| Jurisdiction: | Diocese |
| Gozo | |
| Latin: | Dioecesis Gaudisiensis |
| Local: | Djoċesi ta' Għawdex |
| Country: |  Malta |
| Territory: | Gozo and Comino |
| Province: | Malta |
| Metropolitan: | Archdiocese of Malta |
| Area Km2: | 67 |
| Population: | 34,430 |
| Population As Of: | 2021 |
| Catholics: | 32,954 |
| Catholics Percent: | 95.7 |
| Parishes: | 15 |
| Churches: | 48 |
| Denomination: | Catholic |
| Sui Iuris Church: | Latin Church |
| Rite: | Roman Rite |
| Established: | 22 September 1864 |
| Cathedral: | Cathedral of the Assumption |
| Patron: | Saint George Saint Ursula |
| Bishop: | Anton Teuma |
| Metro Archbishop: | Charles Scicluna |
| Suffragan: | for one --> |
| Vicar General: | Tarcisio Camilleri |
| Judicial Vicar: | Joe Zammit |
| Archdeacon: | for one--> |
| Emeritus Bishops: | Mario Cardinal Grech |
| Map: | Gozo and Comino-map.svg |
The Diocese of Gozo (Latin: Dioecesis Goulos-Gaudisiensis)[1] is a Latin diocese of the Catholic Church in Malta, and the only suffragan in the ecclesiastical province of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Malta, together covering the insular state.
The diocese comprises the island of Gozo (seventeen miles west of the Maltese capital Valletta) and the islet of Comino.
On a central plateau the ruined fortifications of an ancient town contain the cathedral church and public buildings, outside of which is a large suburb.
Up to the year 1864, Gozo formed part of the then Roman Catholic Diocese of Malta, but Pope Pius IX, acceding to requests by the clergy and the people, erected it into a separate, then exempt diocese, i.e. immediately subject to the Holy See. On 16 March 1863, Michael Franciscus Buttigieg, a native of Gozo, was appointed titular Bishop of Lita and deputy auxiliary of the Archbishop-Bishop of Malta, for the Island of Gozo. He was consecrated at Rome on 3 May of the same year, on 22 September 1864, was created first bishop of the new Diocese of Gozo, and on the 23rd day of the following month made his entry into the new cathedral. This Church, dedicated to the Assumption of Mary, is the oldest parish in Gozo. It was already working as a parish in 1241 and goes back to Byzantine period. Through the efforts of Pietro Pace, vicar-general of the diocese, a diocesan seminary was established on the site formerly occupied by the San Giuliano Hospital, the revenues of which were appropriated to the new institution. This seminary was inaugurated 3 November 1866, and by the express desire of Pius IX placed under the direction of the Jesuits.
On the death of Buttigieg, Paolo Micallef, Superior General of the Augustinian Order, was made Bishop of Città di Castello and appointed administrator of the Diocese of Gozo. He left Gozo in May, 1867, and in 1871 became Archbishop of Pisa. His successor to the administration of the diocese was Antonius Grech Delicata Testaferrata, titular Bishop of Chalcedon, a native of Malta, who in 1868 was appointed Bishop of Gozo, and as such assisted at the First Vatican Council. Grech Delicata's divested himself of his own patrimony in favour of the poor; he died on the last day of 1876.
On 12 March 1877, Pietro Pace, native of Gozo, was appointed to succeed Grech Delicata, and was consecrated in Rome by Cardinal Edward Henry Howard. Under his administration the seminary was augmented by the installation of a meteorological observatory, which was inaugurated by Padre Denza, director of the Vatican Observatory. During this administration an episcopal educational institute for girls was also established, under the care of the Sisters of St. Vincent de Paul, to whom was also entrusted the direction of the annexed orphan asylum. The same bishop provided the diocese with a new episcopal palace and new monasteries, besides laying out large sums of money on the cathedral.
In 1889 Pace was promoted Archbishop of Rhodes and Bishop of Malta. His successor in the See of Gozo was G. M. Camilleri, a native of Valletta (b. 15 March 1842). Under Camilleri's administration the first diocesan synod was celebrated, in October, 1903. This synod was necessary as the diocese was still governed under the outdated rules of the Synod of Malta of 1703. Constitutions and decrees were also promulgated and published.
In May 1990, it was visited by Pope John Paul II.
| Name | from | to | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Franciscus Buttigieg (1864-1866) | 1864 | 1866 | ||
| Paolo Micallef, Administrator of Gozo | 1866 | 1867 | Administrator of Gozo | ||
| 2 | 1868 | 1876 | |||
| 3 | 1877 | 1889 | Became Bishop of Malta | ||
| 4 | 1889 | 1924 | |||
| 5 | Mikiel Gonzi (1924-1943) | 1924 | 1943 | Became Coadjutor Bishop of Malta, Bishop of Malta, and subsequently Metropolitan Archbishop of Malta | |
| 6 | 1944 | 1972 | |||
| Nikol Joseph Cauchi, Administrator of Gozo | 1967 | 1972 | Administrator of Gozo | ||
| 7 | 1972 | 2006 | |||
| 8 | 2006 | 2019 | Became Pro-secretary of the Synod of Bishops | ||
| 2019 | 2020 | Administrator of Gozo | |||
| 9 | 2020 | - |
| Parish | Location | Date established | |
|---|---|---|---|
| pre-1241 | |||
| pre-1450 | |||
| Sacred Heart of Jesus | 27 March 1911 | ||
| 26 January 1855 | |||
| 29 August 1679 | |||
| 16 December 1921 | |||
| 10 March 1885 | |||
| 12 December 1957 | |||
| 28 April 1688 | |||
| 3 February 1872 | |||
| 15 March 1893 | |||
| 28 April 1688 | |||
| 28 April 1688 | |||
| Parish of Saint John the Baptist | 27 November 1678 | ||
| 28 April 1688 |