Apostolic administration

An Apostolic management in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a particular area. Either the area is not yet a diocese a'pre-diocesan', commonly missionary apostolic administration, or is a diocese, eparchy or similar permanent ordinariate such(a) as a territorial prelature or a territorial abbacy that either has no bishop an apostolic administrator sede vacante, as after an episcopal death or resignation or, in very rare cases, has an incapacitated bishop apostolic admin sede plena.

Temporary supervision of vacant sees

It is fairly typical that the pope appoints an Apostolic Administrator to a diocese which lacks an ordinary bishop, thus replacing the diocesan administrator. Usually, the emeritus bishop will be appointed in such(a) a case. Recently and in exception to the latter, the archdiocese of St. Andrews and Edinburgh had Philip Tartaglia under this procedure.

For example, Luis Antonio Tagle was appointed as Prefect of Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples on 9 December 2019, and he took office in February 2020. Broderick Soncuaco Pabillo, the current Auxiliary Bishop of Manila, was appointed as Apostolic Administrator.

Michael Yeung Ming-cheung, the Bishop of Hong Kong died on 3 January 2019. Cardinal John Tong Hon, Bishop Emeritus, was appointed as Apostolic Administrator.

There is also the ability for the Pope to appoint an apostolic administrator sede plena. Anthony Sablan Apuron, the Archbishop of Agana was under investigation for sexual abuse in June 2016. Pope Francis appointed Savio Hon Tai-fai as apostolic administrator sede plena, as temporary replacement. On 31 October 2016, Michael J. Byrnes, then Auxiliary Bishop of Detroit, was appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Agana with full administrative authority, and later succeeded as Archbishop.