Allatae sunt

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Allatae sunt ( Latin for you were brought up ) is a papal encyclical by Pope Benedict XIV , dated July 26, 1755. The subtitle reads: “On the observance of the Oriental rite” and was addressed to the missionaries of the Eastern Churches . It is the longest and most detailed encyclical of this Pope, it is considered the first compact "Eastern Church Encyclical" and has been consistently listed as the basis for further apostolic letters and pronouncements on the Eastern Churches .

initial situation

Benedict XIV begins in his letter with a description of the initial situation:

Decisive for this encyclical were letters that had been "brought" to the responsible cardinals of the Congregatio de Propaganda Fide . Most of these letters came from the Basra (also Bassora) mission area in Iraq . They reported that many Christians from the Armenian and Syrian churches lived in this area . As the faithful had no own church building, they visited the mission institutions where after the Latin rite the Holy Mass was offered. The devotees celebrated the sacred ceremonies in accordance with their own rites. However, the various rites, customs, divergent calendars and moving holidays led to discrepancies. The applicants wanted to know whether the Christians of the Eastern Church would now have to follow the new Latin calendar. Furthermore, whether the other church festivals should be forced on the Armenians and Syrians from Basra. In this case the believers would only go to the Latin rite churches to fulfill their Sunday duty. Some missionaries also reported that the Armenians did not observe the provisions of abstinence and fasting periods and did not eat fish as a meat substitute. The missionaries rated this as a natural weakness and criticized the behavior as "other customs". They therefore suggested allowing other forms of piety to compensate for this.

Investigation and evaluation

The Pope reported that he had put these questions and opinions to the members of the Congregatio de Propaganda Fide . After careful examination, the cardinals decided not to allow any renewals or changes to the existing rules. He again confirmed the decretals of the papal congregation of January 31, 1702 and refused any amendments. The Eastern Catholic Churches and their rites, replied the Pope, were approved by the Holy See . He continued: As everyone knows, the “Oriental Church” arose from the rites of the Greeks , Armenians , Syrians and Copts , and there is no need for further innovations.

After quoting a few passages from the decree , the Pope declared that the meaning of the text was clear and clear and did not require any further comment. The new encyclical was intended to ensure that the text was once again brought to the attention of everyone and could thus be understood by everyone. He agreed that the Basra missionaries had put their questions in ignorance of the decree.

review

In the following section, Benedict XIV goes into great detail and detail on the United Catholic Churches . He underlines that the churches have adopted the dogmas and doctrine and that the Trinity of God the Father , God the Son and God the Holy Spirit has been accepted by all. In a long passage Pope Benedict XIV describes the historical development. He began his historical review with Pope Leo IX. ( Pontificate 1049-1054), who had supported the Greeks and after whose death the schism began, he continued his list with a number of examples. After this historical outline, Benedict XIV mentions his Apostolic Constitution " Etsi Pastoralis " from 1742, with which he laid down the conditions of the Christians of the Italian-Albanian Church and some liturgical rules.

Convert to the Catholic faith

Benedict XIV declared that the popes had done everything to overcome the heresies that led to the schism between the Western and Eastern churches. They also "commanded" the Eastern Churches to restore church unity. In the following chapter he went into the conversion :

The provisions “ Veteris Bullarii ” by Gregory XV are the basis for the admission of Greeks . (1621–1623) from 1623. The ordinances of Urban VIII (1623–1644) from 1642 apply to the conversion of members of the Eastern Churches . Both Apostolic Letters were issued by the Congregatio de Propaganda Fide (Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples , Founded in 1622 by Gregory XV.) Published. In 1665 several patriarchs of the Eastern Churches sent declarations of conversion to Rome. In the verdict , written by Father Lorenzo di Lauria and examined by the Congregatio de Propaganda de Fide , it was summarized: "Everyone is allowed to accept the Roman faith, but they should be informed that they may not accept another belief afterwards."

