A mense (from Latin ''mensa'', 'table') is the name of a form of ecclesiastical income in the Catholic Church. Historically, the mense was a land tax whose income was used as income for its holder (i.e.

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...

, canons or

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

, etc.). In an abbey this support was called the '' In commendam'' and was divided into three lots, one for the commendatory abbot, one for the religious community and another devoted to the payment of expenses.

Background

In the early church, all the property of a

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, 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 Roman province, pro ...

was held by the

cathedral church A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral ...

, and was administered by the

local bishop An ordinary (from Latin ''ordinarius'') is an officer of a church or civic authority who by reason of office has ordinary power to execute laws. Such officers are found in hierarchically organised churches of Western Christianity which have an ...

. The bishop administered the resources himself, through his '' œconomus'', or his deacons. Local clergy received a portion of the revenues by a formula dictated locally, or at the discretion of the bishop. As the church grew, parishes outside of the episcopal city began to administer their own wealth and property. After the

5th century The 5th century is the time period from 401 ( CDI) through 500 ( D) ''Anno Domini'' (AD) or Common Era (CE) in the Julian calendar. The 5th century is noted for being a period of migration and political instability throughout Eurasia. It saw the ...

bishops began granting church property to local clerics by way of "

precarium The precarium (plural precaria)—or precaria (plural precariae) in the feminine form—is a form of land tenure in which a petitioner (grantee) receives a property for a specific amount of time without any change of ownership. The precarium is t ...

" (i.e. a revocable land grant) that they could use for their own support. Over time, these land grants were abused, and in response arose the mense during the rule of the

Carolingian dynasty The Carolingian dynasty (; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charlemagne, grandson of mayor Charles Martel and a descendant of the Arnulfing and Pippin ...

. The mense is that portion of the property of a church which is designated to covering the expenses either of the

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

, or the

religious community Tango Monastery, Bhutan">thumb A religious community is a community (group of people) who practice the same religion. The term is used to refer to members of a religion who live within a community, but not segregated from others and not dedicate ...

, serving the church and administered at their discretion. In a cathedral, to which both the bishop and a chapter sit, the bishop's "episcopal mensa" is distinct from that of the chapter. ;Episcopal mense The (Latin:mensa episcopalis) is the material support from a

Catholic diocese As of October 5, 2021, the Catholic Church in its entirety comprises 3,171 ecclesiastical jurisdictions, including over 652 Diocese#Archdiocese, archdioceses and 2,248 dioceses, as well as apostolic vicariates, apostolic exarchates, apostolic ad ...

for the support and maintenance of the

, or to the

, his residence, and the diocesan curia. Though it is governed by

canon law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

,. in countries like

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and

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 re ...

, it is also regulated by public law. ;Capitular mense The (Latin:mensa capitularis), is the share of ecclesiastical revenue designated to the maintenance and support of the canons or

s. The division of the capitular mense between each canon is called the

prebend A prebendary is a member of the Roman Catholic or Anglican clergy, a form of canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in particular seats, usually at the back of the ...

. After the

Investiture Controversy The Investiture Controversy, also called Investiture Contest (German: ''Investiturstreit''; ), was a conflict between the Church and the state in medieval Europe over the ability to choose and install bishops (investiture) and abbots of monast ...

in the 12th century, these revenues became insufficient and were supplemented by the addition of parish benefits, and chaplaincies to the canonical prebends. ;Curial mense The (Latin:mensa curialis) is support given to the

parish priest A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

or minister . It is administered by the parish priest, under the supervision of the bishop and the parish council.

Background

See also

References

Further reading