By the mid of the eleventh century, only five bishoprics remained in all of Africa as mentioned in a letter by pope Leo IX who intervened in a struggle for precedence between the bishop of
Gummi-
Mahdia, who was favoured by the local rulers, and the
bishop of Carthage, the traditional head of the
church of Africa.[1]Giles of Assisi and several other
Franciscans came to Tunis in 1219 in order to preach to the Muslims, but they were send back by the local Christians in fear of repercussions.[2]
Like the Almohads, the
Hafsids maintained Christian mercenaries who lived in a neighbourhood closed of with a gate near the Hafsid palace complex. They worshipped in a church dedicated to
Saint Francis of Assisi which visitors described as "very beautiful and great" and which was allowed to ring the bell, a practice forbidden by the so-called
Pact of Umar and a privilege not granted to the Genoese and Venetian merchants who maintained chapels in their merchant quarters. When Jean Adorno visited Tunis in 1470, he described these Christians as assimilated culturally and linguistically into Tunisian society, though they remained Christians and would sing in Latin during mass.[3]
Tunisian independence
From the late 19th century to after
World War II, Tunisia was home to large populations of Christian
French,
Italian and
Maltese descent (255,000 Europeans in 1956).[4] The number of Catholics fell following Tunisian independence. The ownership of many Catholic buildings, including the Saint Louis Cathedral, was transferred to the state under a
modus vivendi reached between the
Holy See and the Republic of Tunisia.[5]
There are no Eastern Catholic, pre-diocesan or other exempt jurisdictions in Tunisia.
As this solo-episcopate warrants no national conference, it partakes in the regional
Episcopal conference of Northern Africa (French: Conférence Episcopale Régionale du Nord de l’Afrique, C.E.R.N.A.) together with
Algeria,
Morocco (hosting the headquarters in
Rabat),
Western Sahara and
Libya, the 'Great
Maghreb' (Arab region West of Egypt).
There is also an
Apostolic Nunciature (papal diplomatic representation at embassy-level) to Tunisia, which is however vested in the Apostolic Nunciature to neighbour
Algeria (in
Algiers).
All defunct jurisdictions are precursors of current (residential or, mostly, titular) sees.[6]
Archdiocese
There are around 30,700 Catholics in this predominantly
Islamic country, which forms a single diocese – the
Archdiocese of Tunis. Accordingly, the only Catholic
cathedral is that of
St. Vincent de Paul in
Tunis. The building was completed in 1897, while Tunisia was
a French protectorate. Catholic influence during the colonial period also included extensive missionary work by the French
Primate of Africa,
Cardinal Lavigerie. The cathedral in his time was the church of
Saint Louis in
Carthage, was also built in the 19th century, when the archdiocese, under Cardinal Lavigerie, held the primacy of all
Roman Africa.
In 2022, Catholics formed the majority (around 24,000 out of 30,000) of Christians in the country.[7] In the past, the Diocese of Tunis operates 12 churches, 9 schools, several libraries, and 2 clinics as well as holding religious services, running a
monastery, freely organized cultural activities, and performed charitable work throughout the country.[8] Occasionally, Catholic religious groups held services in private residences or other locations.[8]
Ecumenical outreach
Pope John Paul II visited Tunisia on April 15, 1996, to give support to the Church there and called for a peaceful dialogue between Muslims and Christians across North Africa.[9][10]
Freedom of religion
In 2023, the country was scored 3 out of 4 for religious freedom.[11] In the same year, it was ranked as the 36th worst place in the world to be a Christian.[12]
Lower, Michael (20 October 2016). "Medieval European Mercenaries in North Africa". In France, John; DeVries, Kelly; Rogers, Clifford J. (eds.).
Journal of Medieval Military History. Boydell & Brewer. pp. 119–120.
ISBN978-1-78327-130-6. Retrieved 11 May 2024.