Apostolic Dataria
Encyclopedia
The Apostolic dataria was one of the five Ufficii di Curia ('curial offices') in the Roman Curia
. It was abolished by Pope Paul VI
in 1967.
s of external jurisdiction, and with the collation (the abstract of conferring) of benefice
s reserved to the Holy See
. To this double faculty was added that of granting many other indult
s and graces, but these additions were made later. Until the time of Pope Pius IV
matrimonial dispensations were granted through the Apostolic Penitentiaria; and as to the collation of reserved benefices, that authority could not have been granted in very remote times, since the establishment of those reservations is comparatively recent: although some vestige of reservations is found even prior to the twelfth century, the custom was not frequent before Innocent II, and only from the time of Pope Clement IV
the reservation of benefices was adopted as a general rule [c. ii, "De pract. et dignit." (III, 4) in 6°]. It may be said that, while this office certainly existed in the fourteenth century, as an independent bureau, it is impossible to determine the precise time of its creation.
The Dataria consisted first, of a cardinal
who was its chief and who, until the Sapienti consilio of Pope Pius X
, was called the pro-datary, but since had the official title of datarius, often anglicized as datary. There was formerly as much discussion about the title of pro-datary as about that of vice-chancellor in the Apostolic Chancery
. Some hold it is derived from the fact that this office dated the rescript
s or graces of the sovereign pontiff, while others hold it to be derived from the right to grant and give (dare) the graces and indults for which petition is made to the pope. It is certain that, on account of these functions the datary enjoyed great prestige in former times, when he was called the oculus papae ("eye of the pope"). After the cardinal came the subdatary, a prelate
of the Curia who assisted the datary, and took his place, upon occasion, in almost all of his functions. In the old organization of the Dataria there came after the subdatary a number of subordinate officials who, as De Luca says, bore titles that were enigmatical and sibyllic
, for example the "prefect of the per obitum", the "prefect of the concessum", the "cashier of the componenda", an "officer of the missis" etc.
Pope Leo XIII
had already introduced reforms into the organization of the Dataria, to make it harmonize with modern requirements. Pius X, reducing the competency of the office, gave it an entirely new organization in his apostolic constitution
"Sapienti consilio", according to which the Dataria consisted of the cardinal datary, the sub-datary, the prefect and his surrogate (sostituto), a few officers, a cashier who had also the office of distributor, a reviser and two writers of Papal Bull
s. The new Constitution retained the theological examiners for the competitions for parishes. Among the Datary offices that were abolished mention should be made of that of the Apostolic dispatchers, which in the new organization of the Curia had no longer a reason for being: formerly these officials were necessary, because private persons could not refer directly to the Dataria, which dealt only with persons approved by itself, but since, anyone could deal directly with the Dataria, as with any of the other pontifical departments.
To the Dataria, which was commissioned to grant many papal indults and graces, remained only the tasks to investigate the fitness of candidates for Consistorial benefices, which are reserved to the Holy See, to write and to dispatch the Apostolic Letters for the collation of those benefices, to dispense from the conditions required in regard to them, and to provide for the pensions, or for the execution of the charges imposed by the Pope when conferring those benefices.
It would be both lengthy and difficult to retrace the former modes of procedure of this office, all the more as it was mainly regulated by tradition, which was jealously guarded by the officers of the Datary, who were generally laymen, and who had in that way established a species of monopoly as detrimental to the Holy See as profitable to themselves. Thus it happened that these offices often passed from father to son, while the ecclesiastical superiors of the officials were to a great extent blindly dependent upon them. Leo XIII began the reform of this condition of things so unfavorable to good administration, and Pius X totally abolished it.
, Pope Paul VI reorganized the Curia
with the apostolic constitution Regimini Ecclesiae universae of 15 August 1967. The Dataria was abolished.
Roman Curia
The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See and the central governing body of the entire Catholic Church, together with the Pope...
. It was abolished by Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI
Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
in 1967.
History
According to some authorities, among them Amydenus (De officio et jurisdictione datarii necnon de stylo Datariae), the office of the dataria is of very ancient origin, but that it is not appears from the fact that the business which eventually fell to it was originally transacted elsewhere. The Dataria was entrusted, chiefly, with the concession of matrimonial dispensationMatrimonial dispensation
A matrimonial dispensation is the relaxation in a particular case of an impediment prohibiting or annulling a marriage. It may be granted: in favour of a contemplated marriage or to legitimize one already contracted; in secret cases, or in public cases, or in both; in foro interno only, or in...
s of external jurisdiction, and with the collation (the abstract of conferring) of benefice
Benefice
A benefice is a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services. The term is now almost obsolete.-Church of England:...
s reserved to the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
. To this double faculty was added that of granting many other indult
Indult
An indult in Catholic canon law is a permission, or privilege, granted by the competent church authority – the Holy See or the diocesan bishop, as the case may be – for an exception from a particular norm of church law in an individual case, for example, members of the consecrated life seeking to...
s and graces, but these additions were made later. Until the time of Pope Pius IV
Pope Pius IV
Pope Pius IV , born Giovanni Angelo Medici, was Pope from 1559 to 1565. He is notable for presiding over the culmination of the Council of Trent.-Biography:...
matrimonial dispensations were granted through the Apostolic Penitentiaria; and as to the collation of reserved benefices, that authority could not have been granted in very remote times, since the establishment of those reservations is comparatively recent: although some vestige of reservations is found even prior to the twelfth century, the custom was not frequent before Innocent II, and only from the time of Pope Clement IV
Pope Clement IV
Pope Clement IV , born Gui Faucoi called in later life le Gros , was elected Pope February 5, 1265, in a conclave held at Perugia that took four months, while cardinals argued over whether to call in Charles of Anjou, the youngest brother of Louis IX of France...
the reservation of benefices was adopted as a general rule [c. ii, "De pract. et dignit." (III, 4) in 6°]. It may be said that, while this office certainly existed in the fourteenth century, as an independent bureau, it is impossible to determine the precise time of its creation.
