Zelanti

{{unreferenced, date=April 2014 In

Roman Catholicism 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 ...

, the expression ''zelanti'' has been applied to conservative members of the clergy and their lay supporters since the thirteenth century. Its specific connotations have shifted with each reapplication of the label. The Latinate term applies to those who show zeal. In its original thirteenth-century application the ''zelanti'' were those members of the

Franciscan Order The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

who opposed any changes or relaxation to the Rule formulated by St.

Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, better known as Saint Francis of Assisi ( it, Francesco d'Assisi; – 3 October 1226), was a mystic Italian Catholic friar, founder of the Franciscans, and one of the most venerated figures in Christianit ...

in 1221 and 1223. In consequence of St. Francis's severe requirements concerning the practice of poverty, his followers divided into two branches, the ''Zelanti'', or Spirituals, and the ''Relaxati'', known later as the Conventuals. The origin of the

Fraticelli The Fraticelli (Italian for "Little Brethren") or Spiritual Franciscans opposed changes to the rule of Saint Francis of Assisi, especially with regard to poverty, and regarded the wealth of the Church as scandalous, and that of individual church ...

and the cause of their growth within and without the Franciscan Order must be sought in the history of the ''zelanti'' or "

Spirituals Spirituals (also known as Negro spirituals, African American spirituals, Black spirituals, or spiritual music) is a genre of Christian music that is associated with Black Americans, which merged sub-Saharan African cultural heritage with the ex ...

". In the eighteenth century the ''zelanti'' were the supporters of the

Jesuits , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...

in the long controversy that led the

suppression of the Jesuits The suppression of the Jesuits was the removal of all members of the Society of Jesus from most of the countries of Western Europe and their colonies beginning in 1759, and the abolishment of the order by the Holy See in 1773. The Jesuits we ...

in 1767–73. At the Papal conclave of 1774-1775 the

College of Cardinals The College of Cardinals, or more formally the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. its current membership is , of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Cardinals are app ...

was generally divided into two blocs: curial, pro-Jesuit ''zelanti'' and political, temporizing faction, anti-Jesuit. Among the ''zelanti'' were the Italian curial cardinals who opposed secular influences on the Church. The second faction included crown-cardinals of the Catholic courts. These two blocs were in no way homogeneous. ''Zelanti'' were divided into moderate and radical factions. During the papacy of

Pius VII Pope Pius VII ( it, Pio VII; born Barnaba Niccolò Maria Luigi Chiaramonti; 14 August 1742 – 20 August 1823), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 14 March 1800 to his death in August 1823. Chiaramonti was also a ...

the ''zelanti'' were more radically reactionary than the ''politicani'' and wanted a highly centralised Church with vehement opposition to the secularising reforms that had resulted in France from the Revolution, which liberals were intent on spreading to the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; it, Stato Pontificio, ), officially the State of the Church ( it, Stato della Chiesa, ; la, Status Ecclesiasticus;), were a series of territories in the Italian Peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope fro ...

. The ''politicani'', though not liberal, were much more moderate and favoured a conciliatory approach to dealing with the problems new ideologies and the incipient

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...

were creating in the early nineteenth century. The ''zelanti'' and the moderates featured in the Papal conclave of 1823 and the Papal conclave of 1829. History of the Catholic Church