
Oratory
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(Latin oratorium , from orare , to pray )
As a general term, Oratory signifies a place of prayer, but technically it means a structure other than a parish church, set aside by ecclesiastical authority for prayer and the celebration of Mass. Oratories seem to have originated from the chapels erected over the tombs of the early martyrs where the faithful resorted to pray, and also from the necessity of having a place of worship for the people in country districts when churches proper were restricted to cathedral cities. We also find early mention of private oratories for the celebration of Mass by bishops, and later of oratories attached to convents and to the residences of nobles. In the Eastern Church, where the parochial organization is neither so complete nor so rigid as in the West, private oratories were so numerous as to constitute an abuse. In the Latin Church oratories are classed as (1) public, (2) semipublic, and (3) private.
(1) PUBLIC ORATORIES
Are canonically erected by the bishop and are perpetually dedicated to the Divine service. They must have an entrance and exit from the public road, Priests who celebrate Mass in public oratories must conform to the office proper to those oratories, whether secular or regular. If, however, the calendar of an oratory permits a votive Mass to be said, the visiting priest may celebrate in conformity with his own diocesan or regular calendar.
(2) SEMIPUBLIC ORATORIES
Are those which, though erected in a private building, are destined for the use of a community. Such are the oratories of seminaries, pious congregations, colleges, hospitals, prisons, and such institutions. If, however, there be several oratories in one house, it is only the one in which the Blessed Sacrament is preserved that has the privileges of a semipublic oratory. All semipublic oratories (which class technically includes the private chapel of a bishop ) are on the same footing as public oratories in regard to the celebration of Mass. The calendar of feasts to be observed in them (unless they belong to a regular order having its proper calendar) is that of the diocese. In oratories belonging to nuns, the feasts of their community are to be celebrated in accordance with the decrees or indults they have received from the Holy See. Regulars visiting a semipublic oratory cannot celebrate the feasts of saints of their own order unless the calendar proper to the oratory prescribes the same or permits of a votive Mass. Public and semipublic oratories are ordinarily under the control of the bishop. The Congregation of Rites declared (23 Jan., 1899): "In these (oratories), as, by the authority of the ordinary, the holy sacrifice of the Mass can be offered, so also all those present thereat can satisfy thereby the precept which obliges the faithful to hear Mass on prescribed days." The same decree also gives an authoritative definition of the three species of oratories.
(3) PRIVATE ORATORIES
Are those erected in private houses for the convenience of some person or family by an indult of the Holy See. They can be erected only by permission of the pope. Oratories in private houses date from Apostolic times when the Sacred Mysteries could not be publicly celebrated owing to the persecutions. Even after the peace of Constantine, the custom continued to prevail. Kings and nobles especially had such oratories erected in their palaces. As early as the reign of Emperor Justinian, we find regulations concerning private oratories as distinguished from public churches, and prohibitions against saying Mass in private houses (Novel., lviii and cxxxi). Permissions to celebrate were granted, however, freely in the West by popes and councils. The latest decree regulating private oratories is that of the Sacred Congregation of the Discipline of the Sacraments of 7 Feb., 1909. According to this, private oratories are conceded by the Holy See only on account of bodily infirmity, or difficulty of access to a public church or as a reward for services done to the Holy See or to the Catholic cause. The grant of a private oratory may be temporary or for the life of the grantee, according to the nature of the cause that is adduced. In either case, the simple concession of an oratory implies that only one Mass a day may be celebrated, that the precept of the Church concerning the hearing of Mass on prescribed days (certain special festivals generally specified in the indult excluded) may be there satisfied only by the grantees, and that the determination of the place, city, and diocese where the oratory is to be erected is approved. The rescript will be forwarded to the ordinary. The decree then recites the various extensions of the before-mentioned privileges that may be conceded to grantees:
This is usually conceded by the indult only to the following: relatives of the grantee living under the same roof, dependants of the family, and guests or those who share his table. The others living in the house may not satisfy the precept except it be a funeral Mass or on account of the distance of the public church. If the oratory be a rural one, those employed on the estate may there hear Mass, but in that case the grantee must provide for a catechetical instruction and an explanation of the Gospel. The same holds for a private oratory in a camp or castle or a widespread domain. In very peculiar circumstances (to be judged by the ordinary) all others may also hear Mass in a private oratory while the conditions prevail.
(b) As to hearing Mass in the absence of the granteesThis is allowed in the presence of one of the relatives living under the same roof, but the concession is to be understood of a temporary absence of the grantees and that the relative be expressly determined. The same is extended to the principal one among the familiars, rural servants, or dependants.
