PATRONAGE
183
PATRONAGE
church bells, and he was specially named in the public praj^ers. He had the right to a certain portion of the Church funds, called patronagium, and enjoyed the fruits of the benefice during a vacancy. In the course of time it sometimes happened that, with the concur- rence of all parties interested, the patronage, and the cburch with its revenues and appurtenances, were made over to a religious house, wliich thus became both patron and perpetual incumbent of the parish, while tlie immediate duties of the cure were devolved on a vicar or stipendiary curate. In France the right of patronage was often extended to churches not orig- inally private foundations by the necessities of the sovereigns, which led them to take possession of Church property, and bestow it in fee on laymen, who appro- priated the greater part of the revenues, and took the appointment of the clergj' into their own hands. For a length of time not merely the nomination but the investiture of the clergy came to be exercised by lay patrons, a state of things which roused the indigna- tion of successive popes and councils ; until it was at last ruled by the third and fourth Lateran councils (A.l). 1179 and 1215) that the presentation of the pa- tron sliould not of itself suffice to confer any ecclesias- tical benefice, even when qualified by the discretionary power of rejection given to the bishop, when the pres- entee was a layman. It was declared necessary that the presentee should not merely have tiie temporalities of the benefice conferred on him bj' induction, but also be invested with the spiritualities by institution. When the bishop was patron of the benefice, the ceremonies of induction and institution were united in that of col- lation.
With the growth of the papal power, however, a practice arose by which the right of presentation or induction, which had nominally been left to the pa- trons, became in some degree nugatory. Towards the close of the 12th centurj^, letters of request, called mandates or expectatives, began to be issued bj- the popes to patrons, praying that benefices should be be- stowed on particular persons. What had at first been requested as a favor was soon demanded as a right, and a code of rules Avas laid down with regard to grants and revocations of expectatives. In the 13th century the patronage of all livings whose incumbents had died at the court of Rome (vacantia in citriu) was claimed bv the pope ; and as ecclesiastics of all ranks from every part of Europe frequenth^ visited Eome, the numljer of benefices vacantia in curici was always very great. Clement V went so far as broadl}' to de- clare that the pope possessed the full and free disposal of all ecclesiastical benefices. The practice next arose of the pope making reversionarj^ grants, called provi- sions of benefices, during the lifetime of the incumbent, and reserving what benefices he thought fit for his private patronage. By means of permissions to hold benefices in cominendam, and dispensations for non- residence and holding of pluralities, upwards of fifty benefices were often held by one person ; and through- out all Europe the principal benefices were filled by Italian priests, nominees of the popes, who were often ignorant even of the language of the people among whom they ministered. In the 14th century these claims encountered much opposition. England took tlie lead in an organized resistance, which was in the end successful. A series of English statutes was passed, beginning with the Statute of Provisors, 25 Edw. Ill, c. G, solemnly vindicating the rights of ec- clesiastical patronage, and subjecting to severe penal- ties [see Pk.emunire] all persons who should attempt to enforce the authority of papal provisions in Eng- land. The principles adopted by the third and fourth Lateran councils have since been substantially the law of patronage in Eoman Catholic countries. A lay pa- tron is, b}' the canon law, 1 ound to exercise his right of presentation within four, and an ecclesiastical pa- tron within six months, failing which the right to pre-
sent accrues yare de voluto to the bishop of the diocese. Patronage has alwaj-s been more or less subject to al- ienation, transmission, and the changes incident to other kinds of propert^y. The modern practice of pat- ronage in the Koman Catholic Church is detailed un- der the head Provision.
In England, where the modified canon law, which was in use before tlie Reformation, is still in force, the rights of patrons do not materially differ from those which they possess in Roman Catholic countries. When, in the reign of Henry VIII, the monasteries were abolished and their Cliurch property confiscated, it passed into the hands of the friends and supporters of the king, and so has descended to laymen to the present time. Thus in England the lay patrons were greatly increased in number, and in many cases the tithes and other income which before belonged to the Church, and went to the support of its incumbent, passed directly into the hands of laymen. At the pres- ent time there is no common law governing the vari- ous parishes, but the financial government of each one depends largelj' upon its historical foundation. In some cases the patron has simply the right to present a candidate for the office of parson, who, when appoint- ed, receives all the income of the parish, and who in such case is called rector (q. v.). In some cases a portion of the income belongs to the patron, while a portion is set apart to the incumbent, who in that case is called a vicar (q. v.). In some cases the incumbent is dependent on the will of the patron for his salary', in which case he is called curate (q. v.). The ecclesias- tical living or preferment is called a benefice (q. v.), and the patron's right of presentation an advowson (q. v.). There has been of late years some earnest agitation in the Church of England to get rid of pat- ronage altogether; and the evils of a sj'stem which places the appointment of the clergy in the hands of laymen, who are often indifterent to the spiritual in- terests of the Churcl), are conceded by all parties. But the vested rights are so innnense, and the system is so incorporated into the whole organization of the Estab- lished Church, that for the abuses of patronage no ad- equate remed}' has yet been discovered ; and it is hardlj' too much to say that there is no radical remedy except in the abolition of the Church Establisliment, and the substitution of the voluntary sj'stem of Church support as maintained in the United States. In order to prevent the transfer of patronage from the laitj- to the episcopal dignitaries of the Church of England, some of its laity formed themselves in 1875 into an as- sociation called "The Church Private Patronage As- sociation," the object of which is to counteract by ev- ery available means the invasion of the immemorial rights of private patrons, and the consequent monop- ol}', in case of its success, tending to deter independent clergymen from entering the service of the Established Church. It is a special oliject of the association to disabuse the public mind of many errors on the sub- ject, fostered Uy much ignorance and prejudice, to coi'- rect prevailing fallacies as to the nature of simon3% to show the obvious distinction between a spiritual office and a temporal qualification required for its exercise, and to make it clear that the unfettered transfer of benefices, under certain approved regulations, is the most likely means to improve the quality of the cleri- ical profession, and to add increased stability to the Established Church of England.