
Diego Rodriguez de Silva y Velazquez
FREE Catholic Classes
Spanish painter, b. at Seville 5 June, 1599 (the certificate of baptism is dated 6 June); d. at Madrid, 7 August, 1660. His father, Juan Rodriguez, belonged to the Portuguese family of Silva; the child took the name of his mother, Gerónima Velazquez. He entered the studio of the aged Herrera, but could not stand his temper, and soon left for the studio of Pacheco, whose school at Seville was the most frequented. Although one of the most tiresome of romanticizing painters, Pacheco was a cultured mind, appreciative of a genius opposed to his own. As a critic, poet, and man of the world, Pacheco was the centre of the first literary salon in the city, and from this society young Velazquez received an education through contact and conversation with superior men. Before he was twenty he had married Pacheco's daughter Dona Juana. Two daughters were born to him before 1622, when the young painter decided to seek his fortune at Madrid.
Here, through Canon Fonseca, a friend of his, who held a post at Court, he was enabled to visit the royal collections at the Alcazar, Prado, and especially the Escorial, with its matchless collection of Tintorettos and Titians. This was the sole benefit of his visit, and after some several months Velazquez returned to Seville. When Philip IV raised the Sevilian Olivarez to power, Fonseca summoned Velazquez back to Madrid, and he obtained permission to paint the king's portrait in the court of the riding school. This portrait, now lost, was an event. Thenceforth Velazquez had the exclusive right to paint the person of the king. By a patent of 31 October, 1623, he was appointed painter of the chamber, with a salary of twenty ducats payable out of the appropriation for court surgeons and barbers.
For thirty-seven years Velazquez's fortune lasted; even the fall of Olivarez, in 1643, did not lessen the royal favour towards Velazquez, who rose one degree in official functions with each year, becoming in turn gentleman of the bed-chamber, master of the wardrobe, and finally (1652) aposentador , or quartermaster of the royal migrations. His life was now that of a functionary occupied with multifarious duties in a Court noted for the oddities of its protocol, and the strictness of its etiquette. This monotonous and somewhat empty existence was varied by sojourns at Aranjuez and gala excursions which entailed upon Velazquez serious cares and unpleasant tasks; only two journeys to Italy, twenty years apart (1629, 1649), brought him a breath of fresh air, freedom, and relaxation. The artist, however, did not suffer in consequence of these conditions. He had solicited all these offices, and they brought him consideration and honour. At the end of a corridor at the Alcazar, in a world of ministries and bureaux, he lived his own life, which he has shown us in a picture by his son-in-law, Mazao, in a vast, bare Arabian apartment, with a rose in a glass shedding its petals before a bust of the king. Philip, indeed, always carried about with him a key to the studio of Velazquez, and went daily to spend an hour there--to find a brief distraction from the sense of weariness which is expressed in his melancholy countenance. This intimacy was Velazquez' romance; it lends a peculiar charm to the long series of portraits the painter made of his royal friend.
This peculiar situation makes Velazquez a figure somewhat apart in the Spanish School. In an art almost exclusively religious he alone is a lay painter ; he alone scarcely ever painted for convents and churches; he alone had occasion to paint historical pictures, mythological scenes, and nudes; he was almost alone in avoiding the scenes of martyrdoms and scenes of torture so characteristic of Spanish painting. These facts, however, point to no conclusion concerning Velazquez' sentiments; for instance, it does not follow that he was not a good Catholic, though it may well be that he was not a mystic.
Compare the Olympian, majestic serenity of his splendid "Crucifixion" of the Prado, with the distorted, pale Christs of Theotocopuli ; the evident difference is that between simple respect and religious passion. At bottom no one is less unrestrained in his art than Velazquez, no one gives us fewer confidences nor fewer opportunities to read the secret of his heart. He felt no compulsion to produce something; he was not tormented by any thirst for glory or for self-expression. About 200 canvases constitute his entire output, three-quarters of them portraits, and the facility exhibited borders on the marvellous. Velazquez seems to have had no imagination ; his work is perhaps the most remarkable existing example of exclusively naturalistic and realistic art. He never invented anything; he never showed any desire to seem original; he only sought more and more rapid and artistic ways of expressing facts without any intermingling of personality, painting with the same indifference still life or an historical scene, a king or a buffoon, the body of a young girl or a monstrous dwarf; sweeping the universe with his imperturbable gaze and embracing without love or repugnance all forms of life, whether beautiful or hideous, like an impassive mirror of nature. His whole art, his whole ideal, all the interior life and the progress of this incomparable painter, lay in a more and more perfect reproduction of things. It may be said that, starting from a pure realism, Velazquez reaches in his last works a sort of impressionism or phenomenalism, and it is this which for forty years has constituted him the foremost master of modern painting.
His first works were those executed at Seville before his journey to Madrid and his first contact with the Italian masters. These belong to the class of bodegones , or pictures of still life, and are exclusively mere studies. The young painter sought to express simple objects, fruits and vegetables, kitchen utensils, jars, and alcarazas ; he was studying, and he learned to translate things directly, constructed his vocabulary without troubling masters, and consulted only nature itself. This was the method of Rembrandt's early work, as also of Chardin's and, in more recent times, of Cézanne's. Most of the important pictures of this early period are now outside of Spain. Such are "The Water-Carrier of Seville" (c. 1618) (Apsley House); the "Two at Breakfast" (same collection); the "Three at Breakfast" (the Hermitage); the "Blind Woman " in the possession of Sir Francis Cook; "Christ in the House of Martha and Mary" (National Gallery, London ), which, despite its title, is a scene at an inn with two coarse women ; lastly the "St. Peter" of the Beruete collection and the "Nativity" of the Prado (1619), which is the author's largest picture of this date and likewise the best of all.
During the seven years (1623-29) which preceded the first journey to Italy we know that he painted, besides various portraits mentioned below, a large composition called the "Expulsion of the Moriscoes" (1677) which unfortunately perished in the burning of the Alcazar and not even an engraving of it remains. But to the same period belongs an important picture, the "Bacchus", or "The Drunkards", dating doubtless from 1628, and permitting us to judge of his progress. This, also, despite its mythological title, is a very real subject; each face is a portrait, one of those portraits of rustics and beggars, a company recruited from a picturesque rabble, which became fashionable about the beginning of the eighteenth century through the reaction against the idealist system, and which in Spain furnished the material for the picaresque romance. Otherwise the work is magnificent: each head, with its brick-dust tint and sunburnt skin, is superbly forceful and brilliant; the bodies of the two half-clad lads are splendid bits. But, as a whole, the picture is cloudy, lifeless, heavy, and characterized by a crass sensuality.
At this juncture Velazquez made the acquaintance of Rubens, who had come to Madrid on a mission to the King of Spain. Rubens' prodigious activity stirred the apathy of the Andalusian artist; animated by curiosity and a new insight, the young man set out for Italy shortly after the departure of the Fleming. He stayed there a year, visited Venice and Rome, and returned by way of Naples, bringing back from the journey the fruit of contact with Italy and the antique, a new conception of the meaning of art. This was soon made manifest in two large pictures which Velazquez painted after his return, but had perhaps begun in Italy, "Joseph's Coat" ( Escorial ) and the "Forge of Vulcan" (Prado) (c. 1631). As in "The Drunkards", the idea and characters, the subject and types, were, despite the title, of a popular nature ; the "Forge" especially is a genre picture taken from life and but little altered. He here begins to employ that silvery and exquisitely limpid tone which he constantly made more delicate and fluid, and which was thenceforth the great resource of his poetry and the chief agent of his transformations.
This progress of art in Velazquez is shown chiefly in the work of this period, "Christ at the Column" (National Gallery, London ) and the "Crucifixion" of the Prado, which Théophile Gautier has compared to a beautiful ivory crucifix on a background of dark velvet. But Velazquez' genius reached its grandest expression at this time in the famous and magnificent picture of "The Lances" (see SPAIN, full-page illustration). The subject is well known: the surrender of Breda, the meeting of the two approaching forces, Nassau followed by his Dutch gunners, Spinola at the head of the picket of lances which gives its name to the work, and the charming gesture of military comradeship, whereby the victor welcomes the vanquished. Two races face each other in a living contrast of faces and costumes, an abundance of portraits, picturesqueness, and colour, a charm and brilliancy of expressions which perhaps have never been equalled in any school. The beauty of the horse, the spirit of the arrangement, the apparent facility, the grandeur of the landscape, the quantity of ambient air, the breadth of the colour scheme, the particular sonorousness of tone, the style, at once natural and joyfully heroic, constitute this immense canvas a unique triumph at this period of Velazquez' work. The central group impersonates Spanish courtesy in its noblest and most chivalrous aspect. The importance of the subject, the dimensions of the work, the incomparable success of plastic expression, picturesque and natural interest with a significance for Spain which some years later "The Night Watch" was to have for Holland, while for clearness of expression, value of colours and physiognomies, Velazquez had the advantage. We may seek in vain in the seventeenth century for anything comparable to this historic canvas. Yet it may be asked is this Velazquez' masterpiece? Has it the immense virtuosity presumed for such a canvas as properly its own? Is not this decorative grandeur borrowed from Veronese or Titian ? The very popularity of the work shows that it was according to a received formula, and if Velazquez had died immediately after "The Lances", he still would have been one of the foremost painters of the world, one of the most wonderful artists of the Venetian family, but we should not have known the most intimate and original side of his genius.
For twenty years his portraits formed the chief part of his work. "He only knows how to paint heads", his enemies said of him. "They pay me a great compliment", replied the phlegmatic artist, "for I know of no one else who can do as much." The royal family, Philip IV, his brother the cardinal infante, his two wives, his young son Don Balthazar Carlos, the infanta Margaret, constitute nearly all the contributions to his incomparable gallery; from 1624 to 1660 there are more than twenty portraits of the king himself, and it is doubtful if there exists elsewhere a similar artistic monograph or biography of the same individual; but taken together with those of his circle--his brother, his wives, and his children--these portraits assume a new value and constitute a human document of the first order; they form the reconstruction of a vanished circle, the natural history of the agony of a race. There is to be found nowhere a collection of portraits of such powerful and pathetic interest.
The portraits of Velazquez are distinguished for their absolute truth and the total absence of striving for effect. No royal personage, especially in the seventeenth century, was ever surrounded with less pomp; compared with these portraits Rigaud's "Louis XIV" seems theatrical and bombastic; Van Dyck's "Charles I" foppish, beruffled, and flippant. The black dress, black cloak, black shoes and stockings, the puritanical-looking golilla or Spanish collar, give to Velazquez' portraits a strange severity; we feel the supreme dignity and distinction of a grandeur which is not indebted to costumes or accessories; the prince shows himself and wins our recognition by his presence alone: Yo el Rey . A new stage is marked by the portraits of the king, the cardinal infante, and Balthazar Carlos in hunting costume, made about 1635 for the decoration of a pavilion of the Torre del Pareja; between these three figures treated in a tone of bistre bordering on monochrome the artist has sought new relations and a sort of harmony expressed in the motif, the landscape, the atmosphere, and above all the choice of the tone. An exercise of the same kind, with immense progress in the orchestration, consists of the portraits of the king, Olivarez, and the infante, on horseback, made to adorn a hall of the Prado. After so many masterpieces, it is still a question whether Velazquez ever produced anything happier or more complete than the splendid Infante Balthazar Carlos astride his little chestnut horse, galloping briskly on an April morning on the bare and joyous slopes of the sierras.
