The Diocese of Adria-Rovigo () is a

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

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, prov ...

of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

in the

Triveneto The Triveneto () or (; ; ; ), also often referred to as North-Eastern Italy or simply North-EastNot to be misunderstood with the statistical region Northeast Italy, which includes Emilia-Romagna, too. ( or ), is a historical region of Italy. The ...

. It has existed under this name since 1986. It is a Latin

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Catholic Church, a suffragan bishop leads a diocese within an ecclesiastical province other than the principal diocese, the metropolitan archdiocese; the diocese led ...

to the

Patriarchate of Venice The Patriarchate of Venice (; ), also sometimes called the Archdiocese of Venice, is a patriarchate of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church, located in the Metropolitan City of Venice. Its Cathedra, episcopal seat is in the St Mark's Basilica ...

."Diocese of Adria-Rovigo"
''

Catholic-Hierarchy.org ''Catholic-Hierarchy.org'' is an online database of bishops and dioceses of the Latin Church and the 23 Eastern Catholic Churches that are in full communion with Rome. The website, not officially sanctioned by the Church, is run as a private pro ...

''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved February 29, 2016"Diocese of Adria-Rovigo"
''GCatholic.org''. Gabriel Chow. Retrieved February 29, 2016 The comune of Adria is north of the Po River, some 88 km (56 mi) north of Ravenna. Its territory comprises roughly the northeastern Italian civil

Province of Rovigo The province of Rovigo () is a province in the Veneto region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Rovigo. It borders on the north with the provinces of Verona, Padua and Venice, on the south with the province of Ferrara, on the west with the provi ...

(

Rovigo Rovigo (, ; ) is a city and communes of Italy, commune in the region of Veneto, Northeast Italy, the capital of the province of Rovigo, eponymous province. Geography Rovigo stands on the low ground known as Polesine, by rail southwest of Veni ...

itself is not an episcopal see), and a part of one town in the

Province of Padua The province of Padua () is a Provinces of Italy, province in the Veneto region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Padua. Geography It has an area of 2,142 km2, and a total population of 936,492 (2016) making it the most populated provi ...

Ecclesiastical history

Tradition dates the preaching of the Gospel in

Adria Adria is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Rovigo in the Veneto region of northern Italy, situated between the mouths of the rivers Adige and Po River, Po. The remains of the Etruria, Etruscan city of Atria or Hatria are to be found below ...

from the days of Saint Apollinaris, himself consecrated bishop by

Saint Peter Saint Peter (born Shimon Bar Yonah; 1 BC – AD 64/68), also known as Peter the Apostle, Simon Peter, Simeon, Simon, or Cephas, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the first leaders of the Jewish Christian#Jerusalem ekklēsia, e ...

. The figure of this Bishop of Ravenna has a singular importance in the hagiographical legends of the northeast of Italy. Even if Emilia,

Romagna Romagna () is an Italian historical region that approximately corresponds to the south-eastern portion of present-day Emilia-Romagna, in northern Italy. Etymology The name ''Romagna'' originates from the Latin name ''Romania'', which originally ...

and the territory around Venice were Christianized and had bishops before

Piedmont Piedmont ( ; ; ) is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the northwest Italy, Northwest of the country. It borders the Liguria region to the south, the Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna regions to the east, and the Aosta Valley region to the ...

, for example, their conversion does not go back beyond the end of the second century. The diocese was established by the 640s AD as the Diocese of Adria. The first known bishop of Adria is Gallonistus, who was present at a synod in Rome (649) under

Pope Martin I Pope Martin I (, ; between 590 and 600 – 16 September 655), also known as Martin the Confessor, was the bishop of Rome from 21 July 649 to his death 16 September 655. He had served as Pope Theodore I's ambassador to Constantinople, and was pap ...

. The

Venerable Bede Bede (; ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, Bede of Jarrow, the Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable (), was an English monk, author and scholar. He was one of the most known writers during the Early Middle Ages, and his most fa ...

