Mesarfelta was a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

– Berber town in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

of Numidia. It was also a

bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

that is included in the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

's list of

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbis ...

s.''Annuario Pontificio 2013'' (Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2013, ), p. 929

History

The historic Mesarfelta is believed to be what are now the ruins of El-Outaïa or those of Tolga, Henchir-El-Ksar, or may be Qastilya in

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

(according to "Three North-African Topographical Notes (Islamic-Roman)"). The city is believed to have been constructed as a fortification by the

s (with annexed "vicus"), in the second half of the first century near the Aures Mountains. It had an

amphitheatre An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...

during Hadrians reign. A barrier called

Fossatum Africae ''Fossatum Africae'' ("African ditch") is one or more linear defensive structures (sometimes called ''limes'') claimed to extend over or more in northern Africa constructed during the Roman Empire to defend and control the southern borders of th ...

, which marked the frontier between the territory of the Roman Empire and other lands, ran through Mesarfelta. The city disappeared after the

Muslim conquest The early Muslim conquests or early Islamic conquests ( ar, الْفُتُوحَاتُ الإسْلَامِيَّة, ), also referred to as the Arab conquests, were initiated in the 7th century by Muhammad, the main Islamic prophet. He esta ...

in the second half of the 7th century.

Bishopric

The city of Mesarfelta was the seat of an ancient

There are two Mesarfelta bishops historically remembered both in the

Council of Carthage (411) The Councils of Carthage were church synods held during the 3rd, 4th, and 5th centuries in the city of Carthage in Africa. The most important of these are described below. Synod of 251 In May 251 a synod, assembled under the presidency of Cyprian ...

Ancient bishops

*"Lucianus"(

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

) and "Bennatus"(

Donatist Donatism was a Christian sect leading to a schism in the Church, in the region of the Church of Carthage, from the fourth to the sixth centuries. Donatists argued that Christian clergy must be faultless for their ministry to be effective and the ...

Titular bishops of Mesarfelta

* William Edward McManus 1967–1976 * Louis-Albert Vachon 1977–1981 *Basile Tapsoba 1981–1984 *

Joseph Paul Pierre Morissette Joseph Paul Pierre Morissette (born November 22, 1944) is the Roman Catholic bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Saint-Jérôme, Quebec, Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend fr ...

1987–1990 * Michael Angelo Saltarelli 1990–1995 *

Antonio Menegazzo Antonio Menegazzo (13 September 1931 – 20 March 2019) was an Italian Roman Catholic titular bishop. Biography Menegazzo was born in Italy and was ordained to the priesthood in 1956. He served as titular bishop of Mesarfelta and was the ap ...

, M.C.C.I. 1995-2019

References

Bibliography