The Diocese of Rimini ( la, Dioecesis Ariminensis) is a
Latin Church
, native_name_lang = la
, image = San Giovanni in Laterano - Rome.jpg
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, alt = Façade of the Archbasilica of St. John in Lateran
, caption = Archbasilica of Saint Joh ...
ecclesiastical territory or
diocese
In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.
History
In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...
of the
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
in
Emilia Romagna
Emilia-Romagna (, , both also ; ; egl, Emégglia-Rumâgna or ''Emîlia-Rumâgna''; rgn, Emélia-Rumâgna) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy, situated in the north of the country, comprising the historical regions ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
Holy See
The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...
, despite repeated attempts by the Diocese of Ravenna to claim it as a suffragan diocese. Since 1604, however, it has been a suffragan of the
Archdiocese of Ravenna-Cervia
The Archdiocese of Ravenna-Cervia ( la, Archidioecesis Ravennatensis-Cerviensis) is a metropolitan archdiocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy.
The episcopal see is in the cathedral of Rimini,
Tempio Malatestiano
The Tempio Malatestiano ( it, Malatesta Temple) is the unfinished cathedral church of Rimini, Italy. Officially named for St. Francis, it takes the popular name from Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta, who commissioned its reconstruction by the fa ...
, dedicated to the Holy Spirit (Sancta Columba). The cathedral was staffed and administered by a Chapter, composed of two dignities (''not'' "dignitaries"), the Provost and the Archdeacon, and twelve Canons.
Bishop Francesco Lambiasi is the current diocesan bishop.
History
Rimini was probably evangelized from Ravenna. Among its traditional martyrs are: St. Innocentia and companions (who only became celebrated in the 15th century); Saints Juventinus, Facundinus, and companions; Saints Theodorus and Marinus. The see was probably established before the
peace of Constantine
The Edict of Milan ( la, Edictum Mediolanense; el, Διάταγμα τῶν Μεδιολάνων, ''Diatagma tōn Mediolanōn'') was the February 313 AD agreement to treat Christians benevolently within the Roman Empire.W. H. C. Frend, Fr ...
.
Rimini's cathedral was dedicated to the Holy Spirit (''Spirito Santo''), and familiarly called ''S. Columba'' (the Holy Dove).
The dates to be assigned to Bishop Gaudentius are controversial. One tradition, represented in a martyrological ''Passio'' written between the 8th and 12th centuries, makes him an Ephesian who came to Rome c. 290, and was consecrated a bishop by
Pope Damasus I
Pope Damasus I (; c. 305 – 11 December 384) was the bishop of Rome from October 366 to his death. He presided over the Council of Rome of 382 that determined the canon or official list of sacred scripture. He spoke out against major heresies ( ...
(366–384). In another tradition, found in a codex of the 11th or 12th century, Christianity was first preached in Rimini by the priest Leo of Montefeltro and the deacon Marinus of Montetitano, in the time of Diocletian and Maximianus, who were followed by Gaudentius, who was consecrated to be the first bishop. Bishop Gaudentius was later put to death by the Arians for having excommunicated the priest Marcianus.
The famous
Council of Rimini
The Council of Ariminum, also known after the city's modern name as the Council of Rimini, was an early Christian church synod.
In 358, the Roman Emperor Constantius II requested two councils, one of the western bishops at Ariminum and one of th ...
against Arianism was held in May 359, presided over by Bishop Restitutus of Carthage, with more than 400 Western bishops present, some eighty of them Arians. It was an assembly intended by the Emperor Constantius to meet paralleled by the eastern bishops'
council of Seleucia
The Council of Seleucia was an early Christian church synod at Seleucia Isauria (now Silifke, Turkey).
History
In 358, the Roman Emperor Constantius II requested two councils, one of the western bishops at Ariminum and one of the eastern bishops ...
, as a substitute for one general ecumenical council. Pope Liberius, however, was neither present nor represented by delegates. The Emperor was represented by his Prefect Taurus. The Synod unanimously approved the decisions of Nicaea, especially the use of the expression ''ousia'', pronounced the anathema upon each separate point of Arianism, and (on 21 July 359) declared Bishops Ursacius, Valens, Germinius, and Caius (Auxentius and Demophilus) to be heretics and deposed.
Bishop Stephanus was one of fourteen bishops at Constantinople with Pope Vigilius. He signed Vigilius' excommunication and deposition of Bishop Theodorus (14 May 553).
Bishop Castor (591–599) was assigned a "Visitor", Bishop Leontius of Urbino, by Pope Gregory I, due to Castor's illness.
Bishop Agnellus (743) was perhaps the first bishop, according to sources in Rimini, to meddle with the magistrates of the city, on orders of the pope.
