Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 3.djvu/570

 CEMETERY

508

CEMETERY

chamber in niches and robed in their religious habits. Moreover, even here, secular persons, following medieval precedents, have been admitted in some cases to share the sepulture of the religious. The curious practices observed in many ancient ceme- teries, for instance in the arcade known as the Charnier of the Cemetery of the Innocents at Paris, would afford much matter for discussion, but lie out- side the limits of the present article. A very favourite decoration for such erections or for cemetery walls was the Dance of Death (q. v.), otherwise known as the Danse Macabre. The frescoes of this character, however, seem none of them to be older than the fourteenth century.

Monastic Cemeteries. — From an early date every religious house possessed a cemetery of its own. An interesting discovery of such a graveyard belonging to Anglo-Saxon nuns of the eighth century was made a few years ago near Hull. It is possible that these monastic cemeteries in early missionary days often formed the nucleus of a churchyard intended for all the faithful. In any case it became the ardent desire of many pious persons to be laid to rest among the religious of monastic institutions, and they often sought to purchase the privilege by benefactions of various kinds. Formal compacts dealing with this matter are to be met with among early charters, e. g. those of Anglo-Saxon England; and the question, as will easily be understood, led to much friction at a somewhat later date, between the religious orders and secular clergy, resulting in a great deal of ecclesias- tical legislation upon the right of choosing a sepulture and the claims of the parish priest.

Consecration of Cemeteries. — The practice of blessing the grave or the vault in which any Christian was laid to rest is extremely ancient, and it may be traced back to the time of St. Gregory of Tours (De Gloria Conf., c. civ). In many early pontificals, e. g. those of Egbert of York and Robert of Jumieges, a special service is provided with the title Consecratio Cymiterii, and this, wit h certain developments and ad- ditions, is still prescribed for the blessing of cemeter- ies at the present day. According to this rite five wooden crosses are planted in the cemetery, one in the centre and the others at the four points of the compass. After the chanting of the Litany of the Saints with special invocations, holy water is blessed and the bishop makes the circuit of the enclosure sprinkling it everywhere with this water. Then he comes to each of the crosses in turn and recites before it a prayer of some length, these five prayers being identical with those appointed for the same purpose in the Anglo-Saxon pontificals of the eighth century. Candles are also lighted before the crosses and placed upon them, and this feature, though not so ancient as the prayers, is also of venerable antiquity. On each of these occasions incense is used, and finally a con- secratory preface is sung at the central cross, after which the procession returns to the church, where solemn Mass is celebrated. A cemetery which has thus been consecrated may lie profaned, and it is in a measure regarded as losing its sacred character when any deed of blood or certain other outrages are com- mitted within its enclosure. For example, as the ground has been blessed for those who arc in com- munion with the Church, the forcible intrusion of someone who has died under the Church's ban is looked upon as a violation which unfits it for the pur- pose for which it was designed. Innocent III de- cided that in such a c;is<\ if for any reason it was im- possible to exhume the remains and cast them out of tlir enclosure, tin cemetery must be reconciled by a form of service specially provided for the purpose. In a celebrated instance, known as the Guibord Case,

which occurred in Montreal. Canada, in 1875, the bishop, seeing the civil law uphold I lie intrusion, laid I lie portion of the cemetery so profaned under an in-

terdict. Finally we may note the quasi-conseeration imparted to the famous Campo Santo of Pisa, as well as to one or two other Italian cemeteries, by the alleged transference thither of soil from Mount Cal- vary.

