|
Episcopa
' ''Episcopa'' is a feminine Latin form derived from the masculine "episcopus" (bishop), rooted in the Greek episkopos ("overseer/bishop"). Its historical usage is debated among scholars, with three main interpretations: bishop's wife, ordained female bishop, or overseeing role (e.g. abbess). Archaeological and historical records provide evidence of women titled "episcopa," fueling discussions about their roles. Etymology The term "episcopa" is contested. Some scholars propose it referred to bishops' wives,Methuen, C. (2005). ''Vidua—presbytera—episcopa: Women with oversight in the early church''. Theology, 108(843), 163–177. https://doi.org/10.1177/0040571X0510800302 others suggest it denoted women overseeing groups like virgins or widows, similar to an abbess, and a minority argue it indicated women ordained as bishops with active ecclesiastical roles. However, these views face challenges: specialized roles like abbess had distinct terms (e.g., "abbatissa"),Eisen, U. E. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bishop
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 dioceses. The role or office of the bishop is called episcopacy or the episcopate. Organisationally, several Christian denominations utilise ecclesiastical structures that call for the position of bishops, while other denominations have dispensed with this office, seeing it as a symbol of power. Bishops have also exercised political authority within their dioceses. Traditionally, bishops claim apostolic succession, a direct historical lineage dating back to the original Twelve Apostles or Saint Paul. The bishops are by doctrine understood as those who possess the full Priest#Christianity, priesthood given by Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ, and therefore may ordain other clergy, including other bishops. A person ordained as a deacon, pri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Episcopa Theodora
Theodora, mother of Pope Paschal I and wife of Bonusus, lived in the early 9th century CE and is depicted in a mosaic in the Church of Santa Prassede, Rome (c. 900 CE), with the title " Episcopa." Scholars debate whether this indicates she was a female bishop or if it was an honorific title bestowed by her son. Pope Paschal I’s esteem for her is evident in the Chapel of Bishop Zeno, which he built in her honor within the church. Mosaic & inscription Theodora Episcopa During his papacy from 817 to 824 CE, Pope Paschal I relocated the relics of 2,300 martyrs from the catacombs to the San Zeno chapel in Santa Prassede, a space he constructed for his mother, Theodora Episcopa. A ninth-century (c. 900 CE) mosaic within the chapel features four women: the Virgin Mary, Saints Praxedis, and Prudentiana, each adorned with round golden halos symbolizing sainthood, and Theodora Episcopa, distinguished by a square white halo, indicating she was a living holy person at the time of its ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
First Council Of Nicaea
The First Council of Nicaea ( ; ) was a council of Christian bishops convened in the Bithynian city of Nicaea (now İznik, Turkey) by the Roman Emperor Constantine I. The Council of Nicaea met from May until the end of July 325. This ecumenical council was the first of many efforts to attain consensus in the church through an assembly representing all Christendom. Hosius of Corduba may have presided over its deliberations. Attended by at least 200 bishops, its main accomplishments were the settlement of the Christological issue of the divine nature of God the Son and his relationship to God the Father, the construction of the first part of the Nicene Creed, the mandating of uniform observance of the date of Easter, and the promulgation of early canon law. Background Alexandrian controversies The major impetus for the calling of the Council of Nicaea arose in a theological dispute among the Christian clergy of Alexandria concerning the nature of Jesus, hi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pudentiana
Pudentiana is a virgin and martyr of the 2nd century who refused to worship the Roman Emperors Marcus Aurelius and Antoninus Pius as deities. She is sometimes locally known as "Potentiana" and is often coupled with her sister, Praxedes the martyress. Legend According to her ''acta'' and the Martyrology of Reichenau, she was a Roman virgin of the early church, daughter of Saint Pudens, friend of the Apostles, and sister of Praxedes. Praxedes and Pudentiana, together with Pope Pius I, built a baptistry in the church inside their father's house, and started to baptize pagans. Pudentiana died at the age of 16, possibly a martyr, and is buried next to her father Pudens, in the Priscilla catacombs on the via Salaria. While there is evidence for the life of Pudens, there is no direct evidence for either Pudentiana or Praxedes. It is possible that the early Church's was mistaken for "Saint Pudentiana". Veneration Santa Pudenziana, a basilica in Rome, is named for her, an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brigid Of Kildare
Saint Brigid of Kildare or Saint Brigid of Ireland (; Classical Irish: ''Brighid''; ; ) is the patroness saint (or 'mother saint') of Ireland, and one of its three national saints along with Patrick and Columba. According to medieval Irish hagiographies, she was an abbess who founded the important abbey of Kildare (''Cill Dara''), as well as several other convents of nuns. There are few documented historical facts about her, and her hagiographies are mainly anecdotes and miracle tales, some of which are rooted in pagan folklore.Farmer, David. ''The Oxford Dictionary of Saints'' (Fifth Edition, Revised). Oxford University Press, 2011. pp.66–67, 467–470. They say Brigid was the daughter of an Irish clan chief and an enslaved Christian woman, and was fostered in a druid's household before becoming a consecrated virgin. She is patroness of many things, including poetry, learning, healing, protection, blacksmithing, livestock, and dairy production. In her honour, a perpet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Canon Law Of The Catholic Church
