DIOCESE
6
DIOOESE
with the civil law of the countrj' may sometimes offer
many advantages (Second Plenarj' Council of Balti-
more, no. 75). In certain verj- extensive dioceses the
pope appoints a ficarius genemlis in pontificalibus, or
auxiliary bishop, whose duty is to supply the place of
the diocesan bishop in the e-xercise of those functions
of the sacred ministry which demand episcopal order.
In the appointment of this bishop the pope is not bound
to observe the special rules for the appointment of a
residential bishop. These titular bishops possess no
jurisdiction by right of their office ; the diocesan bishop,
however, can grant them, e. g., the powers of a vicar-
general.
The common ecclesiastical law contains no enact- ments relating to the rights and powers of the chancel- lor, an official met with in many dioceses (see Diocesan Ch.^ncery). The Second Plenary Council of Balti- more (no. 71) advises the establishment of a chancery in cverj- diocese of the Ihiited States. The chancellor is specially charged with the affixing of the episcopal seal to all acts issued in the name of the bishop, in order to prove their authenticity. He appears also in the conduct of ecclesiastical lawsuits, e. g. in matrimonial cases, to prove the authenticity of the alleged docu- ments, to vouch for the depositions of -witnesses, etc. Because of the importance of his functions, the chan- cellor sometmies holds the office of vicar-general in s}yiritualihus. By episcopal chancery is sometimes understood the office where are written the documents issued in the name of the bishop and to which is ad- dressed the correspondence relating to the administra- tion of the diocese; sometimes also the term signifies the persons employed in the exercise of these functions. The taxes or dues which the episcopal chancery may claim for the issuing of documents were fixed by the Council of Trent (Sess. XXI, c. i, De ref.) ; afterwards by Innocent XI (hence their name Taxn Innocen- twna), 8 Oct., 167S; finally by Leo XIII, 10 June, 1896. The fiscal of the bishop, also known as promotor or pro- curator fiscalis, is the ecclesiastic charged with attend- ing to the interests of the diocese in all trials and espe- cially with endeavouring to secure the punishment of all offences cognizable in the ecclesiastical tribunals. An assistant, who is called fiscal advocate (advocatus fiscalis), may be appointed to aid this officer.
Formerly the diocese was di\-ided into a number of archdeaconries, each administered by an archdeacon, who possessed considerable authority in that part of the diocese placed under his jurisdiction. The Coun- cil of Trent restricted verj- much their authority, and since then the office of the archdeacon has gradually disaijpeared. It exists at the present day only as an honorary title, given to a canon of the cathedral chap- ter (see Archdeacon). On the other hand, the ancient office of vic(trii foranei, decani rurales, or archipres- b;/teri still exists in the Church (see Archprie.st; Dean). The division of the diocese into deaneries is not obligatory, but in large dioceses the bishop usually entrusts to certain priests known as deans or vicars forane the oversight of the clerg>' of a portion of his diocese, and generally delegates'to them special juris- dj^ctional powers (Third Plen. Council of Baltimore, nos. 27-30). Finally, by means of the diocesan synod all the clergy participates in the general administration of the diocese. According to the common law, the bishop is bound to assemble a synod every year, to which he must convoke the vicar-general, the deans, the canons of the cathedral, and at least a certain num- ber of parish priests. Here, however, custom and pontifical privileges have departed in some points from the general legislation. At this meeting, all questions relatmg to the moral and the ecclesiastical discipline of the diocese are publicly discussed and settled. In the synod the bishop is the sole legislator; the members may, at the request of the bishop, give their advice, but they have only a deliberative voice in the choice of the rxaminatores cleri dioccesani, i. e. the ecclesiastica
charged with the examination of candidates for the
parishes (Third Plen. Council of Baltimore, nos. 23-
26). It is because the diocesan statutes are generally
elaborated and promulgated in a synod that they are
sometimes known as slatuta synodalia. In addition to
the general laws of the Church and the enactments of
national or plenary and provincial synods, the bishop
may regulate by statutes, that are often real ecclesias-
tical laws, the particular discipline of each diocese, or
apply the general laws of the Church to the special
needs of the diocese. Since the bishop alone possesses
all the legislative power, and is not bound to propose
in a synod these diocesan statutes, he may modify
them or add to them on his own authority.
