VICAR
401
VICAR
religious instruction. The brother catechists twice
every day read selected portions of the Holy Scrip-
ture, of the Catechism of the Council of Trent, and
of the Following of Christ. Priests and Brothers
make daily a half hour meditation on the life of
Christ and the virtues of rchgious life, read regularly
ascetical works such ;is the "Christian Perfection"
of Rodriguez, hear or say daily Mass, receive Holy
Communion daily, and, besides morning and evening
prayers and beads in common, make a daily visit to
the Blessed Sacrament or assist at benediction. The
community rules require careful personal research
in j)reparation for teaching. The books, school
classics, published by members of the Congregation
range from the element ar.y reading and spelling books
to manuals of belles-lettres, from language primers and
the small catechism to literary criticism and apolo-
getics, from arithmetic to the higher mathematics.
Manual of the Clerics oj St. Viator (Bourbonnais, Illinois, 1S90) ; Directoires el riglements organiques de L' InstitiU des Clercs St- \'ia~ leur (Paris. 1900); QuERBES, Lhre d'Or (Ms., Jette, Belgium); BODROET, Vie de St-Vialeur (Montreal, 1897); Bollandists, Vita Brevis Sa7icti JuMi; SuRins, Vita proUxior Sancti Justi; GouiLLOUD. Deux grands fv^ques de Lyon (Lyons, 1890); Breviary of Lyons: Feast of St. Viator, 21 Oct., Martyrology of Adon (858); Roman Martyrology, 2 Sept. and 21 Oct.; Collections deVannuaire de Viiistitut et des lettres drculaires du sup^ieur girUral (Jette, Belgium) ; UEcole et La Famille (pedagogical monthly. Fontaine.s- sur-Saone, France); L'Ange Gardien (devotional monthly, Paris); The Viatorian (college monthly, Bourbonnais, III.): The Mission- ary (Washington. D. C. June, 1912); The Catholic Church in the U. S. (New York. 1912).
Eugene Louis Riv.\rd.
Vicar (Lat. tricarius, from vice, instead of), in canon law, the representative of a person clothed with ordinaiy ecclesiastical jurisdiction. The office of vicar was in use among the ancient Romans, that being the title of officials subordinate to the proetorian prefects. In the ecclesiastical forum, from verj' early times, we read of vicars of the Apos- tolic See, such as the archbishops of Thessalonica. Bishops also had their vicars, such as the arch- deacons and archpriests, and likewise the rural priests, who, in the first ages, had the cure of souls outside of episcopal cities. In course of time, all of these officials became part of the ordinary magis- tracy of the Church. These vicars are treated in the Decretura of Gratian and in the Decretals of Gregory IX, but vicars-general of bishops first appear in the sixth book of Decretals and in the Clementines of the "Corpus juris canonici". After the institu- tion of vicars-general, the office of archdeacon ceased almost entirely when the Council of Trent had lim- ited the powers of such officials. That council (Sess. XXV, c. xvi, "De ref.") completely abrogated other vicarships that were incompatible with clerical disciphne. A vicar differs from a vicegerent, who is constituted by a prelate in place of a vicar. The vicar himself without special faculties cannot sub- stitute another vicar with equal powers in his own place. The jurisdiction of vicars is generally ordinary, but sometimes only delegated. The former arch- deacons and archpriests and the pre.sent vicars capitular and some others have ordinary power in consequence of their office, but by the present dis- cipline vicars .\postohc and vicars forane have only delegated power conferred by special commi-ssion. Vicarial jurisdiction in general can not be called merely mandatory (which is ultimately del<>gated poweri, for many vicars have a tribunal distinct from that of the prelate represented by them. As to their powers: vicars are constituted either in iirini.f. as parochial vicars and auxiliary bishops, or created vicars in jurisdiction, as vicars capitular and vicars general, to exercise power in the external forum, either voluntary or contentious. Some writers also distinguish vicars a Icgr, or those whose powers are pcrj'etual and prescribed in law, and vicars ah homine, who depend entirely on delegated powers and are removable at will. Neither bishops XV.— 26
nor inferior prelates can constitute vicars except in
cases permitted by canon law. The powers of
vicars are not affected by the mode of appointment,
that is whether they are freely nominated or elected.
When vicars have ordinary jurisdiction, their rights
and duties in general are the same as those of other
ordinary prelates, but their particular obhgations
must be learnt from the office they hold. The same
is to be said of the cessation of their powers, which
are terminated by resignation, etc., with the addition,
however, of some special regulations for particular
vicarships, as that of vicar-general.
Wernz, Jtis decretalium, 11 (1899) ; Aichner, Compendium juris ecclesiastici (Brisen, 1895).
WiLLi.-iM H. W. Fanning.
Vicar Apostolic. — tl) In the early ages of the Church, the pojies committed to some residentiary bishops the duty of watching over ecclesiastical matters in a certain region, as the Archbishop of Aries for Gaul and the Archbishop of Thessalonica for lUjTia. These prelates were called vicars Apos- tohc. (2) Prelates with the title of vicar Apostolic are sometimes commissioned by the Holy See to administer dioceses which are vacant, or whose bishops are prevented from exercising their ordinary jurisdiction by some impediment. These vicars Apostolic have the powers of vicars capitular (q. v.) and at times receive also some extraordinary facul- ties, which must be learnt from their Brief of appoint- ment. (3) In regions where the ordinary hierarchy of the Church has not yet been established, and which consequently fall under the ordinary and immediate jurisdiction of the pope in a special manner, the Holy See usually governs such missionary regions by means of a delegate who has received episcopal con.secrat ion to some titular .see, and who is designated a vicar Apostohc. These prelates gener- ally have the same powers that bishops have by common law in their own dioceses, and the Congre- gation of Propaganda also concedes to them various extraordinary faculties. All these powers, however, are delegated, not ordinary. As they are not dio- cesan bishops, they have no cathedral or chapter (S. C. Prop., 27 Nov., 1858). Without special concession from the Holy See, they may not concede the usual forty days indulgence, nor erect a throne in a churchy nor wear the cappa magna, nor have their names inserted in the canon of the Mass (Collect. S. C. Prop., 1883, n. 139, etc.). While they may not constitute ordinary vicar-s-general, they can give special faculties to various priests to assist them in administering the vicariate. They must, in addition, name some proper secular or regular cleric who, in case of their unexpected demisCj may rule the region as pro-vicar until other provision is made. The pro-vicar has the same faculties as the vicar, except those that flow from episcopal consecration. He can, however, in case of necessity consecrate chalices, patens, and portable altars, with oils consecrated by some bishop. Regulars in a missionary district must communicate their letters patent to the vicar Apostolic, and in the cure of souls are subject to his authority. Vicars Apostolic are appointed outside of Consistory by a special pontifical brief, and later this provision is merely published in Consistory. All matters concerning the promotion of vicars Apostolic are conducted by Propaganda on the lines of the Constitution, (iravissimum",of Benedict XIV (18 Jan., 17.57) and the later Decrees of the Holy See (CoUect. S. C. Prop., n. 38-87). There are about 1.50 vicariates in exi.stence at present.
TAnNTON, The Law of the Church (I-ondon. 1906). s. v.; Wernz. Jus decretalium, II (Rome, 1899) ; Ferraris, Bibtiotheca canon- ica. VII (Rome, 1891). 3. v.
William H. W. Fanning.
Vicar Capitular, the administrator of a vacant diocese, elected by a cathedral chapter. On the
