Diocese

In some Christian churches, the diocese is an administrative territorial unit governed by a bishop, sometimes also referred to as a bishopric or episcopal see, though more often the term episcopal see means the office held by the bishop. In the Roman Catholic Church, an important diocese, governed by an Archbishop is called an archdiocese (usually due to size, historical significance, or both). As of 2003, there are about 569 Roman Catholic archdioceses and 2014 dioceses in the world.

Related Topics:
Bishop - Episcopal see - Roman Catholic Church - Archbishop - As of 2003

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Some Protestant churches such as the Church of England have inherited this diocesan structure directly, during the Protestant Reformation.

Related Topics:
Protestant - Church of England - Protestant Reformation

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In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associated in a larger unit, the diocese. (Latin dioecesis, from a Greek term meaning "administration").

Related Topics:
Roman Empire - Provinces - Latin - Greek

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The Catholic Church directly inherited this Roman structure of authority during the 5th and 6th centuries, as each bishop fully assumed the role of the former Roman praefectus. The transfer was facilitated by the Christian practice of setting the areas of ecclesiastical administration very exactly coinciding with those of the civil administration: in modern times, many an ancient diocese, though later divided among several dioceses, has preserved the boundaries of a long-vanished Roman administrative division. See further information concerning bishops in civil government at the entry Bishop.

Related Topics:
5th - 6th centuries - Praefectus - Bishop

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