Roman Catholic Diocese of Bà Rịa

The Diocese of Bà Rịa (Latin: Dioecesis Barianensis) is a Latin rite suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Saigon, in southern Vietnam, yet it depends on the missionary Dicastery for Evangelization.

Diocese of Ba Ria Dioecesis Barianensis Giáo phận Bà Rịa
Catholic
Coat of Arms of Bishop Sơn
Location
Country	Vietnam
Ecclesiastical province	Sài Gòn
Deaneries	Bà Rịa Bình Giã Long Hương Vũng Tàu Xuyên Mộc
Statistics
Area	1,988 km2 (768 sq mi)
Population Total Catholics	(as of 2022) 1,181,302 286,375 (24.2%)
Parishes	79
Information
Denomination	Catholic
Sui iuris church	Latin Church
Rite	Roman Rite
Cathedral	Cathedral of Saint Philip and Saint James in Bà Rịa
Patron saint	Mary, Mother of God
Current leadership
Pope	Leo XIV
Bishop	Emmanuel Nguyễn Hồng Sơn[1]
Metropolitan Archbishop	Joseph Nguyễn Năng
Vicar General	Joseph Võ Công Tiến
Bishops emeritus	Thomas Nguyễn Văn Trâm
Website
giaophanbaria.org

Its cathedral episcopal see is Cathedral of Mary, Mother of God, dedicated to the Apostles Saint Philip and Saint James, in the city of Bà Rịa, Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu province, Southeastern Vietnam.

History

The bishopric was established on 22 November 2005 as Diocese of Ba Ria / Bà Rịa (Tiếng Việt) / 巴地 (正體中文) / Barianen(sis) (Latin adjective), on territory detached from the Diocese of Xuân Lôc.^[2]

According to Jesuit missionaries, in 1670, in Xích Lam (Ðất Ðỏ), near Bà Rịa, there were nearly 300 Catholic families. According to a report of Bishop M. Labbé, in 1670, "Dong Nai had at least over 2,000 parishioners". According to Adrien Launay, in 1747, the Đồng Nai region already had parish communities in Bengo (Bến Gỗ), R. Dou-nai (Đồng Nai), Dalua (Đá lửa ?)^[3][4] Ke-tat (Cái Tắt / Cái Tắc ?)^[5][6] Dou-mon (Đồng Môn ?),^[7] R. Moxoai (Mô Xoài), Ba-ria (Bà Rịa), Nui-nua (Núi Nứa) and Ðất Ðỏ, under the care of MEP and Jesuit missionaries.

Statistics and extent

As per 2014, the diocese pastorally served 254,302 Catholics (17.8% of 1,427,024 total) on an area of 1,989 km² in 84 parishes with 166 priests (101 diocesan, 65 religious), 799 lay religious (282 brothers, 517 sisters) and 71 seminarians.

Ordinaries

Bishops of Bà Rịa (2005 – present)

Bishops		Coat of Arms	Period in office	Status
1	Bishop Thomas Nguyễn Văn Trâm		November 22, 2005 – May 06, 2017	Retired
2	Bishop Emmanuel Nguyễn Hồng Sơn		May 06, 2017 – present	Current bishop

Coadjutor Bishops

• Emmanuel Nguyễn Hồng Sơn (27 November 2015 – 6 May 2017)

Diocesean superiors

• Vicar General: Joseph Võ Công Tiến
• Rector of St. Thomas Hải Sơn Seminary: Joseph Đoàn Như Nghĩa
• Chancellor of the Episcopal See: Jean Baptiste Nguyễn Văn Bộ
• Chief of Office of the Bishopric: Joseph Nguyễn Công Luận
• Dean of Bà Rịa: Joseph Đặng Cao Trí
• Dean of Vũng Tàu: Matthew Trần Bảo Long
• Dean of Long Hương: Alphonsus Nguyễn Văn Thế
• Dean of Bình Giã: Paul Lê Đình Hùng
• Dean of Xuyên Mộc: Peter Đinh Phước Đại

See also

• List of Catholic dioceses in Vietnam