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A titular see in various churches is an
episcopal see An episcopal see is, in a practical use of the phrase, the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, mak ...
of a former
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 associ ...
that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbishop" (intermediary rank) or "
titular bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox a ...
" (lowest rank), which normally goes by the status conferred on the titular see. Titular sees are dioceses that no longer functionally exist, often because the territory was conquered by Muslims or because it is schismatic. The Greek–Turkish population exchange of 1923 also contributed to titular sees. The see of Maximianoupolis along with the town that shared its name was destroyed by the
Bulgarians Bulgarians ( bg, българи, Bǎlgari, ) are a nation and South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and the rest of Southeast Europe. Etymology Bulgarians derive their ethnonym from the Bulgars. Their name is not completely underst ...
under Emperor Kaloyan in 1207; the town and the see were under the control of the
Latin Empire The Latin Empire, also referred to as the Latin Empire of Constantinople, was a feudal Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. The Latin Empire was intended to replace the Byza ...
, which took Constantinople during the
Fourth Crusade The Fourth Crusade (1202–1204) was a Latin Christian armed expedition called by Pope Innocent III. The stated intent of the expedition was to recapture the Muslim-controlled city of Jerusalem, by first defeating the powerful Egyptian Ayyubid S ...
in 1204. Parthenia, in north Africa, was abandoned and swallowed by desert sand.


