An episcopal conference, sometimes called a conference of bishops, is an official assembly of the bishops of the Catholic Church in a given territory. Episcopal conferences have long existed as informal entities. The first assembly of bishops to meet regularly, with its own legal structure and ecclesial leadership function, is the Swiss Bishops' Conference, which was founded in 1863.[1] More than forty episcopal conferences existed before the Second Vatican Council.[2] Their status was confirmed by the Second Vatican Council[3] and further defined by Pope Paul VI's 1966 motu proprio, Ecclesiae sanctae.[4][5]
Episcopal conferences are generally defined by geographic borders, often national ones, with all the bishops in a given country belonging to the same conference, although they may also include neighboring countries. Certain authority and tasks are assigned to episcopal conferences, particularly with regard to setting the liturgical norms for the Mass. Episcopal conferences receive their authority under universal law or particular mandates. In certain circumstances, as defined by canon law, the decisions of an episcopal conference are subject to ratification from the Holy See. Individual bishops do not relinquish their immediate authority for the governance of their respective dioceses to the conference.[6]
The operation, authority, and responsibilities of episcopal conferences are currently governed by the 1983 Code of Canon Law (see especially canons 447–459)[7][8] In addition, there are assemblies of bishops which include the bishops of different rites in a nation, both Eastern Catholic and Latin Catholic; these are described in canon 322 §2 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches.
The nature of episcopal conferences, and their magisterial authority in particular, was subsequently clarified by Pope John Paul II in his 1998 motu proprio, Apostolos suos, which stated that the declarations of such conferences "constitute authentic magisterium" when approved unanimously by the conference; otherwise the conference must achieve a two-thirds majority and seek the recognitio, that is, recognition of approval, of the Holy See, which they will not receive if the majority "is not substantial".[9]
In the 2013 apostolic exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium, Pope Francis expressed his concern that the intent of the Second Vatican Council, which would give episcopal conferences "genuine doctrinal authority, has not yet been sufficiently elaborated."[10] On September 9, 2017, Pope Francis modified canon law, granting episcopal conferences specific authority "to faithfully prepare … approve and publish the liturgical books for the regions for which they are responsible after the confirmation of the Apostolic See." The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, which formerly had primary responsibility for translations, was ordered to "help the Episcopal Conferences to fulfil their task."[11][12] On October 22, 2017, the Holy See released a letter that Pope Francis had sent to the Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Cardinal Robert Sarah, clarifying that the Holy See and its departments would have only limited authority to confirm liturgical translations recognized by a local episcopal conference.[13] In late February, 2018, the Council of Cardinals and Pope Francis undertook a consideration of the theological status of episcopal conferences, re-reading Pope John Paul II's Apostolos Suos in the light of Pope Francis's Evangelii Gaudium.[14]
^Histoire: Les origines de la CES: première expérience au monde d'une conférence épiscopale nationale (in French), Fribourg: Service de presse de la Conférence des évêques suisses, retrieved 6 March 2018
^McAleese, Mary (2012), Quo Vadis?: Collegiality in the Code of Canon Law (Kindle ed.), Blackrock, Ireland: The Columba Press, locations 2463-2466, ISBN978-1-85607-786-6
^Christus Dominus: Decree Concerning the Pastoral Office of Bishops in the Church, 28 October 1965, §36–38, retrieved 7 March 2018
^Ecclesiae sanctae, 6 August 1966, retrieved 7 March 2018
^The Limits of the Papacy, p. 97, by Patrick Granfield, Crossroad, New York, 1987. ISBN0-8245-0839-4
^John Paul II (21 May 1998), Apostolos suos; On the Theological and Juridical Nature of Episcopal Conferences, Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, §19, retrieved 7 March 2018
^Code of Canon Law, 1983, §447-459, retrieved 5 March 2018
^John Paul II (21 May 1998), Apostolos suos; On the Theological and Juridical Nature of Episcopal Conferences, Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, §5, retrieved 5 March 2018
^John Paul II (21 May 1998), Apostolos suos; On the Theological and Juridical Nature of Episcopal Conferences, Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, §22, retrieved 25 June 2015
^Francis (2013), Evangelii Gaudium(PDF), Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, §32, retrieved 28 Feb 2018, The Second Vatican Council stated that, like the ancient patriarchal Churches, episcopal conferences are in a position 'to contribute in many and fruitful ways to the concrete realization of the collegial spirit'. Yet this desire has not been fully realized, since a juridical status of episcopal conferences which would see them as subjects of specific attributions, including genuine doctrinal authority, has not yet been sufficiently elaborated.