The canon law of the Catholic Church () is "how the Church organizes and governs herself". It is the system of religious laws and canon law, ecclesiastical legal principles made and enforced by the Hierarchy of the Catholic Church, hierarchical authorities of the Catholic Church to regulate its external organization and government and to order and direct the activities of Catholics toward the mission of the Church. It was the first modern Western world, Western legal system and is the oldest continuously functioning legal system in the West, while the unique traditions of Eastern Catholic canon law govern the 23 Eastern Catholic Churches, Eastern Catholic particular churches '. Positive ecclesiastical laws, based directly or indirectly upon immutable divine law or natural law, derive formal authority in the case of universal laws from Promulgation (Catholic canon law), promulgation by the supreme legislator—the supreme pontiff, who possesses the totality of legislative, executi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land border, as well as List of islands of Italy, nearly 800 islands, notably Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares land borders with France to the west; Switzerland and Austria to the north; Slovenia to the east; and the two enclaves of Vatican City and San Marino. It is the List of European countries by area, tenth-largest country in Europe by area, covering , and the third-most populous member state of the European Union, with nearly 59 million inhabitants. Italy's capital and List of cities in Italy, largest city is Rome; other major cities include Milan, Naples, Turin, Palermo, Bologna, Florence, Genoa, and Venice. The history of Italy goes back to numerous List of ancient peoples of Italy, Italic peoples—notably including the ancient Romans, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vatican Library
The Vatican Apostolic Library (, ), more commonly known as the Vatican Library or informally as the Vat, is the library of the Holy See, located in Vatican City, and is the city-state's national library. It was formally established in 1475, although it is much older—it is one of the oldest libraries in the world and contains one of the most significant collections of historical texts. It has 75,000 codex, codices from throughout history, as well as 1.1 million printed books, which include some 8,500 Incunabulum, incunabula. The Vatican Library is a research library for history, law, philosophy, science, and theology. The Vatican Library is open to anyone who can document their qualifications and research needs. Photocopies for private study of pages from books published between 1801 and 1990 can be requested in person or by mail. Pope Nicholas V (1447–1455) envisioned a new Rome, with extensive public works to lure pilgrims and scholars to the city to begin its transfor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zeno Of Verona
Zeno of Verona (; ; about 300 – 371 or 380) was an African emigrants to Italy, Afro-Italian Christian figure believed to have either served as Roman Catholic Diocese of Verona, Bishop of Verona or died as a martyr. He is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church, Orthodox Church. Life and historicity A Veronese author named Coronato, who was a notary in the 7th century, claimed that Zeno was a native of Mauretania who taught children of Africa about the Catholic religion and also helped them with their education. Another claim was that Zeno was a follower of Athanasius, patriarch of Alexandria, and accompanied his master when the latter visited Verona in 340. The literary style of the more than 90 ''Sermones'' attributed to Zeno is also considered evidence of his African origins, since Christian African writers of the time frequently used neologisms and wordplay. Many of the ''Sermones'' concern Old Testament exegesis and are said to "have a d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Abbess
An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa'') is the female superior of a community of nuns in an abbey. Description In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic, Lutheran and Anglican abbeys, the mode of election, position, rights, and authority of an abbess correspond generally with those of an abbot. She must be at least 40 years old and have been a nun for 10 years. The age requirement in the Catholic Church has evolved over time, ranging from 30 to 60. The requirement of 10 years as a nun is only eight in Catholicism. In the rare case of there not being a nun with the qualifications, the requirements may be lowered to 30 years of age and five of those in an "upright manner", as determined by the superior. A woman who is of illegitimate birth, is not a virgin, has undergone non-salutory public penance, is a widow, or is blind or deaf, is typically disqualified for the position, saving by permission of the Holy See. The office is e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Basilica Of Saint Martin, Tours
The Basilica of Saint Martin is a Catholic basilica dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours, over whose tomb it was built. It is located in Tours, France. The first basilica was established here in the 5th century (consecrated in 471) on the site of an earlier chapel.Basilique Saint Martin de Tours official website It was at first served by a community of monks under an abbot, the Abbot of Saint Martin, who between 796 and 804 was , the adviser of . Shortly before this the monastic establishment was changed to a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
