In the

canon law Canon law (from , , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical jurisdiction, ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its membe ...

of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, 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 community or other

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 ...

, responding to a missionary exigency and headed by a superior nominated by the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

, under the aegis of the

Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples The Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples (CEP; ) was a congregation (Roman Curia), congregation of the Roman Curia of the Catholic Church in Rome, responsible for Catholic missions, missionary work and related activities. It is also kn ...

." It is generally applied to an area with very few

Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

, or in areas where

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

(in particular

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

) is either outlawed or undergoing

persecution Persecution is the systematic mistreatment of an individual or group by another individual or group. The most common forms are religious persecution, racism, and political persecution, though there is naturally some overlap between these term ...

, often desolate or remote, and ranks below an apostolic prefecture and an

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 ...

. The clerical head is styled Ecclesiastical Superior and can be a regular

cleric Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

, titular or diocesan

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

, archbishop or even a

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...

, but if of episcopal rank often resides elsewhere (notably, in another diocese or the Vatican) in chief of his primary office there. It can either be exempt (i.e. directly subject to the Holy See, like apostolic prefectures and apostolic vicariates), or

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 ...

of a Metropolitan Archbishop, hence part of his

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 ...

Current missions ''sui iuris''

As of March 2017, the only remaining cases — all of the

Latin Church The Latin Church () is the largest autonomous () particular church within the Catholic Church, whose members constitute the vast majority of the 1.3 billion Catholics. The Latin Church is one of 24 Catholic particular churches and liturgical ...

— were: In

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

: *

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

Tajikistan Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Dushanbe is the capital city, capital and most populous city. Tajikistan borders Afghanistan to the Afghanistan–Tajikistan border, south, Uzbekistan to ...

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan is a landlocked country in Central Asia bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the south and southwest and the Caspian Sea to the west. Ash ...

In the Atlantic Ocean : * Saint Helena, Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha, vested in the Apostolic Prefecture of the Falkland Islands In the Caribbean : *

Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory, and the largest by population. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located so ...

, in the ecclesiastical province of the Archbishop of Kingston in Jamaica (pastoral responsibility of the Archdiocese of Detroit) *

Turks and Caicos The Turks and Caicos Islands (abbreviated TCI; and ) are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean and no ...

, in the ecclesiastical province of the Archbishop of Nassau (pastoral responsibility of the Archdiocese of Newark) In

Oceania Oceania ( , ) is a region, geographical region including Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Outside of the English-speaking world, Oceania is generally considered a continent, while Mainland Australia is regarded as its co ...

: *

Funafuti Funafuti is an atoll, comprising numerous islets, that serves as the capital of Tuvalu. As of the 2017 census, it has a population of 6,320 people. More people live in Funafuti than the rest of Tuvalu combined, with it containing approximately 6 ...

, in

Tuvalu Tuvalu ( ) is an island country in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean, about midway between Hawaii and Australia. It lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands (which belong to the Solomon Islands), northeast of Van ...

, in the ecclesiastical province of the Archbishop of Suva *

Tokelau Tokelau (; ; known previously as the Union Islands, and, until 1976, known officially as the Tokelau Islands) is a dependent territory of New Zealand in the southern Pacific Ocean. It consists of three tropical coral atolls: Atafu, Nukunonu, an ...

, in the ecclesiastical province of the Archbishop of Samoa-Apia Those for which no province is named are exempt, i.e. directly under the

Former missions ''sui iuris''

''by continent and (present/colonial) country'' ;In

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

: * Mission sui iuris of Batavia ''alias Holland - or Dutch mission'' (Netherlands) * Mission sui iuris of Central Norway (now Territorial Prelature of Trondheim) * Mission sui iuris of Northern Norway (now Territorial Prelature of Tromsø) * Mission sui iuris of Norway (now diocese of Oslo) ;In

: * Mission sui iuris of Baku (Azerbaijan; promoted Apostolic Prefecture) * Mission sui iuris of Coromandel Coast (India; now Metropolitan Archdiocese of Pondicherry and Cuddalore) * Mission sui iuris of Gazireh (Turkey; suppressed) * Mission sui iuris of Hindustan (India; repeated promotions; now Metropolitan Archdiocese of Agra) * Mission sui iuris of I-li (imperial China; suppressed) * Mission sui iuris of Karafuto (Japan; promoted Apostolic Prefecture, became Soviet/Russian, renamed Yuzhno Sakhalinsk) * Mission sui iuris of Kyrgyzstan (nation; promoted Apostolic Administration) * Mission sui iuris of Miyazaki (Japan; promoted Apostolic Prefecture, now diocese of Oita) *

Mission sui iuris of Mossul The Mission sui iuris of Mossul was a Latin Church missionary pre-diocesan jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in northern Iraq, primarily Kurdistan. It was exempt, i.e. directly dependent on the Holy See (notably the Congregation Propaganda Fid ...