Besides these royal series mention must be made of some separate portraits, such as the "Lady in Black" of the Museum of Berlin, the full-length portrait of Admiral Pulido Pareja (1639, Longford Castle), and especially the face of the sculptor Martinez Montanez (Madrid, c. 1645), one of the master's simplest and most extraordinary works. To this period (from 1640) belong two new series in which Velazquez' formula becomes elaborated into his latest manner and the qualities of observer, artist, and harmonist are blended to produce the unparalleled masterpieces of 1655. These are the two series of "Dwarfs" and "Infantes". The seven or eight pictures of dwarfs--the "Niño de Valecas" or the "Boho de Coria " possessed by the Museum of Madrid --afford a glimpse of the familiar life of the Spanish Court in the seventeenth century which nothing can replace; without them we could not imagine the hardness of this world of feasting and luxury which, to enhance its joy by contrast, suffered all the miseries of life to creep in its shadow. The unconscious cruelty which takes such pictures for granted is what Velazquez has in common with the ferocious side of his race and, for example, with the sanguinary art of Ribera. This collection of frightful studies, these pictures of cripples, goblins, abortions, might serve to illustrate a treatise on teratology. The painter shows neither affection nor disgust; he was no repugnance to painting what nature is not ashamed of creating and what the sun shines upon. This gallery of monsters is, after all, one of his most fascinating creations.
FREE Catholic Classes Pick a class, you can learn anything
In the parallel series of portraits--the infantas at Vienna, Madrid, and in the Louvre--the great painter's otherwise far from tender work is endowed with the peculiar characteristic derived from the presence of women. And yet a strange picture, indeed, of the eternal feminine is presented by these young figures, paralyzed by etiquette, deformed by ridiculous and extravagant fashions. The artist, thenceforth the finished master of his technic, and possessed of the language which was to be the element of his last works, confined himself to playing like a virtuoso with details of reality which took his fancy. He no longer sought to imitate nature itself, to paint slavishly the substance of things, but was content to barely evoke the appearance and arrange on his canvas just what would suggest the whole impression. He ceased to paint facts or, rather, the only facts which he depicted were his intimate sensations. For him, reality henceforth consisted only in the reflexion of things perceived in his consciousness, and this abbreviated reflexion, this new and inner reality, was what he threw into his picture. Thus proceeding slowly and from experience to experience, the painter passed from the mere copying of material facts to the most individual and original expression known in painting. In this period (1649-50) occurred the painter's second journey to Italy, commemorated by three or four masterpieces, the two landscapes of the Villa Medici, preserved at Madrid, which possess all the grace of the most delightful Corots, and the portrait of Velazquez' mulatto slave Juan de Pareja (Castle Howard), with which the artist preluded the magnificent portrait of Pope Innocent X (Palazzo Doria), the finest portrait of a pope save Raphael's Julius II.
On his return to Madrid the painter, now definitely freed from all shackles, and strong enough to handle all ideas as he pleased, produced one after another the most decided, and most precious of his works. Such, for example, were the two famous philosophers, the "Æsop", and the "Menippus" of the Prado, the most beautiful example of this class of Spanish mendicancy akin to the "Drunkards" of thirty years earlier. Such, likewise, were the two companion pictures, the only existing fragments of an entire decoration-the "Mercury and Argus" of the Prado and the "Venus with the Mirror" of the National Gallery. The "Mars" and the "Coronation of the Virgin", at the Prado, are less pleasing, and original works. For a long time, owing to the nature of his ideas and the constant development of his researches, Velazquez devoted himself to the solution of a more important problem. We have seen how in "The Lances" he had attempted historical painting, and what prevented him from succeeding therein. Thenceforth he devoted himself to a new idea through a whole series of works, to express directly, in the fashion of a portrait, not merely an historical scene nor a single figure but a complete action of daily life. Thus, small pictures such as the "Boar Hunt" (Callace Collection, c. 1636), "Balthazar Carlos in the Riding School" (Wallace Collection, c. 1640), and the "View of Saragossa" lead us up to Velazquez' grandest works, those which contain all his genius and present the highest expression of his art, such as "The Spinners" and "The Maids of Honour" (Las Meninas) (c. 1655-56). In subject they are both genre pictures, but of hitherto unknown dimensions and treated in the "historical" size. The former shows a workshop which is being visited by two ladies; the latter, an inner chamber of the Alcazar in which Velazquez is shown painting the young infanta, who is surrounded by her ladies in waiting, her dueñas, her dwarfs, and her dog. Into these everyday scenes is introduced an element of selection, of fantasy, caprice, genius--a something subjective and purely individual, without which such pictures could never have been conceived. Such groups as these were formed again and again in the noisy and overheated work-rooms or the coolness of dark palaces, but they demanded a supreme artist.

To translate these wholly intellectual facts of a quite peculiar order of existence, the artist did not make use of known lines or colours; he employed splashes, vague coloured splashes without parallel in form and with no more relation to the world of real facts than the colourless dust on the butterfly's wing bears to the rich diapering which the eye perceives. Everything becomes more elliptical, more uncertain and unreal, and assumed an appearance of a special nature, no longer that of visible and material phenomena, but of their reflexion in the artist's soul, on a rarely sensitive surface; the operations of the hand become imperceptible and mysterious, and show an agility and caprice bordering on the miraculous ; the complete whole takes form before our eyes with a verisimilitude which seems fantastic, and we have no longer a meaningless scene, but a real vision. These two works, writes Raphael Mengs , are the theology or the "Summa" of painting. They seem to exist outside of all the expedients of art and as by a mysterious fiat. Through them an entirely new path was opened to the painting of things. Every other scene of life has the same claim to be depicted, provided it has for observer and interpreter such a witness as Velazquez; it was a new viewpoint of nature, a method of fruitful and infinite application. We are assured that on seeing the "Meninas" the king was so charmed with the work that he perceived only one oversight, and taking up a brush, painted on the breast of the artist's own portrait the grand cross of St. James. Whatever the worth of the legend, the coveted order was none the less granted to Velazquez 12 June, 1658. He had given proof of his limpieza de sangre , that is, that he had in his family not a drop of Jewish or Moorish blood, that he had never worked for his living, that he had never made a trade of painting, that he had never practised his art save as a recreation and in the service of the king.
To these last years belong some busts (london, Turin, Madrid ) which Velazquez made of the prince, stirring works, in which we discern beneath the coldness of the mask the interior tragedy which froze the charming countenance of the poet that Philip IV had been. The last, and one of the most charming, of Velazquez' works is the "Anchorites" of the Prado, which is perhaps his most airy and luminous, his tenderest and most poetic work. After his return from Italy, filling the post of royal aposentador , he was charged with all the preparations for the journey on the occasion of the Peace of the Pyrenees and the marriage of Louis XIV with the infanta. Worn out by this excess of labour, the painter was attacked, on his return, by a fever which proved fatal. Philip IV keenly felt the loss of his friend. In the margin of a report of the Junta de Obras y Bosques, ordering that 1000 ducats of the painter's estate be returned to the budget of the Alcazar, of which Velazquez had been superintendent (proving that his management had been negligent and irregular ), the King wrote the heart-broken words: "I am crushed" ( Quedo adbatido ).
In his sphere Velazquez had no superiors and perhaps no equals. Not only must all painting compared with one of his seem artificial and forced, so that in the wonder-crowded Prado, he seems the sole painter, but we must discern in him one of the finest minds and serenest souls that has ever been on earth, a glance capable of embracing and understanding nature, the whole of life without omission or scorn, passion or hatred, and of reproducing it in its true aspect as it appeared in the mirror of his thought. Alone of all the Spanish painters, although the most local of all, he is universal. But no more than any other master of his class did he form pupils worthy of him. No school emerged from "The Spinners" and "The Weavers". Rare pictures were connected with them, such as the family picture of J.B. del Mazo, mentioned above, and the "Santa Forma" of Coello in the Escurial, after which we find no companion to "The Maids of Honour" until Goya's "Family of Charles IV". But modern art is chiefly connected with Velazquez; the work of Whistler, for example, or of Lucien Simon, to mention only these two, are attempts to utilize the lesson of the last works of Velazquez. It was more than two centuries before European painting reached the point to which extraordinary genius had brought this Catholic Spaniards of the time of Philip IV.
More Volume: D 494
Filter 494 entries by typing in the 'Search' box below. Click/Touch the letter below to view encyclopedia articles within that volume.
