The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Aracaju is a Latin Metropolitan archdiocese in the State of Sergipe, northeastern Brazil. Its cathedral archiepiscopal see is Our Lady of the Conception Cathedral (Catedral Metropolitana Nossa Senhora da Conceiçao), dedicated to Our Lady of Immaculate Conception, in the city of Aracaju. Two World Heritage Sites are owned by the Archdiocese in São Cristóvão, Sergipe: the Misericórdia Hospital and Church (Igreja de Santa Casa de Misericórdia) and the Church and Convent of Santa Cruz, also known as the Church and Convent of Saint Francis.

Statistics

As per 2014, it pastorally served 1,086,000 Catholics (84.1% of 1,292,000 total) on 7,019 km2 in 99 parishes with 159 priests (129 diocesan, 30 religious), 21 deacons, 321 lay religious (119 brothers, 202 sisters) and 34 seminarians.

History

It was established on January 3, 1910, as Diocese of Aracaju, on territory split off from the Metropolitan Archdiocese of São Salvador da Bahia. On April 30, 1960, it was promoted as Metropolitan Archdiocese of Aracaju, losing territory to establish its two suffragans: Diocese of Estância and Diocese of Propriá.

Ecclesiastical province

Its Suffragan dioceses are both daughter sees :

Episcopal ordinaries

Suffragan Bishops of Aracaju

Metropolitan Archbishops of Aracaju

Other affiliated bishops

Coadjutor archbishops

Auxiliary bishops

Other priests of this diocese who became bishops

Bishop of Petrolina, Pernambuco in 1946; future Cardinal

Sources and external links