The Ordinariate for Eastern (Rite) Catholics in France (or France of the Eastern Rite) (French: Ordinariat des catholiques de rite oriental résidant en France) is a Catholic Ordinariate for Eastern Catholic faithful (pseudo-diocesan jurisdiction within a Latin Church territory), jointly for Eastern Catholics in various rites and languages of particular churchessui iuris without proper jurisdiction there.
Since 1922 existed in the archdiocese of Paris a diocesan administration for the strangers, which was placed under the authority of an auxiliary bishop. The high number of Middle Eastern immigrants had imposed on the archbishop, in December 1953, the creation of 8 eastern parishes in Paris. The question, however, did not concern only the French capital, but the entire national territory; in fact, according to the 1954 census, approximately 50,000 Catholics belonging to the various Eastern rites resided permanently in France.[1][2]
At the beginning of 1954, the Episcopal commission for foreigners elaborated a report on the situation of the Orientals in France and on the opportunity to create a "coordination" between them.[3]
These considerations prompted the Holy See to erect the ordinariate for the faithful of the Eastern rite on July 27, 1954 with the decree Nobilis Galliae Natio of the Congregation for the Eastern Churches, which implemented an ex audientia decision of the Pope Pius XII of June 16.[4] The ordinary office is entrusted to the archbishop pro tempore of Paris, with the right to appoint one or more vicars general for the eastern faithful.[5]
The ordinariate lost its jurisdiction over three Eastern Catholic rite-specific particular churches sui iuris to the following jurisdictions directly dependent on their particular chiefs, but not part of any ecclesiastical province:
The Ordinariate has jurisdiction over the faithful of the Eastern rites who live on French territory, with the exception of those who have their own ordinary, as Armenians, Ukrainians and Maronites. Its seat is located in Paris and its ordinary is the Metropolitan Archbishop of national capital Paris, and its incumbents were all created Cardinals.[citation needed]
As per 2013, it pastorally served 127,000 Eastern Catholics in 11 parishes.[citation needed]
Parishes
In 2013 the following communities depend on the ordinariate:[6]
Astrid Kaptijn, Gli Ordinariati per i fedeli Cattolici Orientali privi di Gerarchia propria, in Pablo Gefaell (a cura di), Cristiani orientali e pastori latini, Milano 2012, pp. 233–269