Cemeteries and the Civil Law. — It would be impossible here to deal in detail with the various legislative enactments which now almost everywhere prevent the Church's requirements from being carried into effect. (See Burial.) "From the principles which now obtain in German law", writes Dr. Peter Lex in his recent work, " Das kirchliche Begrabniss- recht", " the idea of a Catholic churchyard from the point of view of Catholic teaching and" practice, has been completely suppressed and the cemetery has been degraded into a mere burial-ground belonging to the civil corporation." In such matters as the burial of Protestants or non-Christians in ground formerly blessed for the faithful only, the Church w : hen opposed by the civil power allows her ministers to give way rather than provoke a conflict. In Eng- land, according to the Burials Act of 1852, the " Burial Boards " in different parts of the country are empow- ered to provide adequate graveyards out of the rates. In these a certain portion is consecrated according to the rites of the Church of England and the remainder is left unconsecrated. Of this last such a proportion as may be necessary is assigned for the use of Catho- lics, who are free to consecrate it for themselves. Moreover, when a chapel is erected upon the Church of England portion of the cemetery, a similar building must as a rule be provided in the other sections. The act assigns to the Burial Board ", at least indirectly, the control of the inscriptions to be set up upon the tombstones in the cemetery, but these powers are generally administered without hardship to Catholics. When Catholics are buried in ground which is not specially consecrated for their use the priest conduct- ing the funeral is directed by the "Rituale Roma- num" to bless the grave, and if the priest himself cannot conduct the funeral further, to put blessed earth into the coffin. Children who have died before baptism, we may notice, should be interred apart in ground which has not been consecrated; and it is usual even in the consecrated portion to assign a separate place for infants that have been baptized.

For other points not touched upon here, see the article Burial.

For general works see Pebmanbder, in Kirchcnlej., VII, 71S; Ruland, Gesch. dcr kirehliehen Leichenfeier (Ratisbon, 1901); Lkk, Da* kirchliclie ltcgrnhnn-recht i Ratisbon, 1904); Hkkthami, De hi !■■:: hr,.,„ .!■ la S, pultun (Paris. 1904); Archw fur k. Kirchenrecht, I. 25 Bq., I. XXVIII, 171 sq.; Moulart, De S. ;...,;..,-. .. i ,,..,,',.. I.,,uvain, 1862), and in L'Egliee et VEtat (Louvain, 1896), 512 29.

For the Catacombs and earlv Middle Ages see Leclercq, Manuel d'areh.ol. chrct. (Paris, 19071. I, 217-234, a very satis- factory discission of the subject; Miller in Realencyklopddie f. prut. Tltcol., X, S14 sqq., also an extraordinarily full and elaborate article; Lwium, t i> i>,:n and Pagan Rome

1 1 Ion, 1.XSI2I, 30.V361; Brown, From Schola to Cathedral

(London, 1893); Habbcchx, Et nent d'archiol. (Rome, 1901), especially I; LixiiEXscHMliiT, Handbuch der deulecli, n Alter- thumskunde, I, 64-146; Cochet, La Normandie Souterraine (Paris, 1S601; Brows, The Arts in Early England (London, 1902), I, 253-270; Kraus, Real- Lnci/klapa die, I. 307 sq.; Boulaxoi k, I.e mnbitier luntraire gauo-romain et franc (Paris. L90.V; Men. n R, La Sepulture Clint. (Paris, 1S55).

On the Canon I. aw see WERNZ, Jus Decretalium (Rome, 19021. Ill, llll 71; Zi-MA,rj<c!.s/i,uj, n < ', men i eo- Liturgies (Rome, 1903); Cai m.ms. Instihtt. Jur. Pub. Ecdee. (Rome, 1SS9), II, 289 sq ; I i biuuis, Btbliotheca.s. v. Sevultura.

For the I iturgy see Martexe, De Ant; / its Ecdesia llitibus (Hassano, 1788); Cabrol, Le livre de la prii re antique (Paris,
 * ..'tc-32.

\\u the ecclesiastical discipline of the Province of Quebec ee Gignac, Compend.Jur.eccl.,etc (Quebec, 1903). Da rebu*. .■I.-. \os 773.774.77S. 7S3; also Discipline Led rfu Diocettdt tju.be. . s v .S, pultttrc: and f..r the Civil Law, Weir. The Civil Code of Lower Canada (Montreal, 1888).

Herbert Thurston.

('nti.iiiii Laws i\ tin United States. — The several States of the Union have upon their statute hooks legislation, in its broader outlines identical, providing for the incorporation of cemetery associa-