BALAJ. – Classical Syriac hymnographer, probably residing between the Euphrates and Aleppo around the mid-5th century. He is the author of five madrashe (hymns) in honor of Bishop Acacius of Beroea (d. 432) and another for the consecration of the new church of Qennešrin or Aleppo (ed. J. Overbeck, *S. Ephraemi Syri... opera selecta*, Oxford 1865, pp. 259-69, 251-58; German trans. in *Bibliothek der Kirchenväter*, 2nd ed., 6th series, pp. 71-89, 63-75). It is highly probable that the following works attributed to B., though sometimes ascribed to St. Ephrem, are his: 12 canticles on Joseph, son of Jacob, among the most beautiful compositions of Syriac poetry (Paris-Leipzig, 1891); *Sermones*, III, *Mother* (1899), cols. 249-640; IV, cols. 791-844, which also includes a Latin version).
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**BALAN, Pietro.** – Priest, controversialist, and historian, born in Este on 3 September 1840, died at Pragatto (Bologna) on 17 February 1893. Of indomitable spirit, keen intellect, and vast historical learning, he actively engaged in the heated ecclesiastical-political controversies of his time and in combative journalism in defense of the Church’s rights and the vindication of Italy’s past glories, especially in relation to its most authentic traditions. From an early age, aligning himself with neo-Guelphism, he set out to oppose those who sought to exclude the Pope from national life and those “conciliatory” Catholics who argued that the Pope “should” change course by accepting “faits accomplis.”
Ordained priest in 1863, having already for a year taught history at the Padua seminary and for two years published his first *Studies on the Papacy*, he co-founded with Alessio De Besi and Giuseppe Sacchetti the *Letture Cattoliche*, and in 1865 in Venice launched—also as director—the *Libertà Cattolica*, before moving the following year to Florence to *L’Unità Cattolica* and founding in 1867 in Modena the *Diritto Cattolico*.
Among his earliest works may be listed chronologically: *I precursori del liberalismo fino a Lutero* (Modena 1867); the funeral oration for Monsignor Gianalberto Arnoldi, Archbishop of Spoleto (Spoleto 1876); *L’economia, la Chiesa e gli umanitari* (Modena 1868); *Pio IX, la Chiesa e la Rivoluzione* (ibid. 1869); *Dante e i Papi* (ibid. 1870); *Della preponderanza germanica sul resto d’Europa* (ibid. 1871); *La Chiesa e lo Stato in relazione specialmente all’Impero Germanico* (ibid. 1871); *La prima lotta di Gregorio IX con Federico II* (ibid. 1871); *La Storia di Gregorio IX e de’ suoi tempi* (ibid. 1872-73); *Gli assedi della Mirandola di Giulio II e Giulio III dietro i più recenti documenti* (ibid. 1876); *Le Memorie storiche di Tencarola nel Padovano* (ibid. 1876); *La Storia della Lega Lombarda* (ibid. 1876); *Memorie della b. Beatrice d’Este* (ibid. 1878); *Le Tombe dei Papi profanate dal Gregorovius* (ibid. 1879); and finally *Il Papato e l’Italia* (ibid. 1879).
The guiding principle of these writings soon blossomed into two ambitious works of broad scope, unfortunately neglected despite their timeliness: the three-volume *Storia della Chiesa* (continuing Rohrbacher’s work; 3 vols., Modena 1879-86), a passionate defense of the dramatic life of Pius IX; and the *Storia d’Italia* (7 vols., ibid. 1875-90; 2nd ed. in 11 vols., 1894-1899), annotated by R. Maiocchi, who incorporated Balan’s corrections and additions.
In 1879, Leo XIII appointed him to the Vatican Archives and entrusted him with delicate political missions, conferring well-deserved honors (beneficiary of St. Peter’s, papal chamberlain, domestic prelate, referendary of the Apostolic Signatura, and Roman count). Yet this did not spare him bitter polemics or malicious insinuations aimed at undermining his priestly honor by attributing to him the authorship of anonymous writings opposing key papal directives. These calumnies persisted even after Balan, heartbroken, withdrew in 1883 to the solitude of Pragatto.
To this second phase of his activity belong: *La ribellione di Perugia nel 1868 e la sua sottomissione nel 1870, narrate secondo i documenti degli archivi vaticani* (Rome 1880); *Gli archivi della S. Sede in relazione alla Storia d’Italia* (ibid. 1881); *I Monumenta saeculi XVI historian illustrativa* (Innsbruck 1885); *Sulla storia di Bassano di Ottone Brentari: Lettere critiche di P. B. e di A. Besi con appendici* (Padua 1885); *La Grandezza di Gregorio VII, discorso* (Milan 1885); *Clemente VII e l’Italia dei suoi tempi* (ibid. 1887); *Fra Paolo Sarpi, note* (Venice 1887); *Il Santuario di Santa Maria della Guardia presso Bologna* (Milan 1890); *Tomaso Becket* (Rome 1891); *La vera realtà delle cose, dei fatti della lotta presente in Roma e in Italia* (Modena 1891). Nor should the following be omitted from a list of his works: *Di Giordano Bruno e dei meriti di lui ad un monumento*; *Monumenta reformationis lutheranae ex tabularis S. Sedis secretis*; *Roberto Boschetti e gli avvenimenti italici de’ suoi tempi (1494-1529)*; *Pio IX e il giudizio della storia*; *Il papato di Giovanni VIII dal 872 al 882 ed il processo di Bonifacio VIII nel 1304*; *I precursori del socialismo moderno*; *Clementis VII epistolae per Sadoleum scriptae*.
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