Article |
---|
Dávila PadillaDavila Padilla(AGUSTÍN) A native of the City of Mexico, b. 1562; d. 1604. At the age of sixteen he ... |
DénésDenes( men or people , in most of their dialects) An aboriginal race of North America, also ... |
Díaz de Solís, JuanJuan Diaz de SolisSpanish navigator and explorer, b. about 1470 at Lebrija (Seville), or, according to some ... |
Díaz del Castillo, BernalBernal Diaz Del Castillo(Corruption of Bernardo), Spanish historian, one of the chief chroniclers of the conquest of ... |
Díaz, PedroPedro DiazMissionary, b. at Lupedo, Diocese of Toledo, Spain, in 1546; d. in Mexico, 12 Jan., 1618. Though ... |
Döllinger, Johann Joseph Ignaz vonJohann Joseph Ignaz von DoellingerA historian and theologian, born at Bamberg, Bavaria, 28 February, 1799; died at Munich, 10 ... |
Döring, MatthiasMatthias DoeringHistorian and theologian, b. between 1390 and 1400, at Kyritz, in Brandenburg ; d. there 24 ... |
Dürer, AlbrechtAlbrecht DurerCelebrated painter and engraver, born at Nuremberg, Germany, 21 May, 1471; died there, 6 ... |
D'Avenant, Sir WilliamSir William d'AvenantPoet and dramatist, b. Feb., 1605-6, at Oxford, England ; d. in London, 7 April, 1668. He was ... |
Da Ponte, LorenzoLorenzo Da PontePoet, b. at Cenada, Italy, 1749; d. in New York, 17 Aug., 1838. He was the son of a Jew and was ... |
Dablon, ClaudeClaude DablonJesuit missionary, born at Dieppe, France, in February, 1618; died at Quebec, 3 May, 1697. At ... |
Dabrowski, JosephJoseph DabrowskiFounder of the Sts. Cyril and MethodiusSeminary, Detroit, Michigan, b. at Zoltance, Russian ... |
DaccaDaccaDIOCESE OF DACCA (DACCHENSIS) Diocese in Bengal, India. By the Constitution "Æquam ... |
Dacier, AndréAndre DacierA French philologist, born at Castres, 6 April, 1651; died 18 September, 1722. He was a Huguenot ... |
Dacier, AnneAnne Dacier( Née Lefèvre) The wife of André Dacier, born at Saumur in 1651; died ... |
DagonDagonA Philistine deity. It is commonly admitted that the name Dagon is a diminutive form, hence ... |
Daguesseau, Henri-FrançoisHenri-Francois Daguesseau(Also rendered d'Aguesseau). Chancellor of France, born at Limoges, 27 November, 1668; died at ... |
DahomeyDahomeyThe Vicariate Apostolic of Dahomey, in West Africa, is territorially identical with the French ... |
Dalberg, Adolphus vonAdolphus von DalbergPrince-Abbot of Fulda and founder of the university in the same city, born 29 May, 1678; died ... |
Dalgairns, John DobreeJohn Dobree Dalgairns(In religion F ATHER B ERNARD ). Born in the island of Guernsey, 21 Oct., 1818; d. 6 April, ... |
DalilaDelilah(Or Dalila ). Samson, sometime after his exploit at Gaza ( Judges 16:1-3 ), " loved a ... |
DallasDallasDIOCESE OF DALLAS (DALLASCENSIS). The Diocese of Dallas, created 1890, comprises 108 counties ... |
Dalley, William BedeWilliam Bede DalleyLawyer and statesman, born in Sydney, New South Wales, 1831; died there 28 October, 1888. He was ... |
DalmatiaDalmatiaA part of the Kingdom of Croatia according to a convention entered into between Croatia and ... |
DalmaticDalmaticPRESENT USAGE The dalmatic is the outer liturgical vestment of the deacon. It is worn at Mass ... |
Dalton, JohnJohn DaltonIrish author and translator from Spanish and German, born in 1814; died at Maddermarket, ... |
DamãoDamaoDIOCESE OF DAMÃO (DAMAU, DAMAUN) Suffragan to Goa, and situated in Portugese India ... |
DamaralandDamaralandThe middle part of the German colony, German Southwest Africa, between 19° and 23° S. ... |
DamascusDamascusDamascus, in Syria, is one of the oldest cities in the world. According to Flavius Josephus it ... |
Damasus I, Saint, PopePope St. Damasus IBorn about 304; died 11 December, 384. His father, Antonius, was probably a Spaniards ; the name ... |
Damasus II, PopePope Damasus II(Previously called POPPO) A native of Bavaria and the third German to be elevated to the See ... |
Damberger, Joseph FerdinandJoseph Ferdinand DambergerChurch historian, born 1 March, 1795, at Passau, Bavaria ; died 1 April, 1859, at ... |
Damian and Cosmas, SaintsSts. Cosmas and DamianEarly Christian physicians and martyrs whose feast is celebrated on 27 September. They were ... |
Damien, Father (Joseph de Veuster)Father DamienMissionary priest, born at Tremeloo, Belgium, 3 January 1840; died at Molokai, Hawaii, 15 ... |
DamiettaDamietta(Greek Tamiathis , Arabic Doumiât ). An Egyptian titular see for the Latins and ... |
DanDan( Hebrew dn , Sept. Dán ),–(1) The fifth son of Jacob, being the elder of the two ... |
DanabaDanabaA titular see of Phænicia Secunda. Danaba is mentioned by Ptolemy (V, xv, 24) as a town in ... |
Dance of DeathDance of Death(French, Dance Macabre , German Todtentanz ) The "Dance of Death" was originally a ... |
DancingDancingThe origin of dancing is to be sought in the natural tendency to employ gesture either to ... |
Dandolo, EnricoEnrico DandoloDoge of Venice from 1192 to 1205; died, aged about a hundred years, in 1205. He belonged to one ... |
DanielDanielThe hero and traditional author of the book which bears his name. This name ( Hebrew dnyal ... |
Daniel and Companions, SaintSaint Daniel and CompanionsFriars Minor and martyrs ; dates of birth unknown; died 10 October, 1227. The martyrdom of ... |
Daniel of WinchesterDaniel of Winchester(Danihel), Bishop of the West Saxons, and ruler of the See of Winchester from 705 to 744; died ... |
Daniel, AnthonyAnthony DanielHuron missionary, born at Dieppe, in Normandy, 27 May 1601, slain by the Iroquois at Teanaostae, ... |
Daniel, Book ofBook of DanielIn the Hebrew Bible, and in most recent Protestant versions, the Book of Daniel is limited to ... |
Daniel, CharlesCharles DanielBorn 31 December, 1818, at Beauvais, France ; died 1 January, 1893, at Paris. He joined the ... |
Daniel, GabrielGabriel DanielHistorian and controversialist, born at Rouen, France, 8 Feb., 1649; died at Paris, 23 June, ... |
Daniel, JohnJohn DanielBorn 1745; died in Paris, 3 October, 1823; son of Edward Daniel of Durton, Lancashire, and ... |
DansaraDansaraA titular see in Osrhoene. Stephanus Byzantius mentions Dansara as a town near Edessa (Orfa). ... |
Dante AlighieriDante AlighieriItalian poet, born at Florence, 1265; died at Ravenna, Italy, 14 September, 1321. His own ... |
Danti, IgnazioIgnazio DantiMathematician and cosmographer, b. at Perugia, Italy, 1537; d. at Alatri, 19 Oct., 1586. As a ... |
Danti, VincenzoVincenzo DantiSculptor, brother of Ignazio, b. at Perugia, 1530; d. 24 May, 1576. He also enjoyed some ... |
Dantine, MaurusMaurus DantineBenedictine of the Congregation of Saint-Maur, and chronologist, born at Gourieux near Namur, ... |
Darboy, GeorgesGeorges DarboyArchbishop of Paris and ecclesiastical writer, b. at Fayl-Billot, near Langres, 1813; ... |
DardanusDardanusA titular see in the province of Hellespont, suffragan of Cyzicus. Four or five bishops are ... |
Dardel, JeanJean DardelFriar Minor of the French province of the order, chronicler of Armenia in the fourteenth century, ... |
Darerca, SaintSt. DarercaSt. Darerca, of Ireland, a sister of St. Patrick. Much obscurity attaches to her history, and ... |
Dareste de la Chavanne, Antoine-ElisabethAntoine-Elisabeth Dareste de la ChavanneHistorian and professor, b. in Paris, 25 October, 1820; d. at Lucenay-lès-Aix, 6 August, ... |
Darius and Chrysanthus, SaintsSts. Chrysanthus and DariaRoman martyrs, buried on the Via Salaria Nova, and whose tombs, according to the testimony of ... |
DarnisDarnisA metropolitan titular see of Libya, in Egypt. Ptolemy (IV, 4, 2; 5; 6) and Ammian. Marcell., ... |
Darras, Joseph-EpiphaneJoseph-Epiphane DarrasChurch historian, b. at Troyes, France, 1825; d. at Paris, Nov. 8, 1878. He completed his ... |
Darrell, WilliamWilliam DarrellTheologian, b. 1651, in Buckinghamshire, England ; d. 28 Feb., 1721, at St. Omer's, France. ... |
Dates and DatingDates and DatingIn classical Latin even before the time of Christ it was usual for correspondents to indicate ... |
Daubrée, Gabriel-AugusteGabriel-Auguste DaubreeFrench geologist, b. at Metz, 25 June, 1814; d. at Paris, 29 May, 1896. He studied mining ... |
DauliaDauliaA titular see of Greece. Daulis, later Daulia, Dauleion, often Diauleia, even Davalia, was a ... |
Daumer, Georg FriedrichGeorg Friedrich DaumerGerman poet and philosopher, b. at Nuremberg, 5 March, 1800; d. at Wurzburg, 14 December, 1875. ... |
DavenportDavenportDIOCESE OF DAVENPORT (DAVENPORTENSIS) The Diocese of Davenport, erected 8 May, 1881, embraces ... |
Davenport, ChristopherChristopher DavenportAlso known as FRANCISCUS À SANCTA CLARA and sometimes by the alias of FRANCIS HUNT and ... |
David of AugsburgDavid of Augsburg(DE AUGUSTA). Medieval German mystic, b. probably at Augsburg, Bavaria, early in the ... |
David of DinantDavid of DinantA pantheistic philosopher who lived in the first decades of the thirteenth century. Very little ... |
David ScotusDavid ScotusA medieval Irish chronicler, date of birth unknown; d. 1139. Early in the twelfth century ... |
David, ArmandArmand DavidMissionary priest and zoologist, b. 1826; d. 1900. He entered the Congregation of the Mission ... |
David, GheeraertGheeraert DavidSon of John David, painter and illuminator, b. at Oudewater, South Holland, c. 1450, d. 13 ... |
David, KingKing DavidIn the Bible the name David is borne only by the second king of Israel, the great-grandson of ... |
David, SaintSt. David(DEGUI, DEWI). Bishop and Confessor, patron of Wales. He is usually represented standing on ... |
Davies, Venerable WilliamVen. William DaviesMartyr, one of the most illustrious of the priests who suffered under Queen Elizabeth, b. in ... |
Dawson, Æneas McDonnellAeneas McDonnell DawsonAuthor, b. in Scotland, 30 July, 1810; d. in Ottawa, Canada, 29 Dec., 1894. He studied at the ... |
Dax, Diocese ofDaxAn ancient French diocese which was suppressed by the Concordat of 1801, its territory now ... |
Day of AtonementDay of Atonement (Yom Kippur)( Hebrew Yom Hakkippurim . Vulgate, Dies Expiationum , and Dies Propitiationis — ... |
Day, GeorgeGeorge DayBishop of Chichester ; b. in Shropshire, England, c. 1501; d. 2 August, 1556. He was graduated ... |
Day, John Charles, SirSir John Charles DayJurist, b. near Bath, England, 1826; d. 13 June, 1908, at Newbury. He was educated at Rome and ... |
De L'Orme, PhilibertPhilibert de l'OrmeCelebrated architect of the French Renaissance, born at Lyons, c. 1515 or a little later; died at ... |
De La Croix, CharlesCharles de la CroixMissionary, b. at Hoorbeke-St-Corneille, Belgium, 28 Oct., 1792; d. at Ghent, 20 Aug., 1869. He ... |
De Lisle, Ambrose Lisle March PhillippsAmbrose Lisle March Phillipps de LisleBorn 17 March, 1809; died 5 March, 1878. He was the son of Charles March Phillipps of Garendon ... |