Changes in the liturgical books

For some time, so criticized Benedict XIV, falsifications had been recorded in the liturgical books of the Eastern Churches ( Euchologion ) in missals and breviary , but also in the Greek liturgical books . The first investigations began under the direction of Urban VIII and were under Clemens XII. (1730-1740) continued. During their own pontificate, many scholars with different language skills conscientiously worked and discussed the rites of the Eastern Churches. Benedict XIV once again emphasized the importance and thoroughness of these investigations; it was important to him not to adopt any mistakes from earlier history. He relied here particularly on the Catholic convert and Greek classical philologist Leone Allacci (1586–1669). In the previous century, Lutherans , the Greeks and other Eastern Churches tried to embroil themselves in their own mistakes. In the questions of the sacrament about the Eucharist and St. Conversion tried the Calvinists to penetrate into the rites of the Greeks, and had probably pulled Patriarch Kirill to their side.

Benedict XIV summarized: Firstly, it is remarkable that the attacks on Catholic doctrine have been countered and these have led to new inspirations. Second, it had been recognized that there was no need to restore the rites to their old positions and that the path to church unity had been advanced. It was possible to “separate the wheat from the chaff” ( Matthew 3:12 EU and Luke 3:17 EU ); it must be shown that the Roman Catholic Church maintains its own rites and ceremonies. Thirdly and lastly, the converted could be ordered to perform the Catholic rite, and reclaiming the old rites would remain prohibited.

Conversion questions

In the next large section, Benedict XIV repeats several resolutions on conversion : After the Council of Florence and the conclusion of the unification of churches, Catholics living in Greece expressed that it was lawful for them to convert to the Greek rite . Already Nicholas V (1328-1330), these practices had prohibited. Benedict XIV stated: Although the rites of the Eastern Churches are praiseworthy, their use by Catholics is not permitted; He referred to the Apostolic Constitution " Etsi Pastoralis " and recalled that the Council of Florence had not approved it either. There are only a few exceptions for the studying priests in the Roman colleges of the Eastern Churches. So while the conversion from the Latin to the Greek rite was forbidden, there was no obstacle to the conversion from the Greek to the Latin rite. The Pope called for a strict interpretation and stipulated that dispensation could only be dealt with by the Holy See. This provision was also made by Urban VIII for the Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church in 1624.

Some examples of different views

The next chapter of this encyclical takes up a lot of space on the various rites, their practices and interpretations, here are a few examples:

The question of bread

Benedict XIV commented on the question of “unleavened bread” ( Host ) and explained that both unleavened and leavened bread are suitable for the Eucharist.

The marriage of Greek priests

Another issue was the marriage of the Greek Catholic priests, which continued after their ordination. This condition was tolerated by the Roman authority; such tolerance is better than bringing about another schism. Even so, some Greeks accused the Latin Church of maintaining celibacy .

Confirmation

Some Copts and Armenians complained that Confirmation did not immediately follow baptism . According to the rules of the Western Church, confirmation only took place when the candidate was able to distinguish good from bad. The Roman Catholic Church did not prohibit the practices of baptism and confirmation. However, the Copts would not recognize the baptism of the Catholics, since Confirmation did not take place directly afterwards. This disregard could not be tolerated by Rome and was rejected.

First communion

Benedict XIV presented a further problem: It was about the giving of first communion directly after baptism, as was practiced in the Armenian Church. He stated that this was not a necessity for the "eternal salvation" of the children. At the Council of Trent this statement was made and Benedict XII. (1334–1342) would have forbidden the Armenians to communion with children. After a few theological explanations, the Pope came to the conclusion that the tried and tested rites, shaped by tradition , would continue to be preserved for the Armenians and Copts for reasons of unity.

Presentation of bread and wine

The next disagreement was the presentation of communion between Greek Catholic and Roman Catholic believers and the simultaneous presentation of wine and bread . This topic was discussed in the "Greek College" in Rome, so the observance of the Greek rite was compulsory. Leone Allacci had also confirmed this in his memoirs. In accordance with the apostolic constitution approved by Urban VIII - for the colleges of the Eastern Churches in Rome - the students had to make the creed once a week and receive communion according to the Latin rite every two weeks. At the major church festivals such as Easter , Pentecost and Christmas , the college students were obliged to receive the Eucharist according to the Greek rite (i.e. leavened bread and pure wine, without added water). For this purpose, the communion recipients were given the wine on a small spoon. All other Greek participants in the mass were given communion on request according to the Greek rite.