Catholic Church

During the
Muslim conquests The early Muslim conquests or early Islamic conquests ( ar, الْفُتُوحَاتُ الإسْلَامِيَّة, ), also referred to as the Arab conquests, were initiated in the 7th century by Muhammad, the main Islamic prophet. He estab ...
of the Middle East and North Africa, some bishops fled to Christian-ruled areas. Even if they did not return and the Christian population of their dioceses dispersed, were killed or abandoned the Catholic faith, they continued to be seen as the bishops of those dioceses, who could give rise, even after long interruption (exile and/or vacancy), to a 'restored' line of
apostolic succession Apostolic succession is the method whereby the ministry of the Christian Church is held to be derived from the apostles by a continuous succession, which has usually been associated with a claim that the succession is through a series of bisho ...
on each see. The Ordinary or hierarch of a Catholic titular see may be styled a "Titular Metropolitan" (highest rank), "Titular Archbishop" (intermediary rank) or "
Titular bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox a ...
" (lowest rank), which normally goes by the status conferred on the titular see (mostly corresponding to its historical rank), but exceptions ''ad hoc'' are currently made on a regular basis, either above or below the titular see's rank, while titular sees have repeatedly been promoted or demoted. There are practical advantages in certain circumstances in not establishing a permanent diocese in a given territory, for reasons of the limited size of the Catholic population, its lack of permanence, the likelihood of having to divide the jurisdiction in the near future, and so on. In these circumstances the Catholic Church establishes sometimes not a diocese but a canonical jurisdiction of another kind. This may be, for example, a Mission ''sui iuris'', an Apostolic Administration (permanently constituted), an Ordinariate, a Prefecture Apostolic, a territorial Abbey, a Vicariate Apostolic, or a Prelature. The ecclesiastic placed in charge of one of these jurisdictions has a corresponding title, such as Superior of a Mission ''sui iuris'', Apostolic Administrator, Ordinary, Prefect Apostolic, territorial Abbot, Vicar Apostolic, or Prelate. The ecclesiastic may be in priestly or episcopal orders. In recent practice an Apostolic Administrator, Vicar Apostolic, or Prelate (in this precise sense) is often appointed (and consecrated) a bishop. If that happens he is assigned a titular see, in addition to his status as head of the territorial jurisdiction. the appointment as bishop is less likely in the case of a Superior of a Mission ''sui iuris'', or a Prefect Apostolic, but may happen, especially when a man who is already a bishop governing a particular jurisdiction is appointed cumulatively to govern one of these others. A particular territory may have its canonical status changed more than once, or may be united to a neighbouring territory or subdivided, according to developing circumstances. An example might be the uniting on November 30, 1987, of two Egyptian vicariates apostolic, Heliopolis of Egypt and Port Said, to become the single Vicariate Apostolic of Alexandria of Egypt–Heliopolis of Egypt–Port Said, governed by Egypt's only Latin Ordinary at present. A different example would be the division, on 6 July 6, 1992, of the Ghanaian diocese of Accra, to separate from its territory the new diocese of
Koforidua Koforidua, also popularly known as K-dua or Kofcity, is a city and the capital of Eastern Region in southern Ghana. Koforidua was founded in 1875 by migrants from Ashanti. It is also called New Juaben. The city has a settlement city proper po ...
. At the same date, the diocese of Accra became a Metropolitan Archdiocese. After a name change, an abandoned name may be 'restored' as a titular see, even though a residential successor see exist(ed). Furthermore, the Catholic Church may create more than one titular see named after a single city, by creating one or more lines of apostolic succession assigned to the Latin and/or one or more Eastern Catholic rites, which are not necessarily of the same rank. It was formerly the practice to add the term ', often shortened to ' or ''i.p.i.'', meaning "in the lands of the unbelievers", to the name of the see conferred on titular (non-diocesan)
Latin Church , native_name_lang = la , image = San Giovanni in Laterano - Rome.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , alt = Façade of the Archbasilica of St. John in Lateran , caption = Archbasilica of Saint Jo ...
bishops. Formerly, when bishops fled from invading Muslims, they were welcomed by other churches, while preserving their titles and their rights to their own dioceses. They were entrusted with the administration of vacant sees of other dioceses, or with assisting in such government of a see which already had a residential bishop. In later days it was deemed fitting to preserve the memory of ancient Christian churches which no longer existed; this was done by giving their names to auxiliary bishops or bishops in missionary countries. These bishops did not reside in the sees whose titles they bore, nor could they exercise any power over them, and are not entrusted with their care. They are therefore called ''titular'' bishops, as opposed to ''diocesan'' bishops, and the sees themselves are called titular sees, as opposed to ''residential'' sees. The regular appointment of titular bishops is said to date back to the time of the Fifth Lateran Council, in 1514; cardinals alone were authorized to ask for titular bishops to be appointed to assist them in their dioceses.
Pope Pius V Pope Pius V ( it, Pio V; 17 January 1504 – 1 May 1572), born Antonio Ghislieri (from 1518 called Michele Ghislieri, O.P.), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1566 to his death in May 1572. He is v ...
extended the privilege to all sees in which it had become customary to have auxiliary bishops. Since then the practice has become more widespread. Although the normal constitution of the hierarchy has always been built on the idea of local jurisdiction of the bishops, there are indications, in the early history of the Church, of many who did not enjoy what is usually called ordinary jurisdiction. Besides those who were endowed with the episcopal character, in order to assist the local bishops there were those who had been driven from their dioceses by
infidel An infidel (literally "unfaithful") is a person accused of disbelief in the central tenets of one's own religion, such as members of another religion, or the irreligious. Infidel is an ecclesiastical term in Christianity around which the Church ...
s or by heretics, or who for other reasons could not reside in the places to which they had been appointed. The
spread of Islam The spread of Islam spans about 1,400 years. Muslim conquests following Muhammad's death led to the creation of the caliphates, occupying a vast geographical area; conversion to Islam was boosted by Arab Muslim forces conquering vast territorie ...
through
Muslim conquests The early Muslim conquests or early Islamic conquests ( ar, الْفُتُوحَاتُ الإسْلَامِيَّة, ), also referred to as the Arab conquests, were initiated in the 7th century by Muhammad, the main Islamic prophet. He estab ...
in Asia and Africa was responsible for hundreds of abandoned sees. During the
Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were ...
, the Latins, who established new Christian communities, composed of
Europeans Europeans are the focus of European ethnology, the field of anthropology related to the various ethnic groups that reside in the states of Europe. Groups may be defined by common genetic ancestry, common language, or both. Pan and Pfeil (20 ...
and belonging to the Latin Rite, procured the erection of new dioceses for their benefit, and these in turn, during the
growth of the Ottoman Empire The Classical Age of the Ottoman Empire ( tr, Klasik Çağ) concerns the history of the Ottoman Empire from the Conquest of Constantinople in 1453 until the second half of the sixteenth century, roughly the end of the reign of Suleiman the Magn ...