De Paul UniversityDePaul UniversityDePaul University, Chicago, is the outgrowth of St. Vincent's College, which opened in Sept., ... |
De ProfundisDe Profundis("Out of the depths"). First words of Psalm 129. The author of this Psalm is unknown; it was ... |
De Rossi, Giovanni BattistaGiovanni Battista de RossiA distinguished Christian archaeologist , best known for his work in connection with the Roman ... |
De Smet, Pierre-JeanPierre-Jean de SmetMissionary among the North American Indians , b. at Termonde (Dendermonde), Belgium, 30 Jan., ... |
De Soto, HernandoHernando de SotoExplorer and conqueror, born at Villanueva de la Serena, Badajoz, Spain, 1496 or 1500; died on the ... |
De Vere, Aubrey Thomas HuntAubrey Thomas Hunt de VerePoet, critic, and essayist, b. at Curragh Chase, County Limerick, Ireland, 10 January, 1814; died ... |
DeaconessesDeaconessesWe cannot be sure that any formal recognition of deaconesses as an institution of consecrated ... |
DeaconsDeaconsThe name deacon ( diakonos ) means only minister or servant, and is employed in this sense ... |
Dead SeaDead SeaThe name given to the lake that lies on the south-eastern border of Palestine. The Old Testament ... |
Dead, Prayers for thePrayers For the DeadThis subject will be treated under the following three heads: I. General Statement and Proof of ... |
Deaf, Education of theEducation of the Deaf and DumbEducation essentially includes the process of encouraging, strengthening, and guiding the ... |
DeanDean(Gk. déka , ten; Latin decanus ). One of the principal administrative officials of ... |
Dean, William, VenerableVen. William DeanBorn in Yorkshire, England, date uncertain, martyred 28 August, 1588. He studied at Reims and ... |
Dease, ThomasThomas DeaseBorn in Ireland, 1568; died at Galway, 1651. He sprang from an ancient Irish family at one ... |
Death PenaltyCapital Punishment (Death Penalty)The infliction by due legal process of the penalty of death as a punishment for crime. The ... |
Death, Dance ofDance of Death(French, Dance Macabre , German Todtentanz ) The "Dance of Death" was originally a ... |
Death, Preparation forPreparation for DeathThe basic preparation for death When should a priest be called? Winding up our earthly affairs ... |
DebboraDebboraProphetess and judge: she was the wife of Lapidoth and was endowed by God with prophetic gifts ... |
DebtDebt( debitum ) That which is owed or due to another; in general, anything which one person is ... |
DecalogueDecalogue(Greek deka , ten and logos , word). The term employed to designate the collection of ... |
DecapolisDecapolis(From Greek Deka , ten, and polis , city) Decapolis is the name given in the Bible and ... |
Dechamps, AdolpheAdolphe DechampsBelgian statesman and publicist, brother of Cardinal Dechamps, born at Melle near Ghent, 17 ... |
Dechamps, Victor Augustin IsidoreVictor Augustin Isidore DechampsCardinal, Archbishop of Mechlin, and Primate of Belgium ; born at Melle near Ghent 6 Dec., ... |
DeciusDecius(C AIUS M ESSIUS Q UINTUS T RAJANUS D ECIUS ). Roman Emperor 249-251. He was born, ... |
Decker, HansHans DeckerA German sculptor of the middle of the fifteenth century. Very little is recorded concerning ... |
Declaration, The RoyalThe Royal DeclarationThis is the name most commonly given to the solemn repudiation of Catholicity which, in ... |
Decorations, PontificalPontifical DecorationsPontifical decorations are the titles of nobility, orders of Christian knighthood and other ... |
DecreeDecree( Latin decretum , from decerno , I judge). In a general sense, an order or law made by a ... |
Decretals, PapalPapal DecretalsI. DEFINITION AND EARLY HISTORY (1) In the wide sense of the term decretalis (i.e. epistola ... |
DedicationDedicationA term which, though sometimes used of persons who are consecrated to God's service, is more ... |
Dedication, Feast of theFeast of the DedicationAlso called the Feast of the Machabees and Feast of Lights ( Josephus and Talmudic ... |
DeductionDeduction( Latin de ducere , to lead, draw out, derive from; especially, the function of deriving truth ... |
Deer, Abbey ofAbbey of DeerA once famous Scotch monastery. According to the Celtic legend St. Columcille, his disciple ... |
Defender of the Matrimonial TieDefender of the Matrimonial Tie( Defensor matrimonii ) The Defender of the Matrimonial Tie is an official whose duty is to ... |
Definitions, TheologicalTheological DefinitionThe Vatican Council (Sess. iv, cap. iv) solemnly taught the doctrine of papal infallibility ... |
Definitor (in Canon Law)Definitor (In Canon Law)An official in secular deaneries and in certain religious orders. Among regulars, a definitor is ... |
Definitors (in Religious Orders)Definitors (In Religious Orders)Generally speaking, the governing council of an order. Bergier describes them as those chosen to ... |
Deger, ErnstErnst DegerHistorical painter, born in Bockenem, Hanover, 15 April, 1809; died in Düsseldorf, 27 ... |
DegradationDegradation( Latin degradatio ). A canonical penalty by which an ecclesiastic is entirely and ... |
Deharbe, JosephJoseph DeharbeTheologian, catechist, b. at Straburg, Alsace, 11 April, 1800; d. at Maria-Laach, 8 November, ... |
Dei gratia; Dei et Apostolicæ Sedis gratiaDei Gratia; Dei Et Apostolicae Sedis Gratia( By the grace of God; By the grace of God and the Apostolic See ) A formulæ added ... |
Deicolus, SaintSt. Deicolus(DICHUIL) Elder brother of St. Gall, b. in Leinster, Ireland, c. 530; d. at Lure, France, 18 ... |
DeismDeism( Latin Deus , God ). The term used to denote certain doctrines apparent in a tendency ... |
DeityDeity( French déité ; Late Latin deitas ; Latin deue , divus , "the divine ... |
Delacroix, Ferdinand-Victor-EugèneFerdinand-Victor-Eugene DelacroixFrench painter, b. at Charenton-St-Maurice, near Paris, 26 April, 1798; d. 13 August, 1863. He was ... |
Delaroche, HippolyteHippolyte Delaroche(Known also as P AUL ) Painter, born at Paris, 17 July, 1797; died 4 November, 1856. A pupil ... |
DelatoresDelatores( Latin for DENOUNCERS) A term used by the Synod of Elvira (c. 306) to stigmatize those ... |
DelawareDelawareDelaware, one of the original thirteen of the United States of America. It lies between ... |
Delaware IndiansDelaware IndiansAn important tribal confederacy of Algonquian stock originally holding the basin of the Delaware ... |
DelcusDelcusA titular see of Thrace, suffragan of Philippopolis. The Greek name of the place was Delkos or ... |
DelegationDelegation( Latin delegare ) A delegation is the commission to another of jurisdiction, which is to be ... |
Delfau, FrançoisFrancois DelfauTheologian, born 1637 at Montel in Auvergne, France ; died 13 Oct., 1676, at Landevenec in ... |
Delfino, PietroPietro DelfinoA theologian, born at Venice in 1444; died 16 Jan., 1525. He entered the Camaldolese ... |
DelilahDelilah(Or Dalila ). Samson, sometime after his exploit at Gaza ( Judges 16:1-3 ), " loved a ... |
Delille, JacquesJacques DelilleFrench abbé and litterateur , born at Aigueperse, 22 June, 1738; died at Paris, 1 May, ... |
Delisle, GuillaumeGuillaume DelisleReformer of cartography, born 28 February, 1675, in Paris ; died there 25 January, 1726. His ... |
Delphine, BlessedBlessed DelphineA member of the Third Order of St. Francis, born in Provence, France, in 1284; died 26 ... |
Delrio, Martin AntonMartin Anton DelrioScholar, statesman, Jesuit theologian, born at Antwerp, 17 May, 1551; died at Louvain, 19 ... |
Delta of the Nile, Prefecture Apostolic of thePrefecture Apostolic of the Delta of the NileThe Prefecture Apostolic of the Delta of the Nile is situated in the north of Egypt and ... |
DelugeDelugeDeluge is the name of a catastrophe fully described in Genesis 6:1 - 9:19 , and referred to in the ... |
Demers, ModesteModeste DemersAn apostle of the Pacific Coast of North America, and the first Catholic missionary among most ... |
DemetriusDemetriusThe name of two Syrian kings mentioned in the Old Testament and two other persons in the ... |
Demetrius, SaintSt. DemetriusBishop of Alexandria from 188 to 231. Julius Africanus, who visited Alexandria in the time of ... |
DemiurgeDemiurgeThe word means literally a public worker, demioergós, demiourgós, and was ... |
Democracy, ChristianChristian DemocracyIn Christian Democracy , the name and the reality have two very different histories, and ... |
DemonDemons(Greek daimon and daimonion , Latin daemonium ). In Scripture and in Catholic ... |
DemoniacsDemoniacs( See also DEMONOLOGY, EXORCISM, EXORCIST, POSSESSION.) (Greek daimonikos, daimonizomenos, ... |
DemonologyDemonologyAs the name sufficiently indicates, demonology is the science or doctrine concerning demons. ... |
Dempster, ThomasThomas DempsterSavant, professor, author; b., as he himself states at Cliftbog, Scotland, 23 August, 1579; d. at ... |
Denaut, PierrePierre DenautTenth Bishop of Quebec, b. at Montreal, 20 July, 1743; d. at Longueuil in 1806. After studying ... |
Denifle, Heinrich SeuseHeinrich Seuse Denifle( Baptized JOSEPH.) Paleographer and historian, born at Imst in the Austrian Tyrol, 16 Jan., ... |
Denis, Johann Nepomuk Cosmas MichaelJohann Nepomuk Cosmas Michael DenisBibliographer and poet, b. at Schärding, Bavaria, 27 September, 1729; d. at Vienna, 29 ... |
Denis, JosephJoseph Denis( Baptized JACQUES). Born 6 November, 1657, at Three Rivers , Canada ; died 25 January, ... |
Denis, SaintSt. DenisBishop of Paris, and martyr. Born in Italy, nothing is definitely known of the time or place, ... |
Denman, WilliamWilliam DenmanPublisher, b. in Edinburgh, Scotland, 17 March, 1784; d. in Brooklyn, New York, U.S.A. 12 ... |
DenmarkDenmark( Latin Dania ). This kingdom had formerly a much larger extent than at present. It once ... |
Denonville, Seigneur and Marquis deSeigneur and Marquis de Denonville(JACQUES-RENE DE BRISAY, SEIGNEUR AND MARQUIS DE DENONVILLE) Born in 1638 at Denonville in the ... |
Dens, PeterPeter DensTheologian, b. at Boom, near Antwerp, Belgium, 12 September, 1690; d. at Mechlin, 15 February, ... |
DenunciationDenunciationDenunciation ( Latin denunciare) is making known the crime of another to one who is his ... |
DenverDenver, Colorado(D ENVERIENSIS ). A suffragan of the Archdiocese of Santa Fé, erected in 1887 and ... |
Denys the CarthusianDenys(D ENYS VAN L EEUWEN, also L EUW or L IEUWE ). Born in 1402 in that part of the ... |
Denza, FrancescoFrancesco DenzaItalian meteorologist and astronomer, b. at Naples, 7 June, 1834; d. at Rome, 14 December, 1894. ... |
Denzinger, Heinrich Joseph DominicusHeinrich Joseph Dominicus DenzingerOne of the leading theologians of the modern Catholic German school and author of the ... |
Deo GratiasDeo Gratias("Thanks be to God "). An old liturgical formula of the Latin Church to give thanks to God ... |
