 |
| H.E. Berhaneyesus D. Cardinal Souraphiel |
The Chairman of AMECEA H.E. Berhaneyesus D. Cardinal Souraphiel will take possession of his Titular Church on Sunday 18 October 2015 in the City of Rome after his election as Cardinal in February this year.
According to the information posted in the Vatican Information Service (VIS) on 12th October 2015, the announcement was made by the office of Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff on which it stated that Cardinal Berhaneyesus, the Archbishop of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, will take possession of the Title of ‘San Romano Martire’ (Roman Martyrs) located at Largo Antonio Beltramelli, 23 at 11 a.m.
AMECEA secretariat, on behalf of the region, wishes him the best of lucky and joins him in prayer on that very day.
Titular Churches are Catholic Churches which are assigned to one of the Cardinals. During the 3rd and 4th centuries, regions of Rome started being divided into Ecclesiastical Districts. It was at this time that the word “titulus” was used to refer to the early Christian Churches that were located around Rome. By then, the word “titular” was used to mean the founder of the Church who also held property for the Universal Church. These Churches were distinguished from each other by the name of the founder. But today, Titular Church indicates the bond of unity between a certain Local Church and the Church of Rome.
The Titular Churches are now what are today referred to as the Parish Churches. Ever since the establishment of Titular Churches in Rome during the 3rd century, many churches in Rome and in other parts of the world have received the status of Titular Churches. According to the early Catholic tradition, it was only the priests who were in charge of Titular Churches and the clergy in charge of the deaconries that were eligible to elect the pope. The Titular Churches were also only in existence in Rome during ancient times but this changed later and these churches were later established all over the world.
The Titular Churches still have a great significance to the Catholic Church. The churches symbolize the unity between themselves in their respective local areas and the Roman Catholic Church in Rome. They indicate and promote accord among the Catholics and demonstrate that the Roman Catholic Church is represented all over the world.
By Fr Chrisantus Ndaga, AMECEA Online News