Apostolic Vicariate of Central Oceania
The Vicariate Apostolic of Central Oceania was a Roman Catholic missionary jurisdiction in the Southern Pacific.
History
The whole of Oceania had at first been entrusted by the
In 1842, the
By the early 20th century, freedom of worship was theoretically recognized everywhere except in Niue, which was exclusively
In the early 20th century, there were 35 Catholic churches; 21 European and 1 native Marist priests, and 3 native secular priests; 28 schools with 2039 children; 2 colleges; 1 seminary. The establishments for girls were under the care of 52 Sisters of the Third Order of Mary. The boys' schools were conducted by native lay teachers; the colleges and the seminary by priests. The islands were divided into districts, with resident missionaries assembling every month for an ecclesiastical conference. There were annual retreats for the priests, for the sisters and for the catechists, besides general retreats for the faithful about every two years. In each village there was a
Legacy
After having lost more territory to establish the Apostolic Vicariate of Wallis and Futuna on 1935.11.11, by now being reduced to a tiny part of its original expanse, it was on 13 April renamed as Apostolic Vicariate of Tonga Islands, on 22 March 1957 again renamed as Apostolic Vicariate of Tonga Islands and Niue, which would on 21 June 1966 be promoted as Roman Catholic Diocese of Tonga, yet remains exempt, i.e. directly subject to the Holy See.
List of incumbent ordinaries
All were
- Vicars Apostolic of Central Oceania
- Pierre Bataillon, S.M. (1842.11.22 – 1863)
- Aloys Elloy, S.M. (1872 – 1878.11.22)
- Jean-Amand Lamaze, S.M. (1879.05.09 – 1906.09.09)
- Armand Olier, S.M. (1906.09.09 – 1911.09.17)
- Joseph Felix Blanc , S.M. (1912.02.17 – 1937.04.13), who went on as first Apostolic Vicar of Tonga Islands (1937.04.13 – 1952)
Sources and external links
- This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Vicariate Apostolic of Central Oceania". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. [1]
- GigaCatholic with incumbent ordinaries list and biography links