Curaçao, officially the Country of Curaçao, is a Lesser Antilles island in the southern Caribbean Sea, specifically the Dutch Caribbean region, about 65 km (40 mi) north of Venezuela. It is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Bonaire is a Caribbean island in the Leeward Antilles, and is a special municipality of the Netherlands. Its capital is the port of Kralendijk, on the west (leeward) coast of the island. Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao form the ABC islands, 80 km off the coast of Venezuela. The islands have an arid climate that attracts visitors seeking warm, sunny weather all year round, and they lie outside the Main Development Region for tropical cyclones. Bonaire is a popular snorkeling and scuba diving destination because of its multiple shore diving sites, shipwrecks and easy access to the island's fringing reefs.
The SSS islands, locally also known as the Windward Islands, is a collective term for the three territories of the Dutch Caribbean that are located within the Leeward Islands group of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean Sea. In order of population size, they are: Sint Maarten, Sint Eustatius, and Saba. In some contexts, the term is also used to refer to the entire island of Saint Martin, alongside Sint Eustatius and Saba.
Kralendijk is the capital and main port of the island of Bonaire in the Caribbean Netherlands. The language spoken in the town is Papiamentu, but Dutch and English are widely used. As of 2017, the town had a population of 10,620. In Papiamentu, the town is often called Playa or "beach".
Louis Bertrand, OP was a Spanish Dominican friar who preached in South America during the 16th century, and is known as the "Apostle to the Americas". He is venerated as a saint by the Catholic Church.
Rincon is one of the two towns in Bonaire, a special municipality of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is situated in the north of the island in an inland valley.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Willemstad is a diocese of the Latin Church of the Roman Catholic Church in the Caribbean. The diocese encompasses the territory of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Caribbean: the countries Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten and the islands Bonaire, St. Eustatius, Saba. The cathedra is in the city of Curaçao. The diocese is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Port of Spain, and a member of the Antilles Episcopal Conference.
The Catholic Church in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is part of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.
The Dutch Caribbean are the New World territories, colonies, and countries of the Dutch Empire and the Kingdom of the Netherlands located in the Caribbean Sea, mainly the northern and southwestern regions of the Lesser Antilles archipelago.
The Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Cathedral also known as Pietermaai Cathedral or the Cathedral of the Holy Rosary is a religious building belonging to the Catholic Church, which serves as the cathedral of the Diocese of Willemstad in Juliana Plein 5, Pietermaai, Willemstad a city on the island of Curacao and has under its jurisdiction all dependent islands of the Netherlands in the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Venezuela.
The Basilica of St. Anne It is a religious building that functions as Catholic Minor Basilica and at the same time as co-cathedral of the Diocese of Willemstad on the island of Curaçao in the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Venezuela. The other being the main cathedral dedicated to Our Lady the Queen of the Holy Rosary of the same city.
The St. Francis of Assisi Church also alternatively called Pro Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi is a religious building belonging to the Catholic Church and serves as the pro-cathedral or temporary cathedral in the city of Oranjestad, on the Caribbean island of Aruba, an autonomous country in the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Lesser Antilles.
The St. Philomena's Church is a religious building belonging to the Catholic Church located in the town of Paradera, on the Caribbean island of Aruba, an autonomous country in the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Lesser Antilles.
The St. Bernard Church is a religious building belonging to the Catholic Church and is located in the city of Kralendijk, the capital of the Caribbean island of Bonaire, a territory in the Caribbean Netherlands organised as a special municipality of the Netherlands in the Antilles.
The Our Lady of Coromoto Church also known as the Parish of Our Lady of Coromoto is a religious building belonging to the Catholic Church and is located in the town of Antriol on the island of Bonaire, a dependent territory of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Caribbean Sea.
The Sacred Heart Church is a religious building belonging to the Catholic Church and is located in the town of The Bottom, capital of the Caribbean island of Saba a dependent territory that has the status of special municipality of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Caribbean Sea or sea of the Antilles.
The Holy Rosary Church, also known as the Queen of the Holy Rosary Church, is a religious building affiliated with the Catholic church in the small town of Hell's Gate on the island of Saba, a dependent territory of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Lesser Antilles, Caribbean Sea.
Antonius Johannes van Koolwijk was a Dutch clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church. His notable contributions lie in the field of archeological research, particularly his studies on the indigenous culture of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao during the late 19th century. Van Koolwijk is recognized as the pioneering archeologist of the ABC islands.
Religion in Curaçao has played an important role in the islands history and culture. The island, a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, is predominately Roman Catholic. Although significant minorities of other faiths exist.
