Roman Catholic Diocese of Imperatriz explained

Jurisdiction:	Diocese
Imperatriz
Latin:	Dioecesis Imperatricis
Rite:	Latin Rite
Established:	27 June 1987 (years ago)
Cathedral:	Catedral Nossa Senhora da Fátima
Area Km2:	22,659
Population:	470,000
Population As Of:	2004
Catholics:	376,000
Catholics Percent:	80.0

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Imperatriz (Latin: Dioecesis Imperatricis) is a suffragan Latin diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the Metropolitan of São Luís do Maranhão in northeastern Brazil.

Its cathedral episcopal see is Catedral Nossa Senhora da Fátima, dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima, in the city of Imperatriz, Maranhão state.

History

Established on 27 June 1987 as Diocese of Imperatriz, on territory split off from the Diocese of Carolina.

Statistics

As per 2014, it pastorally served 414,000 Catholics (79.9% of 518,000 total) on 25,958 km² in 27 parishes and 2 missions with 43 priests (29 diocesan, 14 religious), 1 deacon, 65 lay religious (19 brothers, 46 sisters) and 7 seminarians .

Bishops

(all Roman rite)

Episcopal ordinaries

Suffragan Bishops of Imperatriz

Affonso Felippe Gregory (1987.07.16 – retired 2005.08.03), also President of Caritas Internationalis (1991 – 1999); died 2008; previously Titular Bishop of Drusiliana (1979.08.02 – 1987.07.16) as Auxiliary Bishop of São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) (1979.08.02 – 1987.07.16)
Gilberto Pastana de Oliveira (2005.08.03 – 2017.04.19), also Coadjutor Bishop of Crato (Brazil) (2016.05.18 – 2016.12.28), succeeding as Bishop of Crato (2016.12.28 – ...)
Vilson Basso, Dehonians (S.C.I.) (2017.04.19 – ...), previously Bishop of Caxias do Maranhão (Brazil) (2010.03.19 – 2017.04.19).

Other priest of this diocese who became bishops

Francisco Lima Soares, appointed Bishop of Carolina, Maranhão in 2018