The Roman Catholic Diocese of Kikwit () is a

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, 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 Roman province, prov ...

located in the city of

Kikwit Kikwit is the largest city of Kwilu Province, lying on the Kwilu River in the southwestern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kikwit is also known in the region under the nickname "The Mother". The population is approximately 458,000 ( ...

in the

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian churches, including those of both Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity, that have traditional hierarchical structures. An ecclesiastical province consist ...

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ), formerly named Léopoldville from 1881–1966 (), is the Capital city, capital and Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kinshasa is one of the world's fastest-grow ...

in the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

History

* Established 18 April 1893 as

Mission sui iuris In the canon law of the Catholic Church, a mission (, pl. ), also known as an independent mission, can be defined as: "an ecclesial structure erected from a previous territory, with explicit boundaries, under the care of a religious communit ...

of Kwango (or Koango), on territory split off from the then

Apostolic Vicariate of Léopoldville The Archdiocese of Kinshasa (; ; ) is an archdiocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its ecclesiastic territory includes the capital city of Kinshasa and surrounding districts. The archdiocese is the metropol ...

* Promoted on 31 January 1903 as

Apostolic Prefecture An apostolic prefect or prefect apostolic is a priest who heads what is known as an apostolic prefecture, a 'pre-diocesan' missionary jurisdiction where the Catholic Church is not yet sufficiently developed to have it made a diocese. Although it ...

of Kwango * Gained territory in March 1921 from the Apostolic Vicariate of Upper Kasai * Promoted on 28 March 1928 to

Apostolic Vicariate An apostolic vicariate is a territorial jurisdiction of the Catholic Church under a titular bishop centered in missionary regions and countries where dioceses or parishes have not yet been established. The status of apostolic vicariate is often ...

of Kwango, hence entitled to a

titular bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

* Lost territory repeatedly: ** On 1 April 1931 to establish the Apostolic Vicariate of Kisantu, ** On 28 January 1935 to the same; ** On 13 April 1937 to establish the

Apostolic Prefecture of Ipamu The Roman Catholic Diocese of Idiofa () is a diocese located in the city of Idiofa in the ecclesiastical province of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. History * 13 April 1937: Established as Apostolic Prefecture of Ipamu from t ...

** On 25 April 1939 to the same. ** On 24 May 1950: to the

* Renamed on 21 February 1955 as the Apostolic Vicariate of Kikwit * Lost territory on 5 July 1957 to establish the Apostolic Prefecture of Kenge * Promoted on 10 November 1959 as Diocese of Kikwit

Bishops

(all

Roman rite The Roman Rite () is the most common ritual family for performing the ecclesiastical services of the Latin Church, the largest of the ''sui iuris'' particular churches that comprise the Catholic Church. The Roman Rite governs Rite (Christianity) ...

, mostly missionary members of Latin congregations)

Ordinaries

; ''Ecclesiastical superiors of the mission sui iuris of Kwango (Koango)'' (not available -- 1893-1903) ; ''Apostolic Prefects of Kwango'' * Julien Banckaert (1903 – 1911) * Stanislas de Vos,

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

(S.J.) (1911 – 1928) ; ''Apostolic Vicars'' of Kwango * Silvain van Hee, S.J. (28 March 1928 – 20 February 1936),

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of Possala (28 March 1928 – 26 March 1960) * Enrico van Schingen, S.J. (17 December 1936 – 2 July 1954), Titular Bishop of Phelbes (17 December 1936 – 2 July 1954) ; Apostolic Vicar of Kikwit *

André Lefèbvre André Lefèbvre (19 August 1894 – 4 May 1964) was a French automobile engineer. André René Lefèbvre was born in Louvres, France (North of Paris, Val d'Oise). He began his career as an aviation engineer working for Voisin, then later for ...

, S.J. (25 February 1955 – 10 November 1959 ''see below''), Titular Bishop of

Raphanea Raphanea or Raphaneae (; ; colloquial: ''Rafniye'') was a city of the late Roman province of Syria Secunda. Its bishopric was a suffragan of Apamea. History Josephus mentions Raphanea in connection with a river Σαββατικον, referr ...

(25 February 1955 – 10 November 1959) ; ''Bishops'' of Kikwit * André Lefèbvre, S.J. (''see above'' 10 November 1959 – 29 November 1967), later Titular Bishop of

Thucca Terebenthina Thucca Terebenthina is a titular see of the Roman Catholic Church, in Tunisia. The cathedra of the diocese was in a now lost Roman town located in the Roman province of Byzacena and Africa proconsularis in what is today the Sahel region of Norther ...

(29 November 1967 – 15 September 1976) * Alexander Mbuka-Nzundu (29 November 1967 – 14 October 1985), previously Titular Bishop of Cataquas &

Auxiliary Bishop An auxiliary bishop is a bishop assigned to assist the diocesan bishop in meeting the pastoral and administrative needs of the diocese. Auxiliary bishops can also be titular bishops of sees that no longer exist as territorial jurisdictions. ...

of Kikwit (24 June 1961 – 29 November 1967) * Édouard Mununu Kasiala, O.C.S.O. (10 March 1986 – 19 November 2016), also

Apostolic Administrator An apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...

Popokabaka Popokabaka is a city in the Kwango Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the administrative center of Popokabaka Territory. Popokabaka lies on the right bank of the river Kwango River. Francis Dhanis, an agent of the Congo Free State, ...

(Congo-Kinshasa) (1991 – 22 April 1996); previously Titular Bishop of

Aquæ Flaviæ Aquae Flaviae (or ''Aquæ Flaviæ'') is the ancient Roman city and former bishopric (now a Latin Catholic titular see) of Chaves, a municipality in the Portuguese district of Vila Real. History The northwest peninsular region is an area of ...

& Auxiliary Bishop of Kikwit (8 November 1984 – 10 March 1986) * Timothée Bodika Mansiyai, P.S.S. (19 November 2016 - )

Coadjutor vicars apostolic

* Charles Dauvin, S.J. (1948), died without being consecrated * Joseph Guffens, S.J. (1949-1954)

Auxiliary bishops

* Alexander Mbuka-Nzundu (1961-1967), appointed Bishop here * Edouard Mununu Kasiala, O.C.S.O. (1984-1986), appointed Bishop here

Sources and external links