Peter Damiani
Peter Damian ( la, Petrus Damianus; it, Pietro or '; – 21 or 22 February 1072 or 1073) was a reforming Benedictine monk and cardinal in the circle of Pope Leo IX. Dante placed him in one of the highest circles of '' Paradiso' ...
, in his book, ''Liber Gratissimus'', addressed to Archbishop Henricus of Ravenna, pointed out Bishop Ubertus (1005–1015) as a simoniac, who had paid a large sum of cash for his bishopric, and yet was revered and respectable.
Opizo was one of the bishops who installed and crowned the Antipope Clement III (Guiberto, 1075) in the Lateran in 1084; Ranieri II degli Uberti (1143) consecrated the ancient cathedral of St. Colomba; Alberigo (1153) made peace between Rimini and
Cesena
Cesena (; rgn, Cisêna) is a city and ''comune'' in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, served by Autostrada A14 (Italy), Autostrada A14, and located near the Apennine Mountains, about from the Adriatic Sea. The total population is 97,137. ...
; Bonaventura Trissino founded the hospital of Santo Spirito; under Benno (1230) some pious ladies founded a hospital for the lepers, and themselves cared for the afflicted. At the end of the thirteenth century the Armenians received at Rimini a church and a hospital.
From November 1408, Pope
Gregory XII
Pope Gregory XII ( la, Gregorius XII; it, Gregorio XII; – 18 October 1417), born Angelo Corraro, Corario," or Correr, was head of the Catholic Church from 30 November 1406 to 4 July 1415. Reigning during the Western Schism, he was oppose ...
resided at Rimini, as the guest of its Lord, Carlo Malatesta, to whom he had fled from Siena, to which he had fled from Lucca on 14 July 1408. In September 1409, having attempted without success to hold an ecumenical council at Cividale, in the diocese of Aquileia, he fled to Gaeta in the Kingdom of Naples, by ship. He was banished from the Kingdom of Naples on 31 October 1411, and again sought protection from Carlo Malatesta at Rimini. On 4 July 1415, he resigned as pope. He died at Recanati on 18 October 1417.
Giovanni Rosa united eleven hospitals of Rimini into one. Under Bishop Giulio Parisani (1549) the seminary was opened on 18 March 1568. Giambattista Castelli (1574–1583) promoted the Tridentine reforms and was nuncio at Paris, arriving there on 14 June 1581 and dying there on 27 August 1583.
On 14 December 1604,
Pope Clement VIII
Pope Clement VIII ( la, Clemens VIII; it, Clemente VIII; 24 February 1536 – 3 March 1605), born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1592 to his death in March 1605.
Born ...
, reversing the centuries long policy of his predecessors, removed the diocese of Rimini from the direct supervision of the Holy See, and assigned it as a suffragan of the archdiocese of Ravenna.
French occupation
In March 1796, Napoleon Bonaparte was appointed commanding general of the French invasion of northern Italy. His victory at Lodi, on 10 May 1796, placed him in control of the Piedmont and Lombardy, and by 30 May all of north Italy, except for Mantua, was in his hands. When the armies of the French Republic invaded the Romandiola in 1796, Bishop Vincenzo Ferretti (1779-1806) was forced to flee Rimini, with all his personal property. He sought refuge in San Marino, which, up until that time had been part of the papal states. But when the French general Berthier sent a letter ordering the magistrates to arrest and hand over Ferretti, the magistrates replied that they would do everything they could to carry out the French order. In the meantime, Ferretti had escaped.
In February 1797, French forces invaded the Romagna (Romandiola); the Papal States were forced to surrender, and, by the
Treaty of Tolentino
{{unreferenced, date=June 2018
The Treaty of Tolentino was a peace treaty between Revolutionary France and the Papal States, signed on 19 February 1797 and imposing terms of surrender on the Papal side. The signatories for France were the French Di ...
of 19 February 1797, handed over to the French the "Three Legations" (Bologna, Ferrara, and the Romandiola), including Rimini. The tree of liberty was planted at Rimini on 6 April 1797. By mid-April 1797, Bishop Ferretti was back in Rimini; there had been a violent disturbance in Rimini against the French on 13 April, and the bishop held a public banquet to placate the French officials. On 29 June 1797, Bonaparte decreed the establishment of the
Cisalpine Republic
The Cisalpine Republic ( it, Repubblica Cisalpina) was a sister republic of France in Northern Italy that existed from 1797 to 1799, with a second version until 1802.
Creation
After the Battle of Lodi in May 1796, Napoleon Bonaparte organiz ...
, with its capital at Milan, to which Rimini was annexed. Rimini became the capital of the new French-style department called "Rubicone".
