Diocese of Saint-Maurice d’Agaune
S. Mauritii Agaunen(sis)
Territorial abbey immediately subject to the Holy See · Latin Church · Saint-Maurice d’Agaune, Switzerland
Territorial abbey of canons regular at Saint-Maurice in the canton of Valais, Switzerland, founded in 515 and immediately subject to the Holy See. The 40th abbot, Alexandre Ineichen, was confirmed by Pope Leo XIV and installed on 19 March 2025.
The see
- Rank
- Territorial abbey immediately subject to the Holy See
- Tradition
- Latin Church
- Erected
- 515
- Latin
- S. Mauritii Agaunen(sis)
- Patron
- Saint Maurice
- Annuario code
- 001000302
The see in figures
- Catholics
- 5,400
- Priests
- 31
- Catholics per priest
- 174
- Extent
- 96 km²
- Catholics per km²
- 56
Figures as recorded in the register, from the Annuario Pontificio and the see's own published statements. Shares and ratios are computed from the two figures shown beside them.
The bishop
- Abbot
- Jean Scarcella
A see whose chair stands empty is recorded as vacant rather than filled with a guess. On what a bishop is, see the bishop.
The cathedral
Basilica of Saint Maurice of Agaunum stands in Saint-Maurice d’Agaune, the church that holds the cathedra from which this see takes its name.
On what a cathedral is, see the cathedral; every see church on earth is gathered at the cathedrals.
History
Set against a cliff along the road between Geneva and the Simplon Pass toward northern Italy, the Abbey of Saint Maurice, Agaunum (French: Abbaye de Saint-Maurice d'Agaune or Saint-Maurice-en-Valais) is a Swiss house of canons regular in Saint-Maurice, Canton of Valais, with origins in the 6th century. Canonically it is a territorial abbacy, belonging to no diocese. The abbey's renown rests on its link to the martyrdom of the Theban Legion, its early practice of perpetual psalmody, and a notable collection of art and antiquity. It is recognized as a Swiss heritage site of national significance.
What is kept by invitation
The record above is published because it is public: what this see is, when it was erected, who holds its chair, and where it stands among its neighbours.
The working record is not. The chancery's address, telephone and email, the clergy of the see, and the hours of Mass, confession and adoration in the parishes within it are kept for members, and a person reads every request.
Sources
The see's own website · Wikipedia
This record is compiled from the published statements of the see and the references of the Holy See, among them the Annuario Pontificio. On the method, see the keeping of the record. Whoever finds an error is asked, in charity, to write: [email protected].