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Tuesday, May 23, 2023

                       The EPISCOPAL ORDINATION of POPE GREGORY XIV

In September 2021, my friend and research colleague from Milan discovered the details of the ordinations of Ugo Boncompagni, the future Pope Gregory XIII, as subdeacon, deacon, priest, and bishop. Those ordinations were published on this site on 15 September 2021.

Recently he was reviewing documents in the Archivio di Stato di Milano, Atti notarili della Cancelleria arcivescovile and he came across a papal brief dated 8 April 1560 which authorized Niccolò Sfondrati, Bishop-elect of Cremona, to receive the four minor orders and the orders of subdeacon, deacon, and priest anywhere outside the city of Rome. The brief also authorized him to be ordained a bishop by one bishop, assisted by two or three other bishops.

In the same archives, at b. 22, fasc. 80, the details of Bishop-elect Sfondarti’s episcopal ordination were found:

On 19 May 1560, at Milan, in the Church of San Paolo Converso, Bishop Melchiorre Cribelli, Titular Bishop of Thagaste, assisted by Bishop Giulio Giovio, Bishop of Nocera, and Bishop Antonio Scarampi, Bishop of Nola, ordained Father Niccolò Sfondrati, as Bishop of Cremona.

Bishop Sfondrati was born at Somma, Archdiocese of Milano, on 11 February 1535. He was elected Bishop of Cremona on 13 March 1560 and he was created a cardinal in the consistory of 12 December 1583. Cardinal Sfondrati was elected Pope on 5 February 1590, taking the name Gregory XIV. He died at Rome on 16 October 1591.

Saturday, April 22, 2023

                                          One less bishop in the de Bovet line

The de Bovet line has lost one living member with the death of Bishop James Chan Soon Cheong, Bishop emeritus of Melaka-Johor, on 22 April 2023. May he rest in peace.

Here are the seven living members of this line:

Archbishop emeritus Murphy Nicholas Xavier Pakiam of Kuala Lumpur
Bishop Sebastian Francis of Penang
Bishop emeritus Antony Selvanayagam of Penang
Bishop John Baptist Tseng Chien-tsi. former Auxiliary Bishop of Hwalien (titular of Sululos)
Bishop Petrus Boddeng Timang of Banjarmasin
Bishop Paul He Zeqing of Wanxian*
Bishop Peter Luo Xuegang of Yibin*

*These two bishops, although recognized by the Holy See, are not yet listed in the Annuario Pontificio.

Friday, November 4, 2022

 The last living bishop appointed by Blessed Pope John Paul has died.

Bishop Frantz Colimon, S.M.M., Bishop emeritus of Port-de-Paix, Haiti, died on the morning of November 4, 2022 at Port-au-Prince, in the Hôpital Saint-François de Sales.

Bishop Colimon was named Coadjutor Bishop of Port-de-Paix on September 18, 1978, ten days before the death of Pope John Paul. He received episcopal ordination on December 8, 1978 in the Cathedral of Port-de-Paix and succeeded to the See of Port-de-Paix on February 22, 1982 upon the resignation of Bishop Rémy Jérôme Augustin, S.M.M. He resigned as Bishop of Port-de-Paix on March 1, 2008.

May he rest in peace – Requiescat in pace – Paix à son âme

Saturday, October 1, 2022

 One less bishop in the von Bodman line

The von Bodman line has lost one living member with the death of Bishop Hubertus Leteng, Bishop emeritus of Ruteng, on 31 July 2022. May he rest in peace.

Here are the current living members of this line:

 *Archbishop Nicolaus Adi Seputra, M.S.C., of Merauke

*Bishop Patrick Hoogmartens of Hasselt
*Bishop Aloysius Murwito, O.F.M., of Agats
*Bishop Ewaldus Martinus Sedu of Maumere
*Bishop Dominikus Saku of Atambua
*Bishop Franciscus Kopong-Kung of Larantuka

*Bishop emeritus Gerulfus Kherubim Pareira, S.V.D., of Maumere
*Bishop Edmund Woga, C.Ss.R., of Weetebula
*Bishop emeritus Anton Pain Ratu, S.V.D., of Atambua  


Saturday, July 2, 2022

 

THE SIX LIVING COUNCIL FATHERS OF THE SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL 

Since February 1, 2022, three council fathers of the Second Vatican Council (1962 – 1965) have died, leaving a total of six living council fathers.

Bishop Gérard-Joseph Deschamps, S.M.M., emeritus of Bereina, Papua New Guinea, a native of Canada, died on February 25, 2022. He had attended the second and fourth sessions of the council.

Archbishop Gabino Díaz Merchán, emeritus of Oviedo, Spain, died on June 14, 2022. He had attended the fourth session of the council.

Bishop Laurent Noël, emeritus of Trois-Rivières, Canada, died on July 2, 2022 at the age of 102. He had attended the second, third, and fourth sessions of the council. At the time of his death he was the oldest living Roman Catholic bishop in the world.

May they rest in peace.

