The Catholic Church in Chad is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.
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In January 2023, Archbishop Giuseppe Laterza was appointed as the Apostolic Nuncio to Chad. [1] [2]
The Catholic Church in Chad is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.
In January 2023, Archbishop Giuseppe Laterza was appointed as the Apostolic Nuncio to Chad. [1] [2]
There are about 3.6 million Catholics in Chad - about one fifth of the total population. [3] The country is divided into seven dioceses and an apostolic vicariate:
The Catholic missions came to Chad later than their Protestant counterparts. [4] Isolated efforts began as early as 1929 when The Holy Ghost Fathers from Bangui founded a mission at Kou, near Moundou in Logone Occidental Prefecture. [4] In 1934, in the midst of the sleeping sickness epidemic, they abandoned Kou for Doba in Logone Oriental Prefecture. [4] Other priests from Ubangi-Chari and Cameroon opened missions in Kélo and Sarh in 1935 and 1939, respectively. [4]
In 1946 these autonomous missions gave way to an institutionalized Catholic presence. [4] This late date had more to do with European politics than with events in Chad. [4] Earlier in the century, the Vatican had designated the Chad region to be part of the Italian vicarate of Khartoum. [4] Rather than risk the implantation of Italian missionaries during the era of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, the French administration discouraged all Catholic missionary activity. [4] For its part, the Vatican adopted the same tactic, not wishing to upset the Italian regime by transferring jurisdiction of the Chad region to the French. [4] As a consequence of their defeat in World War II, however, the Italians lost their African colonies. [4] This loss cleared the way for a French Catholic presence in Chad, which a decree from Rome formalized on March 22, 1946. [4]
This decree set up three religious jurisdictions that eventually became four bishoprics. [4] The first, administered by the Jesuits, had its seat in N'Djamena. [4] Although its jurisdiction included the eight prefectures in the northern and eastern parts of the country, almost all the Catholics in sahelian and Saharan Chad lived in the capital. [4] The diocese of N'Djamena also served as the archdiocese of all Chad. [4] The second bishopric, at Sarh, also was delegated to the Jesuits. [4] Its region included Salamat and Moyen-Chari prefectures. [4] The third and fourth jurisdictions had their headquarters in Pala and Moundou and were delegated to the Oblats de Marie and Capuchin orders. [4] The Pala bishopric served Mayo-Kebbi Prefecture, while the bishopric of Moundou was responsible for missions in Logone Occidental and Logone Oriental prefectures. [4] By far the most important jurisdiction in 1970, Pala included 116,000 of Chad's 160,000 Catholics. [4]
The relatively slow progress of the Catholic Church in Chad has several causes. [4] Although the Catholic Church has been much more open to local cultures than Protestantism, the doctrine of celibacy probably has deterred candidates for the priesthood. [4] Insistence on monogamy also has undoubtedly made the faith less attractive to some potential converts, particularly wealthy older men able to afford more than one wife. [4]
The social works of the Catholic Church have made it an important institution in Chad. [4] Like their Protestant counterparts, the Catholic missions have a history of social service. [4] In the 1970s, along with priests, the staffs of most establishments included brothers and nuns who worked in the areas of health, education, and development. [4] Many of the nuns were trained medical professionals who served on the staffs of government hospitals and clinics. [4] It was estimated that 20,000 Chadians attended Catholic schools in 1980. [4] Adult literacy classes also reached beyond the traditional school-aged population. [4] In the area of development, as early as the 1950s Catholic missions in southern Chad set up rural development centers whose clientele included non-Christians as well as Christians. [4]
Chad is one of the 47 landlocked countries in the world and is located in North Central Africa, measuring 1,284,000 square kilometers (495,755 sq mi), nearly twice the size of France and slightly more than three times the size of California. Most of its ethnically and linguistically diverse population lives in the south, with densities ranging from 54 persons per square kilometer in the Logone River basin to 0.1 persons in the northern B.E.T. (Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti) desert region, which itself is larger than France. The capital city of N'Djaména, situated at the confluence of the Chari and Logone Rivers, is cosmopolitan in nature, with a current population in excess of 700,000 people.
Transport infrastructure within Chad is generally poor, especially in the north and east of the country. River transport is limited to the south-west corner. As of 2011 Chad had no railways though two lines are planned - from the capital to the Sudanese and Cameroonian borders during the wet season, especially in the southern half of the country. In the north, roads are merely tracks across the desert and land mines continue to present a danger. Draft animals remain important in much of the country.
An apostolic vicariate is a territorial jurisdiction of the Catholic Church under a titular bishop centered in missionary regions and countries where dioceses or parishes have not yet been established. The status of apostolic vicariate is often a promotion for a former apostolic prefecture, while either may have started out as a mission sui iuris. It is essentially provisional, though it may last for a century or more. The hope is that the region will generate sufficient numbers of Catholics for the Church to create a diocese one day.
Moundou is the second largest city in Chad and is the capital of the region of Logone Occidental.
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