DepositionDepositionA deposition is an ecclesiastical vindictive penalty by which a cleric is forever deprived of ... |
Deprés, JosquinJosquin DepresDiminutive of "Joseph"; latinized Josquinus Pratensis . Born probably c. 1450 at ... |
DerbeDerbeA titular see of Lycaonia, Asia Minor. This city was the fortress of a famous leader of ... |
Dereser, AntonAnton Dereser(Known also as THADDAEUS A S. ADAMO). Born at Fahr in Franconia, 3 February, 1757; died at ... |
DerogationDerogation(Latin derogatio ). The partial revocation of a law, as opposed to abrogation or the ... |
DerryDerry (Deria)DIOCESE OF DERRY (DERRIENSIS). Includes nearly all the County Derry, part of Donegal, and a ... |
Derry, School ofSchool of DerryThis was the first foundation of St. Columba, the great Apostle of Scotland, and one of the three ... |
Desains, Paul-QuentinPaul-Quentin DesainsPhysicist, b. at St-Quentin, France, 12 July, 1817; d. at Paris, 3 May, 1885. He made his literary ... |
Desault, Pierre-JosephPierre-Joseph DesaultSurgeon and anatomist, b. at Magny-Vernois a small town of Franche-Comté, France, in ... |
Descartes, RenéRene Descartes(Renatus Cartesius), philosopher and scientist, born at La Haye France, 31 March, 1596; died at ... |
Deschamps, EustacheEustache DeschampsAlso called M OREL , on account of his dark complexion; b. at Vertus in Champagne between 1338 ... |
Deschamps, NicolasNicolas DeschampsPolemical writer, born at Villefranche (Rhône), France, 1797; died at Aix-en-Provence, ... |
Desclée, Henri and JulesHenri and Jules DescleeHenri (1830-); Jules (1828-1911). Natives of Belgium, founders of a monastery and a ... |
DesecrationDesecrationDesecration is the loss of that peculiar quality of sacredness, which inheres in places and ... |
DesertDesert (In the Bible)The Hebrew words translated in the Douay Version of the Bible by "desert" or "wilderness", and ... |
DesertionDesertionThe culpable abandonment of a state, of a stable situation, the obligations of which one had ... |
Deshon, GeorgeGeorge DeshonPriest of the Congregation (or Institute) of St. Paul the Apostle , b. at New London, Conn., ... |
DesideriusPope Blessed Victor III(DAUFERIUS or DAUFAR). Born in 1026 or 1027 of a non-regnant branch of the Lombard dukes of ... |
Desiderius of Cahors, SaintSt. Desiderius of CahorsBishop, b. at Obrege (perhaps Antobroges, name of a Gaulish tribe), on the frontier of the ... |
Desmarets de Saint-Sorlin, JeanJean Desmarets de Saint-SorlinA French dramatist and novelist, born in Paris, 1595, died there, 1676. Early in life he held ... |
Desolation, The Abomination ofThe Abomination of DesolationThe importance of this Scriptural expression is chiefly derived from the fact that in Matthew ... |
DespairDespair(Latin desperare , to be hopeless.) Despair, ethically regarded, is the voluntary and ... |
Despretz, César-MansuèteCesar-Mansuete DespretzChemist and physicist, b. at Lessines, Belgium, 11 May, 1798; d. at Paris, 11 May, 1863. He ... |
DesservantsDesservantsThe name of a class of French parish priests. Under the old regime, a priest who performed the ... |
Desurmont, AchilleAchille DesurmontAscetical writer, b. at Tourcoing, France, 23 Dec., 1828; d. 23 July, 1898. He attended first the ... |
DeterminismDeterminismDeterminism is a name employed by writers, especially since J. Stuart Mill, to denote the ... |
Detré, WilliamWilliam DetreMissionary, b. in France in 1668, d. in South America, at an advanced age, date uncertain. ... |
DetractionDetraction(From Latin detrahere , to take away). Detraction is the unjust damaging of another's good ... |
DetroitDetroit, Michigan(Detroitensis) Diocese established 8 March, 1838, comprises the counties of the lower ... |
Deus in Adjutorium Meum IntendeDeus in Adjutorium Meum Intende"Deus in adjutorium meum intende," with the response: "Domine ad adjuvandum me festina," first ... |
Deusdedit, CardinalCardinal DeusdeditBorn at Todi, Italy ; died between 1097 and 1100. He was a friend of St. Gregory VII and ... |
Deusdedit, Pope SaintPope St. Deusdedit(Adeodatus I). Date of birth unknown; consecrated pope, 19 October (13 November), 615; d. 8 ... |
Deusdedit, SaintSt. DeusdeditA native of Wessex, England, whose Saxon name was Frithona, and of whose early life nothing is ... |
DeuteronomyDeuteronomyThis term occurs in Deuteronomy 17:18 and Joshua 8:32 , and is the title of one of the five ... |
Deutinger, MartinMartin DeutingerPhilosopher and religious writer, b. in Langenpreising, Bavaria, 24 March, 1815; d. at ... |
Devas, Charles StantonCharles Stanton DevasPolitical economist, b. at Woodside, Old Windsor, England, of Protestant parents, 26 August, ... |
Devereux, John C.John DevereuxBorn at his father's farm, The Leap, near Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford, Ireland, 5 Aug., 1774; died ... |
Devereux, NicholasNicholas DevereuxBorn near Enniscorthy, Ireland, 7 June, 1791; died at Utica, New York, 29 Dec., 1855, was the ... |
DevilDevil(Greek diabolos ; Latin diabolus ). The name commonly given to the fallen angels, who are ... |
Devil WorshipDevil WorshipThe meaning of this compound term is sufficiently obvious, for all must be familiar with the ... |
Devil's AdvocateAdvocatus Diaboli("Advocate of the Devil" or "Devil's Advocate"). A popular title given to one of the most ... |
DevolutionDevolution( Latin devolutio from devolvere ) Devolution is the right of an ecclesiastical ... |
Devoti, GiovaniGiovani DevotiCanonist, born at Rome, 11 July, 1744; died there 18 Sept., 1820. At the age of twenty he ... |
Devotions, PopularPopular DevotionsDevotion, in the language of ascetical writers, denotes a certain ardour of affection in the ... |
Deymann, ClementineClementine DeymannBorn at Klein-Stavern, Oldenburg, Germany, 24 June, 1844; died at Phoenix, Arizona, U. S. A., 4 ... |
Deza, DiegoDiego DezaTheologian, archbishop, patron of Christopher Columbus, b. at Toro, 1444; d. 1523. Entering the ... |
DhuodaDhuodaWife of Bernard, Duke of Septimania. The only source of information on her life is her "Liber ... |
DiaconicumDiaconicum(Greek diakonikon ) The Diaconicum in the Greek Church is the liturgical book specifying ... |
DiakovárDiakovar(Croatian, Djakovo ). See of the Bishop of the united Dioceses of Bosnia or ... |
DialecticDialectic[Greek dialektike ( techne or methodos ), the dialectic art or method, from dialegomai ... |
DiamantinaDiamantinaDIOCESE OF DIAMANTINA (ADAMANTINA). Located in the north of the State of Minas Geraes, Brazil, ... |
Diana, AntoninoAntonino DianaMoral theologian, born of a noble family at Palermo, Sicily, in 1586; died at Rome, 20 July, ... |
DianoDiano(D IANENSIS ) Diocese and small city in the province of Salermo, Italy ; the ancient ... |
Diario RomanoDiario Romano( Italian for "Roman Daybook") A booklet published annually at Rome, with papal ... |
Diarmaid, SaintSt. DiarmaidBorn in Ireland, date unknown; d. in 851 or 852. He was made Archbishop of Armagh in 834, but ... |
Dias, BartolomeuBartolomeu DiasA famous Portuguese navigator of the fifteenth century, discoverer of the Cape of Good Hope; ... |
DiasporaDiaspora(Or DISPERSION). Diaspora was the name given to the countries (outside of Palestine) through ... |
DibonDibonA titular see in Palæstina Tertia. Dîbîn (Septuagint, Daibon or Debon ) ... |
Dicastillo, Juan deJuan de DicastilloTheologian, b. of Spanish parents at Naples, 28 December, 1584; d. at Ingolstadt 6 March, 1653. ... |
Dicconson, EdwardEdward DicconsonTitular Bishop of Malla, or Mallus, Vicar Apostolic of the English Northern District; b. 30 ... |
Diceto, Ralph deRalph de DicetoDean of St. Paul's, London, and chronicler. The name "Dicetum" cannot be correctly connected with ... |
Dichu, SaintSt. DichuThe son of an Ulster chieftain, was the first convert of St. Patrick in Ireland. Born in the ... |
DicuilDicuilIrish monk and geographer, b. in the second half of the eighth century; date of death ... |
DidacheDidache(D OCTRINE OF THE T WELVE A POSTLES ) A short treatise which was accounted by some of the ... |
Didacus, SaintSt. Didacus[Spanish = San Diego .] Lay brother of the Order of Friars Minor, date of birth uncertain; ... |
Didascalia ApostolorumDidascalia ApostolorumA treatise which pretends to have been written by the Apostles at the time of the Council of ... |
Didon, HenriHenri DidonPreacher, writer, and educator, b. 17 March, 1840, at Touvet (Isère), France ; d. 13 ... |
DidotDidotName of a family of French printers and publishers. François Didot Son of Denis Didot, ... |
Didron, Adolphe-NapoleonAdolphe-Napoleon DidronAlso called Didron aîné ; archaeologist; together with Viollet-le-Duc and Caumont, ... |
Didymus the BlindDidymus the BlindDidymus the Blind, of Alexandria, b. about 310 or 313; d. about 395 or 398, at the age of ... |
Diego y Moreno, Francisco GarciaFrancisco Garcia Diego y MorenoFirst bishop of California, b. 17 Sept., 1785, at Lagos in the state of Jalisco, Mexico; d. 30 ... |
Diekamp, WilhelmWilhelm DiekampHistorian, b. at Geldern, 13 May, 1854; d. at Rome, 25 Dec., 1885. Soon after his birth the ... |
DiemothDiemothDiemoth, an old German word for the present "Demuth", the English " humility ", was the name of ... |
Diepenbeeck, Abraham vanAbraham van DiepenbeeckAn erudite and accomplished painter of the Flemish School, b. at Bois-le-Duc in the ... |
Diepenbrock, Melchior, Baron vonMelchior, Baron (Freiherr) von DiepenbrockCardinal and Prince-Bishop of Breslau, b. 6 January, 1798, at Boeholt in Westphalia ; d. at the ... |
Dieringer, Franz XaverFranz Xaver DieringerCatholic theologian, b. 22 August, 1811, at Rangeningen (Hohenzollern-Hechingen); d. 8 September, ... |
Dies IraeDies IraeThis name by which the sequence in requiem Masses is commonly known. They are the opening words of ... |
Dietenberger, JohannJohann DietenbergerTheologian, b. about 1475 at Frankfort-on-the-Main, d. 4 Sept., 1537, at Mainz. He was educated ... |
Diether of IsenburgDiether of IsenburgArchbishop and Elector of Mainz, b. about 1412; d. 7 May, 1482, at Aschaffenburg. He studied at ... |
Dietrich von NieheimDietrich von Nieheim(N IEM ). Born in the Diocese of Paderborn , between 1338 and 1340; d. at Maastricht, 22 ... |
Digby, GeorgeGeorge DigbySecond Earl of Bristol, b. at Madrid, Spain, where his father, the first earl, was ambassador, ... |
Digby, Kenelm HenryKenelm Henry DigbyMiscellaneous writer, b. in Ireland, 1800; d. at Kensington, Middlesex, England, 22 March, 1880. ... |
Digby, Sir EverardSir Everard DigbyBorn 16 May, 1578, died 30 Jan., 1606. Everard Digby, whose father bore the same Christian name ... |
Digby, Sir KenelmSir Kenelm DigbyPhysicist, naval commander and diplomatist, b. at Gayhurst (Goathurst), Buckinghamshire, England, ... |
DigneDigne(D INIA ; D INIENSIS ) Diocese comprising the entire department of the Basses Alpes; ... |