In the Apostolic Constitution " Etsi Pastoralis " Benedict XIV had forbidden this possibility for the Italo-Albanian Church and stated that some Greeks had abandoned receiving communion after both rites, even though it was a common custom for all Eastern Churches. The famous Lucas Holstenius reported that according to the rite of the Ethiopians, Holy Communion was only given in the form of bread.

The Patriarch of the Maronites had to Gregory XIII. reports that the parishioners were offered Holy Communion with bread and wine, to which he replied that the layman should only be given bread, as there was a risk of the wine spilling out of the chalice . The Synod Fathers of the Special Council of Lebanon (1736) declared that they would only use the Latin rite when presenting Communion. H. just serving bread - would practice. Deacons are allowed to receive bread and wine, but the use of a wine spoon has been abolished. Instead, the bread was dipped in the wine.

Water and wine

As a final point of discussion, the Pope came to the question of the different ways of adding consecrated water to the wine goblet. For this purpose, the Archbishop of Tire and Sidon had to Clemens XI in 1716 . (1700–1721) asked some questions. So he asked whether the Melchites in Syria and Palestine should be prohibited from adding water to wine. Clement XI. rejected a ban. Benedict XIII. (1724–1730) had given the Greek Patriarch of Antiochen a comparable answer to his request in 1729 and finally, in his constitution “ Etsi Pastoralis ”, he also allowed this rite for the Italiano-Albanian rite. On May 1, 1746, he finally decided that there should be no changes to this. He also admits that Cardinal Humbert von Silva Candida (1006 or 1010-1061) had argued vigorously against this custom at the time, but his arguments lacked any substance. The participants in the particular synod of Zamość had also prohibited this part of the change in 1720. On this subject, he also refers to the authority of his office and announces a regulation at the appropriate time. Until then, this decision is in the hands of the responsible bishops, who should, however, strive to take over many of the rites of the Roman Catholic Church.

The Creed

About the Christian creed , Benedict XIV stated that it had originally found its way into the Greek masses and that it was then adopted from the Latin rite. Now the creed is prayed in both liturgy celebrations. The origin of the creed being part of the Holy Mass can be traced back to the 3rd Council of Toledo (589). Here the Filioque is mentioned for the first time, which became part of the creed according to the Latin rite and the Eastern Churches. The 150 bishops of the Eastern Churches present agreed to this formula. The addition should make it clear that Jesus Christ is by nature with God the Father.

The cross worship

In continuation of his themes, Benedict XIV also addressed the question of "worshiping the cross" or "veneration of the cross". He mentioned Amalarius (775–850) and his work " De Divinis Officiis ". In it he had described that on Good Friday in Jerusalem the cross hung on the Christ was worshiped. This cross worship was taken over by the Greeks through the Latin rite.

The Christian hymns

The earliest Christian hymns ( Trisagion ) set the hymn of praise to the Trinity is, this means: "Holy God, Holy Mighty (God), Holy Immortal One (God) have mercy on us." This praise was related to a miracle , which in Constantinople, in the middle of the fifth century. Pope Benedict XIV described this miracle following Patriarch Nikephorus I (757 / 758–828), it was already mentioned by Pope Felix II (483–492) in his third letter to Pietro Fullo . The Trisagion, writes Benedict XIV., Is still sung on Good Friday.

Holy water for the Epiphany

The blessing of the water on the eve of Epiphany (January 6th) is derived from the rite of the Greek Church. This ceremony was permitted by Rome, and the blessed water can also be used for sprinkling.

Maundy Thursday ceremonies

The covering and cleaning of the altar on the evening before Good Friday, the so-called " Maundy Thursday ", has been adopted from the Greek rite in the Latin rite. Benedict XIV stated that this ceremony dates back to the 5th century. It had already been mentioned by Saint Sabas and Leone Allacci in their writings and confirmed by Gelasius I (492–496). In practice, this ceremony was used for the first time by St. Isidore (560–646), Archbishop of Seville , and then found its way into the Vatican . On this occasion, Benedict XIV once again expressed that, from the perspective of the Holy See, there are good reasons to adopt liturgical ceremonies from the Greek Church and use them in the Catholic Church.

