Congregation of Clerics Regular | |
Latin:Ordo Clericorum Regularium | |
 Saint Cajetan (1480-1547), co-founder of the Theatines | |
| Abbreviation | CR |
|---|---|
| Formation | 14 September 1524; 501 years ago (1524-09-14) |
| Founders | Saint Gaetano Thiene, CR Archbishop Gian Pietro Carafa[1] |
| Type | Order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men |
| Headquarters | Sant'Andrea della Valle Piazza Vidoni, 6 Rome, Italy[2] |
| Members | 161 members (124 priests)[2] (2020) |
| Salvador Rodea González, CR[2] | |
Parent organization | Roman Catholic Church |
| Website | teatinos |
TheTheatines, officially named theCongregation of Clerics Regular (Latin:Ordo Clericorum Regularium; abbreviatedCR), are members of aCatholic order ofclerics regular ofpontifical right for men.[2] The order was founded in virtue of faculties granted by Pope Clement VII on 24 June 1524 in the BriefExponi Nobis.
The order was founded bySaint Cajetan (Gaetano dei Conti di Thiene), by ArchbishopGian Pietro Carafa (afterwardsPope Paul IV), along with Paolo Consiglieri and Bonifacio da Colle. At the time Carafa wasBishop of Chieti.Chieti (Latin:Theate) is a city of theAbruzzi in Central Italy, from which the congregation adopted its specific name, to distinguish it from other congregations (Barnabites,Somaschi,Caracciolini, etc.) modelled upon it.[3] The Theatines combined the pursuit of evangelical perfection traditional among religious orders with pastoral ministry generally expected of diocesan clergy. Their ideal was the reform and restoration of the clergy according to the model of the life of the Apostles, thereby edifying thelaity and encouraging them in the practice ofvirtue.
The formal act of foundation took place on 14 September 1524, the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. On that day the first companions made solemn profession before the papal altar ofSt. Peter's Basilica in Rome, in the hands of theBishop of Caserta, Giovanni Battista Bonziano, appointed as a special papal delegate.[3] According to the terms of the papal brief, the office of superior general or provost was for a term of one year, renewable for a maximum of 3 years. Carafa was elected to be the first incumbent. General. It was he who also wrote the constitutions of the order.
The order was dedicated in a particular manner to theCross of Christ, which was adopted as its emblem. The new companions, soon joined by others, foundedoratories (among them the celebratedDivino Amore) and hospitals, devoted themselves to preaching theGospel, and reformed laxmorals.[3] They were exclusive, aristocratic, and formidably austere.[4] They wore the simple black cassock of the local clergy and maintained a modest lifestyle.
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The prohibition on both owning property and soliciting alms tended to limit applicants from members of the aristocracy, and so they remained relatively few in number. In 1546 they were briefly joined with theSomaschi Fathers, but as the object of the respective orders differed, they separated in 1555.[5] In 1527 their house in Rome wassacked by the army ofCharles V, and the Roman community sought refuge in Venice.
They founded many churches, among them theSant'Andrea della Valle in Rome, a gift of Costanza Piccolomini D'Aragona, Duchess ofAmalfi.[6] This church is a masterpiece ofCarlo Maderno and contains several paintings byDomenichino. The Theatines still operate the church.
In France, through the efforts ofCardinal Mazarin, they built the Church of St. Anne la Royale opposite theLouvre in 1644.[5] In Spain, underPhilip II, the Theatine CardinalPaolo Burali d'Arezzo, filled various embassies at the command of the viceroy ofNaples. InPortugal,John IV, in 1648, gave the Theatines a splendid house and college for the education of noble youth. In England, underHenry VIII,Thomas Goldwell,Bishop of St. Asaph, entered the order of Theatines. In Bavaria, theTheatine Church St. Kajetan was built from 1663 to 1690, founded by ElectorFerdinand Maria.
The Theatines were the first to found papal missions in:Golconda (in present-day India),Ava (Burma), Peru,[4]Mingrelia (Georgia), founded byAndrea Borromeo,[5] theEast Indies, (the history of which was written by the Theatine Bartolomeo Ferro –"Missioni Teatine nelle Indie Orientali"), Arabia, and Armenia. In 1626 Theatines went toPersia.
Theatine manuscripts dating from 1530 until the end of the 18th century show there were missions established in a number of other countries. By 1700 the Theatines numbered 1400.
By the end of the eighteenth century, decline had set in, exacerbated by political upheavals. General suppression of religious orders affected the Theatines more significantly because the order historically acquired no possessions and so had no institutional infrastructure.
Pope Pius X had a hand in attempts at revival, calling upon the services of Cardinal José de Calasanz Félix Santiago Vives y Tutó. The papalMotu ProprioAuspicato, of 15 December 1909, decreed the union of the Congregation of the Regular Theatine Clergy with the youthful Spanish Congregation of the Holy Family founded atBarcelona byJosep Manyanet y Vives, but the two groups were separated again in 1916. In 1910, the Theatines were amalgamated with the Congregation of SaintAlphonsus Liguori, which had been founded inMallorca in 1867.
As of 2020, the Theatines had 161 members, of whom 124 are priests.[7]
The Theatines are present inArgentina,Brazil,Colombia,Mexico, theNetherlands, Spain, and theUnited States of America, where they maintain a mission atDurango, Colorado.
The Order has numbered among its members:
Saints
Blesseds
Venerables
Servants of God
Non-saints
It has also furnished one pope,Paul IV (Giovanni Pietro Carafa), 250bishops,archbishops, and papal legates, and severalcardinals.
Among noted nineteenth-century Theatines was theSicilian FatherGioacchino Ventura dei baroni di Raulica, a philosopher,littérateur, and orator. One of his most celebrated works is his funeral oration on the death ofDaniel O'Connell. The astronomerGiuseppe Piazzi (1746–1826), professor of mathematics and astronomy in Palermo, Sicily, discoverer of the first asteroid, Ceres, in 1801, became a Theatine at the age of 19.
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