's Martyrology mentions a Saint Colianus, Bishop of Adria, but nothing is known about him. The diocese of Adria was a suffragan of Ravenna until 1818, despite its location in the territory of Venice. On 1 May 1818, in the bull "De Salute",

Pope Pius VII Pope Pius VII (; born Barnaba Niccolò Maria Luigi Chiaramonti; 14 August 1742 – 20 August 1823) was head of the Catholic Church from 14 March 1800 to his death in August 1823. He ruled the Papal States from June 1800 to 17 May 1809 and again ...

removed the diocese of Adria from subjection as a suffragan to the Archdiocese of Ravenna, and assigned it to the Patriarchate of Venice. In the same bull, the diocese of Adria lost one parish to the Diocese of Padova, and six to the Archdiocese of Ferrara. Adria gained two parishes from the Archdiocese of Ravenna, and two other parishes from the Archdiocese of Ferrara. The city of Adria had a population of c. 8,000 inhabitants in 1747. A list of the parishes of the diocese and their populations c. 1850, estimated at 140,000 persons, is given by Francesco de' Lardi. The diocese had in the early 20th century, a population of 190,400: 80 parishes, 300 churches, chapels and oratories; 250 secular priests, 72 seminarians, 12 regular priests and 9 lay-brothers; 90 confraternities; 3 boys schools (97 pupils) and 6 girls schools (99 pupils). In a decree of the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the or , was the 21st and most recent ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. The council met each autumn from 1962 to 1965 in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City for session ...

, it was recommended that dioceses be reorganized to take into account modern developments. A project begun on orders from Pope John XXIII, and continued under his successors, was intended to reduce the number of dioceses in Italy and to rationalize their borders in terms of modern population changes and shortages of clergy. The change was made urgent because of changes made to the Concordat between the Italian State and the Holy See on 18 February 1984, and embodied in a law of 3 June 1985. Rovigo had become the capital of the civil province, and a more important center of social and political life than Adria, and an addition to the title of the diocese of Adria was decided upon. The change was approved by Pope John Paul II in an audience of 27 September 1986, and by a decree of the Sacred Congregation of Bishops of the Papal Curia on 30 September 1986. The diocese was renamed Diocese of Adria–Rovigo. At the same time, it seemed appropriate "for a more appropriate looking out for the good of souls" that the Basilica of S. Stephen Pope and Martyr be granted the dignity of being a co-cathedral.

Cathedrals and notable churches

The

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the 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" are usually s ...

of the diocese of Adria is the Cattedrale di SS. Pietro e Paolo, in

province of Rovigo The province of Rovigo () is a province in the Veneto region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Rovigo. It borders on the north with the provinces of Verona, Padua and Venice, on the south with the province of Ferrara, on the west with the provi ...

. The cathedral was administered and staffed by a corporation called the Chapter, consisting of an archpriest and seven canons; there were also twelve priests who carried out various religious functions. The archpriest served as pastor of the cathedral parish. By 1747, the number of canons had been increased to twelve. It has a

Co-Cathedral A co-cathedral is a cathedral church which shares the function of being a bishop's seat, or ''cathedra'', with another cathedral, often in another city (usually a former see, anchor city of the metropolitan area or the civil capital). Instances o ...

in the city of

, the Concattedrale di S. Stefano Papa e Martire, dedicated to the martyr

Pope Stephen I Pope Stephen I ( ) was the Bishop of Rome from 12 May 254 to his death on 2 August 257.Mann, Horace (1912). "Pope St. Stephen I" in ''The Catholic Encyclopedia''. Vol. 14. New York: Robert Appleton Company. He was later Canonization, canonized a ...

. Rovigo was never a diocese. In addition, there are several

Minor Basilica Basilicas are Catholic church buildings that have a designation, conferring special privileges, given by the Pope. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectura ...

s : * Basilica di S. Apollinare, in Rovigo * Basilica di San Bellino, Rovigo * Basilica di S. Maria Assunta della Tomba in Adria * Basilica del Santa Maria del Pilastrello in Lendinara, Rovigo (1911).