Dignitary, EcclesiasticalEcclesiastical DignitaryAn Ecclesiastical Dignitary is a member of a chapter, cathedral or collegiate, possessed not only ... |
DijonDijonThe Diocese of Dijon comprises the entire department of Côte-d'Or and is a suffragan of ... |
Dillingen, University ofUniversity of DillingenLocated in Swabia, a district of Bavaria. Its founder was Cardinal Otto Truchsess von Waldburg, ... |
Dillon, Arthur-RichardArthur-Richard DillonA French prelate, b. at St-Germain-en-Laye, near Paris, 1721; d. in London, 1806. The fifth son ... |
Dimissorial LettersDimissorial Letters( Latin litteræ dimissoriales , from dimittere ), letters given by an ecclesiastical ... |
Dingley, Ven. Sir ThomasVen. Sir Thomas DingleyMartyr, prior of the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, found guilty of high treason 28 April, ... |
Dinooth, SaintSt. Dinooth(DINOTHUS, DUNAWD, DUNOD). Founder and first Abbot of Bangor Iscoed (Flintshire); flourished ... |
DiocaesareaDiocaesarea(SEPPHORIS) (1) A titular see in Palestina Secunda. Diocaesarea is a later name of the town ... |
Diocesan ChanceryDiocesan ChanceryThat branch of administration which handles all written documents used in the official government ... |
DioceseDiocese( Latin diœcesis) A Diocese is the territory or churches subject to the jurisdiction of ... |
Diocese (Supplemental List)Dioceses (Supplemental List)Pope Pius X, recognizing how necessary it is for the Church to develop in proportion to the ... |
DiocleaDiocleaA titular see of Phrygia in Asia Minor . Diocleia is mentioned by Ptolemy (V, ii, 23), where ... |
DiocletianDiocletian(V ALERIUS D IOCLETIANUS ). Roman Emperor and persecutor of the Church, born of parents ... |
DiocletianopolisDiocletianopolisA titular see of Palaestina Prima. This city is mentioned by Hierocles (Synecdemus, 719, 2), ... |
Diodorus of TarsusDiodorus of TarsusDate of birth uncertain; d. about A.D. 392. He was of noble family, probably of Antioch. St. Basil ... |
Diognetus, Epistle toEpistle to Diognetus(EPISTOLA AD DIOGNETUM). This beautiful little apology for Christianity is cited by no ... |
DionysiasDionysiasA titular see in Arabia. This city, which figures in the "Synecdemos" of Hierocles (723, 3) and ... |
Dionysius ExiguusDionysius ExiguusThe surname E XIGUUS , or "The Little", adopted probably in self-deprecation and not because he ... |
Dionysius of AlexandriaDionysius of Alexandria(Bishop from 247-8 to 264-5.) Called "the Great" by Eusebius, St. Basil, and others, was ... |
Dionysius the Pseudo-AreopagiteDionysius the Pseudo-AreopagiteBy "Dionysius the Areopagite" is usually understood the judge of the Areopagus who, as related in ... |
Dionysius, Pope SaintPope St. DionysiusDate of birth unknown; d. 26 or 27 December, 268. During the pontificate of Pope Stephen ... |
Dionysius, SaintDionysiusBishop of Corinth about 170. The date is fixed by the fact that he wrote to Pope Soter (c. ... |
DioscorusDioscorusAntipope, b. at Alexandria, date unknown; d. 14 October, 530. Originally a deacon of the ... |
DioscorusDioscurus(Also written Dioscorus; Dioscurus from the analogy of Dioscuri ). Bishop of Alexandria ... |
Diplomatics, PapalPapal DiplomaticsThe word diplomatics , following a Continental usage which long ago found recognition in ... |
DiptychDiptych(Or diptychon , Greek diptychon from dis , twice and ptyssein , to fold). A ... |
Direction, SpiritualSpiritual DirectionIn the technical sense of the term, spiritual direction is that function of the sacred ministry by ... |
Directories, CatholicCatholic DirectoriesThe ecclesiastical sense of the word directory , as will be shown later, has become curiously ... |
DiscalcedDiscalced( Latin dis , without, and calceus , shoe). A term applied to those religious congregations ... |
Discernment of SpiritsDiscernment of SpiritsAll moral conduct may be summed up in the rule: avoid evil and do good. In the language of ... |
DiscipleDiscipleThis term is commonly applied to one who is learning any art or science from one distinguished by ... |
Disciples of ChristDisciples of ChristA sect founded in the United States of America by Alexander Campbell. Although the largest ... |
Discipline of the SecretDiscipline of the Secret(Latin Disciplina Arcani ; German Arcandisciplin ). A theological term used to express ... |
Discipline, EcclesiasticalEcclesiastical DisciplineEtymologically the word discipline signifies the formation of one who places himself at school ... |
Discussions, ReligiousReligious Discussions(CONFERENCES, DISPUTATIONS, DEBATES) Religious discussions, as contradistinguished from ... |
Disibod, SaintSt. DisibodIrish bishop and patron of Disenberg (Disibodenberg), born c. 619; died 8 July, 700. His life was ... |
Disparity of CultDisparity of Worship( Disparitas Cultus ) A diriment impediment introduced by the Church to safeguard the ... |
Disparity of WorshipDisparity of Worship( Disparitas Cultus ) A diriment impediment introduced by the Church to safeguard the ... |
DispensationDispensation( Latin dispensatio ) Dispensation is an act whereby in a particular case a lawful superior ... |
Dispersion of the ApostlesDispersion of the Apostles( Latin Divisio Apostolorum ), a feast in commemoration of the missionary work of the Twelve ... |
Dissen, Heinrich vonHeinrich von DissenBorn 18 Oct., 1415, at Osnabrück, in Westphalia ; died at Cologne, 26 Nov., 1484. After ... |
Dissentis, Abbey ofAbbey of DissentisA Benedictine monastery in the Canton Grisons in eastern Switzerland, dedicated to Our Lady of ... |
DistractionDistractionDistraction ( Latin distrahere , to draw away, hence to distract) is here considered in so far ... |
DistributionsDistributionsDistributions (from Lat. distribuere ), canonically termed disturbtiones quotidianae , are ... |
DithmarDithmar(Thietmar). Bishop of Merseburg and medieval chronicler, b. 25 July, 975; d. 1 Dec., 1018.He ... |
DivesDives(Latin for rich ). The word is not used in the Bible as a proper noun; but in the Middle ... |
DivinationDivinationThe seeking after knowledge of future or hidden things by inadequate means. The means being ... |
Divine AttributesDivine AttributesIn order to form a more systematic idea of God, and as far as possible, to unfold the ... |
Divine Charity, Daughters ofInstitute of the Divine CompassionFounded at Vienna, 21 November, 1868, by Franziska Lechner (d. 1894) on the Rule of St. ... |
Divine Charity, Sisters ofInstitute of the Divine CompassionFounded at Besançon, in 1799, by a Vincentian Sister, and modelled on the Sisters of ... |
Divine Charity, Society ofSociety of Divine Charity(SOCIETAS DIVINAE CHARITATIS). Founded at Maria-Martental near Kaisersesch, in 1903 by Josepth ... |
Divine Compassion, Institute of theInstitute of the Divine CompassionFounded in the City of New York, USA, by the Rt. Rev. Thomas Stanislaus Preston. On 8 September ... |
Divine Nature and Attributes, TheNature and Attributes of GodI. As Known Through Natural ReasonA. Infinity of GodB. Unity or Unicity of God C. Simplicity of ... |
Divine OfficeDivine Office("Liturgy of the Hours" I. THE EXPRESSION "DIVINE OFFICE" This expression signifies ... |
Divine Providence, Sisters ofSisters of Divine ProvidenceI. SISTERS OF THE DIVINE PROVIDENCE OF ST. VINCENT DE PAUL Founded at Molsheim, in Diocese of ... |
Divine Redeemer, Daughters of theDaughters of the Divine RedeemerMotherhouse at Oedenburg, Hungary ; founded in 1863 from the Daughters of the Divine Saviour of ... |
Divine Savior, Society of theSociety of the Divine SaviorFounded at Rome, 8 Dec., 1881, by Johann Baptist Jordan (b. 1848 at Gartweil im Breisgau), ... |
Divine Word, Society of theSociety of the Divine Word(S OCIETAS V ERBI D IVINI ) The first German Catholic missionary society established. ... |
Divisch, ProcopiusProcopius DivischPremonstratensian, b. at Senftenberg, Bohemia, 26 March, 1698; d. at Prenditz, Moravia, 21 ... |
Divorce (in Civil Jurisprudence)Divorce (in Civil Jurisprudence)Divorce is defined in jurisprudence as "the dissolution or partial suspension by the law of ... |
Divorce (in Moral Theology)Divorce (In Moral Theology)See also DIVORCE IN CIVIL JURISPRUDENCE . The term divorce ( divortium , from ... |
Dixon, JosephJoseph DixonArchbishop of Armagh, Ireland, born at Coalisland, Co. Tyrone, in 1806; died at Armagh, 29 ... |
Dlugosz, JanJan Dlugosz( Latin LONGINUS). An eminent medieval Polish historian, b. at Brzeznica, 1415; d. 19 May, ... |
Dobmayer, MarianMarian DobmayerA distinguished Benedictine theologian, born 24 October, 1753, at Schwandorf, Bavaria ; died 21 ... |
Dobrizhoffer, MartinMartin DobrizhofferMissionary, b. in Graz, Styria, 7 Sept., 1717; d. in Vienna, 17 July 1791. He became a Jesuit ... |
DocetæDocetae(Greek Doketai .) A heretical sect dating back to Apostolic times. Their name is ... |
DocimiumDocimiumA titular see of Phrygia in Asia Minor. This city, as appears from its coins where the ... |
DoctorDoctor( Latin docere , to teach) The title of an authorized teacher. In this general sense the term ... |
Doctors of the ChurchDoctors of the Church( Latin Doctores Ecclesiae ) -- Certain ecclesiastical writers have received this title on ... |
Doctors, Surnames of FamousSurnames of Famous DoctorsIt was customary in the Middle Ages to designate the more celebrated among the doctors by ... |
Doctrine of AddaiDoctrine of Addai( Latin Doctrina Addoei ). A Syriac document which relates the legend of the conversion ... |
Doctrine, ChristianChristian DoctrineTaken in the sense of "the act of teaching" and "the knowledge imparted by teaching", this term ... |
DogmaDogmaI. DEFINITION The word dogma (Gr. dogma from dokein ) signifies, in the writings of the ... |
Dogmatic FactDogmatic Fact(1) Definition By a dogmatic fact , in wider sense, is meant any fact connected with a dogma ... |
Dogmatic TheologyDogmatic TheologyDogmatic theology is that part of theology which treats of the theoretical truths of faith ... |
Dogmatic Theology, History ofHistory of Dogmatic TheologyThe imposing edifice of Catholic theology has been reared not by individual nations and men, ... |
Dolbeau, JeanJean DolbeauRecollect friar, born in the Province of Anjou, France, 12 March, 1586; died at ... |
Dolci, CarloCarlo DolciPainter, born in Florence, Italy, 25 May, 1616; died 17 January, 1686. The grandson of a ... |
DolicheDolicheA titular see of Commagene (Augusto-Euphratesia). It was a small city on the road from ... |
Dolman, CharlesCharles DolmanPublisher and bookseller, b. at Monmouth, England, 20 Sept., 1807; d. in Paris, 31 December, ... |
Dolores MissionDolores Mission(Or Mission San Francisco De Asis De Los Dolores) In point of time the sixth in the chain of ... |
