Roman Catholic Diocese of Zrenjanin
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Zrenjanin (Latin: Dioecesis Zrenjanensis, Serbian: Zrenjaninska biskupija / Зрењанинска бискупија, Hungarian: Nagybecskereki egyházmegye, Croatian: Zrenjaninska biskupija, German: Bistum Zrenjanin) is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in Serbia. It is subject to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Belgrade. The Diocese is centered in the city of Zrenjanin. László Német currently serves as bishop.
Diocese of Zrenjanin Dioecesis Zrenianensis Епархија Зрењанин | |
|---|---|
 Cathedral od Saint John of Nepomuk | |
| Location | |
| Country |  Serbia |
| Ecclesiastical province | Belgrade |
| Metropolitan | Archdiocese of Belgrade |
| Statistics | |
| Area | 9,387 km2 (3,624 sq mi) |
| Population - Total - Catholics (including non-members) | (as of 2010) 552,809 64,110 (11.6%) |
| Information | |
| Denomination | Catholic |
| Sui iuris church | Latin Church |
| Rite | Roman Rite |
| Established | 10 February 1923 (As Apostolic Administration of Jugoslavenska Banat) 16 December 1986 (As Diocese of Zrenjanin) |
| Cathedral | Cathedral of St. John of Nepomuk, Zrenjanin |
| Current leadership | |
| Pope | Francis |
| Bishop | László Német |
| Metropolitan Archbishop | Stanislav Hočevar |
| Bishops emeritus | László Huzsvár |
| Map | |
 Map of organization of Catholic Church in Serbia Belgrade Archbishopric - Green
Subotica Bishopric - Yellow
Zrenjanin Bishopric - Beige
Syrmia Bishopric - Brown
Apostolic Administration of Prizren - Violet | |
| Website | |
| catholic-zr.org.rs | |
Territory
The Diocese of Zrenjanin encompasses the Serbian part of the Banat region, which is mostly situated in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina (the small part of the area administratively belongs to the City of Belgrade).
The diocese's cathedral is the Cathedral of Saint John of Nepomuk in Zrenjanin, which was built in 1868.
The diocese is multi-ethnic and has members primarily from the sizable Hungarian and Croat communities, as well as Bulgarians, Czechs, Slovaks, and Germans.
History
Until the end of First World War, the territory of the present-day Diocese of Zrenjanin belonged to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Csanád. After the collapse of Austria-Hungary, region of Western Banat was incorporated into newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later known as Yugoslavia). In 1923, an Apostolic Administration of Yugoslav Banat was created. First apostolic administrator was Ivan Rafael Rodić. In 1924, he was appointed first Roman Catholic Archbishop of Belgrade, continuing to serve also as apostolic administrator of Yugoslav Banat. Until the end of Second World War, the largest number of Roman Catholics in the territory of Yugoslav Banat was of German ethnicity. In 1986, apostolic administration was reorganized into "Diocese of Zrenjanin" and placed under metropolitan jurisdiction of Roman Catholic Archbishop of Belgrade.
Administrators and bishops
- 1923–1936 Ivan Rafael Rodić
- 1936–1961 Josip Ujčić
- 1961–1971 Gabrijel Bukatko
- 1971–1988 Tamás Jung (bishop since 1986)
- 1988–2007 László Huzsvár
- 2007–present László Nemet
See also
- Roman Catholic Church in Serbia
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Subotica
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Syrmia