Laws based on those of the French Republic were immediately put in force. In Juy 1797, all the monasteries of Rimini were closed and the monks expelled. The mendicant orders (Franciscans, Dominicans, and Capuchins) were dissolved. On 20 December 1797, Bishop Ferretti published a pastoral letter in his diocese, declaring that God was the patron and protector of all liberty, and that God was as acquiescent in a monarchical as a democratic regime, provided that religious liberty was not interfered with. But in the spring of 1798, the Directory of the Cisalipine Republic ordered a large reduction in the number of public religious festivals.
Because of the damage caused by the earthquake of 1786, and subsequent tremors, the liturgical functions of the cathedral had to be transferred to the church of S. Giovanni Evangelista, popularly called S. Agostino. When Bishop Vincenzo Ferretti was in Milan to attend the coronation of Napoleon Bonaparte as King of Italy, he obtained the decree allowing for the transfer of the episcopal seat to the Tempio Malatestiano (officially known as S. Francesco).
Diocesan Synods
A diocesan synod was an irregularly held, but important, meeting of the bishop of a diocese and his clergy. Its purpose was (1) to proclaim generally the various decrees already issued by the bishop; (2) to discuss and ratify measures on which the bishop chose to consult with his clergy; (3) to publish statutes and decrees of the diocesan synod, of the provincial synod, and of the Holy See. John Paul II, Constitutio Apostolica ''de Synodis Dioecesanis Agendis'' (March 19, 1997) ''Acta Apostolicae Sedis'' 89 (1997), pp. 706-727. Andrea Tilatti, "Sinodi diocesane e concili provinciali in italia nord-orientale fra Due e Trecento. Qualche riflessione," ''Mélanges de l'Ecole française de Rome. Moyen-Age, Temps modernes T. 112, N°1. 2000, pp. 273-304.
Bishop Giulio Parisani (1550–1574), who had attended the
Council of Trent
The Council of Trent ( la, Concilium Tridentinum), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italy, was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Prompted by the Protestant Reformation, it has been described a ...
, held diocesan synods, in accordance with the decrees of the Council, on 17 June 1566 and again on 28 October 1572. Bishop Giovanni Battista Castelli (1574–1583) held his first diocesan synod on 9 May 1577. On 19 June 1578, he held his second synod. He held his third diocesan synod on 16 June 1580. Bishop Giulio Cesare Salicini (1591–1606) presided over the diocesan synod of 10 June 1593; he held a second synod on 27 May 1596, and another on 9 May 1602.
Bishop Cipriano Pavoni, O.S.B. (1619-1627) held a diocesan synod in 1624. A diocesan synod was held by Bishop Angelo Cesi (1627-1646) on 14–16 May 1630. He held a second synod on 6–8 June 1639. Bishop Federico Sforza (1646-1656) presided over a diocesan synod on 18–20 May 1654. A diocesan synod was held by Bishop Honorato Honorati of Urbania at the order of Bishop Marco Galli (1659-1683) of Rimini on 4–6 October 1660. Galli was not present; he had been sent as ordinary papal nuncio to Cologne on 9 October 1659, and did not return until 1666. Bishop Honorati also conducted diocesan visitations in 1660 and 1666. Bishop Gallio conducted a synod personally on 17–19 December 1674. Cardinal Domenico Maria Corsi (1687-1697) held a diocesan synod in the cathedral in 1696. Cardinal Gianantonio Davia (1698-1726 ) held a synod on 19–21 May 1711.
*Gualfardo Ridolfi (1807–1818)
*Giovanni Francesco Guerrieri (1819–1822)
*Giovanni Marchetti (1822–1824) ''Vicar Apostolic''
*Ottavio Zollio (1824-1832)
*Francesco Gentilini (1833-1844)
*Salvatore Leziroli (1845-1860)
:''Sede vacante'' (1860-1863)
*Luigi Clementi (1863-1869)
:''Sede vacante'' (1869-1871)
*Luigi Paggi (1871–1876)
*Luigi Raffaele Zampetti (1876–1878)
*Francesco Battaglini (1879–1882)
*Alessandro Chiaruzzi (1882–1891)
*Domenico Fegatelli (1891–1900)
*Vincenzo Scozzoli (1900–1944)
*Luigi Santa, I.M.C. (1945–1953)
*Emilio Biancheri (1953–1976)
*Giovanni Locatelli (1977–1988)
*Mariano De Nicolò (1989–2007 retired)
*Francesco Lambiasi (2007– )Lambiasi had previously been Bishop of Anagni-Alatri (1999–2007). He was transferred to Rimini by
Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the soverei ...
Rimini
Rimini ( , ; rgn, Rémin; la, Ariminum) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It sprawls along the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient ''Ariminu ...
Rimini
Rimini ( , ; rgn, Rémin; la, Ariminum) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It sprawls along the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient ''Ariminu ...