Diocese of

Chinhoyi

Zimbabwe

Continent: Southern Africa

Rite: Roman (Latin)

Type: Diocese Diocese

Name: Chinhoyi / Chinhoyien(sis) (Latin)

Ecclesiastical Province: Harare

Neighbouring Dioceses: Gokwe (↙), Monze (←), Lusaka (↖), Tete (→), Harare (↘)

Depends on: Dicastery for Evangelisation

Website:

Celebrations

Patron Saint: Saint Kizito, Saint Francis Xavier

Cathedral Dedication Anniversary: December 19 (1965)

Liturgical Calendar (Universal) 📅

History

1973.12.17: Established as Apostolic Prefecture of Sinoia / Sinoiæn(sis) (Latin) (from Metropolitan Archdiocese of Salisbury)
1982.06.25: Renamed as Apostolic Prefecture of Chinhoyi / Chinhoyien(sis) (Latin)
1985.10.28: Promoted as Diocese of Chinhoyi / Chinhoyien(sis) (Latin) (became suffragan of Harare)

Contact Info

Address: 26 Robson Manyika Drive, Box 680, Chinhoyi, Zimbabwe

Phone: (067) 22562

Present Prelates

Bishop (2026.04.11 – ...):

Bishop Patrick Ngwenya (59)

Ordinaries

Bishops of Chinhoyi (Roman Rite)

Bishop Patrick Ngwenya (59)
(2026.04.11 – ...)

Bishop of Chinhoyi (Zimbabwe)

Born:	1967.02.01 (Mutare, Zimbabwe)
Ordained Priest:	2007.08.25
Consecrated Bishop:	2026.07.04

Priest of Harare (Zimbabwe) (2007.08.25 – 2026.04.11)

Bishop of Chinhoyi (Zimbabwe) (2026.04.11 – ...)

Bishop Raymond Tapiwa Mupandasekwa, C.SS.R. (56)
(Apostolic Administrator 2023.09.15 – 2026.04.11)

Bishop Raymond Tapiwa Mupandasekwa, C.SS.R. (56)
(2017.12.30 – 2023.09.15)

Bishop of Masvingo (Zimbabwe)
President of Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference

Copiosa apud eum redemptio

Born:	1970.04.28 (Tamirepi, Zimbabwe)
Ordained Priest:	2001.08.04
Consecrated Bishop:	2018.04.07

Bishop of Chinhoyi (Zimbabwe) (2017.12.30 – 2023.09.15)

Vice-President of Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference (2022 – 2026.06.10)

Apostolic Administrator of Chinhoyi (Zimbabwe) (2023.09.15 – 2026.04.11)

Bishop of Masvingo (Zimbabwe) (2023.09.15 – ...)

President of Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference (2026.06.10 – ...)

Archbishop Robert Christopher Ndlovu (70)
(Apostolic Administrator 2016.02.17 – 2017.12.30)

Bishop Dieter Bernd Scholz, S.J. (88)
(2006.04.06 – 2016.02.17)

Bishop emeritus of Chinhoyi (Zimbabwe)

Born:	1938.06.02 (Berlin, Germany)
Ordained Priest:	1969.07.13
Consecrated Bishop:	2006.09.02

Bishop of Chinhoyi (Zimbabwe) (2006.04.06 – 2016.02.17)

Bishop Helmut Reckter, S.J.
(1985.10.28 – 2004.03.10)

Born:	1933.11.24 (Arenberg, Germany)
Ordained Priest:	1964.07.31
Consecrated Bishop:	1986.01.05
Died:	2004.03.10 (Chinhoyi, Zimbabwe † 70)

Prefect Apostolic of Chinhoyi (Zimbabwe) (1974.02.22 – 1985.10.28)

Bishop of Chinhoyi (Zimbabwe) (1985.10.28 – 2004.03.10)

President of Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference (1990 – 1994)

Prefects Apostolic of Chinhoyi (Roman Rite)

Fr. Helmut Reckter, S.J. (later Bishop)
(1974.02.22 – 1985.10.28)

(see above)

Special Churches

Cathedral: Cathedral of Corpus Christi, Chinhoyi, Mashonaland West

Gokwe (↙), Monze (←), Lusaka (↖), Tete (→), Harare (↘)

Statistics (2022.12.31)

Area: 56,000 km²

Population: 249,410 Catholics (7.2% of 3,487,790 total)

Pastoral Centres: 21 parishes, 1 mission

Personnel: 39 priests (36 diocesan, 3 religious), 2 deacons, 85 religious (7 brothers, 78 sisters), 9 seminarians

Pastoral Centres

Last updated on 2026.08.04

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