Trisagion

In the next chapter of this encyclical, Benedict XIV again went into the Christian hymns (Trisagion), the origin of which he had already described. It was about the addition of the words: “He who was crucified for us”, which had been inserted by Pietro Fullo and accepted by some bishops from Syria and Armenia. This version, which as “crucified” only referred to “God's Son”, was not recognized by the popes and called an error. As mentioned earlier, the Trisagion referred to the Most Holy Trinity. One of Felix III. (526-530) led Roman synod had condemned this version and stated: “The hymn was sung only about the Trinity and was sent to the Church by God himself, through a boy, whereby Constantinople was spared an earthquake. This was decided at the Council of Chalcedon (451). An extension that referred only to Christ was rejected ”.

Pope Gregory VII (1073-1085) also confirmed this statement in a letter to the Archbishop and Patriarch of Armenia. In the same way, Gregory XIII. (1572–1585) in a letter dated February 14, 1577 to the Maronite Patriarch. On January 30, 1635, the Congregatio de Propagenda Fide examined the Armenian liturgy and came to the conclusion that the addition used by the Armenians was not allowed and had to be deleted.

Participation of women at the fair

In a letter from Gelasius I (492–496) to the bishops of Lucania , the latter condemned the practice introduced by the priests of using women as altar servers at mass . Since these practices had also spread among the Greeks, Pope Innocent IV (1243–1254) forbade this in a letter to the bishops of Tusculum with the words: “Women should not dare to serve at the altar, for them should as a whole such office may be rejected ”. He (Benedict XIV.) Also forbade the participation of women in his letter " Etsi Pastoralis ".

Communion

On Maundy Thursday, in memory of the Eucharist , there is a tradition of keeping blessed bread for a whole year (see also: Last Sacrament ), which is used on request as communion for the terminally ill. In some cases, consecrated wine is also used with bread, reported Leone Allacci. Innocent IV (1243–1254) had suggested in his letter to the bishops of Tusculum not to use the stored bread, but always to keep a communion available, which they should renew daily. Clement VIII (1592–1605) laid down these rules in an instruction , Benedict XIV regulated this communion again in the constitution " Etsi Pastoralis ". Finally, the new regulation was adopted by a decree at the Synod of Zamość and confirmed by the Congregatio de Propaganda Fide. The parish priests should hold communion for the terminally ill for a week or four days. The Fathers of the Synod of Lebanon also accepted this ruling.

Creed and Trinity

In this section, Benedict XIV deals with the problem of the Most Holy Trinity in the Creed. Since time immemorial, when the Greek and Latin Churches had discussed this topic, there was a dispute. His examination has now revealed three aspects that he wants to present here. First of all, it is a dogma of faith of which there is no doubt and which is accepted by every true Catholic. The second question was whether it was permissible to add the addition “and by the Son” to the Creed, although this was not used by the Councils of Nicaea (325) and Constantinople (553). The difficulties had increased since the Council of Ephesus (431), although the Council Fathers of the Ecumenical Council had decided that no one was allowed to add to or otherwise define the decisions relating to the connection with the Holy Spirit. The third and last aspect addressed the question of whether the Eastern Churches and Greeks were allowed to use the Creed in the way, that is, with the addition “and from the Son”, as they would have done before the schism. The Holy See varied in its decisions on this and wanted to accommodate the churches. In fact, it is only a question of one - albeit decisive - choice of words, does it say “from the Father and from the Son and from the Holy Spirit” or “from the Father, from the Son and the Holy Spirit”?

In the following text, Benedict XIV goes into the decisions of his predecessors and comes to the conclusion that the regulation of the choice of words would have led to different interpretations. In order to close this question, he proposed both options and recommended that the bishops expressly approve them or remain silent.

Adoption of Latin rites by the Eastern Churches

So far, the Pope has been referring to rites respected by the Eastern Churches, Greeks and Latins, and subsequently described two examples of the Maronites . For several centuries the liturgical vestments of bishops and priests have been alike. Already Innocent III. (1198–1216) had pointed out in a letter from 1215 that the robes should be adhered to. Several of his successors sent precious vestments, chalices and paten to the Maronite Patriarchs, and at the Maronite Synod in Lebanon they adopted the Latin rite. Benedict XIV criticized the fact that the Maronites would not practice the Latin rite regularly and would only celebrate it on certain holidays. He also complained about the storage of the consecrated bread in a ciborium .