(c) As to the number of MassesIf the grantees are two priests who are brothers, both may celebrate Mass. A thanksgiving Mass is also allowed if the ordinary recommends it. Priests who are guests may say Mass in the oratory of the house where they are staying if they have commendatory letters from the ordinary, provided they are infirm or the church is distant. Several Masses may also be said during the last agony or at the death or anniversary of one of the grantees and likewise on the feast of his patron saint.
(d) As to greater festivalsBy an extension of privileges, Mass may be allowed in private oratories on all days except on the feast of the local patron, the Assumption, Christmas, and Easter. Sometimes the concession may extend to the first three feasts, but very rarely to Easter, and then only on the urgent recommendation of the ordinary, exception being made for grantees who are infirm priests.
(e) As to concessionsSometimes a grantee may have the rights of a private oratory in two dioceses, but then both ordinaries must give testimonial letters. In case the oratory is situated in a place where the parish priest has to say two Masses on the same day, a priest from some other place may say Mass in the oratory but he may not say another Mass in addition. An oratory near a sick-room is also allowed occasionally during sickness. This decree likewise allows ordinaries (for ten cases only) to grant a private oratory to poor priests who are aged and infirm. It will be noted that this legislation is a very liberal extension of the provisions formerly governing private oratories.
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OratorioOratorioAs at present understood, an Oratorio is a musical composition for solo voices, chorus, orchestra, ... |
OratoryOratory(Latin oratorium , from orare , to pray ) As a general term, Oratory signifies a place ... |
Oratory of Saint Philip Neri, TheThe Oratory of Saint Philip NeriUnder this head are included the Italian, Spanish, English, and other communities, which follow ... |
Oratory, French Congregation of theFrench Congregation of the OratoryFounded in Paris at the beginning of the seventeenth century by Cardinal Pierre de ... |
Orbellis, Nicolas d'Nicolas d'OrbellisFranciscan theologian and philosopher, Scotist ; born about 1400; died at Rome, 1475. He seems ... |
OrcagnaOrcagna(The conventional name in art history of A NDREA DI C IONE , also called A RCAGNUOLO or A ... |
OrcistusOrcistusTitular see in Galatia Secunda. It is only mentioned in Peutinger's "Table". An inscription of ... |
OrdealsOrdeals( Iudicium Dei ; Anglo-Saxon, ordâl ; German Urteil ). Ordeals were a means of ... |
Ordericus VitalisOrdericus VitalisHistorian, b. 1075; d. about 1143. He was the son of an English mother and a French priest who ... |
Orders, HolyHoly OrdersOrder is the appropriate disposition of things equal and unequal, by giving each its proper place ... |
Orders, The MilitaryThe Military OrdersIncluding under this term every kind of brotherhood of knights, secular as well as religious, ... |
OrdinariateOrdinariate(From Ordinary ). This term is used in speaking collectively of all the various organs ... |
OrdinaryOrdinary( Latin ordinarius , i. e., judex ) An Ordinary in ecclesiastical language, denotes any ... |
Ordines RomaniOrdines RomaniThe word Ordo commonly meant, in the Middle Ages, a ritual book containing directions for ... |
OregonOregonOne of the Pacific Coast States, seventh in size among the states of the Union (1910). It received ... |
Oregon CityOregon City(OREGONOPOLITAN). Includes that part of the state of Oregon west of the Cascade Mountains, ... |
OremusOremusInvitation to pray, said before collects and other short prayers and occurring continually in ... |
OrenseOrense(AURIENSIS) A suffragan of Compostela, includes nearly all of the civil Province of Orense, ... |
Oresme, NicoleNicole OresmePhilosopher, economist, mathematician, and physicist, one of the principal founders of modern ... |
OrganOrgan(Greek organon , "an instrument") A musical instrument which consists of one or several sets ... |