^Francis (9 September 2017), Magnum Principium (Motu Proprio), Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, retrieved 13 March 2018
^Horowitz, Jason (9 Sep 2017), "Pope Francis Shifts Power From Rome With 'Hugely Important' Liturgical Reform", New York Times
^Wooden, Cindy (22 Oct 2017), , Catholic News Service, archived from the original on October 22, 2017, retrieved 1 March 2018
^Briefing by the Director of the Holy See Press Office, Greg Burke, on the 23rd meeting of the Council of Cardinals with the Holy Father Francis, 28.02.2018, Vatican City: Holy See Press Office, 28 Feb 2018, retrieved 1 March 2018
^ abAnnuario Pontificio per l'anno 2010 [Annuario Pontificio of 2010]. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana. 2010.
^The Regional Episcopal Conference of North Africa includes the bishops of Algeria, Libya, Morocco, and Tunisia.
^The Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference includes the bishops of South Africa, Botswana, and Swaziland.
^"UTEMELJENA BISKUPSKA KONFERENCIJA SR JUGOSLAVIJE" [Bishop's Conference of FR Yugoslavia Established]. Catholic Press Agency, Zagreb. 17 December 1997. Retrieved 13 October 2014.
^"Priopćenje za javnost". International Bishops' Conference of Sts. Cyril and St. Methodius. 10 April 2008. Retrieved 13 October 2014.
^"XIII. plenarno zasjedanje BK Srbije i Crne Gore" [13th Plenary Meeting of the Bishops' Conference of Serbia and Montenegro]. Catholic Press Agency, Zagreb. 21 January 2005. Retrieved 13 October 2014.
^The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops includes the bishop of the U.S. Territory of the Virgin Islands, but not the bishops of the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the three U.S. dependencies in the Pacific (U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, U.S. Territory of American Samoa, and U.S. Territory of Guam).
Further reading
Sullivan, Francis (2002), "The Teaching Authority of Episcopal Conferences" (PDF), Theological Studies, 63 (3): 472–493
External links
List of all episcopal conferences by Giga-Catholic Information
The Hierarchy of the Catholic Church by David M. Cheney
May 02, 2023
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An episcopal conference sometimes called a conference of bishops is an official assembly of the bishops of the Catholic Church in a given territory Episcopal conferences have long existed as informal entities The first assembly of bishops to meet regularly with its own legal structure and ecclesial leadership function is the Swiss Bishops Conference which was founded in 1863 1 More than forty episcopal conferences existed before the Second Vatican Council 2 Their status was confirmed by the Second Vatican Council 3 and further defined by Pope Paul VI s 1966 motu proprio Ecclesiae sanctae 4 5 Episcopal conferences are generally defined by geographic borders often national ones with all the bishops in a given country belonging to the same conference although they may also include neighboring countries Certain authority and tasks are assigned to episcopal conferences particularly with regard to setting the liturgical norms for the Mass Episcopal conferences receive their authority under universal law or particular mandates In certain circumstances as defined by canon law the decisions of an episcopal conference are subject to ratification from the Holy See Individual bishops do not relinquish their immediate authority for the governance of their respective dioceses to the conference 6 Contents 1 Theological and juridical status 2 List of episcopal conferences 2 1 National episcopal conferences 2 1 1 Africa 2 1 2 Asia 2 1 3 Europe 2 1 4 Oceania 2 1 5 North America 2 1 6 South America 2 2 Other episcopal bodies 2 2 1 Synods of eastern rite churches 2 2 2 Assemblies of bishops 2 2 3 International Meetings of Episcopal Conferences 3 See also 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External linksTheological and juridical status EditThe operation authority and responsibilities of episcopal conferences are currently governed by the 1983 Code of Canon Law see especially canons 447 459 7 8 In addition there are assemblies of bishops which include the bishops of different rites in a nation both Eastern Catholic and Latin Catholic these are described in canon 322 2 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches The nature of episcopal conferences and their magisterial authority in particular was subsequently clarified