, 29 August 1631, d. at Rome, 23 February 1704) was an Italian church historian, theologian and Cardinal

Cardinal (Catholicism)

A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...

, of English ancestry.

He studied under the Jesuits at Rimini

Rimini

Rimini is a medium-sized city of 142,579 inhabitants in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It is located on the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia and Ausa...

, and there entered the novitiate of the Hermits of Saint Augustine. After his probation he was sent to Rome to study theology. He taught the sacred sciences at Pesaro

Pesaro

Pesaro is a town and comune in the Italian region of the Marche, capital of the Pesaro e Urbino province, on the Adriatic. According to the 2007 census, its population was 92,206....

, Perugia

Perugia

Perugia is the capital city of the region of Umbria in central Italy, near the River Tiber, and the capital of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome. It covers a high hilltop and part of the valleys around the area....

, and Padua

Padua

Padua is a city and comune in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice and Treviso, in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, having...

, where he held the chair of church history in the university from 1674 to 1692.

There he completed The History of Pelagianism and Dissertations on the Fifth General Council, the two works which, before and after his death, occasioned much controversy. Together with the Vindiciae Augustinianae they were printed at Padua in 1673, having been approved by a special commission at Rome. Noris himself went to Rome to give an account of his orthodoxy before this commission; and Pope Clement X

Pope Clement X

Pope Clement X , born Emilio Bonaventura Altieri, was Pope from 29 April 1670 to 22 July 1676.-Early life:Emilio Altieri was born in Rome, the son of Lorenzo Altieri and Victoria Delphini, a Venetian lady...

 named him one of the qualificators of the Holy Office, in recognition of his learning and sound doctrine.

But, after the publication of these works, further charges were made against him of teaching the errors of Jansenius and Baius

Baius

Baius may refer to*Michel Baius, Catholic theologian*Băiuş, a village in the Leova district, Moldova*Baios , Odysseus' helmsman, buried in a bay near Naples that was named after him Baiae....

. In a brief to the prefect of the Spanish Inquisition

Spanish Inquisition

The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition , commonly known as the Spanish Inquisition , was a tribunal established in 1480 by Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile. It was intended to maintain Catholic orthodoxy in their kingdoms, and to replace the Medieval...

, 31 July 1748, ordering the name of Noris to be taken off the list of forbidden books, Pope Benedict XIV

Pope Benedict XIV

Pope Benedict XIV , born Prospero Lorenzo Lambertini, was Pope from 17 August 1740 to 3 May 1758.-Life:...

 says that these charges were never proved; that they were rejected repeatedly by the Holy Office, and repudiated by the popes who had honoured him.

In 1692 Noris was made assistant Librarian in the Vatican

Apostolic Palace

The Apostolic Palace is the official residence of the Pope, which is located in Vatican City. It is also known as the Sacred Palace, the Papal Palace and the Palace of the Vatican...

 by Pope Innocent XII

Pope Innocent XII

Pope Innocent XII , born Antonio Pignatelli, was Pope from 1691 to 1700.-Biography:He was born in Spinazzola to one of the most aristocratic families of the Kingdom of Naples, which included many Viceroys, and ministers to the crown, and was educated at the Jesuit college in Rome.In his twentieth...

. On 12 December 1695, he was named Cardinal-Priest of the Title of S. Agostino. In 1700 he was given full charge of the Vatican Library

Vatican Library

The Vatican Library is the library of the Holy See, currently located in Vatican City. It is one of the oldest libraries in the world and contains one of the most significant collections of historical texts. Formally established in 1475, though in fact much older, it has 75,000 codices from...

.

Works

His works, apart from some minor controversial treatises, are highly valued for accuracy and thoroughness of research. In addition to those already named, the most important are: "Annus et Epochae Syro-Macedonum in Vetustis Urbium Syriae Expositae"; "Fasti Consulares Anonimi e Manuscripto Bibliothecae Caesareae Deprompti"; "Historia Controversiae de Uno ex Trinitate Passo"; "Apologia Monachorum Scythiae"; "Historia Donatistarum e Schedis Norisianis Excerptae"; "Storia delle Investiture delle Dignita Ecclesiastiche". Seleet portions of his works have been frequently reprinted: at Padua, 1673–1678, 1708; at Louvain, 1702; at Bassano, edited by Giovanni Lorenzo Berti

Giovanni Lorenzo Berti

Giovanni Lorenzo Berti was an Italian Augustinian theologian.The General of the Order of Hermits of St. Augustine, Schiaffinati, instructed him to write a book, to be used by all the students of the Order, expounding the whole of Augustine of Hippo's thought and particularly his doctrine of grace...

, 1769. The best is the edition of all the works, in five folio volumes, by the Ballerini brothers, Verona, 1729-1741.