Roman Catholic Diocese of Calicut

Diocese of Calicut Dioecesis Calicutensis കോഴിക്കോട് രൂപത
Location
Country	India
Ecclesiastical province	Verapoly
Metropolitan	Verapoly
Statistics
Area	12,505 km2 (4,828 sq mi)
Population - Total - Catholics (including non-members)	(as of 2006) 10,061,127 38,092 (0.4%)
Parishes	41
Information
Rite	Roman Rite
Cathedral	Mother of God Cathedral in Kozhikode
Patron saint	St Francis Xavier
Current leadership
Pope	Francis
Bishop	Varghese Chakkalakal
Metropolitan Archbishop	Joseph Kalathiparambil
Vicar General	Thomas Panackal
Website
Website of the Diocese

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Calicut (Latin: Calicuten(sis)) is a suffragan diocese Latin rite in the Ecclesiastical province of Verapoly in Kerala state, southern India, yet it depends on the missionary Roman Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.

Its cathedral episcopal see is Mother of God Cathedral, dedicated to Our Lady, in the city of Kozhikode (Calicut).

Statistics

As per 2015, it pastorally served 48,250 Catholics (0.6% of 8,059,057 total population) on 8,036 km² in 41 parishes and 3 missions with 132 priests (57 diocesan, 75 religious), 837 lay religious (127 brothers, 710 sisters) and 12 seminarians.

History

• 12 June 1923: Established as Diocese of Calicut on territories split off from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Coimbatore, Diocese of Mangalore and Diocese of Mysore
• On 1949 it gained territory from Metropolitan Archdiocese of Pondicherry
• Lost territories repeatedly : on 31 December 1953 to establish Diocese of Tellicherry, on 1998.11.05 to establish Diocese of Kannur, on 28 December 2013 to establish Diocese of Sultanpet.

Episcopal Ordinaries

(all Latin Rite)

Suffragan Bishops of Calicut

• Paolo Charles Perini, Jesuits (S.J.) (born Italy) (12 June 1923 – death 28 June 1932); previously Bishop of Mangalore (India) (17 August 1910 – 12 June 1923), remaining Apostolic Administrator of Mangalore (1923 – 1928)
• Leone Proserpio, S.J. (born Italy) (2 December 1937 – death 8 September 1945)
• Aldus Maria Patroni, S.J. (first native Indian incumbent) (8 April 1948 – retired 7 June 1980), died 1988
• Maxwell Valentine Noronha (7 June 1980 – retired 19 April 2002), died 2018
• Joseph Kalathiparambil (19 April 2002 – 22 February 2011); next Secretary (second-in-command) of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerants (22 February 2011 – 31 October 2016) and Metropolitan Archbishop of Verapoly (India) (31 October 2016 – ...)
• Varghese Chakkalakal (15 May 2012 - ...), also Secretary General of Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (17 August 2013 – 6 February 2017); previously Bishop of Kannur (India) (5 November 1998 – 15 May 2012), remaining Apostolic Administrator of Kannur (15 May 2012 – 1 February 2014).

See also

• List of Catholic dioceses in India

Sources and External links

• GCatholic, with Google satellite HQ picture - data for all sections ^{[self-published]}
• diocesan website
• Catholic Hierarchy ^{[self-published]}