The Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean is a

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

of the

Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is a Christian Full communion, communion consisting of the Church of England and other autocephalous national and regional churches in full communion. The archbishop of Canterbury in England acts as a focus of unity, ...

. It covers the islands of

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

Mauritius Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Ag ...

and the

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (; Seychellois Creole: ), is an island country and archipelagic state consisting of 155 islands (as per the Constitution) in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, ...

. The current

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

and

Primate Primates is an order (biology), order of mammals, which is further divided into the Strepsirrhini, strepsirrhines, which include lemurs, galagos, and Lorisidae, lorisids; and the Haplorhini, haplorhines, which include Tarsiiformes, tarsiers a ...

is Gilbert Rateloson Rakotondravelo,

Bishop of Fianarantsoa The Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean is a province of the Anglican Communion. It covers the islands of Madagascar, Mauritius and the Seychelles. The current Archbishop and Primate is Gilbert Rateloson Rakotondravelo, Bishop of Fianar ...

. The Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean is a member of the

Global South Global North and Global South are terms that denote a method of grouping countries based on their defining characteristics with regard to socioeconomics and politics. According to UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the Global South broadly com ...

and the

Global Anglican Future Conference The Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) is a series of conferences of conservative Anglican bishops and leaders, the first of which was held in Jerusalem from 22 to 29 June 2008 to address the growing controversy of the divisions in the Ang ...

, and has been involved in the

Anglican realignment The Anglican realignment is a movement among some Anglicans to align themselves under new or alternative oversight within or outside the Anglican Communion. This movement is primarily active in parts of the Episcopal Church (United States), Episco ...

. Archbishop James Wong attended GAFCON III, in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

, on 17–22 June 2018, and GAFCON IV in

Kigali Kigali () is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Rwanda. It is near the nation's geographic centre in a region of rolling hills, with a series of valleys and ridges joined by steep slopes. As a primate city, Kigali is a relativ ...

, on 17-21 April 2023. The province was represented at the event by a ten-member delegation, six from Madagascar and four from the Seychelles.

Dioceses

Madagascan dioceses

Diocese of Antananarivo

The Bishop of

Antananarivo Antananarivo (Malagasy language, Malagasy: ; French language, French: ''Tananarive'', ), also known by its colonial shorthand form Tana (), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Madagascar. The administrative area of the city, known ...

has been the

Ordinary Ordinary or The Ordinary often refer to: Music * ''Ordinary'' (EP) (2015), by South Korean group Beast * ''Ordinary'' (album) (2011), by Every Little Thing * "Ordinary" (Alex Warren song) (2025) * "Ordinary" (Two Door Cinema Club song) (2016 ...

of the

Anglican Church Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

in Antananarivo in the Indian Ocean since the diocese's erection in 1969. The current bishop is

Samoela Jaona Ranarivelo Ranarivelo Samoela Jaona (born 25 January 1962) is the current Malagasy Anglican bishop of the Diocese of Antananarivo. He was consecrated on the 29 June 2008 at the cathedral of Saint Laurent's in Ambohimanoro, and is the fourth bishop of Antana ...

Diocese of Antsiranana

EEM Eglise Anglicane Antsiranana Madagascar

Bishops of

Antsiranana Antsiranana ( ), named Diego-Suarez prior to 1975, is a city in the far north of Madagascar. Antsiranana is the capital of Diana Region. It had an estimated population of 115,015 in 2013. History At the beginning of the 16th century, a Portugue ...

have included Gabriel Josoa (until 1982),

Keith Benzies Keith John Benzies OBE (19 June 1938 – 12 May 2002) was an Anglican bishop in Madagascar. He was the Bishop of Antsiranana from 1982 until his death in 2002. Early life Benzies was born in Stepps, Lanarkshire, the son of John Young Benzie ...

(1982 to his death in 2002), Roger Chung Po Chuen (until 2012),

Oliver Simon Oliver Simon (born 1945) is a retired Anglican bishop and Church of England priest. After a 40-year ministry as a priest, he served as Bishop of Antsiranana in Madagascar from 2012 until 2015. Education Simon was educated at Durham University, ga ...

(2012–2015) and Théophile Botomazava (2015-2021).

Diocese of Fianarantsoa

The diocese of

Fianarantsoa Fianarantsoa is a city (commune urbaine) in south central Madagascar, and is the capital of Haute Matsiatra Region. History It was built in the early 19th century by the Merina as the administrative capital for the newly conquered Betsileo kin ...

was established in 2003, with and Gilbert Rateloson Rakotondravelo as its first and only bishop as of 2024. He succeeded James Wong as primate in 2024, becoming the second Malagasy primate of the church. Since 2018, the diocese's cathedral has been St. Mark's Cathedral.

