The Catholic Church in Dominican Republic

Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...

is part of the worldwide Catholic Church

Roman Catholic Church

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope

Pope

The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...

 and Curia

Roman Curia

The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See and the central governing body of the entire Catholic Church, together with the Pope...

 in Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

.

The Catholic Church is the world's largest Christian Church, and its largest religious grouping. There are an estimated 7.6 million baptised Catholics in the Dominican Republic, (78% of the population), in 11 territorial diocese

Diocese

A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...

s and one military ordinariate

Military ordinariate

A military ordinariate is an ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Roman Catholic Church, of Latin or Eastern Rite, responsible for the pastoral care of Catholics serving in the armed forces of a nation....

, served by 800 priest

Priest

A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...

s.

Within the Dominican Republic the hierarchy consists of:

Archbishopric Bishopric

• Santiago de los Caballeros
  • La Vega
  • Mao-Monte Cristi
  • Puerto Plata
  • San Francisco de Macorís
• Santo Domingo
  • Baní
  • Barahona
  • Nuestra Señora de la Altagracia en Higüey
  • San Juan de la Maguana
  • San Pedro de Macorís

Church in society

The Dominican Republic offers religious freedom, but the Catholic Church still enjoys certain favors, in particular due to a 1954 concordat

Concordat of 1954

The Concordat of 1954 is a treaty concluded between the diplomats of the Holy See and the leadership of the Dominican Republic.-Status of the Church:...

 with the Vatican

Holy See

The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...

. Under Rafael Trujillo's government, the power of the Catholic Church was limited. Although the Church remained apolitical during much of the Trujillo era, a 1960 pastoral letter of protest against mass arrests of government opponents seriously strained the relationship with the government.