presbyterate was sufficiently conscious of its authority that it issued decisions even during the interregnum, when there was no pope. It intervened in 250, for example, after the death of Pope Fabian, in support of Cyprian of Carthage in a dispute over the
lapsi,
those who had been baptized but then renounced their faith during a persecution. Meanwhile a synod, or gathering of bishops in and around Rome, was held periodically (in certain eras, once a year) to deal with major questions, usually heresies. Many of their decisions found their way into a famous document called the
Decretals of Gratian,
which laid the basis for canon law.
Consistories From the eleventh through sixteenth centuries, popes relied increasingly on
consistories,
or gatherings of all the cardinals, to advise and assist them in the work of administration. The term
cardinal
at the time referred to clergy who had been “incardinated," or transferred, into a new position. Generally when a cleric was incardinated, it meant he had been promoted. These clergy were responsible for running important Roman parishes, administering diocesan programs, or advising the Pope in special capacities. By the eleventh century, they had become the most direct and important collaborators of the Pope. St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090–1153) referred to the cardinals as the
judices orbis,
or judges of the world, in 1145. As the importance of the consistory grew, so did the frequency of its meetings. When Bernard wrote, the consistory met once a month; by the pontificate of Innocent III (1198–1216), it met three times a week, on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Also during this era, four organs took shape to assist the cardinals: the Cancelleria for managing correspondence and documents, the Camera Apostolica for governance and finance, and the Roman Rota and Apostolic Penitentiary for legal matters. These are therefore the most antique dicasteries.
Reform of Sixtus V In the wake of the Protestant Reformation, Pope Sixtus was convinced of the need to create a more professional, streamlined bureaucracy to help administer the Church. Pope Sixtus can rightly be considered the father of the Roman Curia. In 1588 he distinguished between congregations for executive matters, of which he authorized fifteen, and tribunals for judicial questions. Just prior to the Sistine reform, in 1542, Pope Paul III had instituted the first permanent congregation of the Roman Curia: the Holy Roman and Universal Inquisition, which would become the Holy Office and then today’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Its original purpose was to hold back the Protestant invasion and to combat heresies as they arose. Of those congregations recognized by Pope Sixtus, some are still in existence today, such as the Congregation for Bishops and the Congregation for Rites. Others, however, outlived their usefulness with the collapse of the Papal States: for example, the Congregation for the Naval Fleet, the Congregation for the Abundance of Food in the Ecclesiastical State, and the Congregation for Streets, Bridges, and Waters. (The papal navy, by the way, consisted of ten ships whose mission was to fight pirates along the coasts of the Tyrrenian Sea.) At one stage there were no fewer than forty congregations, and the result was often confusion: one congregation would condemn something, another would uphold it. Other dicasteries fell into disuse over time because nobody bothered consulting them.
1917 Code The reorganization of the Roman Curia carried out by the 1917
Code of Canon Law
suppressed a number of offices that had been in disuse and generally streamlined the internal organization. The Congregation for Indulgences and Relics and the Congregation for the Index, for example, were abolished and their functions transferred to the Holy Office. Eventually relics would become the business of the Congregation for Rites and Indulgences of the Apostolic Penitentiary. The result was a Roman Curia composed of
lapsi,
those who had been baptized but then renounced their faith during a persecution. Meanwhile a synod, or gathering of bishops in and around Rome, was held periodically (in certain eras, once a year) to deal with major questions, usually heresies. Many of their decisions found their way into a famous document called the
Decretals of Gratian,
which laid the basis for canon law.
Consistories From the eleventh through sixteenth centuries, popes relied increasingly on
consistories,
or gatherings of all the cardinals, to advise and assist them in the work of administration. The term
cardinal
at the time referred to clergy who had been “incardinated," or transferred, into a new position. Generally when a cleric was incardinated, it meant he had been promoted. These clergy were responsible for running important Roman parishes, administering diocesan programs, or advising the Pope in special capacities. By the eleventh century, they had become the most direct and important collaborators of the Pope. St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090–1153) referred to the cardinals as the
judices orbis,
or judges of the world, in 1145. As the importance of the consistory grew, so did the frequency of its meetings. When Bernard wrote, the consistory met once a month; by the pontificate of Innocent III (1198–1216), it met three times a week, on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Also during this era, four organs took shape to assist the cardinals: the Cancelleria for managing correspondence and documents, the Camera Apostolica for governance and finance, and the Roman Rota and Apostolic Penitentiary for legal matters. These are therefore the most antique dicasteries.
Reform of Sixtus V In the wake of the Protestant Reformation, Pope Sixtus was convinced of the need to create a more professional, streamlined bureaucracy to help administer the Church. Pope Sixtus can rightly be considered the father of the Roman Curia. In 1588 he distinguished between congregations for executive matters, of which he authorized fifteen, and tribunals for judicial questions. Just prior to the Sistine reform, in 1542, Pope Paul III had instituted the first permanent congregation of the Roman Curia: the Holy Roman and Universal Inquisition, which would become the Holy Office and then today’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Its original purpose was to hold back the Protestant invasion and to combat heresies as they arose. Of those congregations recognized by Pope Sixtus, some are still in existence today, such as the Congregation for Bishops and the Congregation for Rites. Others, however, outlived their usefulness with the collapse of the Papal States: for example, the Congregation for the Naval Fleet, the Congregation for the Abundance of Food in the Ecclesiastical State, and the Congregation for Streets, Bridges, and Waters. (The papal navy, by the way, consisted of ten ships whose mission was to fight pirates along the coasts of the Tyrrenian Sea.) At one stage there were no fewer than forty congregations, and the result was often confusion: one congregation would condemn something, another would uphold it. Other dicasteries fell into disuse over time because nobody bothered consulting them.
1917 Code The reorganization of the Roman Curia carried out by the 1917
Code of Canon Law
suppressed a number of offices that had been in disuse and generally streamlined the internal organization. The Congregation for Indulgences and Relics and the Congregation for the Index, for example, were abolished and their functions transferred to the Holy Office. Eventually relics would become the business of the Congregation for Rites and Indulgences of the Apostolic Penitentiary. The result was a Roman Curia composed of
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