The Savannah morning news., 1903-07-24
THE PONTIFICAL CHRONOLOGY.
Poorest Classes of SOciety-Why
They Change Their Names.


They Change Their Names.
Some etymologists derive the Italian
word papa from pater patriae, others
from pater patrum, or pastor pastor
UNI. Some affirm that it was formed
of the initial letters of the phrase,
"Petri Aposton Potestatem Accipiens."
1t is more natural to think that it's
origin WAS papas, the Greek word
fors father Christianity passed into
the Occident from the Orient. 1t was
not at Rome, but at Athens, and at
Corinth, that the new faith gained it's
first splendor. In Greece the fathers
of the church were acclaimed, while in
Italy they were tortured.
At first the Papal title was applied
to priests, monks, and Bishops. Dom
mi we're sancto ct reverendissimo
papae Augustine wrote St. Jerome to
st. Augustine, who was Bishop of Hip
pone. But when Rome had to seek
for protectors in other places than
Byzantium and Aix-la- Chapelle the
Roman Bishop Patriarch of the Oc-
cident and Lord of his diocese, claimed
the title as his property. The first Sc
rious objection to this claim occurred
in 1898. Then, Arnol oil, Archbishop of
"Papae Urbis Mediolani," was rebuk-,
ed and enjoined from it's use by the
Council of Pavia, at the complaint of
Gregory V.
Habit must have made apparently
| authoritative, however, the episcopal,
pretensions, since a council over which
| Gregory VII. presided found it neces-
sary to decree that the title of Pope
was the exclusive prerogative of the
| Bishop of the Eternal CITY
Gregory the Great adopted the for
mula, 'Servus Servorum DEL" servant
of the servants of God, in order to
make evident the vanity of the Pa
triarch of Constantinople, who aimed
at obtaining the Pope's office, and can
ed himself 'Ecumenical Bishop"
| At present the Popes entitle them
selves Bishops of Rome, Wears of
Jesus Christ, Successors to the Prince
| of the Apostles, Grand Pontiffs of the
| Universal Church, Patriarchs of the
Occident, Primates of Italy, Arch
bishops and Metropolitans of the Tenn
| poral Dominions of the Holy Roman
| Church.
They command the Catholic HE
archy, which is composed of cardinals,
patriarchs, archbishops, bishops,
! priests, monks, and, in brief, all &C.
| clesiastics The list of this hierarchy
! contained ten years ago more than 700
patriarchs, archbishops and bishops In
| residence, and more than 200 of these
officers lin partibus," about 1000 prov
inces or dioceses and more than 200,-
100000 subjects. The Popes are abso-
| lutte rulers over these, in spite of all
! that may be said about Parliamentary
| Catholics.
The Popes create the cardinals, in
vest the bishops, authorize or suppress
the religious orders, beatty, canonize,
| -. nd
| maintenance of dogmas, and execute
on their own authority all the powers
which were formerly the prerogatiVes
! of general councils.
| From the pontifical chronology the
following statistics are aderived: Forty
| Popes reigned for less than year.
twenty from one to two years, twenty
six from two to three years, sixteen
| from three to four years. twelve from
four to five years, seventeen from five
TO six years. twelve from six to seven
| wears. seven from seven to eight years,
| twelve from eight to nine years, thir-
| teen from nine to ten years, thirteen
| from eleven to twelve years, eight from
| twelve to thirteen years, eight from
| thirteen to fourteen years, four from
fourteen to fifteen years, ten from fif-
teen to sixteen years, two from sixteen
to seventeen years, two from seventeen
to eighteen years, four from eighteen
| to nineteen years, three from twenty
to twenty-one years, two from twenty
one to twenty-five years, three from
twenty-three to twenty-four years, one
from twenty-four to twenty-five years,
one from twenty-five to twentY-slx
years, and one for more than twenty
| six years.
The longest pontifcate was, until the
time of Gregory XVI, that of st. Peter.
! who relgned twenty-five years two
months and seven days. current say
ing was. Non videbis amos Petri,
Thou shalt not see the years of Peter:
Plus TX saw and surpassed them. His
was the longest pontihcate. The Snort
est was that Of Stephen a. IN Ie5. - -
lasted three DAYS Nine POpes reigned
for less than a month.
There were 208 Italians, lO4 OF wnom
were Romans; IS Frenchmen, Ger