pr£mare
387
PREMONSTRATENSIAN
Church, prelates are especially numerous in Rome.
The most important real prelates of the papal curia
are: the three highest officials of the Camera Apos-
tolica (vice-camerlengo, general auditor, and treas-
urer) and the Majordomo of the Vatican, who are
called prelati di fioccheiti; the secretaries of the con-
gregations of cardinals, the regent of the papal chan-
cery, the regent of the Apostolic Penitentiary, and
certain other high officials of the congregations of
the Curia; the members of the College of Prothono-
taries Apostolic de nuincro participanlium, the audi-
tors of the Rota, the clerics of the Apostolic Chamber,
the referendaries of the Signatura jmlUice. In the
Constitution "Inter ceteras" of 11 June, 1659, Alex-
ander \'II laid down the conditions under which these
real prelatures might be accepted. The dignity
granted by the pope with mention of these conditions
is called "praelatura ju.stitise"; when the conditions
are not imposed in the granting of the dignit}-, the
latter is called "pra>!atura gratise". To the real prel-
ates belong, therefore, although no jurisdiction in
foro externa is attached to their offices, all the high-
est palace officials, who perform a constant service
in the retinue of the pope and in the offices created
for that purpose. The appointment to these offices
confers of itself the prelature. Such officials are the
Papal Almoner, the Secretary of Latin Briefs and
Briefs to the Princes, the substitute of the Cardinal
Secretary of State, the four real Pri^'y Chamberlains,
the real Privy Chaplains of the Pope.
A second class of prelates are those on whom the title and rank of the prelature are conferred with the corresponding dress and privileges, but without the office or court service otherwise attached to it. These are: (1) the prothonotaries Apostolic other than the real ones (see PROTHoxoTARy Apostolic); (2) the papal domestic prelates (Antisles urbanus, Prcelatus urbanus, Prcelatus domesticus), who are appointed to this dignity by papal Brief. They have the right of wearing the garb of a prelate and of using in Solemn High Mass the special candle [palmaloTia) , but not the other episcopal insignia (\iotu Proprio "Inter multiplices" of PiusX, 21 February, 190.5, in "Acta S. Sedis", XXXVn, 491, sq.); (3) the supernumerary privy chamberlains (Camerieri segreli sopra-nu/yier- arii), honorary chamberlains and chaplains, who may on special occasions wear the same garb as the offi- ciating chamberlains of the pope. All prelates have the title "Monsignore" and a special costume (purple) corresponding to their rank; the higher prelates en- joy in addition other special privileges.
Tambubini, De iure abbatum et aliorum pratatorum tarn reffuta- rium quam sacxdarium episcopis inferiorum (3 vols., Lyons, 1640) ; Bangex, Die Romische KuHe, ihre gegenwartige Zuaammensetzung u. iliTe GescfUiftsgang (Miinster, 1854) ; Hilling. Die Romische Kurie (Paderborn, 1906); Battaxdier. Annuaire pontifical catho- lique (Paris, 1898 — ) ; Trombetta. De iuribus el pritilegiis pmla- torum Romanw Curia (Sorrento, 1906) ; Baart, The Roman Courl (Milwaukee, 1895) ; Tac.nton, The Law of the Church (London, 1900).
J. P. KiRSCH.
Premare, Joseph Henri Marie de, missionary and sinologist, b. at Cherbourg, 17 July, 1666; d. at Macao, 17 Sept., 1736, entered the Society of Jesus 17 Sept., 16S3, and departed for China in 1698. He laboured as missionary chiefly in the province Kwang-si. When the Christian faith was proscribed by Emperor Yong-tching, in January, 1724, Pr6mare was confined with his colleagues in Canton. A still more rigorous edict banished him to Macao. In his retirement he studied profoundly the language and literature of China, and in the opinion of sin- ologists he, of all the older missionaries, best suc- ceeded in grasping their peculiarities and beauties. His principal work is entitled: "Notitia linguie .sini- ca;"; in simple form it explains the rules and usage of the vulgar Chinese language (xiao skiie), and the style of the written, literary language (wen Ichang).
The famous Enghsh sinologist, James Legge, calls it
"an invaluable work, of which it could hardly be pos-
sible to speak in too high terms ". Father de Prdmare
is one of the missionaries who furnished Father Jean-
Baptiste du Halde with the material for his " Descrip-
tion de la Chine" (Paris, 1735). We owe him, in par-
ticular, the translation of the maxims taken from the
Shu-King (Du Halde, II, 298); of oight odes of the
Shi-King (II, 308); of the "Orphan of the House of
Tchao", a Chinese tragedy (III, 341); the notes on
the course of study, hterary degrees and examinations
of the Chinese (II, 251); etc. In "Lettres Edifiantes
et Curieuses" we find many letters from Father
Premare. A much greater number of his writings are
unedited, preserved, chiefly, at the National Library
(Paris). Many undertake the defence of figurism,
the name of a singular system of interpreting
ancient Chinese books, the inventor of which was
Father Joachim Bouvet. Following Bouvet, Premare
thought he discovered in the Chinese King (see
China) suggestions of Christian doctrines and allu-
sions to the mysteries of Christianity. The written
Chinese words and characters are to him but symbols
that hide profound senses. The three or four mission-
aries who adopted these ideas of Bouvet were never
authorized to publish them in book form. The most
important work which Father de Premare wrote in
their defence has only recently appeared, translated
from the Latin by M. Bonnetty, director of the
"Annales de philosophie chrefienne", aided by Abb4
Perny, formerly missionary to China. It is entitled:
"Vestiges choisis des principaux dogmes de la religion
chretienne, extraits des anciens livres chinois" (Paris,
1878).
De Backer-Sommervogel, Bibliothkque des ecrirains de la Compagnie de Jesus, VI, 1196-1201; IX, 784; Cordier, Biblio- theca Sinica, I; Bruckeh, Eludes rtiigieuses, 6 ser.. Ill 425 (1877).
Joseph Betjcker.
Premonstratensian Canons (Canonici Regu- LAREs Pr.emonstratenses), founded in 1120 by St. Norbert at Premontr(?, near Laon, France. At first they were not bound by any fixed rule, charity being the bond of their union, and the example of their founder their rule of life. After a while Norbert unfolded his mind to his disciples on the special regu- lations which they should adopt. He told them that he had already consulted learned bishops and holy abbots; that by some he was advised to lead an eremitical life, by others a monastic life, or else to join the Cistercian Order. He added that, if he had to follow his own inclinations, he preferred the canoni- cal life of the Apostles, but that, before all, thej- must pray to know and do the will of God. It was then that St. Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, appeared to him and gave him his rule, saying: "I am Augustine, Bishop of Hippo; behold here the rule w-hich I have written; if j'our fellow-brethren, my sons, shall have observed it well, they shall stand without fear in the presence of Christ on the terrible day of the last judg- ment". As all agreed to the choice of a canonical institute, Norbert composed a formulary of their pro- fession, which they pronounced on the Feast of Christmas, 1121. To this formulary St. Norbert added fastings, abstinence, and other works of morti- fication, together with some pious customs and prac- tices peculiar to monastic orders, whereby his order became, as it were, monastico-canonical.
The five particular ends of the Norbertine Order are: Laus Dei in choro (the singing of the Divine Office); Zelus animarum (zeal for the salvation of souls); Spiritusjugis poenilentice (the spirit of habitual penance); Cullus Eucharislicus (a special devotion to the Holy Eucharist); Cullus Marianus (a special de- votion to the Blessed Virgin, mostly to her Immacu- late Conception). The t%vo first arise from the nature of a canonical order, which is both contemplative and
