Archdiocese of Mechlin-Brussels
Archdiocese of Mechlin-Brussels | |
Basic data | |
---|---|
Country | Belgium |
Diocesan bishop | Cardinal Jozef De Kesel |
Auxiliary bishop |
Jean-Luc Hudsyn Jean Kockerol's Koenraad Vanhoutte |
Emeritus diocesan bishop | André-Joseph Léonard |
Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus | Jan De Bie |
Vicar General | Etienne Van Billoen |
founding | 1961 |
surface | 3,635 km² |
Vicariates | 6 (June 10, 2008) |
Parishes | 645 (2016 / AP 2017 ) |
Residents | 2,842,000 (2016 / AP 2017 ) |
Catholics | 1,818,000 (2016 / AP 2017 ) |
proportion of | 64% |
Diocesan priest | 601 (2016 / AP 2017 ) |
Religious priest | 1,142 (2016 / AP 2017 ) |
Catholics per priest | 1,043 |
Permanent deacons | 91 (2016 / AP 2017 ) |
Friars | 1,423 (2016 / AP 2017 ) |
Religious sisters | 1,847 (2016 / AP 2017 ) |
rite | Roman rite |
Liturgical language |
French Dutch |
cathedral | St. Romuald in Mechelen |
Co-cathedral | Ss. Michael and Gudula in Brussels |
Website | www.kerknet.be/aartsbisdom |
Suffragan dioceses |
Diocese of Antwerp Diocese of Bruges Diocese of Gent Diocese of Hasselt Diocese of Liège Diocese of Namur Diocese of Tournai |
The Archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels ( Latin Archidioecesis Mechliniensis-Bruxellensis , French Archidiocèse de Malines-Bruxelles , Dutch Aartsbisdom Mechelen-Brussel ) with its seat in Mechlin has existed for about 450 years. The associated ecclesiastical province now includes the entire Kingdom of Belgium . The Archbishop of Mechlin-Brussels is the Primate of the Catholic Church in Belgium .
history
- 1559: Foundation of the Archdiocese of Mechelen due to a reorganization of the dioceses in the then Habsburg Netherlands (includes today's Netherlands , Belgium and Northern France) at the instigation of Philip II. The parish was previously assigned to the Diocese of Cambrai . The suffragan dioceses when it was founded are the newly established dioceses of Antwerp , Bruges , Ghent and Ypres , as well as the diocese of Liège - formerly part of the archbishopric of Cologne .
- 1801: New church reorganization in the course of the French Revolution : dissolution of the previous suffragan dioceses of Antwerp , Bruges and Ypres . Subordination of the dioceses Tournai and Namur - formerly belonging to the Archdiocese of Cambrai and the left bank of the Rhine of the former Archdiocese of Mainz . On November 29, 1801, the Pope confirmed the redistribution of the dioceses in the bull "Qui Christi Domini". This division lasted until 1821 the new Upper Rhine ecclesiastical province with metropolitan seat in Freiburg was founded, to which the new diocese of Mainz was added according to the circumscription bull Provida solersque .
- 1834: The diocese of Bruges is reestablished by hiving off from the diocese of Ghent .
- 1961: Renaming of the Archdiocese to 'Mechelen-Brussels'. The diocese of Antwerp is reestablished by outsourcing it from the archdiocese.
- 1967: The Hasselt diocese is reestablished by outsourcing from the Liège diocese .
territory
On December 6, 1961, on the initiative of Cardinal Suenens, the old Archdiocese of Mechlin was divided into the Diocese of Antwerp and the Archdiocese of Mechlin-Brussels. It includes the provinces of Flemish Brabant and Walloon Brabant , the capital region of Brussels and part of the province of Antwerp (the city of Mechlin).
In 1962, Cardinal Suenens decided to divide the Archdiocese of Mechlin-Brussels into three vicariates:
- Vicariate Brussels (corresponds to the Brussels Capital Region )
- Vicariate of Flemish Brabant and Mechelen (corresponds to the province of Flemish Brabant )
- Vicariate of Walloon Brabant (corresponds to the province of Walloon Brabant )
Speech autonomy
In 1969 Cardinal Suenens recognized the autonomy of the Dutch- and French-speaking pastoral care in the Vicariate of Brussels with their own responsibilities and infrastructure. Between 1962 and 1982 the vicariats were headed by a vicar general , with the Brussels vicar general from 1963 assisted by three adjutors. From 1982 to 2002 Archbishop Cardinal Danneels were appointed two auxiliary bishops in Brussels. Had functions of vicar general. Since his appointment on March 20, 2002 as Auxiliary Bishop and Vicar General for the City of Brussels, Jozef De Kesel has been striving for the unity of the Church of Brussels.
search
On June 24, 2010, the offices of the Archdiocese in Mechelen were searched by the Brussels Public Prosecutor's Office. According to the public prosecutor's office, the aim of the investigation is to find incriminating or exculpatory material in a case of sexual abuse . The cell phones of the church representatives present were temporarily removed, the graves of deceased cardinals searched and the assembled bishops detained and interrogated for hours . The Belgian Bishops' Conference and Pope Benedict XVI. expressed themselves "surprised" about the behavior of the investigative authorities. On August 13, 2010, the Brussels Court of Appeal declared the search lawful and allowed the investigation to continue.
Cathedrals
St. Romuald in Mechlin, Cathedral of the Archdiocese and Metropolitan Church of Belgium
St. Michael and St. Gudula in Brussels, co-cathedral of the Archdiocese
See also
Web links
- Entry on Archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels on catholic-hierarchy.org
- Archdiocese website (Kerk in Vlaanderen)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Friedhelm Jürgensmeier (ed.): Handbuch der Mainz Kirchengeschichte , Echter Verlag, Würzburg 1997–2002, p. 262
- ^ History of the diocese on its website (Dutch) ( Memento from February 2, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
- ^ Belgium: Public prosecutor searches diocesan offices in Mechelen , Catholic Press Agency Austria, June 24, 2010
- ^ Dutroux files also found during church raid , Der Standard , July 7, 2010
- ^ Belgian clerical abuse inquiry to proceed , Irish Times , August 14, 2010