The Dataria consisted first, of a cardinal
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
who was its chief and who, until the Sapienti consilio of Pope Pius X
Pope Pius X
Pope Saint Pius X , born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto, was the 257th Pope of the Catholic Church, serving from 1903 to 1914. He was the first pope since Pope Pius V to be canonized. Pius X rejected modernist interpretations of Catholic doctrine, promoting traditional devotional practices and orthodox...
, was called the pro-datary, but since had the official title of datarius, often anglicized as datary. There was formerly as much discussion about the title of pro-datary as about that of vice-chancellor in the Apostolic Chancery
Apostolic Chancery
The Chancery of Apostolic Briefs , is a former office of the Roman Curia, merged into the Congregation for Extraordinary Ecclesiastical Affairs by Pope Pius X on June 29, 1908 with the apostolic constitution Sapienti Consilio...
. Some hold it is derived from the fact that this office dated the rescript
Rescript
A rescript is a document that is issued not on the initiative of the author, but in response to a specific demand made by its addressee...
s or graces of the sovereign pontiff, while others hold it to be derived from the right to grant and give (dare) the graces and indults for which petition is made to the pope. It is certain that, on account of these functions the datary enjoyed great prestige in former times, when he was called the oculus papae ("eye of the pope"). After the cardinal came the subdatary, a prelate
Prelate
A prelate is a high-ranking member of the clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin prælatus, the past participle of præferre, which means "carry before", "be set above or over" or "prefer"; hence, a prelate is one set over others.-Related...
of the Curia who assisted the datary, and took his place, upon occasion, in almost all of his functions. In the old organization of the Dataria there came after the subdatary a number of subordinate officials who, as De Luca says, bore titles that were enigmatical and sibyllic
Sibyl
The word Sibyl comes from the Greek word σίβυλλα sibylla, meaning prophetess. The earliest oracular seeresses known as the sibyls of antiquity, "who admittedly are known only through legend" prophesied at certain holy sites, under the divine influence of a deity, originally— at Delphi and...
, for example the "prefect of the per obitum", the "prefect of the concessum", the "cashier of the componenda", an "officer of the missis" etc.
Pope Leo XIII
Pope Leo XIII
Pope Leo XIII , born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci to an Italian comital family, was the 256th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, reigning from 1878 to 1903...
had already introduced reforms into the organization of the Dataria, to make it harmonize with modern requirements. Pius X, reducing the competency of the office, gave it an entirely new organization in his apostolic constitution
Apostolic constitution
An apostolic constitution is the highest level of decree issued by the Pope. The use of the term constitution comes from Latin constitutio, which referred to any important law issued by the Roman emperor, and is retained in church documents because of the inheritance that the canon law of the...
"Sapienti consilio", according to which the Dataria consisted of the cardinal datary, the sub-datary, the prefect and his surrogate (sostituto), a few officers, a cashier who had also the office of distributor, a reviser and two writers of Papal Bull
Papal bull
A Papal bull is a particular type of letters patent or charter issued by a Pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the bulla that was appended to the end in order to authenticate it....
s. The new Constitution retained the theological examiners for the competitions for parishes. Among the Datary offices that were abolished mention should be made of that of the Apostolic dispatchers, which in the new organization of the Curia had no longer a reason for being: formerly these officials were necessary, because private persons could not refer directly to the Dataria, which dealt only with persons approved by itself, but since, anyone could deal directly with the Dataria, as with any of the other pontifical departments.
To the Dataria, which was commissioned to grant many papal indults and graces, remained only the tasks to investigate the fitness of candidates for Consistorial benefices, which are reserved to the Holy See, to write and to dispatch the Apostolic Letters for the collation of those benefices, to dispense from the conditions required in regard to them, and to provide for the pensions, or for the execution of the charges imposed by the Pope when conferring those benefices.
It would be both lengthy and difficult to retrace the former modes of procedure of this office, all the more as it was mainly regulated by tradition, which was jealously guarded by the officers of the Datary, who were generally laymen, and who had in that way established a species of monopoly as detrimental to the Holy See as profitable to themselves. Thus it happened that these offices often passed from father to son, while the ecclesiastical superiors of the officials were to a great extent blindly dependent upon them. Leo XIII began the reform of this condition of things so unfavorable to good administration, and Pius X totally abolished it.
Abolition
In 1967, following the Second Vatican CouncilSecond Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
, Pope Paul VI reorganized the Curia
Pope Paul VI's reform of the Roman Curia
Pope Paul VI's reform of the Roman Curia, in response to the altered needs of the Holy See and the Catholic Church as a whole, was achieved principally, but not solely, by his general reorganization of the Curia with the apostolic constitution of 15 August 1967.The Pope's aim, in effecting these...
with the apostolic constitution Regimini Ecclesiae universae of 15 August 1967. The Dataria was abolished.