Roman Catholic Diocese of Maliana

History

Until the 1990s, the entirety of what is now Timor-Leste comprised one ecclesiastical territory, the Diocese of Dili. In 1996, the Diocese of Baucau was formed. After independence in 2002, the Holy See planned to create a third diocese centered in Same so that Timor-Leste could form its own episcopal conference. However, these plans stalled around 2005 amidst ongoing changes by the government to the country's administrative subdivision boundaries.

The Vatican's plan to create a third diocese in Timor-Leste materialized on 30 January 2010, when Pope Benedict XVI established the Diocese of Maliana, with territory taken from the Diocese of Dili. Norberto do Amaral, chancellor of the Dili diocese, was appointed as Maliana's first bishop. Amaral was consecrated on 24 April 2010 in Tasitolu, Dili, in a ceremony attended by Deputy Prime Minister José Luís Guterres, Supreme Court president Cláudio de Jesus Ximenes, attorney general Ana Pessoa Pinto, and other deputies, politicians, magistrates, diplomats, bishops, as well as thousands of priests, sisters, and laity. Amaral was installed the following day in Maliana.

At the time of its creation, the diocese consisted of just over 200,000 Catholics, representing 98% of the population, and served by 10 parishes, 31 priests (six diocesan and 25 religious), and 108 religious brothers and sisters. The parish church of Maliana became the diocese's new cathedral, and the government provided funding and a building for a temporary residence for the bishop. On 17 February 2019, a new episcopal palace and chancery building were inaugurated in a ceremony attended by bishops Amaral, Virgílio do Carmo da Silva of Dili, Basílio do Nascimento of Baucau, and former President Xanana Gusmão. The new buildings were constructed with public funds provided by the prime minister's office. As of 2022, the diocese has grown to nearly 300,000 Catholics, and now has 11 parishes and 65 missions served by 50 priests and 184 religious brothers and sisters.

Structure

The Diocese of Maliana is a suffragan diocese within the ecclesiastical province of Dili. Along with the bishops of Baucau and Dili, the bishop of Maliana is a member of the Timorese Episcopal Conference. The conference is represented in the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences.

Territory

The diocese covers a total area of 3,142 km2 (1,213 square miles). Its territory comprises the western municipalities of Bobonaro, Cova Lima, and Liquiçá. The diocese borders the Archdiocese of Dili to the east and the Diocese of Atambua, located in Indonesian West Timor, to the west. The diocese has a total population of 297,620, of whom 290,850 (97.7%) are Catholic. The remaining few thousand are mostly Muslim, Protestant, or animist.

Personnel

The diocese is led by its bishop, Norberto do Amaral, who is assisted by vicar general Lucio Norberto de Deus. As of 2022, the diocese has 22 secular priests, with 58 seminarians in formation. Additionally, there are 28 religious priests, 73 religious brothers, and 121 religious sisters living and working in the diocese. In 2021, there were 416 catechists in the diocese.

A number of religious orders and institutes operate in the diocese. For men, these include the Capuchins, Carmelites, Claretians, Divine Word Missionaries, and Jesuits. Female institutes include the Canossians, Carmelites, Daughters of the Queen of the Holy Rosary, Franciscan Hospitaller Sisters, Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart, Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters, Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Religious of Mary Immaculate, Religious of the Virgin Mary, Salesians, Sisters of Mercy, and several others.

Parishes

The diocese is divided into 11 parishes, with 65 missions.

Bishops

Norberto do Amaral (30 January 2010 – present)

Education

Fundação Sagrado Coração de Jesus (Sacred Heart of Jesus Foundation) oversees all of the Diocese of Maliana's schools. The diocese operates seven preschools with 291 total students, 19 primary schools and eight junior high schools with 6,122 total students, and five senior high schools with a total enrollment of 1,148. The diocese also runs an orphanage. Secondary schools administered by the diocese include Ave Maria in Suai, Infante de Sagres College in Maliana, and São João de Brito in Liquiçá. Other Catholic schools located in the diocese include Cristal Private Secondary School in Maliana, Divine Word College in Palaca, and St. Ignatius of Loyola College in Kasait, founded by the Society of Jesus in 2013. The diocese is also home to Don Bosco Technical School near Maliana, established in 2013 by the Salesians with funding from the Timorese and Spanish governments, which provides vocational training to 100+ boarding students. The diocese contains one Catholic higher education institution, St. John de Britto Institute, a Jesuit teachers' college in Kasait.

On 26 September 2017, the Diocese of Maliana established a minor seminary, St. Joseph Seminary, with an initial enrollment of 22 students located in a renovated diocesan school building. Previously, minor seminarians from the diocese attended Our Lady of Fatima Minor Seminary in Dili, which served the country's three dioceses and which had only 90 spots each year for more than 300 applicants. Major seminarians from the diocese attend the interdiocesan St. Peter and St. Paul Seminary in Dili.