Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 6.djvu/196

 FOUNDATION

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FOUNDATION

may come under any one of the following heads: leg- acies for Masses; legacies to a particular diocese, church, school, etc.; to a charitable institution, e. g. an orphanage or a hospital ; to any society established for an educational or charitable purpose, or in general for a religious end.

Foundations are contracts ; therefore there must be mutual consent between the founder and the adminis- trator of the institute receiving the gift. Moreover, there is the obligation of performing some work speci- fied in the deed of foundation. The consent of the bishop, or, in the case of a regular community, the con- sent of the regular prelate, must be obtained, since it would not be just that ecclesiastical institutions should be placed vmder obligations which they are unable to fulfil (Sacred Congregation of the Council, 23 Nov., 1697). Benedict XIV considers supervision of the ex- ecution of pious legacies one of the most solemn and important duties of a bishop (De Synodo, Bk. XIII). The Council of Trent says (Sess. XXII, ch. ix): "The administrators, whether ecclesiastical or lay, of the fabric of any church whatsoever, even though it be a cathedral, as also of any hospital, confraternity, chari- table institutions called 'montes pietatis', and of any place whatsoever, shall be bound to give in once a year an account of their administration to the ordinarj', all customs and privileges to the contrary being set aside; unless it should happen that, in the institution and regulations of any church or fabric, it has been other- wise expressly provided. But if from custom, or privi- lege, or some regulation of the place, their account has to be rendered to others deputed thereunto, in that case also the ordinary shall be employed jointly with them, and all acquittances given otherwise shall be of no avail to the said administrators."

In the list of questions to be answered by bishops on their Roman visits ad limina the Congregation of Propaganda asks the following (nos. 49, 50): Are there any pious foundations in the diocese or legacies bequeathed for pious purposes? Are the proceeds of such bequests properly administered and the canons relating to such matters attended to? (See also the Constitution of Leo XIII affecting congregations of simple vows and known as "Conditse a Christo", 8 Dec, 1900.) The bishop by a general statute may stipulate that foundations are only to be accepted under certain conditions. It is to be noted that ac- ceptation without the consent of the bishop does not invalidate the legacy, but it is in the power of the bLshop to rescind the contract if he judge it proper, although in the case of Masses in perpetuity Urban VIII ap- proved a decree which postulates the consent of the bishop as necessary before such obligation can be in- curred. The founder can, on the occasion of his gift, make any reservations that please him, provided the conditions are possible and fitting, are in no way ad- verse to the Divine and natural law, and are admitted by the bishop. The specific works which have to be fulfilled must be set forth in the deed of foundation. On the other hand, the founder, or his heirs, and the bishop cannot change the terms of a foundation once canonically erected, especially if the change would be to the detriment of a third person.

In the decrees of Urban VIII, "Cum Saepe" (21 Jan., 1(525), and Innocent XII, "Nuper a congrega- tione" (23 Dec, 1697), it is ordered that the stipu- lated Masses or other works must be fulfilled as a matter of justice ; and, if not fulfilled, those responsible for the omission sin gravely and are bound to restitu- tion. Money left as a foundation must be invested as soon as possible. A list of founded Masses is to be kept in a conspicuous place in the church; and when the Masses have been celebrated the fulfilment of the obligation is to be notetl in a book kept for that pur-

f)ose. The obligation of a foundation cea.ses abso- utely when the income or principal is lost without fault on the part of anyone ; but non-fulfilment, even

for a lengthy period, does not prescribe against a foundation in perpetuity. The reduction of a founda- tion obligation is a matter for the judgment and de- cision of the Holy See, although it is not imcommon for bishops to receive faculties to make such reduction. Condonation and absolution for past omissions in the fulfilment of foundation obligations belong also to the Holy See, though here again bishops usually receive triennial faculties to act in such circumstances. Com- mutation of the wishes of the founder similarly be- longs to the Holy See ; but if it is merely a matter of interpretation of the wishes of the founder, bishops are competent to act, since they are the executors of all pious dispositions whether the endowment is given in the form of legacy, or the grant should take effect during the lifetime of the donor (Council of Trent, Sess. XXII, ch. viii). It may be noted that, with re- gard to foundations for Masses, if the founder has given no definite instruction as to intention, the Congrega- tion of the Council has often decided that the Masses must be applied for the founder, the interpretation being that he intended tliein for himself.

The synods of Westminster (Eng. tr., Stratford-on- Avon, 1886) have the following decrees: "It is fitting that the bishop select from the body of the chapter or from the body of the clergy prudent men to help him in the temporal administration of the diocese. He should often use their advice." "New obligations should not be accepted without the consent of the bishop. If those which he has alreadj' to fulfil ap- pear to be too burthensome, or there does not exist a congruous endowment, let the priest apply to the bishop or lay the matter before him at the vis'tation." " If any of the faithful wish to found a daily or anni- versary Mass the matter must be treated with the bishop, and the sum contributed for this object must be profitably invested so as to produce an annual in- terest for a perpetual endowment, as far as circum- stances of time and places will allow, the canonical sanctions being observed." For similar legislation concerning Ireland see the "Acta et Decreta" of the plenary Synod of Maynooth, 1900 (Dublin, 1906), pp. 67-78. In the United States secular priests cannot accept foundations of Masses without the written per- mission of the bishop. Regulars must have the con- sent of their superiors general or provincials. No gen- eral rule has been laid down as to the requisite amount of the fund, each ordinary being free to fix the sum for his diocese. The councils of Baltimore urge that great circumspection should be used in accepting founda- tions, especially of perpetual Masses. It would seem advisable to accept foimdations only on the following conditions: That the obligation to celebrate shall cease, if the fund, no matter from what cause, be either entirely lost or yield no income; that the ordi- nary shall have power to reduce the nimiber of Masses if the interest on the capital, no matter for what rea- sons, becomes insufficient to make up the stipend fixed by the founder; that if, for whatever cause, the church in which the Masses are to be said is destroyed or deprived of a priest, the Masses can be said m any church to be designated by the ordinary.

In order to prevent the annulment or failure of a foundation particular attention should be given to the civil law of the place in question. In England (but not in Ireland) bequests to what the civil law regards as superstitious uses are void, as, for example, to main- tain a priest, or an anniversary or obit, or a lamp in a church, or to say Masses for the testator's soul, or to circulate pamphlets inculcating the pope's supremacy. Legacies of money for charitable purposes, as for the use of schools, churches, etc., are valid; but if the money is to be laid out in the purchase of land for such purposes, the direction to purchase land shall be dis- regarded and the money shall be held for the charity. Land may be given by will for charitable purposes; but, by the Act 54 and 55 Vic, c. 73, the land must