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 ORATORY

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ORATORY

gregation of the Discipline of the Sacraments of 7 Feb., 1909. According to this, private oratorios are conceded by tlir I Inly Sor- only on account of bodily infirmity, or dillicuUy of access to a jmblic dmrch or as a reward for services done to the Holy See or to the Catholic cause. Tlie grant of a private oratory may be temporary or for the life of the grantee, according to the nature of the cause that is atlduced. In either case, the simple concession of an oratory implies that only one M;u5s a day may be celebrated, that the pre- cept of the Church concerning the hearing of Mass on prescribed days (certain special festivals generally specified in the indult excluded) may be there satisfied only by the grantees, and that the determination of the place, city, and diocese where the oratory is to be erected is approved. The rescript will be forwarded to the ordinary. The decree then recites the various ex- tensions of the before-mentioned privileges that may be conceded to grantees :

(a) -1.5 to the satisfaction of the precept of hearing Mass: This is usually conceded by the indult only to the following: relatives of the grantee living under the same roof, dependants of the family, and guests or those who share his table. The others living in the house may not satisfy the precept except it be a fu- neral Mass or on account of the distance of the public church. If the oratory be a rural one, those employed on the estate may there hear Mass, but in that case the grantee must provide for a catechetical instruc- tion and an explanation of the Gospel. The same holds for a private oratory in a camp or castle or a wide- spread domain. In very peculiar circumstances (to be judged by the ordinary) all others may also hear Mass in a private oratory while the conditions prevail.

(b) As to hearing Mass in the absence of the grantees: This is allowed in the presence of one of the relatives living under the same roof, but the concession is to be understood of a temporary absence of the grantees and that the relative be expressly determined. The same is extended to the principal one among the familiars, rural seri'ants, or dependants.

(c) .4s to the number of Masses: If the grantees are two priests who are brothers, both may celebrate Mass. A thank.sgiving Mass is also allowed if the or- dinary recommends it. Priests who are guests may Bay Mass in the oratory of the house where they are staying if they have commendatory letters from the ordinary, provided they are infirm or the church is distant. Several Masses may also be said during the last agony or at the death or anniversary of one of the grantees and likewise on the feast of his patron saint.

(d) As to greater festivals: By an extension of privi- leges, Mass may be allowed in private oratories on all days except on the feast of the local patron, the As- sumption, Christ mas, and Easter. Sometimes the con- cession may extend to the first three feasts, but very rarely to Easter, and then only on the urgent recom- mendation of the ordinary, exception being made for grantees who are infirm priests.

(e) As to concessions: Sometimes a grantee may have the rights of a private oratory in two dioceses, but then both ordinaries must give testimonial letters. In case the oratory is situated in a place where the parish priest has to say two Masses on the same day, a priest from some other place may say Mass in the oratory but he may not say another Mass in addition. An oratory near a sick-room is also allowed occasionally during sickness. This decree likewise allows ordina- ries (for ten cases only) to grant a private oratory to poor priests who are aged and infirm. It will be noted that this legislation is a very liberal extension of the provisions formerly governing private oratories.

Tackto.v. Law of the Chmch (London, 1906), 8. v. Oratory; Febbabib, BMiotheca canonica (Rome, 1889), s. v Oratorium; Analtcta EccUt. (Rome, April, 1910).

William H. W. Fanning.

Oratory of Saint Philip Neri, The. — Under this head are included the Italian, Sp;inish, English, and other communities, whi(^h follow tlir rule nf St. Philip Neri. The revolt of thesixtccnih century, 1h<iugli ap- parently threatening in its spread and .-.^Ircugtli the very hfe of the Church, evoked a marvellous dis])lay of its Divine fecundity. That century saw the origin of the Society of Jesus, founded bv St. Igruitius I.ovola; the Theatines, by St. Cajetaii; 'the Harn:d.itcs, bV St, A. M. Zaccaria; the Brothers Ihispilallcrs, by St. .John of God; the Oratory of St. I'liilip. 'Die foundation of the last was laid at S. Girolanio, Hoiuc, wlicrc his dis- ciples gathered for spiritual instruction. Gradually these conferences took definite shape, and St. Philip, now a priest, constructed an oratory over the aisle of S. Girolamo, where they might be held; from this probably the congregation was named. In 1,564 he took charge of the church of the Florentines, where his disciples who were priests said Mass and preached four sermons daily, interspersed by hymns and popidar fle- votions. Eleven years' work at St. John's proved to the growing community the necessity of having a church of their own and of living imder a definite rule. They obtained from the pope the church of S. Maria in Vallicella, rebuilt and now known as the Chiesa Nuova, where the congregation was erected by Greg- ory XIII, 15 July, 1575. The new community was to be a congregation of secular priests living under obedi- ence, but bound by no vows. So particular was St. Philip on this point that he ruled, that even if the ma- jority \vished to bind them.selves by vows, the minor- ity who did not were to possess the property of the community. "Habeant possidcant ". wni' St. Philip's words. Another charact eristic of thi' in.'ililutc was the fact that each house was indeiieiKhnt, and when it was represented to him, that while one house might have but a handful of members and another a surplus, both would benefit by a transference of subjects from the more numerous community, he replied, "Let each house live by its own natality, or perish of its own de- crepitude." His motive probably was to exclude the possibility of any community lingering in a state of decay.

The rule, an embodiment of St. Philip's mode of governing, was not drawn up till seventeen years after his death, and was finally approved by Paul V in 1612. The provost is elected for three j'cars by a majority of all the decennial Fathers, i. e., those who have been ten years in the congregation. To assist him in the gov- ernment of the congregation four deputies are elected. All matters of grave importance are decided by the general congregation, only the decennial Fathers vot- ing. .\dmission to the congregation is also by election, and the candidate must be "natus ad institutum", between the ages of eighteen and forty, and possessed of sufficient income to maintain himself. The noviti- ate lasts three years, and was probably thus <'xtended to test thoroughly the vocation to an institute not bound by vows. At the conclusion of the three years, the novice if approved becomes a triennial Father and a member of the congregation, but he has no elective vote till his ten years are completed, when by election he becomes a decennial. Expulsion is effected by a majority of two-thirds of the voters. No member is allowed to take any ecclesiastical dignity. Regula- tions for the clothing, mode of life in the community, and for the refectory are al.so laid down. Tlie object of the institute is threefold: prayer, j)reaching, and the sacraments. "Prayer" includes special care in carry- ing out the liturgical Offices, the Fathers being pres- ent in choir at the principal feasts, as well as assisting at the daily popular devotions. The "Sacraments" imply their frequent reception, which had fallen into disuse at the foundation of the Orator}^ For this pur- pose one of the Fathers is to sit daily in the confes- sional, and all are to be present in their confessionals on the eve of feasts. The mode of direction as taught