, increased the number of abandoned sees. The final development of the list of sees, called ', took shape, at first, from the attempt of the Holy See to keep up the succession of bishops in these dioceses, in the hope of reconquering their territory from the infidel. When all hope of such redemption was given up, these titles were still conferred on those who were chosen to assist the diocesan bishops in their labors. After the 14th century the large increase of population in the great centers rendered such assistance particularly necessary. In the 16th century the Holy See inaugurated the policy of consecrating
nuncio An apostolic nuncio ( la, nuntius apostolicus; also known as a papal nuncio or simply as a nuncio) is an ecclesiastical diplomat, serving as an envoy or a permanent diplomatic representative of the Holy See to a state or to an international ...
s and other prelates, delegated to represent the Pope in his relations with the different nations, so that they would be equals with the diocesan bishops of the countries in which they were
ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or s ...
s. The foundation of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, in 1622, gave a great impetus to the missionary work of the Church in China and Japan, and elsewhere a great increase in the number of bishops became necessary and those received their titles from the ancient abandoned sees. Only about 1850, was any attempt made to compile a list of such sees.
Gaetano Moroni Gaetano Moroni (17 October 1802, Rome – 3 November 1883, Rome) was an Italian writer on the history and contemporary structure of the Catholic Church and an official of the papal court in Rome. He was the author of the well-known ''Dizionari ...
had already, in 1840, began publication of his 103 volume ''Dizionario di erudizione storico-ecclesiastica'' with a separate six volume index. Moroni acknowledged the great difficulties in compiling this work, even after he thoroughly examined all the sources available to him. In 1851, the ''Annuario Pontificio'' began to have such a list, but it did not purport to be complete. On the contrary, it contained only those that were in general use. Names of dioceses disappeared and were listed again when the titles were actually assigned. Until 1882, these titles were given as '. According to Corrigan, the story goes that King
George I of Greece George I ( Greek: Γεώργιος Α΄, ''Geórgios I''; 24 December 1845 – 18 March 1913) was King of Greece from 30 March 1863 until his assassination in 1913. Originally a Danish prince, he was born in Copenhagen, and seemed destined for ...
(a
Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...
) complained to
Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-ol ...
that he and his (mostly
Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or " canonical ...
) people were injured by this appellation, saying to Leo XIII, "we are not infidels, we are Christians; we are Catholics." Leo XIII, through a Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith decree, in 1882, abolished the phrase ' and ordered that future appointments should be made as "titular bishops". The custom, when Boudinhon wrote his article, was to join to the name of the see that of the district to which it formerly belonged, or else merely to say "titular bishop". The ''Annuaire Pontifical Catholique'' published a very complete list of the titular sees and titular bishops. Although it did not claim to be perfect, it contained the names of the sees and the bishops who had held the titles as far back, in some cases, as the 14th century. Titular sees, according to Corrigan in 1920, were conferred on * Cardinals, who, being only priests, were promoted in Curia to be bishops. * Nuncios, apostolic delegates and other dignitaries of the Curia, unless they were already diocesan bishops, and under the 1920 custom they were, in that case, translated to titular archbishoprics. * Coadjutors and Auxiliary bishops. * Apostolic vicars and, sometimes, on Apostolic prefects in missionary countries. * Bishops who resign their dioceses, although this was not always done. Sometimes the Holy See refused to do so, and sometimes the bishops did not want it. In the context of improved relations with the
Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via ...
and
Oriental Orthodoxy The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, with approximately 60 million members worldwide. The Oriental Orthodox Churches are part of the Nicene Christian tradition, and represent ...
after the
Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions), each lasting between 8 and ...
, the Holy See, while continuing to appoint bishops to titular sees in
North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...
, ceased to make such appointments to sees that were historically part of the Eastern
patriarchate Patriarchate ( grc, πατριαρχεῖον, ''patriarcheîon'') is an ecclesiological term in Christianity, designating the office and jurisdiction of an ecclesiastical patriarch. According to Christian tradition three patriarchates were est ...
s of
Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...
,
Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...
,
Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ� ...
, and
Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
. It began instead to treat as titular sees also those Catholic dioceses in any country no longer used as titles of diocesan bishops because of having been absorbed into other dioceses or having been renamed due to a change of the bishop's place of residence. (For example, several of the sees added by this change of policy are in the western and central United States, such as
Grass Valley, California Grass Valley is a city in Nevada County, California, United States. Situated at roughly in elevation in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, this northern Gold Country city is by car from Sacramento, from Sacramento ...
.) The change of practice is reflected in the inclusion from then on of such sees in the official lists of titular sees in editions of the ''
Annuario Pontificio The ''Annuario Pontificio'' ( Italian for ''Pontifical Yearbook'') is the annual directory of the Holy See of the Catholic Church. It lists the popes in chronological order and all officials of the Holy See's departments. It also provides name ...
''. Previously, titular sees were routinely (yet not always) assigned not only to auxiliary bishops, similar pseudo-diocesan offices and pre-diocesan apostolic vicars or (Eastern Catholic)
apostolic exarch An exarch (; from Ancient Greek ἔξαρχος ''exarchos'', meaning “leader”) was the holder of any of various historical offices, some of them being political or military and others being ecclesiastical. In the late Roman Empire and e ...
s (not
apostolic prefect An apostolic prefect or prefect apostolic is a priest who heads what is known as an apostolic prefecture, a 'pre-diocesan' missionary jurisdiction where the Catholic Church is not yet sufficiently developed to have it made a diocese. Although it ...
s), but also to retired bishops by way of emeritate (sometimes with a 'promotion' from a suffragan see to an archiepiscopal titular see; however sometimes transferred to another during an incumbent emeritus bishop's life) and even to
coadjutor bishop A coadjutor bishop (or bishop coadjutor) is a bishop in the Catholic, Anglican, and (historically) Eastern Orthodox churches whose main role is to assist the diocesan bishop in the administration of the diocese. The coadjutor (literally, "co- ...
s. That practice was largely replaced for the last categories by the present one of referring to a retired bishop as a
bishop emeritus In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of holy orders and is responsible for teaching doctrine, governing Catholics in his jurisdiction, sanctifying the world and representing the Chu ...
of the see that he held, and to a coadjutor bishop simply as coadjutor bishop of the see to which he has been appointed. This change too is reflected in editions of the ''Annuario Pontificio'' of the period, which include information on renunciation by retired and coadjutor bishops of titular sees to which they had been appointed. In 1995, when Jacques Gaillot, Bishop of the
Diocese of Évreux 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 associate ...
, who was controversial for his positions on religious, political and social matters, refused to retire and become Bishop Emeritus of Évreux, he was transferred to the titular see of Partenia.