DolphinDolphin( Latin delphinus ). The use of the dolphin as a Christian symbol is connected with the ... |
DomeDome( Latin domus , a house). An architectural term often used synonymously with cupola. ... |
Domenech, Emmanuel-Henri-DieudonneEmmanuel-Henri-Dieudonne DomenechAbbé, missionary and author, b. at Lyons, France, 4 November, 1826; d. in France, June, ... |
DomenechinoDomenichino (Domenico Zampieri)Properly DOMENICO ZAMPIERI. An Italian painter, born in Bologna, 21 Oct., 1581; died in ... |
Domesday BookDomesday BookThe name given to the record of the great survey of England made by order of William the ... |
DomicileDomicile( Latin jus domicilii , right of habitation, residence). The canon law has no independent ... |
Dominic of PrussiaDominic of PrussiaA Carthusian monk and ascetical writer, born in Poland, 1382; died at the monastery of St. ... |
Dominic of the Mother of GodDominic of the Mother of God(Called in secular life D OMENICO B ARBERI ) A member of the Passionist Congregation and ... |
Dominic, SaintSt. DominicFounder of the Order of Preachers , commonly known as the Dominican Order ; born at Calaroga, ... |
Dominical LetterDominical LetterA device adopted from the Romans by the old chronologers to aid them in finding the day of the ... |
Dominican RepublicThe Dominican Republic(SAN DOMINGO, SANTO DOMINGO). The Dominican Republic is the eastern, and much larger ... |
DominicansOrder of PreachersAs the Order of the Friars Preachers is the principal part of the entire Order of St. Dominic, we ... |
Dominici, Blessed GiovanniBlessed Giovanni Dominici(BANCHINI or BACCHINI was his family name). Cardinal, statesman and writer, born at ... |
Dominis, Marco Antonio deDarco Antonio de DominisDalmatian ecclesiastic, apostate, and man of science, b. on the island of Arbe, off the coast ... |
Dominus VobiscumDominus VobiscumAn ancient form of devout salutation, incorporated in the liturgy of the Church, where it is ... |
DomitianDomitian(T ITUS F LAVIUS D OMITIANUS ). Roman emperor and persecutor of the Church, son of ... |
Domitilla and Pancratius, Nereus and Achilleus, SaintsSts. Nereus and Achilleus, Domitilla and PancratiusThe commemoration of these four Roman saints is made by the Church on 12 May, in common, and ... |
DomitiopolisDomitiopolisA titular see of Isauria in Asia Minor. The former name of this city is unknown; it was called ... |
Domnus ApostolicusDomnus Apostolicus(DOMINUS APOSTOLICUS) A title applied to the pope, which was in most frequent use between the ... |
Don BoscoSt. John Bosco (Don Bosco)( Or St. John Bosco; Don Bosco.) Founder of the Salesian Society. Born of poor parents in ... |
Donahoe, PatrickPatrick DonahoePublisher, born at Munnery, County Cavan, Ireland, 17 March, 1811; died at Boston, U.S.A., 18 ... |
Donatello Di Betto BardiDonatello di Betto Bardi(DONATO DI NICOLÒ DI BETTO BARDI) One of the great Tuscan sculptors of the ... |
Donation (in Canon Law)Donation (In Canon Law)(IN CANON LAW) Donation , the gratuitous transfer to another of some right or thing. When it ... |
Donation (in Civil Law)Donation (In Civil Jurisprudence)(IN CIVIL JURISPRUDENCE) Donation, the gratuitous transfer, or gift ( Latin donatio ), of ... |
Donation of ConstantineDonation of Constantine( Latin, Donatio Constantini ). By this name is understood, since the end of the Middle ... |
DonatistsDonatistsThe Donatist schism in Africa began in 311 and flourished just one hundred years, until the ... |
Donatus of FiesoleDonatus of FiesoleIrish teacher and poet, Bishop of Fiesole, about 829-876. In an ancient collection of the ... |
Donders, PeterPeter DondersMissionary among the lepers, b. at Tilburg in Holland, 27 Oct., 1807; d. 14 Jan., 1887. He ... |
Dongan, ThomasThomas DonganSecond Earl of Limerick, b. 1634, at Castletown Kildrought, now Celbridge, County Kildare, ... |
Donlevy, AndrewAndrew DonlevyEducator, b. in 1694, probably in Sligo, Ireland ; date and place of death uncertain. Little ... |
Donnan, SaintSt. DonnanThere were apparently three or four saints of this name who flourished about the seventh century. ... |
Donner, Georg RaphaelGeorg Raphael DonnerAustrian sculptor, b. at Essling, Austria, 25 May, 1692; d. at Vienna, 15 February, 1741. It is ... |
Donnet, Ferdinand-François-AugusteFerdinand-Francois-Auguste DonnetA French cardinal, b. at Bourg-Argental (Loire), 1795; d. at Bordeaux, 1882. He studied in the ... |
Donoso Cortés, Juan Francesco Maria de la SaludadJuan Francesco Maria de Saludad Donoso CortesMarquess of Valdegamas, author and diplomat, born 6 May, 1809, at Valle de la Serena in the ... |
Donus, PopePope Donus(Or D OMNUS ). Son of a Roman called Mauricius; he was consecrated Bishop of Rome 2 Nov., ... |
DoorkeeperPorter (Doorkeeper)(Also called DOORKEEPER. From ostiarius , Latin ostium , a door.) Porter denoted among ... |
Doré, PierrePierre Dore(AURATUS) Controversialist, b. at Orléans about 1500; d. at Paris, 19 May, 1559. He ... |
DoraDoraA titular see of Palestina Prima. The name ( Dôr ) in Semitic languages means ... |
Dorchester, Abbey ofAbbey of DorchesterFounded in 1140 by Alexander, Bishop of Lincoln, for Canons of the Order of St. Augustine (or ... |
Doria, AndreaAndrea DoriaGenoese admiral and statesman, b. at Oneglia, Italy, 1468; d. at Genoa, 1560. His family ... |
Dorman, ThomasThomas DormanTheologian, b. at Berkhampstead, Hertfordshire, England, date uncertain; d. at Tournai, 1572 or ... |
Dornin, BernardBernard DorninFirst publisher in the United States of distinctively Catholic books, b. in Ireland, 1761; d. ... |
Dorothea, SaintSt. Dorothea(1) Virgin and martyr, suffered during the persecution of Diocletian, 6 February, 311, at ... |
Dorsey, Anne HansonAnne Hanson DorseyNovelist, born at Georgetown, District of Columbia, U.S.A. 1815; died at Washington, 26 ... |
DorylaeumDorylaeumA titular see of Phrygia Salutaris, in Asia Minor. This city already existed under the kings ... |
DositheansDositheansFollowers of Dositheus, a Samaritan who formed a Gnostic - Judaistic sect, previous to Simon ... |
Dosquet, Pierre-HermanPierre-Herman DosquetFourth Bishop of Quebec, b. at Liège, Flanders, 1691; d. at Paris, 1777. He studied at ... |
Dossi, GiovanniGiovanni DossiActually named GIOVANNI DI NICOLO DI LUTERO, but also called Dosso Dossi. An Italian painter, ... |
Dotti, Blessed AndreaBlessed Andrea DottiBorn 1256, in Borgo San Sepolero, Tuscany, Italy ; d. there 31 August, 1315. He was of noble ... |
DouaiDouai(Town and University of Douai) (D OUAY, D OWAY ) The town of Douai, in the department of ... |
Douay BibleDouay BibleThe original Douay Version, which is the foundation on which nearly all English Catholic ... |
Double AltarDouble AltarAn altar having a double front constructed in such a manner that Mass may be celebrated on ... |
Double MonasteriesDouble MonasteriesReligious houses comprising communities of both men and women, dwelling in contiguous ... |
DoubtDoubt(Latin dubium, Greek aporí, French doute, German Zweifel ). A state in which the ... |
Douglas, GavinGavin DouglasScottish prelate and poet, born about 1474; died 1522; he was the third son of Archibald, Fifth ... |
Doutreleau, StephenStephen DoutreleauMissionary, born in France, 11 October, 1693; date of death uncertain. He became a Jesuit ... |
DoveDove(Latin columba ). In Christian antiquity the dove appears as a symbol and as a Eucharistic ... |
Dowdall, GeorgeGeorge DowdallArchbishop of Armagh, b. at Drogheda, County Louth, Ireland, in 1487; d. at London, 15 August, ... |
Dowdall, JamesJames DowdallMartyr, date of birth unknown; executed for his faith at Exeter, England, 20 September, 1600. ... |
DowerDower( Latin doarium ; French douaire ) A provision for support during life accorded by law ... |
Dower, ReligiousReligious Dower( Latin dos religiosa ). Because of its analogy with the dower that a woman brings to ... |
Down and ConnorDown and ConnorDiocese of Down and Connor (Dunensis et Connorensis) A line drawn from Whitehouse on Belfast ... |
Downside AbbeyDownside AbbeyNear Bath, Somersetshire, England, was founded at Douai, Flanders, under the patronage of ... |
DoxologyDoxologyIn general this word means a short verse praising God and beginning, as a rule, with the Greek ... |
Doyle, James WarrenJames Warren DoyleIrish bishop ; b. near New Ross, County Wexford, Ireland, 1786; d. at Carlow, 1834. He belonged ... |
Doyle, JohnJohn DoyleBorn in Dublin, Ireland, 1797; died in London, 2 January, 1868; English portrait-painter and ... |
Doyle, RichardRichard DoyleEnglish artist and caricaturist, b. in London, September, 1824; d. there 11 December, 1883. The ... |
Drach, David PaulDavid Paul DrachConvert from Judaism, b. at Strasburg, 6 March, 1791; d. end of January, 1868, at Rome. ... |
DrachmaDrachma(Gr. drachmé ), a Greek silver coin. The Greeks derived the word from drássomai, ... |
Dracontius, Blossius ÆmiliusBlossius Aemilius DracontiusA Christian poet of the fifth century. Dracontius belonged to a distinguished family of ... |
Drane, Augusta TheodosiaAugusta Theodosia DraneIn religion MOTHER FRANCIS RAPHAEL, O.S.D.; b. at Bromley near London, in 1823; d. at Stone, ... |
Dreams, Interpretation ofInterpretation of DreamsThere is in sleep something mysterious which seems, from the earliest times, to have impressed ... |
Drechsel, JeremiasJeremias Dreschel( Also Drexelius or Drexel.) Ascetic writer, b. at Augsburg, 15 August, 1581; entered the ... |
DresdenDresdenThe capital of the Kingdom of Saxony and the residence of the royal family, is situated on both ... |
Dreves, Lebrecht BlücherLebrecht Blucher DrevesPoet, b. at Hamburg, Germany, 12 September, 1816; d. at Feldkirch, 19 Dec., 1870. The famous ... |
Drevet Family, TheThe Drevet FamilyThe Drevets were the leading portrait engravers of France for over a hundred years. Their fame ... |
Drexel, Francis AnthonyFrancis Anthony DrexelBanker, b. at Philadelphia, U.S.A. 20 June, 1824; d. there 15 Feb., 1885. He was the oldest son ... |
Drexel, JeremiasJeremias Dreschel( Also Drexelius or Drexel.) Ascetic writer, b. at Augsburg, 15 August, 1581; entered the ... |
Drey, Johann Sebastian vonJohann Sebastian Von DreyA professor of theology at the University of Tübingen, born 16 Oct., 1777, at Killingen, in ... |
DromoreDromore(DROMORENSIS, and in ancient documents DRUMORENSIS) Dromore is one of the eight suffragans of ... |
Drostan, SaintSt. Drostan(DRUSTAN, DUSTAN, THROSTAN) A Scottish abbot who flourished about A.D. 600. All that is ... |
Droste-Vischering, Clemens August vonClemens August von Droste-VisheringArchbishop of Cologne, born 21 Jan., 1773, at Münster, Germany ; died 19 Oct., 1845, in ... |
DruidismDruidismThe etymology of this word from the Greek drous , "oak", has been a favorite one since the ... |