by Pope John Paul II in his 1998 motu proprio Apostolos suos which stated that the declarations of such conferences constitute authentic magisterium when approved unanimously by the conference otherwise the conference must achieve a two thirds majority and seek the recognitio that is recognition of approval of the Holy See which they will not receive if the majority is not substantial 9 In the 2013 apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium Pope Francis expressed his concern that the intent of the Second Vatican Council which would give episcopal conferences genuine doctrinal authority has not yet been sufficiently elaborated 10 On September 9 2017 Pope Francis modified canon law granting episcopal conferences specific authority to faithfully prepare approve and publish the liturgical books for the regions for which they are responsible after the confirmation of the Apostolic See The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments which formerly had primary responsibility for translations was ordered to help the Episcopal Conferences to fulfil their task 11 12 On October 22 2017 the Holy See released a letter that Pope Francis had sent to the Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments Cardinal Robert Sarah clarifying that the Holy See and its departments would have only limited authority to confirm liturgical translations recognized by a local episcopal conference 13 In late February 2018 the Council of Cardinals and Pope Francis undertook a consideration of the theological status of episcopal conferences re reading Pope John Paul II s Apostolos Suos in the light of Pope Francis s Evangelii Gaudium 14 List of episcopal conferences EditNational episcopal conferences Edit Source 15 Africa Edit Episcopal Conference of Angola and Sao Tome Episcopal Conference of Benin Conference of Bishops of Burkina Faso and of Niger Conference of Catholic Bishops of Burundi National Episcopal Conference of Cameroon Central African Episcopal Conference Episcopal Conference of Chad Episcopal Conference of the Congo Episcopal Conference of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Episcopal Conference of the Cote d Ivoire Episcopal Conference of Equatorial Guinea Assembly of Catholic Hierarchs of Ethiopia and Eritrea Episcopal Conference of Gabon Inter territorial Catholic Bishops Conference of The Gambia and Sierra Leone Ghana Bishops Conference Episcopal Conference of Guinea Episcopal Conference of the Indian Ocean Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops Lesotho Catholic Bishops Conference Catholic Bishops Conference of Liberia Episcopal Conference of Madagascar Episcopal Conference of Malawi Episcopal Conference of Mali Episcopal Conference of Mozambique Namibian Catholic Bishops Conference Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria Regional Episcopal Conference of North Africa 16 Conference of Catholic Bishops of Rwanda Conference of Bishops of Senegal Mauritania Cape Verde and Guinea Bissau Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference SACBC 17 Sudan Catholic Bishops Conference Tanzania Episcopal Conference Episcopal Conference of Togo Uganda Episcopal Conference Zambia Episcopal Conference Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops ConferenceAsia Edit Headquarters of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines in Manila Conference of the Latin Bishops of the Arab Regions Catholic Bishops Conference of Bangladesh Bishops Conference of Central Asia includes the bishops of Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Tajikistan Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan Chinese Regional Bishops Conference Conference of Catholic Bishops of India CCBI Bishops Conference of Indonesia KWI Catholic Bishops Conference of Japan Catholic Bishops Conference of Korea Episcopal Conference of Laos and Cambodia Catholic Bishops Conference of Malaysia Singapore and Brunei CBCMSB Catholic Bishops Conference of Myanmar Catholic Bishops Conference of Pakistan Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines Catholic Bishops Conference of Thailand Episcopal Conference of Turkey Catholic Bishops Conference of Sri Lanka Catholic Bishops Conference of VietnamEurope Edit Headquarters of the Lithuanian Bishops Conference in Vilnius Episcopal Conference of Albania Austrian Bishops Conference Conference of Catholic Bishops of Belarus Episcopal Conference of Belgium Bishops Conference of Bosnia and