Roman Catholic Diocese of Surat Thani

The (Roman Catholic) Diocese of Surat Thani (Diœcesis Suratthanensis, Thai: สังฆมณฑลสุราษฎร์ธานี) in southern Thailand was founded in 1969, when it was split off from the Diocese of Ratchaburi by the papal bull Qui Regno Christi. It is a suffragan diocese of the Archdiocese of Bangkok. The area of Surat Thani was evangelized by the Salesians of Don Bosco in the 1930s.

Diocese of Surat Thani Diœcesis Suratthanensis สังฆมณฑลสุราษฎร์ธานี
Location
Country	Thailand
Ecclesiastical province	Bangkok
Metropolitan	Bangkok
Statistics
Area	76,562 km2 (29,561 sq mi)
Population - Total - Catholics	(as of 2004) 9,015,380 6,682 (0.1%)
Information
Denomination	Catholic
Sui iuris church	Latin Church
Rite	Roman Rite
Established	26 June 1969
Cathedral	St.Raphael Cathedral, Surat Thani
Current leadership
Pope	Francis
Bishop	Joseph Prathan Sridarunsil
Metropolitan Archbishop	Francis Xavier Kriengsak Kovitvanit
Map
Website
Official website

The diocese covers an area of 76,562 km², covering all of the southern provinces of Thailand, including Prachuap Khiri Khan as its northernmost province. As of 2001, of its nine million citizens, 6,682 or 0.1% are members of the Catholic Church. The diocese is divided into 39 parishes, which are grouped by four regions.

Bishops

• Joseph Prathan Sridarunsil, S.D.B.: appointed October 9, 2004
• Michael Praphon Chaicharoen, S.D.B.: June 21, 1988 - May 20, 2003 (died)
• Pietro Luigi Carretto, S.D.B.: June 26, 1969 - June 21, 1988 (retired)

Cathedral

The St.Raphael Cathedral (Thai: อาสนวิหารอัครเทวดาราฟาเอล) is in the town of Surat Thani at 9°9′0″N 99°20′4″E. The church was built in 1962, and became a cathedral when the diocese was established in 1969.

St.Raphael Cathedral, Surat Thani (current)

St.Raphael Cathedral, Surat Thani (old)

See also

• Roman Catholicism in Thailand

External links

• Official site
• catholic-hierarchy.org ^{[self-published]}