Other
lines of succession
In addition to the Rebiban line, there are four
other active Roman-rite lines of succession: the d’Estouteville line, ending in
1440; the von Bodman line, which ends in 1686, the Ravizza line, which ends in
1667, and the de Bovet line, which ends in 1789.
The Maronite, Greek Melkite, Chaldean, and Ukrainian
Greek Catholic Churches account for the majority of Eastern Catholic lineages.
However, there are several Eastern Catholic bishops who belong to the Rebiban
line, while a handful of Roman-rite bishops belong to either the Maronite or
Chaldean lines.
The
current state of episcopal lineages
As of 27 July 2015, there are approximately 5,288 living bishops in the Roman Catholic and the several Eastern Catholic sui iuris Churches; that is, bishops in
communion with the Bishop of Rome. The overwhelming majority of these bishops
trace their orders to Scipione Rebiba who was ordained a bishop in 1541.
Approximately 168 bishops belong to lines of the
various Eastern Catholic sui iuris Churches:
Chaldeans, Maronites, Melkites, Syro-Malankars, and Ukrainians. Among this
small number of bishops are found eleven Roman-rite bishops belonging to the
Maronite line and eleven Roman-rite bishops belonging to the Chaldean line.
The bishops of the Armenian, Bulgarian, Coptic,
Ethiopian, Ruthenian, Slovak, ans Syro-Malabar sui iuris Churches belong to the Rebiban line with the exception of
one Slovak bishop who belongs to the Ukrainian line. Similarly, one Maronite
bishop – a former apostolic nuncio – and eight Ukrainian bishops belong to the
Rebiban line.
The four small active Roman-rite lines account for a
total of 48 bishops, divided as follows:
*the
Ravizza line – 4 living members
*the
de Bovet line – 9 living members
*the
von Bodman line – 11 living membes
*the
d’Estouteville lines – 23 living members
Lists of the bishops belonging to each of these
lines as well as examples of these lineages will be added to this blog in the
next few days. Research to find information which will extend each of these
lines as well as the Rebiba line is ongoing.
In summary, approximately 95.8% of Roman
Catholic and Eastern Catholic bishops belong to the Rebiba line; 3.3% belong to
one of the several Eastern Catholic lines; and 0.9% belong to one of the other
four active Roman-rite lines.
Roman-rite
bishops belonging to Eastern Catholic lines
Twenty two Roman-rite bishops belong to an Eastern Catholic
line: eleven to the Chaldean line and eleven to the Maronite line. The reason
for this departure from the norm has to do with the conferral of episcopal
ordinations by two diplomats of the Holy See.
Father Antonin-Fernand Drapier, O.P., was serving in
Mesopotamia (modern day Iraq) when he was named Titular Archbishop of
Neocaesarea in Ponto and Apostolic Delegate to Mesopotamia. He chose to be
ordained bishop in Mesopotamia by the Chaldean bishop of Amadiyah, Bishop
François David, who was assisted by Syriac Archbishop Athanase Georges Cyrille
Dallal of Mossul, and Armenian Archbishop Jacques Nessimian of Mardin. On
November 19, 1936 he was named Apostolic Delegate to Indochina and it was
during his service there than he ordained nine bishops for Viêt Nâm and one for
Laos.
Of those ten bishops, two conferred episcopal ordination on
other bishops and as those bishops ordained others, the Chaldean line was
continued in Viêt Nâm and Laos. Today we find nine bishops in Viêt Nâm and one
bishop in Italy – a retired missionary bishop in Laos – in the Chaldean line
begun there by Archbishop Drapier. They
are:
*Etienne Nguyên Nhu Thê, Archbishop emeritus of Huê
*Pierre Nguyên Soan, Bishop emeritus of Quy Nhon
*Francois-Xavier Le Van Hong, Archbishop of Huê
*Vincent Nguyên Van Ban, Bishop of Ban Mê Thuôt
*Jean Baptiste Bui Tuân, Bishop emeritus of Long Xuyên
*Joseph Ngô Quang Kiêt, Archbishop emeritus of Hà Nôi
*Joseph Trân Xuân Tiéu, Bishop of Long Xuyên
*Joseph Dang Duc Nang, Bishop of Lang Son et Cao Bang
*Laurent Chu Van Minh, Titular Bishop of Thinisa in
Numidia and Auxiliary of Hà Nôi
*Joseph Tran Van Toan, Titular Bishop of Acalissus and
Auxiliary of Long Xuyên
*Alessandro Stacciolo, O.M.I., Titular Bishop of Tauriano, former Vicar Apostolic of Luang Prabang, Laos, and former Auxiliary of Siena-Colle di Val d'Elsa-Montalcino, Italy.
Monsignor Paul Fouad Naim Tabet, a member of the Holy See’s
diplomatic service, was named Titular Archbishop of Sinna and Apostolic Nuncio
to several countries in the Caribbean on 9 February 1980. Monsignor Tabet, a Maronite, was ordained
bishop on 30 March 1980 in Lebanon by His Beatitude Antoine Pierre Khoraiche,
Patriarch of Antioch of the Maronites and a future cardinal, assisted by two
Maronite bishops: Bishop Chucrallah Harb of Jounieh and Bishop Roland Aboujaoudé,
Titular Bishop of Arca in Phoenicia of the Maronites. Archbishop Tabet served
in the Caribbean until he was appointed Apostolic Nuncio to Nigeria on 8
September 1984. He subsequently served in the Secretariate of State and as
Apostolic Nuncio to Greece, retiring from the Holy See’s diplomatic service in
early 2005.
During his service in the Caribbean he ordained three
bishops, one of whom was created a cardinal by Pope Francis, and while in
Nigeria he ordained three more bishops. Two of the Caribbean bishops ordained
by him in turn ordained other bishops and there are now eight living bishops of
the Maronite line in the Caribbean and three in Nigeria. They are:
*Kelvin Edward Felix, Cardinal and Archbishop emeritus of
Castries
*Edward Joseph Gilbert, C.Ss.R., Archbishop emeritus of
Port of Spain
*Patrick Christopher Punder, Archbishop of Nassau
*Joseph Everard Harris, C.S.Sp., Archbishop of Port of
Spain
*Gabriel Malzaire, Bishop of Roseau
*Francis Dean Alleyne, O.S.B., Bishop of Georgetown
*Charles Jason Gordon, Bishop of Bridgetown and of
Kingstown
*Ernest Mesmin Lucien Cabo, Bishop emeritus of Basse
Terre et Pointe-à-Pitre
*Joseph Effiong Ekuwem, Archbishop of Calabar
*Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji, Bishop of Umuahia
*Vincent Valentine Ezeonyia, C.S.Sp., Bishop
of Aba
