Diocese facts for kids
A diocese is a special area of land that is looked after by a bishop. A bishop is an important leader in the Christian Church. His job is to help with the religious needs of the Christians living in that area. The bishop also organizes the work of the Church and is responsible for all the priests in his diocese. Another word for a diocese is a see, or sometimes an 'episcopal see'.
A diocese is a key way the Church organizes its areas. Some bishops are called Archbishops, and they lead an even larger area called an archdiocese. Inside each diocese, there are many smaller areas called parishes. Each parish is looked after by a local priest and is part of the larger diocese.
How Dioceses Started
When the Western Roman Empire started to fall apart around the 400s and 500s AD, the bishops of the Church began to take over many of the jobs that Roman officials used to do. The areas that the Church managed were often the same as the old Roman administrative areas.
About a thousand years later, the Ottoman Empire took over the Eastern Roman, or Byzantine Empire. Even then, the eastern bishops continued their work, even as the old Roman government structures disappeared. Many ancient dioceses, even if they were later split into several smaller ones, kept the same borders as the old Roman divisions. This shows how long-lasting these Church areas have been!
Images for kids
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Like other dioceses, the Diocese of Rome has a cathedra, the official seat of the Bishop of Rome.
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Dioceses of the Roman Empire, AD 400
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St Patrick's Cathedral, the seat of the Anglican Diocese of Armagh in the Church of Ireland
See also
In Spanish: Diócesis para niños
