Curia

“ And even for the Bishops of the older Sees, who are under the Congregatio Episcoporum et Regularium, and are protected by the common law or by Concordats, the practice of the Curia is a field full of man-traps, a belt studded with nails, which only needs to be drawn in by curialistic hands to make the nails pierce the body of the obnoxious Bishop. ”

“ The curia, a religious, social, and political group based on birth, might well be called genus hominum in contrast with the local tribe and with the century, composed artificially of men of similar wealth and age. ”

“ There are three powers who wish to gain by the Council, and who decide on its proceedings and destiny—the Pope, the Jesuits, and the Curia. Among the members of the Curia there are indeed very few who have not long since made their calculations, with that appreciation of the realities of life which is peculiar to the Italian nation, and who do not know as well what a dogma is worth for Rome as people know what a man is “worth” in England. Every assailant of the dogma is their personal enemy ”

“ Every opportunity of extending the jurisdiction of the Curia was welcome. Exemptions were so managed that fresh grants were constantly necessary. Bishops were privileged against cathedral chapters, chapters against their bishops; bishops, convents, and individuals, against the extortions of legates.
The two pillars on which the papal system now rested were the College of Cardinals and the Curia. The cardinals, in 1059, had become electors of the popes. Up to that time elections were made by the whole body of the Roman clergy, and the concurrence of the magistrates and citizens was necessary. ”

“ The interests of Rome demand that there shall be no change by which the power of the pontiff would be diminished, or by which the curia would lose any of the profits which it wins from the states, but the novelties by which the profits of the curia would be increased, or by which the authority of the states would be diminished and that of the curia increased, are not abhorred, but are favored. ”

“ The natural place for the curia was on the west side of the church and cloister, and in Cistercian monasteries, where the site was unencumbered by other buildings, it is usually found in this position. On the other hand, as at Durham and Worcester, where the site was longer from north to south than from east to west, the curia was on the south side of the cloister. Again, where a monastery was founded on the north side of a town, as at Canterbury, Chester and Gloucester, it was convenient that the cloister should be on the north side of the church, where seclusion and quiet were possible. ”

“ In addition to the Imperial provinces there was also, to facilitate the work of local government, a subsidiary division of the Empire into Municipia. Every large town or city, with a tract of the surrounding country, was formed into a municipal district and placed under the charge of a local Senate 148 or Curia. The members of a Curia were called Decurions, [601] and were selected officially to the number of about one hundred from the more reputable inhabitants of the vicinity. ”

“ The time for its celebration was proclaimed every year by the curio maximus, who announced in tablets, which were placed in the forum, the different part which each curia had to take in the celebration of the festival. Those persons who did not know to what curia they belonged performed the sacred rites on the Quirinalia, called from this circumstance the Stultorum feriae, which fell on the last day of the Fornacalia.
FORNIX, in its primary sense, is synonymous with Arcus, but more commonly implies an arched vault, constituting both roof and ceiling to the apartment which it encloses. ”

“ Men were promoted, for the purpose of selling their offices again.
Though against the papal theory, which denounced usurious practices, an immense papal banking system had sprung up, in connection with the Curia, and sums at usurious interest were advanced to prelates, place. hunters, and litigants. The papal bankers were privileged; all others were under the ban. The Curia had discovered that it was for their interest to have ecelesiastics all over Europe in their debt. They could make them pliant, and excommunicate them for non-payment of interest. ”

“ The words court, cour, and corte were also used as equivalent to the Lat. curia (the place of assembly for the provincial councils) —thus Corte, in Corsica, where the courts of justice were held; but Corsica itself derived its name from the Phœnician chorsi (a woody [56] place) . The Cortes, in Spain, evidently equivalent to the Lat. curia, gives its name to several towns in that country; Coire, the capital of the Grisons, in Switzerland, comes from the anc. Curia Rhætiorum (the place where the provincial councils of the Rhætians were held) ”

“ The main preoccupation of all these popes was how best to repair the injury done to orthodox Europe and to Rome by the destruction of the Latin Empire. Several of them thought of restoring the lost empire by force, and thus giving a pendant to the fourth crusade; but the Curia finally realized the enormous difficulties of such a project, and convinced themselves that the only practical solution of the difficulty was to come to an understanding with the Palaeologi and realize pacifically the long-dreamed union of the Greek and Latin Churches. ”

“ From the treatment measured out to him he sees that the Roman Curia is resolved to obliterate the ancient doctrine of the School of Paris, and to allow no man to speak of the true government of the Church, or the independence of the State, without branding him as a heretic or schismatic. ”

“ Such a national spirit as we see in reformed countries, and as was once in an inferior degree seen in the Gallican nation, is large, tolerant, and magnanimous compared with the tight, pretentious municipal spirit unconsciously depicted by Liverani when he enumerates the small men from small towns, puffed up with the name of cities, who, in the Curia, swelled themselves out with notions of world-commanding importance—notions rendered possible only by their own helpless narrowness. ”

“ The domestic-prelates properly so-called are those higher officials of the Curia who are subordinate to the cardinals in charge. The first class of these prelates comprises among others the judges of the Papal tribunal of the Rota. On solemn occasions they may wear in addi- tion to their regular attire a violet cappa and a trailing mantle. Most of the cardinals of the Curia are selected from among the mantelletta prelates, who in part hold important and influential positions. The Papal-Secretary of State confers all classes of the mantelletta prelacy. ”

“ Although the Curia was not equal to its task, had Italy been still in a healthy state the nation and public opinion could have forced the Papacy into right courses. But here also corruption had long since set in. Strong moral force, such as proclaims itself in Dante, in Caterina of Siena, was gone from the people; they had but lately given its last prophet to the flames in the Piazza della Signoria at Florence. No nation can sin thus against its best men without punishment. ”

