The Twentieth Century Bishops of
Reggio Emilia
The year 2014 has seen the publication of two excellent
works on the episcopate. The already
mentioned three volume Episcopologio
Agustiniano came to us from Spain and now we have an equally excellent book
on the twentieth century bishops of Reggio Emilia which includes bishops native
to the diocese and province and notes on a bishop of Reggio who governed that
diocese from the last years of the sixteenth century through most of the first
quarter of the seventeenth century.
Le genealogie episcopali dei Vescovi di Reggio
Emilia del secolo XX is the result of the meticulous research of Father
Roberto Fornaciari, a monk priest of the Camaldolese Congregation of the Order
of Saint Benedict. Father Fornaciari has
presented us with a work whose scope is a specific diocese and region during a
defined period in its history.
The author’s erudition is evident in the precision of the details
for each bishop and the number and richness of the footnotes. Father Fornaciari
includes the episcopal lineage of each bishop as well as the names of the
bishops for whom each bishop served as either the consecrator or
co-consecrator.
The book includes an appendix which provides information on Bishop
Claudio Rangoni, Bishop of Reggio Emilia from 1592 to 1621. This Bishop Claudio Rangoni – there were two,
both from Modena and cousins – is notable because it is through him that Pope
Pius XI and a large number of Polish bishops finally found their way into the
great line of Scipione Rebiba. Father
Fornaciari provides a short but precise account of how this came about, citing
the research of Dr. Krzysztof Rafal
Prokop in identifying Bishop Rangoni as a key consecrator in that line and the
author’s own research which found the consecrator of Bishop Rangoni and which
provided the connection to the Rebiba line. I previously mentioned Father
Fornaciari’s research on Bishop Rangoni elsewhere on this blog.
The book is completed by interesting notes on episcopal lineages,
an index of names, and a general index. It
can be ordered from the publisher, Antiche Porte editrice. Information can be found on the publisher’s
website: http://www.anticheporte.it/web/
