Who is the head of diocese

The chancellor is the official keeper of the diocesan records and archives and is the diocesan notary. He or she is responsible for recording all official diocesan actions and overseeing parish record keeping. Once only priests could be chancellors, but under the new Code of Canon Law adopted in , ordination is no longer a prerequisite. Since then a number of women have become chancellors in U. Although the diocesan bishop is the chief local ecclesiastical judge in church law, he can and ordinarily does delegate that responsibility to a judicial vicar and to judges who sit on the diocesan tribunal , or court.

The judicial vicar oversees the activities of the court and is one of its judges. Most court cases in a diocese concern petitions by civilly divorced Catholics to have their former marriage declared null—commonly called an annulment.

Sometimes the diocesan courts are referred to as marriage tribunals. This term is technically inaccurate since they do have jurisdiction over other cases as well, but it is fairly accurate as an empirical description of what most of these courts actually do most of the time. The judicial vicar must be a priest. Although some other judges on the tribunal need not be ordained, on any three-judge panel the normal number to hear any case at least two must be priests.

Apart from judges, other key tribunal officials include the defender of the bond —in essence the church attorney charged with advocating for the validity of a marriage against any claim that it was not valid—and the advocate for the person claiming a previous marriage was null.

Judges must have graduate degrees in canon law. About half the priests on the council are elected by their fellow priests. In addition, some priests, such as certain diocesan officials, may belong to the council automatically, and some may be appointed by the bishop. The statutes of the council determine whether or to what extent priests in religious orders residing in the diocese are also represented.

When the diocesan bishop dies, retires or is transferred, if there is no auxiliary bishop, the college of consultors is responsible for the governance of the diocese and elects a diocesan administrator from among the priests of the diocese.

On certain matters the administrator must consult with the college. Church law says it is to be convened at least once a year. It is automatically dissolved when the diocese is vacant. The diocese in turn is divided into deaneries each with several parishes, and each having its own proper pastor or administrator appointed by the diocesan bishop.

Hierarchy The hierarchy of the Church has two distinctions. First, by reason of holy orders, the hierarchy is composed of bishops , priests , and deacons. Second, by reason of jurisdiction, the hierarchy is made up of the pope and the bishops under his authority. Holy See The Holy See is the composite of authority, jurisdiction, and sovereignty vested in and exercised by the pope and his governing groups in the spiritual and temporal governance and guidance of the universal Church.

It is located in Rome, chiefly in the Vatican State. Liturgy This word itself means public service or function done on behalf of the people. The sacred liturgy is the public worship that Christ, as divine Head of the Church, gives to God the Father, and that which the faithful of Christ give to Christ and through Him to God, the Father.

The liturgical worship of the Church is made up of the sacrifice of the Mass, the sacraments, the Divine Office, and the sacramentals. Magisterium of the Church Magisterium of the Church is the power given by Christ to the Church together with infallibility by which the Church teaches authoritatively the revealed truth of the Scripture and holds forth the truth of tradition for salvation. Moderator of the Curia The Moderator of the Curia is a bishop or priest , appointed by the diocesan bishop, who is concerned primarily with administrative matters and with supervising those working in the diocesan curia the personnel and offices assisting the diocesan bishop in directing the pastoral activity, administration, and exercise of judicial power of his diocese.

Monsignor Monsignor is an honorary ecclesiastical title granted by the Pope to some diocesan priests. The title carries no additional authority or responsibility but is given as a sign of recognition of their service to the church.

All bishops who have served or are now serving the Church in the United States and its territories and possessions are members and have voting rights. Its general headquarters are located at: Fourth Street, N. Each bishop is appointed to exercise authority over a particular territory called a diocese. Each bishop is truly to act as a shepherd for his diocese. With the assistance of priests and deacons, he exercises his pastoral office over the portion of the People of God assigned to him, regardless of age, condition, or nationality, or whether permanently or temporarily residing in the diocese.

Care must also be extended to those who have special needs e. The bishop must also foster good ecumenical relations, acting with kindness and charity toward those who are not in full communion with the Church. Confer Code of Canon Law , In overseeing his diocese, the bishop must insure the authentic teaching of the Catholic faith, the proper and regular celebration of the sacraments and other acts of devotion, the fostering of vocations to the priesthood and religious life, and the governing of the diocese with loyalty to the Holy Father.

To accomplish these tasks, the bishop extends his authority to his priests, particularly his pastors, each of whom is responsible for a parish , a territorial subdivision of the diocese. To be eligible to attend these votes, however, Cardinals must be below the age of The current pope, Pope Francis, is known for his particularly diverse group of cardinals- if you can call a group of old, male, Catholic diverse. There are currently serving cardinals. Of those, Pope Francis created 88 from 56 countries.

In Pope Francis created several cardinals that are experts in the care of migrants and relations with Islam. Pope The highest honour a member of the clergy can receive is to be elected as the leader of the Catholic Church. The Pope is elected by cardinals under the age of 8- following the death or resignation of a Pope. There is no limit to how many years a Pope may hold his office.

The office of the Pope is referred to as the papacy. The Pope rules the Catholic Church in a very similar way to a king would a country, and he is the head of state for the Vatican City.

The Roma Curia you might remember them to be Cardinals help the Pope to complete his duties. Newly elected popes much choose a regnal name, many choose to honour the names of previous popes. Each pope chooses his name in reflection of a saint he feels a strong connection to. Catholics believe their pope is infallible, and that God will not allow his followers to be misled by having him make a wrong statement.

As you can see, the Catholic clergy is quite the complicated institution.