Crusader see-in-exile titles

The crusading William IV, Count of Nevers, dying in the Holy Land in 1168, left the building known as the Hospital of Panthenor in the town of Clamecy in
Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The ...
, together with some land, to the Bishops of Bethlehem, in case Bethlehem should fall under
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
control. After
Saladin Yusuf ibn Ayyub ibn Shadi () ( – 4 March 1193), commonly known by the epithet Saladin,, ; ku, سه‌لاحه‌دین, ; was the founder of the Ayyubid dynasty. Hailing from an ethnic Kurdish family, he was the first of both Egypt an ...
took Bethlehem in 1187, the Bishop took up residence in 1223 in his property, which remained the seat of titular Bishops of Bethlehem for almost 600 years, until the
French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
of 1789. The
Roman Catholic Archbishopric of Nazareth The Archbishop of Nazareth is a former residential Metropolitan see, first in the Holy Land, then in Apulian exile in Barletta (southern Italy), which had a Latin and a Maronite successor as titular sees, the first merged into Barletta, the seco ...
first had two centuries of Metropolitan Archbishops of Nazareth in
Barletta Barletta () is a city, '' comune'' of Apulia, in south eastern Italy. Barletta is the capoluogo, together with Andria and Trani, of the Province of Barletta-Andria-Trani. It has a population of around 94,700 citizens. The city's territory be ...
(southern Italy), and gave rise in the 19th century to two separately 'restored' titular successor sees: a Latin titular archbishopric of Nazareth and a Maronite (
Antiochian Rite Antiochene Rite or Antiochian Rite refers to the family of liturgies originally used by the Patriarchate of Antioch. Liturgies in the Antiochene Rite The Antiochian Rite, or the Antiochian Rite family, consists of Apostolic Liturgies includin ...
) titular (Arch)bishopric of Nazareth, both suppressed only in the early 20th century.


Orthodox Church

The granting of titular sees is occasionally practised in the Eastern and other orthodox churches. For example, the see of
Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...
in the
Coptic Orthodox Church The Coptic Orthodox Church ( cop, Ϯⲉⲕ̀ⲕⲗⲏⲥⲓⲁ ⲛ̀ⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ ⲛ̀ⲟⲣⲑⲟⲇⲟⲝⲟⲥ, translit=Ti.eklyseya en.remenkimi en.orthodoxos, lit=the Egyptian Orthodox Church; ar, الكنيسة القبطي� ...
is titular. One reason is to avoid causing offense or confusion when an Orthodox bishop serves a place which is also the see of a bishop of a different jurisdiction; for example, the Orthodox bishop residing in
Oxford, England Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the Un ...
, is titled Bishop of Diokleia, and the bishop of the Russian Orthodox Diocese of Sourozh is the
Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...
's bishop in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
.Orthodox Wiki
/ref>


See also

* List of Catholic titular sees *
List of Catholic dioceses (structured view) As of October 5, 2021, the Catholic Church in its entirety comprises 3,171 ecclesiastical jurisdictions, including over 652 archdioceses and 2,248 dioceses, as well as apostolic vicariates, apostolic exarchates, apostolic administrations, apos ...
*
Titular church In the Catholic Church, a titular church is a church in Rome that is assigned to a member of the clergy who is created a cardinal. These are Catholic churches in the city, within the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Rome, that serve as honorary des ...


References


Literature

*


External links


List of all titular sees
by GCatholic.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Titular See Episcopacy in the Catholic Church Types of Roman Catholic organization