As a result of the deaths of these three distinguished prelates, the six living council fathers are:

Bishop Luigi Bettazzi, emeritus of Ivrea, Italy and Archbishop Victorinus Youn Kong-hi, emeritus of Kwangju, South Korea. They attended sessions two, three, and four.

Bishop José de Jesús Sahagún de la Parra, emeritus of Ciudad Lázaro Cárdenas, Mexico, who attended sessions one, two, and four.

Archbishop Alphonse Mathias, emeritus of Bangalore, India, who attended sessions three and four.

Cardinal Francis Arinze, former Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship & the Discipline of the Sacraments and Bishop Daniel Alphonse Omer Verstraete, O.M.I., emeritus of Klerksdorp, South Africa, who attended session four. 

Friday, April 8, 2022

       Dictionnaire biographique des évêques catholiques du Canada

The latest supplement to Jean LeBlanc’s excellent Dictionnaire biographique des évêques catholiques du Canada. Les diocèses catholiques canadiens des Églises latine et orientales et leurs évêques; repères chronologiques et biographiques, 1658-2012. 2e éd., revue et augmentée. Montréal, Wilson & Lafleur, 2012 (collection Gratianus, dirigée par Ernest Caparros) has been published.

It can be viewed and downloaded at the following url:

https://ustpaul.ca/upload-files/RCRHC/Supplement_au_Dictionnaire_biographique.pdf

 MORE CHANGES TO THE d’ESTOUTEVILLE LINE

Within two days the d’Estouteville line lost two members. On 30 March 2022, Bishop Mathew Cheriankunnel, P.I.M.E., emeritus of Kurnool, passed away and on 1 April 2022, Bishop Innayya Chinna Addagatla, emeritus of Srikakulam died. There was an interesting connection between these two bishops. Bishop Cheriankunnel was the first bishop of the Diocese of Nalgonda and Bishop Addagatla was Nalgonda’s second bishop. May they rest in peace.

Their deaths reduce the number of living members of the d’Estouteville line to thirty-nine.

Thomas Jessayan Netto, Archbishop of Trivandrum of the Latins

Maria Callist Soosa Packiam, Archbishop emeritus of Trivandrum of the Latins

Francis Kallarakal, Archbishop emeritus of Verapoly

Malayappan Chinnappa, S.D.B., Archbishop emeritus of Madras and Mylapore

Vincent Louis Marie Landel, S.C.J. de Beth., Archbishop emeritus of Rabat

Joseph Luechai Thatwisai, Bishop of Udon Thani, Thailand

Philip Banchong Chaiyara, C.Ss.R., Bishop of Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand

Sebastian Thekethecheril, Bishop of Vijayapuram

Selvister Ponnumuthan, Bishop of Punalur

Christudas Rajappan, Titular Bishop of Avitta Bibba, Auxiliary of Trivandrum of the Latins

Paul Maipan, Bishop of Khammam

Singaroyan Sebastianappan, Bishop emeritus of Salem

Peter Remigius, Bishop emeritus of Kottar

Jerome Das Varuvel, S.D.B., Bishop emeritus of Kuzhithurai

Amalraj Arulappan, Bishop of Ootacamund

Antonysamy Francis, Bishop of Kumbakonam

Devadoss Ambrose Mariadoss, Bishop of Tanjore

Nazarene Soosai, Bishop of Kottar

 *Laurent Ulrich, Archbishop of Lille

*Antoine Henry Pierre Marie Hérouard, Archbishop of Dijon

*Yves Boivineau, Bishop of Annecy

*Alain Planet, Bishop of Carcassonne et Narbonne

*Philippe Christory, Bishop of Chartres

*Michel Pansard, Bishop of Evry-Corbeil-Essonnes

*François Jacolin, M.D.P., Bishop of Luçon

*Jean-Christophe Lagleize, Bishop emeritus of Metz

*Jean-Marie Le Vert, Titular Bishop of Briançonnet and Auxiliary of Bordeaux

*Jean-Paul Vuillemin, Titular Bishop of Thérouanne and Auxiliary of Metz

*Armand Maillard, Archbishop emeritus of Bourges

*Hubert Barbier, Archbishop emeritus of Bourges

*Guy Thomazeau, Archbishop emeritus of Montpellier

*Bernard Aubertin, O.Cist., Archbishop emeritus of Tours

*Gilbert Louis, Bishop emeritus of Châlons

*Bernard Housset, Bishop emeritus of La Rochelle

*Jean-Charles Thomas, Bishop emeritus of Versailles

*Gérard Coliche, Titular Bishop of Alet and former Auxiliary of Lille

*Alphonse Georger, Bishop emeritus of Oran

 **Raphaël Dabiré Kusiélé, Bishop of Diébougou

**Jean Baptiste Kpiéle Somé, Bishop emeritus of Diébougou

 The bishops with an * are the original d'Estouteville group plus additions to their number since the combination of other lineages.  The two bishops with ** are those who were previously known as the Ravizza line.