Bishops

Diocese of Adria

''Erected: 7th Century''
''Latin Name: Adriensis''
''Suffragan of Ravenna''

to 1200

:... *Gallionistus (649) :... *Leo (or Leopertus) (861) *Theodinus (877) :... *Paulus (920) *Gemerius (attested in 953) *Joannes (attested 964) *Astulf (ca. 972–992) *Albericus (attested 1001) *Petrus (attested 1016–1030) :... *Benedictus (attested 1054–1055) *Benzo *Tuto (attested 1067) *Ubertus (attested 1068) *Petrus (c. 1073–1091) *Jacobus (1091–1104) *Isaac (1104–1115) *Petrus Michael (attested 1116) *Gregorius (attested 1125–1138) *Florius (attested 1138) *Gregorius (attested 1140–1154) :... *Isaac (attested 1186–1198)

1200 to 1500

''Metropolitan: Archdiocese of Ravenna'' :... *Petrus (c. 1203) *Rolandus Zabarelli (ca. 1210–1233) *Guilelmus d'Este (1240–1257) *Jacobus (1270–ca. 1277) *Pellegrinus (1277–1280) *Otholinus, O.Camald. (1280–1284) *Bonifatius (ca. 1285–1286) *Bonajuncta (Bonaggiunta) (1288–1306) *Joannes, O.Humil. (1308–1317) *Aegidius (1317) *Salionus Buzzacarini (1318–1327) *Exuperantius Lambertuzzi (1327–1329) *Benvenuto Borghesini, O.P. (1329–1348) * Aldobrandino d'Este (19 Mar 1348 – 18 Jan 1353) * Giovanni da Siena, O.F.M. Conv. (attested 1 Nov 1352 – 1361) :... * Antonio Contarini (1384 – 1386) * Ugo Roberti (1386 – 1392) * Rolandinus (1390) *Joannes (Anselmini) (1392 – 1404) *Jacobus Bertucci d'Obizzi (1404 – 1444) * Bartolomeo Roverella (15 Jul 1444 – 1445) *Giacomo degli Oratori (1445 – 1446) *Biagio Novello, O.S.A. (1447 – 1465) *Tito Novello (1465 – 1487) * Nicolò Maria d'Este (31 May 1487 – 5 Aug 1507 Died)

1500 to 1700

* Beltrame Costabili (27 Aug 1507 – 1519 Died) *Francesco Pisani (1519) * Ercole Rangone (15 Jun 1519 – 27 May 1524 Resigned) * Giambattista Bragadin (27 May 1524 – 23 May 1528 Died) * Giovanni Domenico de Cupis (31 Aug 1528 – 10 Dec 1553 Died) * Giulio Canani (26 Nov 1554 – 8 Feb 1591 Appointed,

Bishop of Modena A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

) * Laurentius Laureti, O. Carm. (13 Feb 1591 – 1598 Died) * Girolamo di Porzia (7 Aug 1598 – Aug 1612 Died) * Ludovico Sarego (17 Sep 1612 – 24 Sep 1622 Resigned)"Bishop Ludovico Sarego"
''

''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved November 24, 2016 * Ubertinus Papafava (10 May 1623 – Oct 1631 Died) * Germanicus Mantica (21 Feb 1633 – Feb 1639 Died)"Bishop Germanicus Mantica"
''

''. David M. Cheney. Retrieved August 21, 2016 * Giovanni Paolo Savio (19 Dec 1639 – Oct 1650 Died) * Bonifacio Agliardi (Alliardi), C.R. (2 Aug 1655 – 1 Feb 1666 Died) * Tommaso Retani (16 Mar 1667 – 1677 Resigned) * Carlo Labia, C.R. (13 Sep 1677 – 29 Nov 1701 Died)

