Archdiocese of Owerri
| Archdiocese of Owerri Archidioecesis Overriensis | |
|---|---|
Assumpta Cathedral
| |
| Location | |
| Country | Nigeria |
| Territory | Imo State |
| Episcopal conference | Catholic Bishops' Conference of Nigeria |
| Ecclesiastical province | Owerri |
| Coordinates | 5°29′06″N 7°02′06″E / 5.48500°N 7.03500°E |
| Statistics | |
| Area | 2,996 km2 (1,157 sq mi)[1] |
| Population Total Catholics |
(as of 2023) 1,555,338[1] 1,079,950[1] ( 69.4%) |
| Parishes | 164 (2023)[1] |
| Information | |
| Denomination | Catholic |
| Sui iuris church | Latin Church |
| Rite | Roman Rite |
| Established | Diocese: 18 April 1950 Archdiocese: 26 March 1994 |
| Cathedral | Assumpta Cathedral |
| Secular priests | 396 total (2023)[1] 279 diocesan 117 religious priests |
| Current leadership | |
| Pope | Leo XIV |
| Metropolitan Archbishop | Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji |
| Auxiliary Bishops | Moses Chikwe |
| Bishops emeritus | Anthony J.V. Obinna |
| Map | |
| Imo State shown in red | |
| Website | |
| www.owarch.org | |
The Archdiocese of Owerri (Latin: Archidioecesis Overriensis) is a Latin Catholic archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria. The Seat of Wisdom Seminary is in Owerri.
History
The diocese dates back to the Vicariate Apostolic of Owerri, which was created on February 12, 1948, when the Vicariate Apostolic of Onitsha-Owerri was split. On April 18, 1950, it was elevated to a diocese. On March 26, 1994, it became an archdiocese.
On 27 December 2020, auxiliary bishop Moses Chikwe and his driver were kidnapped by gunmen in Owerri. They were both released unharmed and without ransom, on 1 January 2021.[2]
Statistics
The archdiocese covers an area of 2,996 km2 (1,157 sq mi).
1,079,950 (69.4%) of the 1.55 million people (2023) in the area are Catholic. The archdiocese hosts 376 total priests (297 diocesan and 117 religious (2023). There are 164 parishes in the archdiocese (2023).[1]
Bishops
Ordinaries
- Vicar Apostolic of Owerri (Latin Church)
- Joseph Brendan Whelan, C.S.Sp. 12 Feb 1948 – 18 Apr 1950; see below
- Bishops of Owerri
- Joseph Brendan Whelan, C.S.Sp. 18 Apr 1950 – 25 Jun 1970; see above
- Mark Onwuha Unegbu 25 Jun 1970 – 1 Jul 1993
- Anthony J.V. Obinna 1 Jul 1993 – 1993; see below
- Metropolitan Archbishops of Owerri
- Anthony J.V. Obinna 26 Mar 1994 – 6 Mar 2022; see above
- Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji since 6 Mar 2022; see above
Auxiliary bishop
- Moses Chikwe (2019– )
Other priests of this diocese who became bishop
- Augustine Ndubueze Echema, appointed Bishop of Aba in 2019
Suffragan Dioceses
See also
Canonical status and jurisdiction
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Owerri is a metropolitan archdiocese of the Catholic Church.[3]
- Part of: Ecclesiastical Province of Owerri
External links
References
- Back to citation occurrence 1.0 Back to citation occurrence 1.1 Back to citation occurrence 1.2 Back to citation occurrence 1.3 Back to citation occurrence 1.4 Back to citation occurrence 1.5 "Archdiocese of Owerri". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. David M. Cheney. 24 February 2025.
- Back to citation "Catholic bishop released five days after kidnapping in Nigeria". Catholic News Agency. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
- Back to citation Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Owerri, official website
External links
- Official website
- Archdiocese profile at Catholic-Hierarchy.org
- Nigerian Catholic Network
- Diocese information at the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria Archived 2016-12-19 at the Wayback Machine
- Archdiocese profile at GCatholic.org
- Seat of Wisdom Seminary
- Seat of Wisdom SeminaryArchived 2013-06-14 at the Wayback Machine