Roman Catholic Diocese of Tournai
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Tournai is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic church in Belgium. The diocese was formed in 1146, by the splitting of the diocese of Noyon and Tournai that had existed since the 7th century. It is now suffragan of the archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels.
History
As early as the second half of the 3rd century St. Piat evangelized Tournai; some writers represent him as the first bishop, but this cannot be proved. Towards the end of the 3rd century the Emperor Maximian rekindled the persecutions, and St. Piat suffered martyrdom.
The barbarian invasions began shortly afterwards. This lasted from the end of the 3rd century till the end of the 5th century. St. Remigius profited by the good will of the Frankish monarchy to organize the Catholic hierarchy in the north of Gaul. He confided the Diocese of Arras and Cambrai to St. Vaast (Vedastus), and erected the See of Tournai (c. 500), appointing as its titular Eleutherius.
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