''Abbé'' (from
Latin ''abbas'', in turn from
Greek , ''abbas'', from
Aramaic ''abba'', a title of honour, literally meaning "the father, my father", emphatic state of ''abh'', "father") is the French word for an
abbot. It is the title for lower-ranking
Catholic clergy in France.
History
A
concordat between
Pope Leo X and King
Francis I of France (1516)
[ cites III under Kinds of Abbot] gave the kings of France the right to nominate 255
commendatory abbot
A commendatory abbot ( la, abbas commendatarius) is an ecclesiastic, or sometimes a layman, who holds an abbey ''in commendam'', drawing its revenues but not exercising any authority over its inner monastic discipline. If a commendatory abbot is an ...
s () for almost all French
abbeys, who received income from a
monastery without needing to render service, creating, in essence, a
sinecure
A sinecure ( or ; from the Latin , 'without', and , 'care') is an office, carrying a salary or otherwise generating income, that requires or involves little or no responsibility, labour, or active service. The term originated in the medieval chu ...
.
From the mid-16th century, the title of ''abbé'' has been used in France for all young clergy, with or without
consecration
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...
. Their clothes consisted of black or dark violet robes with a small collar, and they were
tonsured.
[
Since such ''abbés'' only rarely commanded an abbey, they often worked in upper-class families as tutors, spiritual directors, etc.; some (such as Gabriel Bonnot de Mably) became writers.][
Clerical oblates and seminarians of the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest also have the honorific title of ''abbé''.
]
See also
* Abbot#Modern abbots not as superior
* Abbé Pierre
*Abbé Faria
Abbé Faria (), or Abbé (Abbot) (born José Custódio de Faria; 31 May 1756 – 20 September 1819), was a Luso- Goan Catholic monk who was one of the pioneers of the scientific study of hypnotism, following on from the work of Franz Mesmer ...
* Abbé Sieyès
* Abbé Franz Liszt
* Abbé Edgeworth de Firmont
Notes
References
*
External links
*
*
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