Limoeiro, Diocese of

LIMOEIRO, DIOCESE of. – City and diocese in the State of Ceará, Brazil.

Over an area of approximately 20,000 sq km, the diocese has 295,000 inhabitants, of whom 260,000 are Catholics, distributed among 12 parishes served by 19 diocesan and 8 religious priests; it has 1 seminary, 1 male religious community, and 4 female religious communities.

The diocese was created by Pius XI through the apostolic constitution Ad Dominicum of 8 May 1938, by detaching territory from the archdiocese of Fortaleza. The church dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title of the Immaculate Conception was elevated to cathedral status. The diocese is a suffragan of Fortaleza.