A SHORT HISTORY OF THE DIOCESE OF ISLAMABAD – RAWALPINDI

According to a well-founded tradition the Apostle St. Thomas on his way to India passed through the City of Taxila and preached the Gospel which is situated 25 kilometers from Rawalpindi.

In Islamabad-Rawalpindi Diocese the Mission work was started in 1849 in Peshawar. During that period the British Army Established Churches in Peshawar and Rawalpindi to Provide Religious services to Army personnel and Christian Community. In 1850 St. Joseph Catholic Church Lalkurti Rawalpindi was founded as an outstation Church for the soldiers and Christian community living in Rawalpindi.

The Diocese has a long history. It was originally erected in 1887, as the Apostolic Prefecture of Kafiristan and Kashmir. The Prefecture was erected by the Diocese of Lahore and was entrusted to St. Joseph’s Society of Foreign Mission, also called Mill Hill Fathers. On 10 July 1947, the Apostolic Prefecture was elevated to a full diocese and renamed the Diocese of Rawalpindi. In 1952, Kashmir was lost to the diocese, and a new diocese was created from territory in Rawalpindi and Lahore to create the Apostolic Prefecture of Kashmir and Jammu. In 1979, the name was changed to the Diocese of Islamabad-Rawalpindi.

The Diocese of Islamabad-Rawalpindi comprises the following civil boundaries: the Rawalpindi Division, the Sargodha Division, the whole Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, the FATA (Federal Administrated Tribal Areas), the Azad Kashmir and the administration of Gilgit-Baltistan and Gujrat District of Gujranwala Division.

STATISTICS OF THE DIOCESE OF HYDERABAD

Area (Sq. K.M)	178,341
Population	36,522,00
Catholics	216,500
Diocesan Priests	32
Religious Priests	08
Religious Brothers	09
Professed Religious Sisters	96
Parishes	24
Educational Institutions	64

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