The Immaculate Conception Metropolitan Cathedral (Portuguese: ''Catedral Metropolitana da Imaculada Conceição'') in Dili is the main church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dili,

East Timor Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the coastal exclave of Oecusse in the island's northwest, and ...

History

Plans to build the cathedral began in 1984, with the Indonesian government providing funding totalling about US$235,000. The cathedral, situated on a 10,000-square-meter plot, measures 1,800 square meters and can hold 2,000 people. Indonesian president Soeharto on 2 November 1988 officially inaugurated Dili's new Catholic cathedral, reportedly the largest in Southeast Asia. The ceremony was attended by Dili's apostolic administrator, Bishop Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo. In October 1989 it was blessed by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

. The cathedral played an important part in the country's independence struggle, with leaders like the Nobel laureate Bishop Belo advising people to go into the country's election with the spirit of humility of Jesus Christ. The Church of San Antonio de Motael was the pro-cathedral of Dili before the cathedral was constructed.

Current events

On 1 March 2007 the country's new apostolic nuncio, Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli, celebrated Mass at the cathedral and then visited camps for displaced people in and around the capital, and the Seminary of Our Lady of Fatima. On 27 April 2002 around 2,000 people gathered at the cathedral for the arrival from Portugal of a statue of Our Lady of Fatima, which was to go on tour for three weeks as part of the celebrations ahead of the country's independence. Mary, Our Lady of Fatima, is the

patroness Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, art patronage refers to the support that princes, popes, and other wealthy and influential people ...

of East Timor. Among those welcoming the statue were Bishop Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo, Bishop Basilio do Nascimento and other religious representatives. The two Catholic bishops of East Timor and the papal nuncio to the country jointly urged people to end a prolonged spate of violence and pray for national reconciliation and peace, after Mass on 4 March 2007 at Immaculate Conception Cathedral. Father Jose Maia was the parish priest of Immaculate Conception Cathedral in 2009.

Gallery

Altar der Kathedrale von Dili.jpg, Altar 2017-03-30 Kathedrale von Dili 3.jpg, Church mass Cathedral Dili window.jpg, Church window

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Immaculate Conception Cathedral, Dili Roman Catholic cathedrals in East Timor Catholic Church in Timor-Leste Roman Catholic churches completed in 1988 Buildings and structures in Dili 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings