The Roman Catholic Diocese of Banja Luka (Serbian

Serbian language

Serbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....

, Croatian

Croatian language

Croatian is the collective name for the standard language and dialects spoken by Croats, principally in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Serbian province of Vojvodina and other neighbouring countries...

: Banjalučka biskupija, Lat:Dioecesis Bania Lucensisis) a 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...

 of the Latin Rite of the Roman 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...

 in western Bosnia

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...

. The diocese is centred in the city of Banja Luka

Banja Luka

-History:The name "Banja Luka" was first mentioned in a document dated February 6, 1494, but Banja Luka's history dates back to ancient times. There is a substantial evidence of the Roman presence in the region during the first few centuries A.D., including an old fort "Kastel" in the centre of...

, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...

.

Erected on July 5, 1881, the diocese is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Vrhbosna

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vrhbosna

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vrhbosna is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in eastern Bosnia. Its episcopal see is the city of Sarajevo, capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was elevated to an archdiocese on July 5, 1881. The Diocese of Vrhbosna is much older...

, as the Diocese of Banjaluka. In 1985, the name of the diocese was split to the current diocese of Banja Luka.

The original Cathedral of Saint Bonaventure

Cathedral of Saint Bonaventure

The Cathedral of Saint Bonaventure in Banja Luka is one of four Roman Catholic cathedrals in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the seat of the Banja Luka Bishopric currently led by Bishop Franjo Komarica....

 in the city was built in 1887. However, an earthquake in 1969 levelled the church. Banja Luka's current cathedral was built in 1974. Currently, Bishop Franjo Komarica

Franjo Komarica

Dr. Franjo Komarica is a Bosnian Croat Roman Catholic prelate, the Bishop of Banja Luka since 1985....

 is head of the diocese. On Thursday, July 15, 2010, Pope Benedict XVI

Pope Benedict XVI

Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...

 appointed Father Marko Semren, O.F.M., guardian of the Franciscan convent of Gorica-Livno and professor of the Franciscan Theological Institute of Sarajevo, as auxiliary bishop of Banja Luka to Bishop Komarica.

The city of Banja Luka, and much of the territory that the diocese covers contains an Orthodox

Eastern Orthodox Church

The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...

 Serb majority. The Bosnian War

Bosnian War

The Bosnian War or the War in Bosnia and Herzegovina was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between April 1992 and December 1995. The war involved several sides...

 greatly affected the diocese. Virtually all of the churches in the bishopric sustained some damage, and many were destroyed. Many Croats

Croats

Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...

 were expelled from the region or fled, leaving only a fraction of the original Catholic population remaining. Bishop Komarica has been urging people to return, to mixed results.

Ordinaries

• Mariano Markovic, O.F.M. † (27 Mar 1884 Appointed - 20 Jun 1912 Died)
• Giuseppe Stefano Garic, O.F.M. † (14 Dec 1912 Appointed - 30 Jun 1946 Died)
• Carlo Celik † (15 Dec 1951 Appointed - 11 Aug 1958 Died)
• Alfred Pichler † (22 Jul 1959 Appointed - 15 May 1989 Retired)
• Franjo Komarica
  Franjo Komarica
  Dr. Franjo Komarica is a Bosnian Croat Roman Catholic prelate, the Bishop of Banja Luka since 1985....
  
   (15 May 1989 Appointed - )

External links

• http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/dbanj.html

See Also:List of Roman Catholic Dioceses in Bosnia-Herzegovina