Diocese of Mahajanga

Jean-Claude Andrianjafimanana was the first Anglican Bishop of

Mahajanga Mahajangā (French: Majunga) is a city and an administrative district on the northwest coast of Madagascar. The city of Mahajanga (Mahajanga I) is the capital of the Boeny Region. The district (identical to the city) had a population of 258,068 ...

starting in 2003.Africa South of the Sahara 2003, p. 608
(Accessed 22 February 2017) He was succeeded by

Hall Speers Samuel Hall Speers (born October 1946) is an Irish-born Anglican bishop. He served from 2019 to 2024 as the second diocesan bishop of Mahajanga, Madagascar, in the Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean. Biography Speers is a native of Urne ...

from 2019 to 2024. In 2024, a Canadian priest of the

Anglican Church in North America The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) is a Christian denomination in the Anglican tradition in the United States and Canada. It also includes ten congregations in Mexico, two mission churches in Guatemala, and a missionary diocese in Cuba. ...

Darrell Critch Darrell Critch (born 1970 or 1971) is a Canadian-born Anglican bishop. Since December 2024, he has been the third diocesan bishop of Mahajanga, Madagascar, in the Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean. Prior to his election as bishop, he was ...

, was elected and consecrated as the third missionary bishop for the diocese.

Diocese of Toamasina

When Grosvenor Miles was appointed assistant bishop of Madagascar in 1938, he based himself in

Tamatave Toamasina (), meaning "like salt" or "salty", unofficially and in French Tamatave or in the past as Port aux prunes, is the capital of the Atsinanana region on the east coast of Madagascar on the Indian Ocean. The city is the chief seaport of the ...

, with the intention that this would become a diocesan see when the diocese of Madagascar was divided up; but, in fact, the diocese of Tamatave was not created until 1969. It was subsequently renamed the diocese of Toamasina. The inaugural bishop was

James Seth James Seth (1860–1925) was a Scottish philosopher. His older brother was Andrew Seth Pringle-Pattison, also a philosopher. Their father, Smith Kimont Seth, was the son of a farmer from the Scottish region of Fife and a bank clerk in the head ...

from 1969 until his death in 1975. Jean-Paul Solo has been the (Anglican) Bishop of

Toamasina Toamasina (), meaning "like salt" or "salty", unofficially and in French language, French Tamatave or in the past as Port aux prunes, is the capital of the Atsinanana region on the east coast of Madagascar on the Indian Ocean. The city is the chief ...

, since before 2011.

Diocese of Toliara

Todd McGregor was elected in 2006 to become a

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Catholic Church, a suffragan bishop leads a diocese within an ecclesiastical province other than the principal diocese, the metropolitan archdiocese; the diocese led ...

assistant bishop An assistant bishop in the Anglican Communion is a bishop appointed to assist a diocesan bishop. Church of England In the established Church of England, assistant bishops are usually retired (diocesan or suffragan bishop, suffragan) bishops – in ...

over the

Toliara Toliara (also known as ''Toliary'', ; formerly ''Tuléar'') is a city in southern Madagascar. It is the capital of the Atsimo-Andrefana region, located 936 km southwest of the national capital Antananarivo. The current spelling of the name ...

(Tuléar) missionary area of the Diocese of Antananarivo, to prepare that area to become a diocese. On 21 April 2013, the new Diocese of Toliara was erected out of Antananarivo diocese and McGregor became the first bishop diocesan. On 14 March 2021, the Rt Rev Dr Samitiana Jhonson Razafindralambo, formerly the assistant bishop, was elected the next bishop and installed as the 2nd Bishop of Toliara on 25 April 2021.

Diocese of Mauritius

:''See:

Bishop of Mauritius The Bishop of Mauritius () has been the Ordinary of the Anglican Church in Mauritius in the Indian Ocean since its inception in 1854. The current bishop is Joseph Sténio André. Bishops *1854 Vincent William Ryan *1869 Thomas Goodwin Hatchard ...

.''

Diocese of Seychelles

Archbishops

* 1973–1976

Edwin Curtis Ernest Edwin Curtis (24 December 1906 – 15 August 1999) was an Anglican Archbishop in the second half of the 20th century. Early life He was born on Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas, the festiva ...

* 1978–1983

Trevor Huddleston Ernest Urban Trevor Huddleston (15 June 191320 April 1998) was an English Anglican bishop. He was the Bishop of Stepney in London before becoming the second Archbishop of the Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean. He was best known for ...

* 1984–1995

French Chang-Him French Kitchener Chang-Him OBE (10 May 1938 – 26 May 2023) was a Seychellois Anglican bishop who was active in the second half of the 20th century. Early life and education Born in Seychelles and son of Francis Chang King-Hime and Amelia Zo ...

* 1995–2005 Remi Rabenirina * 2006–2017

Ian Ernest Gerald James Ian Ernest (born 30 August 1954) is a Mauritian Anglican bishop. In 2001 he was consecrated as the 15th bishop of Mauritius. From 2006 to 2017 he was archbishop of the Province of the Indian Ocean. From October 2019 to January 2025 ...

* 2017–2024 James Wong * 2024–present Gilbert Rateloson Rakotondravelo

References

External links

Anglican Communion website information
from the Diocese of Mauritius {{DEFAULTSORT:Indian Ocean, Church of tThe Province of the Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean Anglican Communion church bodies Anglican realignment denominations

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...

Christian denominations in Asia

Churches in Madagascar