(Kurdistan, notably northern present Iraq; suppressed) * Mission sui iuris of Nepal (nation; promoted Apostolic Vicariate) * Mission sui iuris of Outer Mongolia (Mongolia; renamed Mission sui juris of Urga) * Mission sui iuris of Qiqihar, alias Tsitiskar (China; promoted Apostolic Prefecture) * Mission sui iuris of Rajaburi (Thailand; now diocese Ratchaburi) * Mission sui iuris of Rajputana (India; promoted Apostolic Vicariate, now Diocese of Ajmer) * Mission sui iuris of Shiqian = Shihtsien (China; promoted Apostolic Prefecture) * Mission sui iuris of Sikkim (Indian state and

Bhutan Bhutan, officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked country in South Asia, in the Eastern Himalayas between China to the north and northwest and India to the south and southeast. With a population of over 727,145 and a territory of , ...

; promoted twice, now Diocese of Darjeeling) * Mission sui iuris of Syria and Cilicia? (partially in present Iraq; temporarily promoted Apostolic Prefecture, demoted back, suppressed) *

Mission sui iuris of Trabzon The Apostolic Vicariate of Anatolia (, ) is a Roman Catholic Latin apostolic vicariate in the eastern half of Anatolia (Asian Turkey). The missionary pre-diocesan jurisdiction is not part of any ecclesiastical province. It is under the directi ...

(Asian Turkey; promoted Apostolic Vicariate of Anatolia) * Mission sui iuris of Uzbekistan (nation; promoted Apostolic Administration) * Mission sui iuris of Urga = Ulanbator (imperial China China; promoted Apostolic Prefecture of Ulaanbaatar, for (Outer) Mongolia) * Mission sui iuris of Xinjiang-Urumqi (China; promoted Apostolic Prefecture) * Mission sui iuris of Yixian (China; promoted Apostolic Prefecture) ;In

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

: * Mission sui iuris of San Andrés y Providencia (Colombia; promoted Apostolic Vicariate) * Mission sui iuris of Valparaíso (Chile; promoted Diocese) * Mission sui iuris of Valdivia (Chile; promoted Diocese) ;In

: * Mission sui iuris of Drisdale River (Australia, renamed Kalumburu; suppressed) * Mission sui iuris of Eastern Carolines (Federated States of Micronesia) * Mission sui iuris of Kalumburu (Australia; suppressed) * Mission sui iuris of the Marshall Islands (suppressed; later revived as Apostolic Prefecture) * Mission sui iuris of Western Carolines (idem & Palau) ;In

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

: * Mission sui iuris of Belgian Congo (or ''Congo Belge''; (then Belgian) Congo) * Mission sui iuris of Bikoro ((then Belgian) Congo) *

Mission sui iuris of Cunene The Mission sui iuris of Cunene was a short-lived missionary jurisdiction in present Angola, which was still a Portuguese colony. History The mission sui iuris of Cunene Province, Cunene was established in 1881, on territory split off from the t ...

(Angola) * Mission sui iuris of Kenya (Kenya; various promotions, now Archdiocese of Nyeri) * Mission sui iuris of Kwango ((then Belgian) Congo) * Mission sui iuris of Lunda (Angola) * Mission sui iuris of Lwangwa (Zambia) * Mission sui iuris of Miarinarivo (Madagascar, now a diocese) * Mission sui iuris of Tukuyu (Tanzania, now Diocese of Mbeya) * Mission sui iuris of Upper Kassai ((then Belgian) Congo) * Mission sui iuris of Zambesia (Zimbabwe, then Southern Rhodesia)

References

Sources and external links

GCatholic.org - List of current Missions sui iuris (consulted September 2015)
{{Catholicism

Current missions ''sui iuris''

Former missions ''sui iuris''

See also

References

Sources and external links