Organic Articles, TheThe Organic ArticlesA name given to a law regulating public worship, comprising 77 articles relative to Catholicism, ... |
OriaOria(URITANA) Oria, in the Province of Lecce [now the Province of Brindisi -- Ed. ], Apulia, ... |
Oriani, BarnabaBarnaba OrianiItalian Barnabite and astronomer, b. at Carignano, near Milan, 17 July, 1752; d. at Milan, 12 ... |
Oriental Study and ResearchOriental Study and ResearchIn the broadest sense of the term, Oriental study comprises the scientific investigation and ... |
Orientation of ChurchesOrientation of ChurchesAccording to Tertullian the Christians of his time were, by some who concerned themselves with ... |
OrientiusOrientiusChristian Latin poet of the fifth century. He wrote an elegiac poem ( Commonitorium ) of 1036 ... |
OriflammeOriflammeIn verses 3093-5 of the "Chanson de Roland" (eleventh century) the oriflamme is mentioned as a ... |
Origen and OrigenismOrigen and OrigenismI. LIFE AND WORK OF ORIGEN A. BIOGRAPHY Origen, most modest of writers, hardly ever alludes to ... |
Original SinOriginal SinI. Meaning II. Principal Adversaries III. Original Sin in ScriptureIV. Original Sin in ... |
OrihuelaOrihuelaDIOCESE OF ORIHUELA (ORIOLENSIS, ORIOLANA). The Diocese of Orihuela comprises all the civil ... |
Oriol, Saint JosephSaint Joseph OriolPriest, "Thaumaturgus of Barcelona", b. at Barcelona, 23 November, 1650; d. there, 23 March, ... |
OristanoOristanoDiocese of Oristano (Arborensis) in Sardinia. Oristano was the capital of the giudicatura ... |
OrkneysOrkneysA group of islands situated between 58° 41' and 59° 24' N. lat. and 2° 22' and 3° ... |
OrléansOrleans(AURELIANUM) This Diocese comprises the Department of Loiret, suffragan of Paris since 1622, ... |
Orléans, Councils ofCouncils of OrleansSix national councils were held at Orléans in the Merovingian period. I. — At the ... |
Orlandini, NiccolòNiccolo OrlandiniBorn at Florence, 1554; died 1606 at Rome, 17 May. He entered the Jesuit novitiate 7 Nov., ... |
Orley, Barent VanBarent van Orley(Bernard) Painter, b. at Brussels, about 1491; d. there 6 January, 1542. He studied under ... |
Orme, Philibert de l'Philibert de l'OrmeAn architect, born about 1512; died 1570. His style, classical and of the more severe Italian ... |
OropusOropusTitular see, suffragan of Anazarbus in Cilicia Secunda. It never really depended on Anazarbus ... |
Orosius, PaulusPaulus OrosiusHistorian and Christian apologist ; b. probably at Bracara, now Braga, in Portugal, between 380 ... |
Orphans and OrphanagesOrphans and OrphanagesThe death of one or both parents makes the child of the very poor a ward of the community. The ... |
Orsi, Giuseppe AgostinoGiuseppe Agostino OrsiA cardinal, theologian, and ecclesiastical historian, born at Florence, 9 May, 1692, of an ... |
OrsiniOrsiniOne of the most ancient and distinguished families of the Roman nobility, whose members often ... |
OrsisiusOrsisius( Arsisios , Oresiesis-Heru-sa Ast) Egyptian monk of the fourth century; was a disciple ... |
Ortelius, AbrahamAbraham Ortelius(OERTEL) A cartographer, geographer, and archeologist, born in Antwerp, 4 April, 1527; died ... |
Orthodox ChurchOrthodox ChurchThe technical name for the body of Christians who use the Byzantine Rite in various languages ... |
OrthodoxyOrthodoxyOrthodoxy ( orthodoxeia ) signifies right belief or purity of faith. Right belief is not ... |
Orthodoxy, Feast ofFeast of Orthodoxy(or SUNDAY) The first Sunday of the Great Forty days ( Lent ) in the Byzantine Calendar ... |
OrthosiasOrthosiasA titular see of Phœnicia Prima, suffragan of Tyre. The city is mentioned for the first ... |
Ortolano FerrareseOrtolano FerraresePainter of the Ferrara School, b. in Ferrara, about 1490; d. about 1525. His real name was ... |
OrvalOrval(Aurea Vallis, Gueldenthal). Formerly a Cistercian abbey in Belgian Luxemburg, Diocese of ... |
OrvietoOrvietoDIOCESE OF ORVIETO (URBEVETANA) Diocese in Central Italy. The city stands on a rugged mass of ... |