1700 to 1900

*Filippo della Torre (6 Feb 1702 – 25 Feb 1717 Died) *Antonio Vaira (12 Jul 1717 – 8 Oct 1732 Died) *Giovanni Soffietti, C.R.M. (19 Jan 1733 – 7 Sep 1747 Died) *Pietro Maria Suárez (20 Nov 1747 – 19 Jun 1750 Died) *Pellegrino Ferri (16 Nov 1750 – 30 Sep 1757 Died) *Giovanni Francesco Mora, C.O. (2 Oct 1758 – 15 Jan 1766 Died) * Arnaldo Speroni degli Alvarotti, O.S.B. (2 Jun 1766 – 2 Nov 1800 Died) * Federico Maria Molin (24 Aug 1807 – 16 April 1819) *Carlo Pio Ravasi, O.S.B. (8 Jan 1821 Confirmed – 2 Oct 1833) *Antonio-Maria Calcagno (19 Dec 1834 Confirmed – 8 Jan 1841) *Bernardo Antonino Squarcina, O.P. (27 Jan 1842 – 22 Dec 1851) *Giacomo Bignotti (27 Sep 1852 – 7 Mar 1857 Died) *Camillo Benzon (27 Sep 1858 – 10 Dec 1866 Died) *Pietro Colli (27 Mar 1867 – 30 Oct 1868 Died) *Emmanuele Kaubeck (27 Oct 1871 – 31 Aug 1877 Died) *Giovanni Maria Berengo (31 Dec 1877 – 12 May 1879 Appointed, Bishop of Mantova) *Giuseppe Apollonio (12 May 1879 – 25 Sep 1882 Appointed, Bishop of Treviso) *Antonio Polin (25 Sep 1882 – 18 May 1908 Died)

since 1900

Tommaso Pio Boggiani Tommaso Pio Boggiani O.P. (19 January 1863 – 26 February 1942) was an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who had a varied career that included a stint as the Apostolic Delegate to Mexico, service as bishop of Adria and archbishop ...

, O.P. (31 Oct 1908 – 1912) *Anselmo Rizzi (4 Jun 1913 – 19 Oct 1934 Died) *Guido Maria Mazzocco (12 Nov 1936 – 8 Nov 1968 Died) *Giovanni Mocellini (1 Jan 1969 – 12 Mar 1977 Resigned) *Giovanni Maria Sartori (12 Mar 1977 – 1987)On 7 December 1987, Sartori was appointed Archbishop of Trento. He died on 26 September 1998. *Martino Gomiero (7 May 1988 – 11 Oct 2000 Retired)

Diocese of Adria-Rovigo

''Name Changed: 30 September 1986''
''Latin Name: Adriensis-Rhodigiensis''
''Metropolitan:

'' *Andrea Bruno Mazzocato (11 Oct 2000 – 3 Dec 2003 Appointed, Bishop of Treviso) * Lucio Soravito de Franceschi (29 May 2004 – 23 Dec 2015 Retired) *Pierantonio Pavanello (23 Dec 2015 – )

References

Sources

*Bocchi, Francesco (1858)
''Della sede episcopale di Adria Veneta.''
. Adria: G. Vianello, 1858. *Buonaiuti, Ernesto.

" The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. Retrieved: 2016-10-16. *Cappelletti, Giuseppe (1854), Le chiese d'Italia
Volume decimo
(10) Venezia. Giuseppe Antonelli, pp. 9–102. *De' Lardi, Francesco (1851)
''Serie cronologica dei Vescovi di Adria.''
. Venice: Bonvecchiato, 1851. * * * * p. 768-770. * * * *Kehr, Paul Fridolin (1906). ''Italia Pontificia'
Vol. V: Aemilia, sive Provincia Ravennas
. Berlin: Weidmann. pp. 188–199. *Lanzoni, Francesco (1927).
Le diocesi d'Italia dalle origini al principio del secolo VII (an. 604)
'. Faenza: F. Lega. * * * *Schwartz, Gerhard (1907)
''Die Besetzung der Bistümer Reichsitaliens unter den sächsischen und salischen Kaisern: mit den Listen der Bischöfe, 951-1122''
Leipzig: B.G. Teubner. pp. 161–162. * * * Zattoni, Girolamo (1905–06) "Il valore storico della Passio di S. Apollinare e la fondazione dell episcopato a Ravenna e in Romagna," in
''Rivista storico-critica delle scienze teologiche'', vol. 1
(Roma 1905), pp. 662–677
Vol. 2
(Roma 1906), pp. 179–200 and 677-691. {{authority control

Rovigo

Adria