of Maliana is a member of the Timorese Episcopal Conference.[1] The conference is represented in the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences.[1]

Territory

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The diocese covers a total area of 3,142 km2 (1,213 square miles).[7][9] Its territory comprises the eastern municipalities of Bobonaro, Cova Lima, and Liquiçá.[5][6][9] The diocese borders the Archdiocese of Dili to the east and the Diocese of Atambua, located in Indonesian West Timor, to the west.[5][6] The diocese has a total population of 297,620, of whom 290,850 (97.7%) are Catholic.[7] The remaining few thousand are mostly Muslim, Protestant, or animist.[1]

Personnel

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The diocese is led by its bishop, Norberto do Amaral, who is assisted by vicar general Lucio Norberto de Deus.[1] As of 2022, the diocese has 22 secular priests, with 58 seminarians in formation.[1][7] Additionally, there are 28 religious priests, 73 religious brothers, and 121 religious sisters living and working in the diocese.[1] In 2021, there were 416 catechists in the diocese.[1]

A number of religious orders and institutes operate in the diocese. For men, these include the Capuchins, Carmelites, Claretians, Divine Word Missionaries, and Jesuits.[1] Female institutes include the Canossians, Carmelites, Daughters of the Queen of the Holy Rosary, Franciscan Hospitaller Sisters, Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart, Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters, Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Religious of Mary Immaculate, Religious of the Virgin Mary, Salesians, Sisters of Mercy, and several others.[1]

Parishes

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St. Anthony Church in Balibo, 2016
Ave Maria Church in Suai, 2016

The diocese is divided into 11 parishes, with 65 missions.[7]

Parish Location Municipality
Ave Maria Suai Cova Lima
Holy Cross Maliana Bobonaro
Immaculate Heart of Mary Fohorem Cova Lima
Our Lady of Fatima Lolotoe Bobonaro
Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Bobonaro Bobonaro
Our Lady of Mount Carmel Zumalai Cova Lima
Sacred Heart of Jesus (cathedral) Maliana Bobonaro
St. Anthony Balibo Bobonaro
St. Anthony Mary Claret Salele Cova Lima
St. Francis of Assisi Atabae Bobonaro
St. John de Britto Liquiçá Liquiçá

Bishops

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  1. Norberto do Amaral (2010–present)

Education

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Fundação Sagrado Coração de Jesus (Sacred Heart of Jesus Foundation) oversees all of the Diocese of Maliana's schools.[1] The diocese operates seven preschools with 291 total students, 19 primary schools and eight junior high schools with 6,122 total students, and five senior high schools with a total enrollment of 1,148.[1] The diocese also runs an orphanage.[1] Secondary schools administered by the diocese include Ave Maria in Suai, Infante de Sagres College in Maliana, and São João de Brito in Liquiçá.[11][12] Other Catholic schools located in the diocese include Cristal Private Secondary School in Maliana, Divine Word College in Palaca, and St. Ignatius of Loyola College in Kasait, founded by the Society of Jesus in 2013.[11][13] The diocese is also home to Don Bosco Technical School near Maliana, established in 2013 by the Salesians with funding from the Timorese and Spanish governments, which provides vocational training to 100+ boarding students.[14][15] The diocese contains one Catholic higher education institution, St. John de Britto Institute, a Jesuit teachers' college in Kasait.[13]

On 26 September 2017, the Diocese of Maliana established a minor seminary, St. Joseph Seminary, with an initial enrollment of 22 students located in a renovated diocesan school building.[16] Previously, minor seminarians from the diocese attended the Seminary of Our Lady of Fatima in Dili, which served the country's three dioceses and which had only 90 spots each year for more than 300 applicants.[16] Major seminarians from the diocese attend the interdiocesan St. Peter and St. Paul Seminary in Dili.[17]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q "Diocese of Maliana". UCA News. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Processo criação da terceira diocese está parado - bispo de Baucau" [The process of creating the third diocese is at a standstill - bishop of Baucau]. Rádio e Televisão de Portugal (in Portuguese). 17 November 2005. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  3. ^ a b Costa, Manuel (3 April 2006). "Criação de nova diocese em Timor está parada" [Creation of new diocese in Timor is stalled]. Agência Ecclesia (in Portuguese). Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  4. ^ a b c "Pope Benedict XVI erects new diocese in East Timor". Catholic News Agency. 30 January 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Diocese of Maliana erected, first Bishop appointed". Agenzia Fides. 30 January 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  6. ^ a b c d e f "Maliana Diocese Investiture of the new Prelate". Government of Timor-Leste. 5 May 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g "Diocese of Maliana, Timor-Leste". GCatholic. 17 June 2024. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  8. ^ "Terceiro bispo timorense fica à frente da diocese de Maliana" [Third Timorese bishop takes charge of the diocese of Maliana]. Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese). 25 April 2010. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  9. ^ a b c d "Maliana (Diocese)". Catholic-Hierarchy. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  10. ^ a b "Inauguration of the new buildings of the Episcopal Palace and the Ecclesiastical Chamber of the Diocese of Maliana". Government of Timor-Leste. 17 February 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  11. ^ a b dos Reis, Cristóvão (24 March 2023). "Lista Candidatos admitidos para a Bolsa Parcial nas Instituições Privadas para o Ano Académico de 2023" [List of candidates admitted for the Partial Scholarship in Private Institutions for the 2023 Academic Year] (PDF). Fundo de Desenvolvimento do Capital Humano (in Portuguese). Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  12. ^ Maubere, Domingos (13 October 2013). "Celebração dos 75 Anos do Colegio "Infante de Sagres" Maliana, 1948 – 2023" [Celebration of the 75th Anniversary of Infante de Sagres School, Maliana, 1948 – 2023]. Jornal Independente (in Portuguese). Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  13. ^ a b Harson, Siktus (9 March 2018). "Jesuit schools lift up Timor-Leste youths". UCA News. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  14. ^ "East Timor - The fruits of "Maliana Don Bosco" project". Agenzia iNfo Salesiana. 6 April 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  15. ^ Roque Guterres, Joao (5 April 2018). "First Salesian Co-educational Boarding Technical School in Timor Leste". Bosco Link News Service. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  16. ^ a b "New seminary looks to beat priest shortage in Timor-Leste". UCA News. 29 September 2017. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  17. ^ "Growing Catholic Church of Timor-Leste could have a fourth diocese". Vatican News. 19 December 2017. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
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