Ory, MatthieuMatthieu OryInquisitor and theologian, b. at La Caune, 1492; d. at Paris, 1557. Entering the Dominican ... |
OsakaOsaka(Osachensis). Osaka ( Oye , great river; saka , cliff), one of the three municipal ... |
OsbaldOsbaldKing of Northumbria, d. 799. Symeon of Durham (Historia Regum) tells us that when Ecfwald, a ... |
Osbaldeston, Edward, VenerableVen. Edward OsbaldestonEnglish martyr, b. about 1560; hanged, drawn, and quartered at York, 16 November, 1594. Son of ... |
OsbernOsbernHagiographer, sometimes confused with Osbert de Clare alias Osbern de Westminster, b. at ... |
Oscott (St. Mary's College)Oscott (St. Mary's College)In 1793, a number of the Catholic nobility and gentry of England formed a committee for the ... |
OseeOseeNAME AND COUNTRY Osee (Hôsheá‘– Salvation ), son of Beeri, was one of ... |
OsimoOsimoDIOCESE OF OSIMO (AUXIMANA). Diocese in the Province of Ascoli Piceno, Italy. Osimo was ... |
Oslo, Ancient See ofAncient See of Oslo(ASLOIA, ASLOENSIS.) Oslo occupied part of the site of Christiania (founded 1624). After the ... |
OsmaOsma(OXOMENSIS) The Diocese borders Burgos and Logroño on the north, Soria and Saragossa ... |
Osmund, SaintSt. OsmundBishop of Salisbury, died 1099; his feast is kept on 4 December. Osmund held an exalted ... |
OsnabrückOsnabrueck(OSNABRUGENSIS) This diocese, directly subject to the Holy See, comprises, in the Prussian ... |
Ossat, Arnaud d'Arnaud d'OssatFrench cardinal, diplomat, and writer, b. at Larroque-Magnoac (Gascony), 20 July, 1537; d. at ... |
Ossory, Diocese ofOssory(Ossoriensis.) In the Province of Leinster, Ireland, is bounded on the south by the Suir, on ... |
OstensoriumOstensorium(From ostendere , "to show"). Ostensorium means, in accordance with its etymology, a ... |
Ostia and VelletriOstia and VelletriSUBURBICARIAN DIOCESE OF OSTIA AND VELLETRI (OSTIENSIS ET VELITERNENSIS). Near Rome, central ... |
OstiensisOstiensisSurname of LEO MARSICANUS, Benedictine chronicler, b. about 1045; d. 22 May, 1115, 1116, or ... |
OstracineOstracineTitular see and suffragan of Pelusium in Augustamnica prima. Pliny (Hist. naturalis, V, xiv) ... |
Ostraka, ChristianChristian OstrakaInscriptions on clay, wood, metal, and other hard materials. Like papyri, they are valuable ... |
OstrogothsOstrogothsOne of the two chief tribes of the Goths, a Germanic people. Their traditions relate that the ... |
Oswald, SaintSt. OswaldArchbishop of York, d. on 29 February, 992. Of Danish parentage, Oswald was brought up by his ... |
Oswald, SaintSt. OswaldKing and martyr ; b., probably, 605; d. 5 Aug., 642; the second of seven brothers, sons of ... |
Oswin, SaintSt. OswinKing and martyr, murdered at Gilling, near Richmond, Yorkshire, England, on 20 August, 651, ... |
Otfried of WeissenburgOtfried of WeissenburgHe is the oldest German poet known by name, author of the "Evangelienbuch", a rhymed version of ... |
OthloOthlo(OTLOH) A Benedictine monk of St. Emmeran's, Ratisbon, born 1013 in the Diocese of ... |
Othmar, SaintSt. Othmar(Audomar.) Died 16 Nov., 759, on the island of Werd in the Rhine, near Echnez, Switzerland. ... |
Otho, Marcus SalviusMarcus Salvius OthoRoman emperor, successor, after Galba, of Nero, b. in Rome, of an ancient Etruscan family ... |
OtrantoOtrantoARCHDIOCESE OF OTRANTO (HYDRUNTINA). Otranto is a city of the Province of Lecce, Apulia, ... |
Ottawa, Archdiocese ofOttawaArchdiocese of Ottawa (Ottawiensis). The Archdiocese of Ottawa, in Canada, originally ... |
Ottawa, University ofUniversity of OttawaConducted by the Oblates of Mary Immaculate ; founded in 1848. It was incorporated in 1849 under ... |
Otto I, the GreatOtto I (The Great)Roman emperor and German king, b. in 912; d. at Memleben, 7 May, 973; son of Henry I and his ... |
Otto IIOtto IIKing of the Germans and Emperor of Rome, son of Otto I and Adelaide, b. 955; d. in Rome, 7 ... |
Otto IIIOtto IIIGerman king and Roman emperor, b. 980; d. at Paterno, 24 Jan., 1002. At the age of three he was ... |
Otto IVOtto IVGerman king and Roman emperor, b. at Argentau (Dept. of Orne), c. 1182; d. 19 May, 1218; son of ... |