Herzegovina Episcopal Conference of Bulgaria Croatian Bishops Conference Czech Bishops Conference Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales Bishops Conference of France CEF German Bishops Conference Holy Synod of Catholic Bishops of Greece Catholic Bishops Conference of Hungary Irish Catholic Bishops Conference Italian Episcopal Conference CEI Latvian Bishops Conference Lithuanian Bishops Conference 1 Maltese Episcopal Conference Bishops Conference of the Netherlands Polish Episcopal Conference Portuguese Episcopal Conference Romanian Episcopal Conference Conference of Catholic Bishops of the Russian Federation International Bishops Conference of Saints Cyril and Methodius called Bishops Conference of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia between 1997 18 19 and 2005 20 Includes the bishops of Serbia Montenegro Kosovo and Macedonia Bishops Conference of Yugoslavia 1918 1993 Scandinavian Bishops Conference includes the bishops of Denmark Finland Iceland Norway and Sweden Bishops Conference of Scotland Conference of Slovak Bishops Slovenian Bishops Conference Spanish Episcopal Conference Swiss Bishops Conference Ukrainian Episcopal ConferenceOceania Edit Australian Catholic Bishops Conference New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference Episcopal Conference of the Pacific C E PAC 21 Catholic Bishops Conference of Papua New Guinea and Solomon IslandsNorth America Edit Headquarters of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in Washington DC Antilles Episcopal Conference Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops CCCB Episcopal Conference of Costa Rica Conference of Catholic Bishops of Cuba Conference of the Dominican Episcopate CED Episcopal Conference of El Salvador Episcopal Conference of Guatemala Episcopal Conference of Haiti Episcopal Conference of Honduras Conference of the Mexican Episcopate CEM Episcopal Conference of Nicaragua Episcopal Conference of Panama Puerto Rican Episcopal Conference CEP United States Conference of Catholic Bishops USCCB 22 South America Edit Argentine Episcopal Conference CEA Bolivian Episcopal Conference National Conference of Bishops of Brazil CNBB Episcopal Conference of Chile CECh Episcopal Conference of Colombia Ecuadorian Episcopal Conference Paraguayan Episcopal Conference Peruvian Episcopal Conference Episcopal Conference of Uruguay Venezuelan Episcopal ConferenceOther episcopal bodies Edit In addition to the episcopal conferences as defined by the Holy See there are a number of other regional groupings of bishops 15 1101 06 Synods of eastern rite churches Edit Synods of Bishops of the Patriarchal and Major Archiepiscopal Churches Synod of the Armenian Catholic Church Synod of the Chaldean Church Synod of the Catholic Coptic Church Synod of the Greek Catholic Ukrainian Church Synod of the Greek Melkite Catholic Church Synod of the Romanian Church Synod of the Syrian Catholic Church Synod of the Syro Malabarese Church Synod of the Syro Malankarese Church Council of the Ethiopian Church Council of the Ruthenian Church U S A Council of the Slovakian ChurchAssemblies of bishops Edit National assemblies of Hierarchs of Churches Sui Iuris including eastern Catholic as well as Latin ordinaries Assembly of the Catholic Hierarchy of Egypt Assembly of the Catholic Bishops of Iraq Assembly of the Patriarchs and Bishops of Lebanon Assembly of the Catholic Hierarchs of Syria Assembly of the Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land Iranian Episcopal Conference Catholic Bishops Conference of India CBCI International Meetings of Episcopal Conferences Edit Council of Catholic Patriarchs of the East Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar Regional Episcopal Conference of Francophone West Africa Association of Episcopal Conferences of Central Africa Association of Episcopal Conferences of the Region of Central Africa Association of Member Episcopal Conferences in Eastern Africa Inter Regional Meeting of Bishops of Southern Africa Reunion of Episcopal Conferences of West Africa Federation of Asian Bishops Conferences Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania FCBCO Council of European Bishops Conferences CCEE Commission of the Bishops Conferences of the European Community COMECE Latin American Episcopal Council CELAM Episcopal Secretariate of Central America and PanamaSee also Edit Catholicism portalCatholic Church hierarchy Collegiality in the Catholic Church