Roman Catholicism in Austria
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The Roman Catholic Church in Austria is the largest Christian denomination of Austria, with according to the 2001 census 5.6 million people (approximately 73.6%). In 2001, the number of Sunday churchgoers was around 11.5 percent (as percentage of the total Austrian population that is 914,348 churchgoers out of a total population of 8,043,000). Since 2001, the number of Roman Catholics and number of churchgoers have reduced. The latest figures (as per the end of 2005) available from the Austrian Roman Catholic church itself, list 5.663 million members or 68.5 percent of the total Austrian population and a weekly Roman Catholic church attendance of 753,701 or 9 percent of the total Austrian population.
The Church's governing body in Austria is the Austrian Conference of Catholic Bishops, made up of the hierarchy of the two archbishops (Wien, Salzburg), the bishops and the abbot of territorial abbey of Wettingen-Mehrerau. Nevertheless each bishop is independent in his own diocese, answerable only to the Pope. The current president of the Conference of Catholic Bishops is Cardinal Christoph Schönborn.
Although Austria has no primate the archbishop of Salzburg is titled Primus Germaniae (Primate of Germany).
[edit] Structure
- Archdiocese of Vienna with the following suffragans:
- Archdiocese of Salzburg with the following suffragans
- Territorial Abbey of Wettingen-Mehrerau (immediately subject to the Holy See)
- Military Ordinariate of Austria