“ Rome was a rallying-point for place-hunters of every nation. In presence of the enormous mass of business-processes, graces, indulgences, absolutions, commands, and decisions, addressed to all parts of Europe and Asia, the functions of the local church sank into insignificance. Several hundred persons, whose home was the Curia, were required. ”

“ They do their part frankly enough in dispelling any illusion on the subject. If any complaint from the Bishops should be heard in Rome, such as was made by the Spanish and French Bishops at Trent, the Curia can reply that they were told all this beforehand. The Civiltà has the most direct sources of information, and may therefore be safely trusted when it says, in a recent number, “We are not the authors of the Papal thoughts, nor does Pius ix. speak and act under our inspiration, but we are certainly the faithful echo of the Holy See.” ”

“ It would reduce the Mendicants to the condition of the other religious orders and earn the gratitude of all the prelates and clergy by stripping them of the privileges which rendered them so dangerous. For this purpose it was necessary to win the favor of Rome, and the students enthusiastically assessed themselves, economizing in their expenses that they might contribute to the fund which was necessary if anything was to be done with the curia. ”

“ All in all the household is ample enough for these modest times. A number of the offices of the Cardinals of the Curia are situated in the beautiful old palaces Delia Concellaria, Delia Dataria, and others, in which the offices of the Congregation are likewise housed. ”

“ He held out bravely, and the matter was finally settled by an agreement in which he asked for pardon and absolution, thus saving the honour of the Holy See.
If this was a drawn battle between the secular power and the Church, it did not lessen the effect of the triumphs which the Curia had won in the contests with the great Archbishops of Mainz. Unsuccessful resistance leads to fresh aggression and it is not to be supposed that Rome failed to make the most of her victories over the German Church. ”

“ Thence to Curia Muria is 70 leagues of coast, on which is the city of Dolfor, famous for frankincense, and Norbate 20 leagues farther east. From Curia Muria to Cape Ras-Algate, in lat. 22° 30' N. is 120 leagues all barren and desert. Here begins the kingdom of Ormuz, and hence to Cape Mozandan are 90 leagues, having the cities or towns of Colagate, Curiate, Mascate, Soar, Calata, Orfacam, Doba, and Lima, 8 leagues from Monbazam which Ptolomey calls Cape Assaborum in lat. ”

“ On the North-west are said to be remains of an amphitheatre, which circumstances prevented me from visiting.
In the city are the ruins of a magnificent Curia, erected in the time of Augustus. The architecture is Corinthian, and parts of the inscriptions are well preserved, complimentary to that emperor.
The stones which form the walls are durable, and of an excellent quality. The city must have been strong, being commanded by no adjacent height. Market well supplied, especially [415] with honey and excellent bread. The people are the most polished I have yet seen in Anatolia. ”

“ For a few weeks the relations between the Curia and the Italian authorities were marked by a conciliatory Attitude of the Vatican. spirit. The secretary-general of the Italian foreign office, Baron Blanc, who had accompanied General Cadorna to Rome, was received almost daily by Cardinal Antonelli, papal secretary of state, in order to settle innumerable questions arising out of the Italian occupation. The royal commissioner for finance, Giacomelli, had, as a precautionary measure, seized the pontifical treasury ”

“ A warm debate arose as to the nature of the obligation to reside, the Spaniards holding it to be of divine right, the Italians to be of no more than ecclesiastical precept. So powerful a body in the council took the Spanish view that the legates were alarmed, especially as ominous speeches were made to the effect that the Roman curia must be re formed on the basis of the report of cardinals to Paul III. before anything of moment could be done in the way of real improvement. ”

“ It is difficult to say how far the religious organisation of the curiae was a natural or artificial development. But artifice was certainly at work in determining their important political character. The primitive popular assembly at Rome is the comitia curiata, composed wholly of Patricians. Here each member of a patrician clan above the legal age—probably the age of eighteen, at which military service commenced—had the right of giving a single vote ”

“ Of course the Italian bishops, with very few exceptions, were Infallibilists, and those from South America were all upon the same side. The bulk of the Opposition bishops were German, Hungarian, and French, reinforced by some of the older ones from Ireland, a few of the English, a good many of the North American, and only about twenty of the entire body of the Italian.
The various groups had now everything to stimulate them to put their proposals into shape. Those of the Curia were in shape already. They naturally took the old direction of conforming the creed to innovations in practice. ”

“ His reasoning is not cogent. The curia may have lost its earlier military function, as did the phratry (Il. ii. 362 f.) .
[66] That the antiquarians had some evidence as to the military character of the curiae is suggested by Fest. ep. 54: “Centuriata comitia item curiata dicebantur, quia populus Romanus per cetenas turmas divisus erat.”
[67] Il. ii. 362 f.
[68] Tac. Germ. 7. 3.
[69] Schrader, Reallex. 349 f.
[70] All adult male citizens had a right to attend this assembly, all who were physically qualified and of military age were liable to service when called to it ”

“ His titles Curiatius, Patricius, Quirinus originate in his worship in the gentes, the curiae and the state, and have no reference to any special functions or characteristics. In late times, he is both bearded and unbearded ”

“ I called in, as my assistants, Corellius and Frontinus, two of the very best lawyers Rome at that time afforded. With these in attendance, I heard the case in my own chamber. Curianus said everything which he thought would favour his pretensions, to whom (there being nobody but myself to defend the character of the deceased) I made a short reply; after which I retired with my friends to deliberate, and, being agreed upon our verdict, I said to him, "Curianus, it is our opinion that your conduct has justly drawn upon you your mother's displeasure." ”