Druillettes, GabrielGabriel Druillettes(Or DREUILLETS) Missionary, b. in France, 29 September, 1610; d. at Quebec, 8 April, 1681. ... |
Drumgoole, John C.John C. DrumgoolePriest and philanthropist, b. at Granard, Co. Longford, Ireland, 15 August, 1816; d. in New ... |
Drury, RobertVen. Robert DruryMartyr (1567-1607), was born of a good Buckinghamshire family and was received into the ... |
DrusillaDrusillaDrusilla, daughter of Herod Agrippa I , was six years of age at the time of her father's death ... |
DrusiparaDrusiparaA titular see in Thracia Prima. Nothing is known of the ancient history of this town, which, ... |
Druys, JeanJean Druys( Latin DRUSIUS) Thirtieth Abbot of Parc near Louvain, Belgium, b. at Cumptich, near ... |
Druzbicki, GasparGaspar DruzbickiAscetic writer, b. at Sierady in Poland, 1589; entered the Society of Jesus, 20 August 1609; d. ... |
DruzesDruzesSmall Mohammedan sect in Syria, notorious for their opposition to the Marionites, a Catholic ... |
Dryburgh AbbeyDryburgh AbbeyA monastery belonging to the canons of the Premonstratensian Order (Norbertine or White ... |
Dryden, JohnJohn DrydenPoet, dramatist, critic, and translator; b. 9 August, 1631, at Oldwinkle All Saints, ... |
Du Cange, Charles DufresneCharles Dufresne du CangeHistorian and philologist, b. at Amiens, France, 18 Dec., 1610; d. at Paris, 1688. His father, ... |
Du Coudray, Philippe-Charles-Jean-Baptiste-TronsonDu CoudraySoldier, b. at Reims, France, 8 September, 1738; d. at Philadelphia, U.S.A. 11 September, ... |
Du Lhut Daniel Greysolon, SieurDaniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut(DULUTH). Born at Saint-Germain-en-Laye about 1640; died at Montreal, 26 Feb., 1710. He first ... |
DualismDualism(From Latin duo , two). Like most other philosophical terms, has been employed in different ... |
DublinDublin(DUBLINIUM; DUBLINENSIS). Archdiocese ; occupies about sixty miles of the middle eastern coast ... |
Dubois, GuillaumeGuillaume DuboisA French cardinal and statesman, born at Brive, in Limousin, 1656; died at Versailles, 1723. ... |
Dubois, Jean-AntoineJean-Antoine DuboisFrench missionary in India, b. in 1765 at St. Remèze (Ardèche); d. in Paris, 17 ... |
Dubois, JohnJohn DuboisThird Bishop of New York, educator and missionary, b. in Paris, 24 August, 1764; d. in New ... |
Dubourg, Louis-Guillaume-ValentinLouis-Guillaume-Valentin DubourgSecond Bishop of Louisiana and the Floridas, Bishop of Montauban, Archbishop of ... |
Dubric, SaintSt. Dubric(DYFRIG, DUBRICIUS) Bishop and confessor, one of the greatest of Welsh saints ; d. 612. He ... |
DubuqueDubuqueArchdiocese of Dubuque (Dubuquensis), established, 28 July, 1837, created an archbishopric, ... |
Duc, Fronton duFronton du Duc(Called in Latin Ducæus.) A French theologian and Jesuit, b. at Bordeaux in 1558; ... |
Duccio di BuoninsegnaDuccio di BuoninsegnaPainter, and founder of the Sienese School, b. about 1255 or 1260, place not known; d. 3 August, ... |
Duchesne, Philippine-RosePhilippine-Rose DuchesneFounder in America of the first houses of the society of the Sacred Heart, born at Grenoble, ... |
Duckett, John, VenerableVen. John DuckettA Martyr, probably a grandson of Venerable James Duckett , born at Underwinder, in the parish ... |
Duckett, Ven. JamesVen. James DuckettMartyr, b. at Gilfortrigs in the parish of Skelsmergh in Westmoreland, England, date uncertain, ... |
Ducrue, Francis BennonFrancis Bennon DucrueMissionary in Mexico, b. at Munich, Bavaria. of French parents, 10 June 1721; d. there 30 March, ... |
Dudik, Beda FranciscusBeda Franciscus DudikMoravian historian, b. at Kojetein near Kremsier, Moravia, 29 January, 1815; d. as abbot and ... |
DuelDuel( Duellum , old form of bellum ). This word, as used both in the ecclesiastical and ... |
Duffy, Sir Charles GavanSir Charles Gavan DuffyPolitician and author, b. at Monaghan, Ireland, 12 April, 1816; d. at Nice, France, 9 Feb., ... |
Duhamel, Jean-BaptisteJean-Baptiste DuhamelA French scientist, philosopher, and theologian, b. at Vire, Normandy (now in the department of ... |
DuliaDulia(Greek doulia ; Latin servitus ), a theological term signifying the honour paid to the ... |
DuluthDuluthDIOCESE OF DULUTH (DULUTHENSIS) Diocese, established 3 Oct., 1889, suffragan of the ... |
Dumas, Jean-BaptisteJean-Baptiste DumasDistinguished French chemist and senator, b. at Alais, department of Gard, 14 July, 1800; d. at ... |
Dumetz, FranciscoFrancisco DumetzDate of birth unknown; died 14 Jan., 1811. He was a native of Mallorca (Majorca), Spain, where he ... |
Dumont, Hubert-AndréHubert-Andre DumontBelgian geologist, b. at Liège, 15 Feb., 1809; d. in the same city, 28 Feb., 1857. When ... |
Dumoulin, CharlesCharles Dumoulin(Or DUMOLIN; latinized MOLINAEUS). French jurist, b. at Paris in 1500; d. there 27 December, ... |
Dunbar, WilliamWilliam DunbarScottish poet, sometimes styled the " Chaucer of Scotland ", born c. 1460; died c. 1520(?). He ... |
Dunchadh, SaintSt. Dunchadh(DUNICHAD, DUNCAD, DONATUS) Confessor, Abbot of Iona ; date of b. unknown, d. in 717. He ... |
Dundrennan, Abbey ofAbbey of DundrennanIn Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland ; a Cistercian house founded in 1142 by King David I and ... |
DunedinDunedin(DUNEDINENSIS) Dunedin comprises the provincial district of Otago (including the Otago part, ... |
Dunfermline, Abbey ofAbbey of DunfermlineIn the south-west of Fife, Scotland. Founded by King Malcolm Canmore and his queen, Margaret, ... |
DungalDungalIrish monk, teacher, astronomer, and poet who flourished about 820. He is mentioned in 811 as an ... |
Dunin, Martin vonMartin von DuninArchbishop of Gnesen and Posen, born 11 Nov., 1774, in the village of Wat near the city of Rawa, ... |
DunkeldDunkeld(DUNKELDENSIS) Located in Scotland, constituted, as far back as the middle of the ninth ... |
DunkersTunkers( German tunken , to dip) A Protestant sect thus named from its distinctive baptismal rite. ... |
Duns Scotus, Blessed JohnBlessed John Duns ScotusSurnamed DOCTOR SUBTILIS, died 8 November, 1308; he was the founder and leader of the famous ... |
Dunstan, SaintSt. DunstanArchbishop and confessor, and one of the greatest saints of the Anglo-Saxon Church ; b. near ... |
Dupanloup, Félix-Antoine-PhilibertDupanloupBishop of Orléans, France, b. at Saint-Félix; Savoie, 2 June, 1802; d. at ... |
Duperron, Jacques-DavyJacques-Davy DuperronA theologian and diplomat, born 25 Nov., 1556, at St-Lô (Normandy), France ; died 5 ... |
Dupin, Louis ElliesLouis-Ellies Dupin(also DU PIN) A theologian, born 17 June, 1657, of a noble family in Normandy ; died 6 ... |
Dupin, Pierre-Charles-FrançoisPierre-Charles-Francois DupinKnown as BARON CHARLES DUPIN. A French mathematician and economist, b. at Varzy, ... |
Duponceau, Peter StephenPeter Stephen DuponceauA jurist and linguist, b. at St-Martin de Ré, France 3 June, 1760; d. at Philadelphia, ... |
Dupré, GiovanniGiovanni DupreSculptor, b. of remote French ancestry at Siena, 1 Mar., 1817; d. at Florence, 10 Jan., 1882. ... |
Duprat, Antoine & GuillaumeAntoine and Guillaume Duprat(1) Antoine Duprat Chancellor of France and Cardinal, b. at Issoire in Auvergne, 17 January, ... |
Dupuytren, Baron GuillaumeBaron Guillaume DupuytrenFrench anatomist and surgeon, born 6 October, 1777, at Pierre-Buffière, a small town in ... |
Duquesnoy, FrançoisFrancois Duquesnoy(Called also FRANÇOIS FLAMAND, and in Italy IL FLAMINGO). Born at Brussels, Belgium, ... |
Duran, NarciscoNarcisco DuranBorn 16 December, 1776, at Castellon de Ampurias, Catalonia, Spain ; died 1 June, 1846. He ... |
Durand UrsinDurand UrsinA Benedictine of the Maurist Congregation, b. 20 May, 1682, at Tours ; d. 31 Aug., 1771, at ... |
Durandus of Saint-PourçainDurandus of Saint-PourcainPhilosopher and theologian, b. at Saint-Pourçain, Auvergne France ; d. 13 September, ... |
Durandus of TroarnDurandus of TroarnFrench Benedictine and ecclesiastical writer, b. about 1012, at Le Neubourg near Evreux ; d. ... |
Durandus, WilliamWilliam Durandus(Also: Duranti or Durantis). Canonist and one of the most important medieval liturgical writers; ... |
Durandus, William, the YoungerWilliam Durandus, the YoungerDied 1328, canonist, nephew of the famous ritualist and canonist of the same name (with whom he is ... |
DurangoDurango (Mexico)(DURANGUM) Archdiocese located in north-western Mexico. The see was created 28 Sept., 1620, ... |
DurazzoDurazzo (Albania)ARCHDIOCESE OF DURAZZO (DYRRACHIENSIS). The Archdiocese of Durazzo in Albania, situated on the ... |
Durbin, Elisha JohnElisha John DurbinThe "Patriarch-priest of Kentucky ", born 1 February, 1800, in Madison County, in that State, of ... |
DurhamDurham (Dunelmum)Ancient Catholic Diocese of Durham (Dunelmensis). This diocese holds a unique position among ... |
Durham RiteDurham RiteThe earliest document giving an account of liturgical services in the Diocese of Durham is the ... |
Durrow, School ofSchool of Durrow( Irish Dairmagh , Plain of the Oaks) The Durrow is delightfully situated in the King's ... |
DutyDutyThe definition of the term duty given by lexicographers is: "something that is due", ... |
Duvergier de Hauranne, JeanDuvergier de Hauranne(Or D U V ERGER ), J EAN ; also called S AINT -C YRAN from an abbey he held in ... |
Duvernay, LudgerLudger DuvernayA French-Canadian journalist and patriot, born at Verchères, Quebec, 22 January, 1799; ... |
Dwight, ThomasThomas DwightAnatomist, b. at Boston, 1843; d. at Nahant, 8 Sept., 1911. The son of Thomas Dwight and of Mary ... |
Dyck, Antoon (Anthonis) VanAntoon (Anthonis) van DyckUsually known as S IR A NTHONY V AN D YCK . Flemish portrait-painter, b. at Antwerp, ... |
Dymoke, RobertRobert DymokeConfessor of the Faith, date of birth uncertain; d. at Lincoln, England, 11 Sept., 1580. He ... |
Dymphna, SaintSt. Dymphna(Also known as Dympna and Dimpna). Virgin and martyr. The earliest historical account of ... |
DynamismDynamismDynamism is a general name for a group of philosophical views concerning the nature of matter. ... |
- Trending Saints:
- St. Ambrose
- St. Nicholas
- St. Augustine of Hippo
- St. Maria Giuseppe Rossello
Copyright 2019 Catholic Online. All materials contained on this site, whether written, audible or visual are the exclusive property of Catholic Online and are protected under U.S. and International copyright laws, © Copyright 2019 Catholic Online. Any unauthorized use, without prior written consent of Catholic Online is strictly forbidden and prohibited.
Catholic Online is a Project of Your Catholic Voice Foundation, a Not-for-Profit Corporation. Your Catholic Voice Foundation has been granted a recognition of tax exemption under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Federal Tax Identification Number: 81-0596847. Your gift is tax-deductible as allowed by law.