Apostolic Prefecture of SAN FRANCISCO XAVIER
It is situated in the interior of the northern regions of Peru.
It was erected on 11 January 1946 with territory detached from the dioceses of Chachapoyas and Cajamarca and from the Apostolic Vicariate of S. Gabriele dell’Addolorata, and was entrusted to the Jesuits. It covers an area of approximately 25,000 sq km with 25,000 inhabitants, of whom 16,309 are Catholic. There are 6 Jesuits, 4 brothers, and 5 sisters. There are 5 primary stations, 2 churches, 26 chapels, 29 elementary schools, and 2 secondary schools.
BIBL.: AAS, 38 (1946), pp. 416-17; MC, 1950, p. 56. Saverio Paventi