Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Malta
The Archdiocese of Malta (Malti: "Arċidjoċesi ta' Malta") is a metropolitan archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church in Malta. History. Tradition claims that St. Paul the Apostle established the diocese of Malta in the year 60 A.D when he ordained the Roman governor, Saint Publius, as the first bishop of Malta. The Diocese of Malta was made a suffragan diocese to the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Palermo by a Papal Bull of Pope Adrian IV on 10 July 1156 and confirmed by Pope Alexander III on 26 April 1160. The former Diocese of  Malta, which is one of the oldest dioceses in the world, was elevated to archdiocese on January 1, 1944. The Diocese of Malta included the islands of Malta, Gozo and Comino. On September 22, 1864, the diocese lost the territories of Gozo and Comino when Pope Pius IX established the Diocese of Gozo which became a suffragan diocese to Malta. Cathedrals. There are two cathedrals in the diocese: The Metropolitan Cathedral of Saint Paul, in Mdina, and the Co-Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist, located in Valletta.