Roman Catholic Diocese of Kannur

Diocese of Kannur

Dioecesis Kannurensis

കണ്ണൂർ രൂപത
catholic
Holy Trinity Cathedral, Kannur
Location
Country India
Ecclesiastical provinceCalicut
Coordinates11°51′33″N 75°21′41″E / 11.8592°N 75.3614°E / 11.8592; 75.3614
Statistics
Area4,988 km2 (1,926 sq mi)
Population
  • Total
  • Catholics
  • (as of 2011)
  • 2,734,000
  • 48,899 (1.8%)
Information
DenominationRoman Catholic
Sui iuris churchLatin Church
RiteRoman Rite
Established5 November 1998
CathedralCathedral of the Holy Trinity in Kannur
Current leadership
PopeLeo XIV
BishopMost Rev. Dr. Alex Vadakumthala
Metropolitan ArchbishopMost Rev. Dr. Varghese Chakkalakal
Auxiliary BishopsRt. Rev. Dr. Dennis Kuruppassery
Vicar GeneralMon. Devassy Earathara and Mon. Clarence Paliath
Website
www.kannurdiocese.com

Pope John Paul II created the Diocese of Kannur in the Ecclesiastical Province of Kozhikode in India by bifurcating the Diocese of Calicut on 9 December 1998. The diocese consists of the Latin Catholics of Malabar residing in the revenue districts of Kannur and Kasaragod.

The see was vacant from 2012 until 2014. On 1 February 2014, Pope Francis appointed Alex Joseph Vadakumthala as the new bishop of Kannur. He was consecrated on 23 March.

Diocese of Kannur comprises the territory of the civil district of Kannur to the north of Mahé River, excluding Palloor, Chalakkara, Pandakkal and Cherukallai which belong to the municipality of Mahe and the territory of the civil district of Kasaragod which falls to the south of Chandragiri River. The erection of this diocese was a historical event for Kannur which has 500 years of Christian tradition. The establishment of this diocese, on the auspicious occasion of the Platinum Jubilee of the Diocese of Calicut was welcomed with cheer, by the people who consider the diocese of Kannur as a gift of God to this region of India.