VII. V.\c.\NCY OF THE DiocESE. — We have already explained how a diocese becomes vacant (see V above) ; here it will suffice to add a few words touching the ad- ministration of the diocese during such vacancy. In dioceses where there is a coadjutor bishop with right of succession, the latter, by the fact of the decease of the diocesan bishop, becomes the residential bishop or or- dinary (q. V.) of the diocese. Otherwise the govern- ment of the diocese during the vacancy belongs regu- larly to the chapter of the cathedral church. The chapter must choose within eight days a vicar capitu- lar, whose powers, although less extensive, are in kind like those of a bishop. If the chapter does not fulfil this obligation, the archbishop appoints ex officio a vicar capitular. In dioceses where a chapter does not exist, an administrator is appointed, designated either by the bishop himself before his death, or, in case of his neglect, by the metropolitan or by the senior bishop of the province (see Administr.4.tor).
VIII. Conspectus of the Diocesan System of THE Catholic Church. — The accompanying table of the diocesan system of the Church shows that there are at present throughout the world; 9 patriarchates of the Latin, 6 of the Oriental Kites; 6 suburbicarian dio- ceses; 163 (or 166 with the Patriarchates of Venice, Lisbon, and Goa, in reality archdioceses) archdioceses of the Latin, and 20 of the Oriental Rites ; 675 dioceses of the Latin, and 52 of the Oriental Rites; 137 vicari- ates Apostolic of the Latin, and 5 of the Oriental Rites; 58 prefectures Apostolic of the Latin Rite; 12 Apostolic delegations; 21 abbeys or prelatures nultius diaecesis, i. e. exempt from the jurisdiction of the dio- cesan bishop. There are also 89 titular archdioceses and 432 titular dioceses.
Thomassin, Vetus et nova diaciplina ecdesice, etc. (Paris, 1691), Part. I, Bk. I, nos. 54-59; Loning, Gesch. des deutschen Kirchenrechts (Strasburg, 187S). I, 410; II, 129 sqq.; Hab- NACK, Die Mission und Ausbreitung des Christentums in den erslen drei Jahrhundertcn (Leipzig, 1907), 319 sqq.; Duchesxe, Origines du culte chrelien (Paris, 1902), 11 sqq.; Idem. Hisl. an- cienne de VEglise (Paris, 1906). I, 524; Idem, Fastes episcopaiix de I'ancienne GauU (Paris, 1907); Savio, Gli antichi vescovi d'ltalia (Turin, 1899). I; Werminghoff. Gesch. der Kirchcn- verfassune DeutsM. im M. A. (Leipzig. 1905); H.acck, Kirch- engesch. DeulsM. (Leipzig, 1896-1903); Lingard, Hist, and Anliq. of the Anglo-Saxon Church (reprint, London, 1899); Lanigan, Ecd. History of Ireland (Dublin, 1829); Bellesheim, Gesch. der kalhol. Kirche in Irland (Mainz, 1890-91); Idem, Gesch. der kathol. Kirche in Schotlland (Mainz. 1883); tr. Hunt- er-Blair. History of the Catholic Church in Scotland (London, 1889); HiNSCHlus, System des kathol. Kirchenrechts (Berlin, 1878) II 378 sqq.; Von Scherer, Handbuch des Kirchen- rechts (Graz. 1886). I. 553 sqq.; Werxz. Jus Decrelalium (Rome 1899) II. 348 sqq.; S.iGMfLLER. Lehrbuch des kathol. Kirchenrechts (Freiburg. 1900-1904), 231, 346, and bibli- ography under Bischof: Battandier. Ann. pont. calh. (Paris, 1908)- La Gerarchia Cattolica (Rome, 190S\ Missiones Catholi- ca (Rome, 1907); Baumgarten and Swoboda, Die kathol. Kirche auf dem Erdenrund (Munich, 1907). For a catalogue of all known Catholic dioceses to 1198, with names and regu- lar date<» of occupants, see Gams. Series episc. eccl.Cath. (Rat- isbon, 1873-86), and his continuator Evbel, Hierarchia Calholica Medii .€fi. 119S-l!^1l (Miinster. 1899). Cf. also the alphabetical list of all known dioceses, ancient and modern in M^s-Latrie. Tresor de chronol. d'hisl. et de geog. (Pans, 1889). and the descriptive text of Werner, Orbis terror. Calholicus (Freiburg. 1890V For the dioce.se,«. etc. m the mis- sionarv territories of the Catholic Church see Streit, Kathol- i..<cher' .Missionsatla.t (Steyl. 1906). For details of dioceses m English-speaking countries see Catholic Directories for Tnited States, England, Ireland, Australia, Canada, India.
A. Van Hove.