Additional points

The Pope reaffirms the situation in Basra and the questions received from the missionaries that led to this letter. He ordered that as long as there were no difficulties, no changes should be made and that Syrians and Armenians should continue to be allowed to practice their rites. He expressly approved the practice of the rites in a Catholic church so that the faithful in Basra could be offered a common church. But he also emphasized that the rites should not be mixed up with one another and again referred to the “ Etsi Pastoralis ” constitution . However, there should not be any simultaneous Eucharistic celebrations in the Latin and Greek rites, he attributed this to a prohibition by Pius V (1566–1572). There are only privileged exceptions for the Roman colleges of the Eastern Churches, and that is how it must remain. Benedict XIV also described some advances from Hungary, Russia, Belarus, the Coptic, Ruthenian, and Armenian churches, all of which had been rejected. He described some areas in the concelebration and pointed out the altars that were only suitable for the Latin rite.

Another point was the question of whether the Armenians and Syrians have to celebrate church festivals according to the new calendar or whether they can continue to celebrate their church festivals according to the old calendar. Benedict XIV stated that after a detailed investigation the cardinals' committee had come to the conclusion that no changes should be made and that the holidays should also take place according to the old calendar. For the Italo-Greek Christians in Italy, however, he had ordered the new church calendar to be adopted. The Armenian Catholics living in Lebanon had rejected the Gregorian calendar and Innocent XII. (1691–1700) received a dispensation . The Holy Office members and Clement X (1667–1676) had declared on June 20, 1674 that Catholics living in Lebanon were allowed to use the old calendar - but all Eastern Churches should strive to respect the Gregorian calendar with the intention to take it over later, which the Holy See would welcome most benevolently.

In the last point, Benedict XIV spoke again about the observance of the abstinence of Syrians and Armenians in Basra. So when fish were not eaten, missionaries should be empowered to impose pious work on those who are fasting. He rejected a uniform rule and regulation about eating fish during Lent so as not to undermine the unity of the church.

Closing word

With this encyclical, the Pope wrote, he believed that he had given the faithful and especially the missionaries an answer to their questions. He wanted to express his good will and underline the benevolence for the Eastern Churches, their rites and the Latin rites. The Church does not want another separation, and his greatest wish is the preservation and not the destruction of unity.

See also

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Between the Council of Trent and the Codification of 1917 there are only two pronouncements of the Magisterium which in a certain way concern the subject at hand: The Apostolic Constitution " Etsi Pastoralis " (May 26, 1742, cf. § 5, no. 3; DS 2524) and the encyclical Ex quo primum (March 1, 1756) by Pope Benedict XIV. In the first-mentioned document, liturgical rules are set out concerning the question of communion and instructions on the relations between the Latin and the Oriental Catholics, concerning the above fled the persecution to southern Italy; The second document affirms and comments on the Euchologium (rituals) of the Oriental Churches, which have re-entered full communion with the Apostolic See ( Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith: Note relating to the dispenser of the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick . Comment, February 11, 2005)
  2. ↑ Cardinal Lorenzo Brancati di Lauria OFMCon (1612-1693). In: Salvador Miranda : The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church. ( Florida International University website ), accessed July 20, 2016.
  3. ↑ On Good Friday the Church commemorates the suffering and death of the Lord .... The word of God and some impressive liturgical rites such as the adoration of the cross should help to go through the individual stages of the Passion. (Source: General audience of Pope John Paul II on April 7, 2004) General audience, April 7, 2004
  4. ↑ Pietro Fullo was Patriarch of Antioch from 471–488, cf. Michael Ott:  Peter Fullo . In: Catholic Encyclopedia , Volume 11, Robert Appleton Company, New York 1911.
  5. ↑ In the Eastern Churches, the feast is assigned to the " Appearance of the Lord " as the baptism of Christ and revelation of the Most Holy Trinity
  6. ↑ “On Maundy Thursday there is no six o'clock mass, the sexton has to line all the altars and put a jug of wine on the altar [...] and the sexton takes a plate with salt, the wine provided and washes with a towel the altar. ”(Wilhelm Kohl: Das Bistum Münster . Walter de Gruyter, 1975 ( limited preview in the Google book search [accessed on September 21, 2010]). )
  7. ↑ See also: Papal Bull Iniuctum nobis