Diocese of Chanthaburi
Encyclopedia
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...
of Chanthaburi
Chanthaburi
Chanthaburi ) is a town in the east of Thailand, at the banks of the Chanthaburi River. It is the capital of the Chanthaburi Province and the Mueang Chanthaburi district....
(Dioecesis Chanthaburiensis, Thai: สังฆมณฑลจันทบุรี) is located in eastern central Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
. It is a suffragan diocese of the archdiocese of Bangkok
Archdiocese of Bangkok
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bangkok, Thailand dates back to 1662, when the of created. It was renamed in 1841 and in 1924...
.
The diocese covers an area of 34,000 km², covering the provinces
Provinces of Thailand
Thailand is divided into 76 provinces , which are geographically grouped into 6 regions. The capital Bangkok is not a province but a special administrative area and is included as the 77th province since it is administered at the same level as the other 76 provinces. The name of the provinces are...
- Chanthaburi
Chanthaburi Province
Chanthaburi is a province of Thailand. It is located in the east of Thailand, at the border to Battambang and Pailin of Cambodia and the shore to the Gulf of Thailand...
, Chonburi
Chonburi Province
Chonburi is a province of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Chachoengsao, Chanthaburi and Rayong. To the west is the Gulf of Thailand. The eastern seaboard is heavily industrialized and underpinned by shipping, transportation, tourism, and manufacturing industries, and second to only Bangkok...
, Prachinburi
Prachinburi Province
Prachin Buri is a province of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Nakhon Ratchasima, Sa Kaeo, Chachoengsao and Nakhon Nayok.-Geography:...
, Rayong
Rayong Province
Rayong province is a province of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Chon Buri and Chanthaburi. To the south is the Gulf of Thailand.-History:...
, Sa Kaeo
Sa Kaeo Province
Sa Kaeo is a province of Thailand.It is located in the east of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Chanthaburi, Chachoengsao, Prachin Buri, Nakhon Ratchasima and Buri Ram...
and Trat
Trat Province
Trat is a province of Thailand. It is located in the east of Thailand, and has borders with Chanthaburi Province to the northwest, Cambodia to the east, and the Gulf of Thailand to the south.Trat is most famous for gemstone mining and trading....
, as well as the parts east of the Bang Pa Kong River
Bang Pa Kong River
The Bang Pakong is a river in east Thailand. The river originates at the confluence of the Nakhon Nayok River and the Prachinburi River at Pak Nam Yothaka in Amphoe Ban Sang, Prachinburi Province. It empties into the Gulf of Thailand in the northeastern tip of the Bay of Bangkok. The watershed of...
in Chachoengsao
Chachoengsao Province
Chachoengsao is a province of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Prachin Buri, Sa Kaeo, Chanthaburi, Chon Buri, Samut Prakan, Bangkok, Pathum Thani and Nakhon Nayok. It also has a short coast to the Gulf of Thailand.-History:Chachoengsao or Paet Rio is a province in the Central region...
, and Nakhon Nayok
Nakhon Nayok Province
Nakhon Nayok is one of the central provinces of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Saraburi, Nakhon Ratchasima, Prachinburi, Chachoengsao and Pathum Thani....
except the district Ban Na
Amphoe Ban Na
Ban Na is a district in the western part of Nakhon Nayok Province, central Thailand.-History:In the Ayutthaya era, people in a village of Tambon Pa Kha were elephant catchers , catching wild elephants to use as war elephants....
.
As of 2009, of the 4.4 million citizen 38,918 are member of the Catholic Church. It is divided into 42 parishes, having 112 priests altogether.
History
On May 11, 1944 the Vicariate Apostolic of Chantaburi was split off from the Vicariate Apostolic of BangkokArchdiocese of Bangkok
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bangkok, Thailand dates back to 1662, when the of created. It was renamed in 1841 and in 1924...
. On December 18, 1965 it was elevated to a diocese.
Cathedral
The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (Thai: อาสนวิหารพระนางมารีอาปฏิสนธินิรมล) 12°36′33.5"N 102°7′7"E is the largest church of Thailand. A first missionary chapel was built at the site in 1711. After being enlarged and rebuilt four times during the nineteenth century, especially due to the immigration of Vietnamese Christian fleeing religious persecution in the homecountry. In 1909 it was rebuilt in its current GothicGothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
style. It is located at the Chanthanimit Road on the left bank of the Chanthaburi River. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the roof was taken down to make the church less suspicious and thus prevent it to be bombed during allied air raids.
Controversies
In December 2007, the Diocese ordered the Father Ray Foundation, a charitable non-profit in PattayaPattaya
Pattaya is a city in Thailand, located on the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand, about 165 km southeast of Bangkok located within but not part of Amphoe Bang Lamung in the province of Chonburi....
that operates an orphanage, school for the deaf, blind and disabled to vacate property owned by the Diocese within a matter of weeks. Representatives of the Foundation believe the Diocese plans to build a more profitable school there.
Bishops
- Silvio Siripong Charatsri: appointed April 4, 2009
- Lawrence Thienchai Samanchit: July 3, 1971 - April 4, 2009
- Francis Xavier Sanguon Souvannasri: January 8, 1953 - April 3, 1970 (Resigned)
- Giacomo Luigi Cheng: May 11, 1944 - April 14, 1952
Before the vicariate apostolic was elevated to a diocese, the bishops were assigned a titular see
Titular see
A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular bishop", "titular metropolitan", or "titular archbishop"....
.