The Catholic Church in Slovakia is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.
According to the 2021 census, around 55.8% [1] [2] of the total population was Latin (Roman) Catholic and another 3.8% is Greek Catholic. The country is divided into 8 Latin dioceses including 3 archdioceses, and there is also a separate Metropolitan jurisdiction for those of the Byzantine Rite, see Slovak Greek Catholic Church.
In 2020, there were over 3,000 priests and almost 2,000 nuns serving across more than 1,500 parishes. [3]
Taking the percentage of membership in the Catholic Church as an indicator, Slovakia is the third most Catholic Slavic country, after Poland and Croatia.
Eparchy is an ecclesiastical unit in Eastern Christianity that is equivalent to a diocese in Western Christianity. An eparchy is governed by an eparch, who is a bishop. Depending on the administrative structure of a specific Eastern Church, an eparchy can belong to an ecclesiastical province, but it can also be exempt. Each eparchy is divided into parishes, in the same manner as a diocese in Western Churches. Historical development of eparchies in various Eastern Churches was marked by local distinctions that can be observed in modern ecclesiastical practices of the Eastern Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodox Churches and Eastern Catholic Churches.
An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian churches, including those of both Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity, that have traditional hierarchical structures. An ecclesiastical province consists of several dioceses, one of them being the archdiocese, headed by a metropolitan bishop or archbishop who has ecclesiastical jurisdiction over all other bishops of the province.
The Catholic Church in Syria is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.
Hungarian Catholics, like elsewhere, are part of the worldwide Catholic Church under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.
The Catholic Church in Serbia is part of the worldwide Catholic Church in Serbia, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome. There are 356,957 Catholics in Serbia according to the 2011 census, which is roughly 5% of the population. Estimates in 2020 suggested that the figure had risen to 5.5-6%.
The Hungarian Greek Catholic Church or the Byzantine Catholic Church in Hungary is a sui iuris (autonomous) Eastern Catholic church based in Hungary. As a particular church of the Catholic Church, it is in full communion with the Holy See. Its liturgical usage is that of the Byzantine Rite in the Hungarian language.
The Slovak Greek Catholic Church or Byzantine Catholic Church in Slovakia, is a sui iuris (autonomous) Eastern Catholic church based in Slovakia. As a particular church of the Catholic Church, it is in full communion with the Holy See. The church is organised as a single ecclesiastical province with one metropolitan see. Its liturgical rite is the Byzantine Rite. In 2008 in Slovakia alone, the Greek Catholic Church in Slovakia had some 350,000 faithful, 374 priests and 254 parishes. In 2017, the Catholic Church counted 207,320 Greek Catholics in Slovakia worldwide, representing roughly one percent of all Eastern Catholics.
The Archdiocese of Bratislava is a Latin Church archdiocese of the Catholic Church in western Slovakia including Bratislava and the western Trnava regions. It has its seat in Bratislava. The current archbishop is Stanislav Zvolenský and auxiliary bishop is Jozef Haľko.
The Archdiocese of Košice is a Latin archdiocese of the Catholic Church in eastern Slovakia, with its seat in Košice. It covers the central and eastern parts of the Prešov and Košice regions, with an area of 10,403 km2. The diocese's area has a total population of 1,153,505 people, of which around 61% were of Catholic faith as of 2012. The Cathedral of St. Elizabeth serves as the seat of the diocese.
The Archdiocese of Trnava is a Latin Catholic archdiocese in western Slovakia including bigger part of the Trnava, and parts of Nitra and Trenčín regions. It has its seat in Trnava. Although it is an archdiocese, it is not a metropolitan and is instead a suffragan of Bratislava. In 2013 Pope Francis appointed Auxiliary Bishop Ján Orosch as the next Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Trnava.
The Eparchy of Bratislava is an eparchy (diocese) of the Slovak Greek Catholic Church that is situated in western Slovakia. It's episcopal seat is the Cathedral of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in the city of Bratislava. The eparchy is a suffragan of the metropolitan Archeparchy of Prešov. The eparchy's territorial remit includes the regions of Bratislava, Trnava, Nitra, Trenčín, Žilina and Banská Bystrica which total around 33,300 km2. As an Eastern Catholic church, it uses the Byzantine Rite in the Slovak and Church Slavonic languages.
The Archeparchy of Prešov is an archeparchy of the Slovak Greek Catholic Church which is an Eastern Catholic particular church of the Catholic Church that is in full communion with the Holy See. The archeparchy is the metropolitan see of the Slovak Greek Catholic ecclesiastical province which covers the whole of Slovakia. The archeparch is also, ex officio, the metropolitan bishop of the metropolis. The geographical remit of the archeparchy itself is confined to the Prešov Region of Slovakia. The see is currently sede vacante. The cathedral church of the archeparcy is the cathedral of St. John the Baptist which is situated in Prešov. As an Eastern Catholic church, it uses the Byzantine Rite in the Slovak and Church Slavonic languages.
The Conference of Bishops of Slovakia (KBS), was established on 23 March 1993, and is composed of the Catholic bishops in active service in the Slovak Republic.