APOSTOLIC PREACHER. - He is the orator chosen by the Supreme Pontiff to preach on appointed days before him, the cardinals, bishops, superiors and procurators general of the religious Orders, and the prelates of the Curia. The Apostolic Preacher is therefore a member of the noble Pontifical Family (v.) and becomes a palatine prelate with the right to take part in the papal chapels and with other privileges.

The origin of the office of Apostolic Preacher seems to have begun in 1555 with Paul IV, and until Benedict XIV it was entrusted to priests chosen from the various religious Orders, especially Jesuits and Capuchins; Benedict XIV, on 2 March 1743, entrusted it in perpetuity to the Capuchin Friars.

The Apostolic Preacher gives his sermons ordinarily in the Hall of the Throne: during Advent, on the feasts of St. Andrew the Apostle, of St. Nicholas bishop, of St. Lucy and of St. Thomas the Apostle; during Lent, every Friday. The sermons are given in Italian, except that of Good Friday, given in Latin, in the Sistine Chapel, after the singing of the Passio. The Pope attends, unseen, behind the so-called bussola; the Apostolic Preacher receives his blessing before the sermon. Although a member of the Pontifical Family, the Apostolic Preacher resides at the general curia of his Order, the superiors general having obtained this from Benedict XIV himself. Among the most famous Apostolic Preachers are remembered: A. Salmeron and F. Toledo, of the Society of Jesus;

F. M. Casini d'Arezzo and Lodovico Micara da Frascati, Capuchins, later cardinals.

Bibliography5 works

BIBL.: Bull. Cap., I. 229: VII, 354; X. 776: Anal. Ord. F. M. Cap., 2 (1886), pp. 356-62; Moroni, LV, p. 75 agg.; Mauro da Leonessa, Il p. a.-Note storiche, Isola del Liri 1929; Melchiorre da Pobladura, s. v. in Hist. Gener. Ord. Fr. M. Cappuccinorum, Rome 1948, pp. 94, 101.

Bernardino da Siena

@incollection{ec9_predicatore_apostolico, author = {Bernardino da Siena}, title = {Predicatore Apostolico}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {IX}, pages = {1919--1920}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1952}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/predicatore-apostolico} }

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