Episcopal see Roman Curia DicasteryReferences Edit Histoire Les origines de la CES premiere experience au monde d une conference episcopale nationale in French Fribourg Service de presse de la Conference des eveques suisses retrieved 6 March 2018 McAleese Mary 2012 Quo Vadis Collegiality in the Code of Canon Law Kindle ed Blackrock Ireland The Columba Press locations 2463 2466 ISBN 978 1 85607 786 6 Christus Dominus Decree Concerning the Pastoral Office of Bishops in the Church 28 October 1965 36 38 retrieved 7 March 2018 Ecclesiae sanctae 6 August 1966 retrieved 7 March 2018 The Limits of the Papacy p 97 by Patrick Granfield Crossroad New York 1987 ISBN 0 8245 0839 4 John Paul II 21 May 1998 Apostolos suos On the Theological and Juridical Nature of Episcopal Conferences Vatican City Libreria Editrice Vaticana 19 retrieved 7 March 2018 Code of Canon Law 1983 447 459 retrieved 5 March 2018 John Paul II 21 May 1998 Apostolos suos On the Theological and Juridical Nature of Episcopal Conferences Vatican City Libreria Editrice Vaticana 5 retrieved 5 March 2018 John Paul II 21 May 1998 Apostolos suos On the Theological and Juridical Nature of Episcopal Conferences Vatican City Libreria Editrice Vaticana 22 retrieved 25 June 2015 Francis 2013 Evangelii Gaudium PDF Vatican City Libreria Editrice Vaticana 32 retrieved 28 Feb 2018 The Second Vatican Council stated that like the ancient patriarchal Churches episcopal conferences are in a position to contribute in many and fruitful ways to the concrete realization of the collegial spirit Yet this desire has not been fully realized since a juridical status of episcopal conferences which would see them as subjects of specific attributions including genuine doctrinal authority has not yet been sufficiently elaborated Francis 9 September 2017 Magnum Principium Motu Proprio Vatican City Libreria Editrice Vaticana retrieved 13 March 2018 Horowitz Jason 9 Sep 2017 Pope Francis Shifts Power From Rome With Hugely Important Liturgical Reform New York Times Wooden Cindy 22 Oct 2017 In letter to Cardinal Sarah pope clarifies new translation norms Catholic News Service archived from the original on October 22 2017 retrieved 1 March 2018 Briefing by the Director of the Holy See Press Office Greg Burke on the 23rd meeting of the Council of Cardinals with the Holy Father Francis 28 02 2018 Vatican City Holy See Press Office 28 Feb 2018 retrieved 1 March 2018 a b Annuario Pontificio per l anno 2010 Annuario Pontificio of 2010 Vatican City Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2010 The Regional Episcopal Conference of North Africa includes the bishops of Algeria Libya Morocco and Tunisia The Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference includes the bishops of South Africa Botswana and Swaziland UTEMELJENA BISKUPSKA KONFERENCIJA SR JUGOSLAVIJE Bishop s Conference of FR Yugoslavia Established Catholic Press Agency Zagreb 17 December 1997 Retrieved 13 October 2014 Priopcenje za javnost International Bishops Conference of Sts Cyril and St Methodius 10 April 2008 Retrieved 13 October 2014 XIII plenarno zasjedanje BK Srbije i Crne Gore 13th Plenary Meeting of the Bishops Conference of Serbia and Montenegro Catholic Press Agency Zagreb 21 January 2005 Retrieved 13 October 2014 The Episcopal Conference of the Pacific is made up of the bishops of Cook Islands Fiji French Polynesia Kiribati Marshall Islands Micronesia New Caledonia Palau Samoa Tonga Tuvalu Vanuatu Wallis and Futuna and three U S dependencies U S Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands U S Territory of American Samoa and U S Territory of Guam Conferentia Episcopalis Pacifici C E PAC GCatholic website Retrieved 2011 02 13 The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops includes the bishop of the U S Territory of the Virgin Islands but not the bishops of the U S Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the three U S dependencies in the Pacific U S Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands U S Territory of American Samoa and U S Territory of Guam Further reading EditSullivan Francis 2002 The Teaching Authority of Episcopal Conferences PDF Theological Studies 63 3 472 493External links EditList of all episcopal conferences by Giga Catholic Information The Hierarchy of the Catholic Church by David M Cheney Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Episcopal conference amp oldid 1133949106, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