Otto of FreisingOtto of FreisingBishop and historian, b. between 1111 and 1114, d. at Morimond, Champagne, France, 22 ... |
Otto of PassauOtto of PassauAll we know of him is in the preface of his work, in which he calls himself a member of the ... |
Otto of St. BlasienOtto of BlasienChronicler, b. about the middle of the twelfth century; d. 23 July, 1223, at St. Blasien in the ... |
Otto, SaintSaint OttoBishop of Bamberg, b. about 1060; d. 30 June, 1139. He belonged to the noble, though not ... |
OttobeurenOttobeuren(OTTOBURA, MONASTERIUM OTTOBURANUM) Formerly a Benedictine abbey, now a priory, near ... |
Ouen, SaintSt. Ouen(OWEN; DADON, Latin Audaenus ). Archbishop of Rouen, b. at Sancy, near Soissons about ... |
Our Father, TheLord's PrayerAlthough the Latin term oratio dominica is of early date, the phrase "Lord's Prayer" does not ... |
Our Lady of Charity of the Good ShepherdOur Lady of Charity of the Good ShepherdThe aim of this institute is to provide a shelter for girls and women of dissolute habits, who ... |
Our Lady of Good Counsel, Feast ofFeast of Our Lady of Good CounselRecords dating from the reign of Paul II (1464-71) relate that the picture of Our Lady, at ... |
Our Lady of Perpetual HelpOur Lady of Perpetual Succour (Our Lady of Perpetual Help)( Or OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP.) The picture of Our Lady of Perpetual Succour is painted ... |
Our Lady of Perpetual SuccourOur Lady of Perpetual Succour (Our Lady of Perpetual Help)( Or OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP.) The picture of Our Lady of Perpetual Succour is painted ... |
Our Lady of the Fields, Brothers ofBrothers of Our Lady of the FieldsA Canadian congregation founded in 1902 at St-Damien de Buckland in the Diocese of Quebec by ... |
Our Lady of the SnowOur Lady of the Snow("Dedicatio Sanctæ Mariæ ad Nives"). A feast celebrated on 5 August to ... |
Our Lady, Help of Christians, Feast ofFeast of Our Lady, Help of ChristiansThe invocation Auxilium Christianorum (Help of Christians ) originated in the sixteenth ... |
Overbeck, FriedrichFriedrich OverbeckConvert and painter of religious subjects, b. at Lübeck, 3 July, 1789; d. at Rome, 12 ... |
Overberg, Bernhard HeinrichBernhard Heinrich OverbergA German ecclesiastic and educator, born 1 May, 1754; died 9 November, 1826. Of poor parents in ... |
Overpopulation, Theories ofOverpopulation TheoriesDown to the end of the eighteenth century, very little attention was given to the relation between ... |
OviedoOviedo(OVETENSIS) This diocese comprises the civil province of the same name (the ancient Kingdom ... |
Owen, SaintSt. Ouen(OWEN; DADON, Latin Audaenus ). Archbishop of Rouen, b. at Sancy, near Soissons about ... |
Owen, Saint NicholasSt. Nicholas OwenA Jesuit lay-brother, martyred in 1606. There is no record of his parentage, birthplace, date ... |
Oxenford, JohnJohn OxenfordDramatist, critic, translator, and song-writer, b. in London, 12 Aug., 1812; d. there 21 Feb., ... |
Oxenham, Henry NutcombeHenry Nutcombe OxenhamAn English controversialist and poet, born at Harrow, 15 Nov., 1829; died at Kensington, 23 ... |
OxfordOxfordOxford, one of the most ancient cities in England, grew up under the shadow of a convent, said to ... |
Oxford Movement, TheThe Oxford Movement (1833-1845)The Oxford Movement may be looked upon in two distinct lights. "The conception which lay at its ... |
Oxford, University ofUniversity of OxfordI. ORIGIN AND HISTORY The most extraordinary myths have at various times prevailed as to the ... |
OxyrynchusOxyrynchusTitular archdiocese of Heptanomos in Egypt. It was the capital of the district of its name, the ... |
Ozanam, Antoine-FrédéricAntoine-Frederic OzanamGreat grand-nephew of Jacques Ozanam . Born at Milan, 23 April, 1813; died at Marseilles, 8 ... |
Ozanam, JacquesJacques OzanamA French mathematician, born at Bouligneux (Ain), 1640; died in Paris, 3 April, 1717. He came of a ... |
OziasOzias" Yahweh is my strength", name of six Israelites mentioned in the Bible . (1) Ozias, King ... |
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