Wallis is a Polynesian atoll/island in the Pacific Ocean belonging to the French overseas collectivity of Wallis and Futuna. It lies north of Tonga, northeast of Fiji, east-northeast of the Hoorn Islands, east of Fiji's Rotuma, southeast of Tuvalu, southwest of Tokelau and west of Samoa. Its area is almost 100 km2 (39 sq mi) with 8,333 people. Its capital is Mata Utu. Roman Catholicism is the predominant religion. Its highest point is Mount Lulu Fakahega. Wallis is of volcanic origin with fertile soil and some remaining lakes. Rainfall is plentiful.
The Society of Mary, better known under the name Marist, is a religious congregation under pontifical right.
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Samoa-Apia consists of the Independent State of Samoa.
The Vicariate Apostolic of Eastern Oceania was a Roman Catholic missionary jurisdiction for some of the South Sea (Pacific) islands from 1833 till 1848.
The Vicariate Apostolic of Central Oceania was a Roman Catholic missionary jurisdiction in the Southern Pacific.
The Catholic Church in Tonga is part of the worldwide Catholic Church under the leadership of its local bishop in communion with the Bishop of Rome. It is estimated that approximately 16% of the population of the Pacific island Kingdom are Catholic, being 15,767 in 2004.1 Bishop Soane Patita Paini Mafi succeeded as Bishop of Tonga in 2008.
The Cathedral of St. Mary is a religious building located on Vuna Road in the town of Nukualofa, capital of the Kingdom of Tonga a small independent state in Oceania. It should not be confused with the Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua also located in the same city.
The Catholic Church in Wallis and Futuna is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, which, inspired by the life, death and teachings of Jesus Christ, and under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and Roman curia in the Vatican City is the largest Christian church in the world. The French who were the first Europeans to settle in the territory, with the arrival of missionaries in 1837, who converted the population to Catholicism. Today, the population of the Pacific island French territory is overwhelmingly Catholic. Bishop Ghislain Marie Raoul Suzanne de Rasilly, S.M., was ordained Bishop of Wallis et Futuna in 2005.
John Hubert Macey Rodgers was a Missionary bishop. He was Vicar Apostolic of Tonga and Niue (1953–1966) Bishop of Tonga (1966–1973) then Bishop of Rarotonga (1973–1977), Auxiliary Bishop of Auckland (1977–1985), Superior of the Mission, Funafuti, Tuvalu (1986).
The Episcopal Conference of the Pacific (CEPAC) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church that includes the bishops of several islands in Oceania. The CEPAC is a member of the Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania (FCBCO).
Soane Lilo Foliaki was the third Roman Catholic bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tonga.
Soane Patita Paini Mafi is the fourth Roman Catholic Bishop of Tonga. At the age of 53, on 14 February 2015, he was appointed by Pope Francis as the first ever cardinal from Tonga and he became on that date the youngest member of the College of Cardinals with the title of cardinal priest assigned to the titular church of Santa Paola Romana.
Patelisio Punou-Ki-Hihifo Finau was the second Roman Catholic Bishop of Tonga born in Tonga.
Susitino Sionepoe, S.M. is a Futunan Catholic prelate and the current Bishop of Wallis et Futuna. He was consecrated on March 24, 2019, by Archbishop Michel-Marie-Bernard Calvet in Mata'Utu, the Capital of Wallis and Futuna. His appointment as bishop was the result of the resignation of the previous bishop on 24 December 2018. He is a member of the Marists.
‘Apifo‘ou College is a co-educational secondary school located at Ma’ufanga on the island of Tongatapu in the Kingdom of Tonga. It is the largest and oldest Catholic secondary school in Tonga. It is owned by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tonga and Niue, and is run by priests of the Society of Mary.
Santa Paola Romana is a 20th-century parochial church and titular church in Rome, Italy, dedicated to Saint Paula of Rome.
