Editing Diocese (section)

==Catholic Church==
[[File:Coat Of Arms Roman Catholic Diocese of Las Vegas.svg|thumb|Coat of arms of the [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Las Vegas]]]]
{{Further|List of Catholic dioceses (alphabetical)|List of Catholic dioceses (structured view)}}
The [[canon law of the Catholic Church|Canon Law of the Catholic Church]] defines a diocese as "a portion of the people of God which is entrusted to a bishop for him to shepherd with the cooperation of the presbyterium, so that, adhering to its pastor and gathered by him in the Holy Spirit through the gospel and the Eucharist, it constitutes a particular church in which the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church of Christ is truly present and operative."<ref>{{Cite book|last=Catholic Church|url=https://www.vatican.va/archive/cod-iuris-canonici/eng/documents/cic_lib2-cann368-430_en.html|title=Code of Canon Law|year=1983|chapter=Can. 369}}</ref>

Also known as ''particular churches'' or ''local churches'', dioceses are under the authority of a [[Bishops in the Catholic Church|bishop]]. They are described as [[ecclesiastical]] districts defined by geographical territory. Dioceses are often grouped by the [[Holy See]] into [[Ecclesiastical province#Catholic Church|ecclesiastical provinces]] for greater cooperation and common action among regional dioceses. Within an ecclesiastical province, one diocese can be designated an "archdiocese" or "metropolitan archdiocese", establishing centrality within an ecclesiastical province and denoting a higher rank. Archdioceses are often chosen based on their population and historical significance. All dioceses and archdioceses, and their respective bishops or archbishops, are distinct and autonomous. An archdiocese has limited responsibilities within the same ecclesiastical province assigned to it by the Holy See.<ref>{{Cite web|last=CCCB|title=Ecclesiastical Circumscriptions: Dioceses|url=https://www.cccb.ca/the-catholic-church-in-canada/ecclesiastical-circumscriptions/dioceses/|url-status=live|website=Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200812234314/https://www.cccb.ca/the-catholic-church-in-canada/ecclesiastical-circumscriptions/dioceses/ |archive-date=2020-08-12 }}</ref>

{{as of|2024|12}}, in the [[Catholic Church]] there are 2,898 regular dioceses (or eventually eparchies) consisting of: 1 [[Holy See|papal see]], 9 [[patriarchate]]s, 4 [[Major archiepiscopal church|major archeparchies]], 564 [[metropolitan archdiocese]]s, 77 single archdioceses and 2,261 dioceses in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dioceses by Type |url=https://gcatholic.org/dioceses/types.htm |access-date=2024-12-18 |website=gcatholic.org}}</ref>

In the [[Eastern Catholic Churches]] that are in communion with the [[Pope]], the equivalent entity is called an ''[[eparchy]]'' or "archeparchy", with an "eparch" or "archeparch" serving as the [[Ordinary (church officer)|ordinary]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eeparchy.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Particular_Law_Canons.pdf|title=Canons of the Particular Law of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church|publisher=[[Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Edmonton]]|access-date=22 July 2021|location=[[Edmonton, Alberta]]}}</ref>