Pontifical French Seminary
Encyclopedia
Roman Colleges
Note: This article is based on the "Catholic Encyclopedia" 1913 and contains a large amount of out-dated information throughout, including the numbers of students...
dedicated to training Roman Catholic priests.
History
In 1853 the French bishops held the Council of La RochelleLa Rochelle
La Rochelle is a city in western France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department.The city is connected to the Île de Ré by a bridge completed on 19 May 1988...
, where they proposed a plan for a French Seminary in Rome to train priests strongly attached to the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
and able to counteract Gallican ideas. They successfully petitioned Pius IX to approve this idea. The seminary opened in 1853 with 12 students under the direction of Father Lamurien of the Congregation of the Holy Ghost
Congregation of the Holy Ghost
The name Congregation of the Holy Ghost applies to five Catholic Congregations: the Holy Ghost Fathers and four female congregations.* Holy Ghost Fathers also known as the Spiritans...
, an order which for a long time was still in charge of the college. Its first site was the old Irish college
Irish College
Irish Colleges is the collective name used for approximately 34 centres of education for Irish Catholic clergy and lay people opened on continental Europe in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. The Colleges were set up to educate Roman Catholics from Ireland in their own religion following the...
near the Trajan's Forum
Trajan's Forum
Trajan's Forum is an ancient structure in Rome, Italy, chronologically the last of the Imperial fora. The forum was constructed by the architect Apollodorus of Damascus.-History:...
.
In 1856 Pius IX assigned to the seminary the Church of Santa Chiara with the adjoining Poor Clare convent, founded in 1560 by St. Charles Borromeo on the ruins of the baths of Agrippa
Baths of Agrippa
The Baths of Agrippa were a structure of ancient Rome, built by Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, the first of the great thermae constructed in the city. In their first form, constructed at the same time as the Pantheon and on axis with it, as a balaneion , they were apparently a hot-air bath with a cold...
. The church was rebuilt on the plan of Notre-Dame-des-Victoires in Paris, in 1883 the monastery was entirely remodeled to suit its present purpose. Leo XIII declared it a pontifical
Pontifical
Pontifical may refer to the Roman Pontifical, a Roman Catholic liturgical book used by a bishop.When used as an adjective, Pontifical may be used to describe things related to the office of a bishop, such as the following:*Solemn Pontifical Mass...
seminary in 1902. As of the early 1900s there were between 100 and 120 seminarians.
Father Henri Le Floch
Henri Le Floch
Father Henri Le Floch was a Spiritan and the rector of the French Seminary in Rome in the early 20th century until the late 1920s....
was the rector in the early 20th century until the late 1920s. Le Floch's support of Action Française
Action Française
The Action Française , founded in 1898, is a French Monarchist counter-revolutionary movement and periodical founded by Maurice Pujo and Henri Vaugeois and whose principal ideologist was Charles Maurras...
led to his removal at the request of the French government.
One of Le Floch's students was Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre
Marcel Lefebvre
Marcel François Marie Joseph Lefebvre was a French Roman Catholic archbishop. Following a career as an Apostolic Delegate for West Africa and Superior General of the Holy Ghost Fathers, he took the lead in opposing the changes within the Church associated with the Second Vatican Council.In 1970,...
, the founder of the traditionalist Roman Catholic
Traditionalist Catholic
Traditionalist Catholics are Roman Catholics who believe that there should be a restoration of many or all of the liturgical forms, public and private devotions and presentations of Catholic teachings which prevailed in the Catholic Church before the Second Vatican Council...
Society of Saint Pius X, and he attributed his conservatism to the time he spent in the seminary. The first priests belonging to the Society of Saint Pius X were from the French Seminary who claimed that they were being persecuted by a radical administration and student body for their conservative beliefs.
College Life
Most of the studes where conducted at the Gregorian University. The students are made up both of seminarians and existing priests pursuing further study. The seminary is located in the Via del Seminario. Non-French students are also admitted.Notable alumni
- Cardinal Louis-Nazaire Bégin, Archbishop of Quebec and Primate of Canada
- Archbishop Marcel LefebvreMarcel LefebvreMarcel François Marie Joseph Lefebvre was a French Roman Catholic archbishop. Following a career as an Apostolic Delegate for West Africa and Superior General of the Holy Ghost Fathers, he took the lead in opposing the changes within the Church associated with the Second Vatican Council.In 1970,...
, Founder of the Society of Saint Pius X - Cardinal Joseph-Charles LefèbvreJoseph-Charles LefèbvreJoseph-Charles Lefèbvre was a French Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Bourges from 1943 to 1969, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1960....
, Archbishop of Bourges - Cardinal Emmanuel Célestin SuhardEmmanuel Célestin SuhardEmmanuel Célestin Suhard was a French Cardinal of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Paris from 1940 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1935.-Biography:...
, Archbishop of ParisArchbishop of ParisThe Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Paris is one of twenty-three archdioceses of the Roman Catholic Church in France. The original diocese is traditionally thought to have been created in the 3rd century by St. Denis and corresponded with the Civitas Parisiorum; it was elevated to an archdiocese on... - Cardinal Léon-Etienne DuvalLéon-Etienne DuvalLéon-Etienne Duval was a French Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Algiers in Algeria from 1954 to 1988, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1965.-Biography:...
, Archbishop of Algiers - Cardinal Gabriel-Marie GarroneGabriel-Marie GarroneGabriel-Marie Garrone was a Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church and a Prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education....
, Prefect of the Congregation for Catholic EducationCongregation for Catholic EducationThe Congregation for Catholic Education is the Pontifical congregation of the Roman Curia responsible for: seminaries and houses of formation of... - Cardinal Alexis-Armand CharostAlexis-Armand CharostAlexis-Armand Charost was a French Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Rennes from 1921 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1922.-Biography:...
, Archbishop of Rennes - Archbishop Alain Paul LebeaupinAlain Paul LebeaupinArchbishop Alain Paul Lebeaupin was born in Paris, France, on 2 March 1945. He is the Apostolic nuncio to Kenya.-Education:Lebeaupin was ordained into priesthood on 28 June 1975 for the Diocese of Nice after studying at the Pontifical French Seminary in Rome.He holds a Doctorate in Civil Law and...
, Apostolic Nuncio to KenyaKenyaKenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east... - Paulin MartinPaulin MartinPaulin Martin was a French Catholic Biblical scholar.-Life:...
, Biblical scholar - Venerable Leon DehonLeon DehonLeon Gustav Dehon was a Catholic clergyman.Born in La Capelle , France, Dehon was raised in a pious family, Leo Dehon's mother was especially devoted to the Sacred Heart, and passed this on to Leo. As a young man he felt a call to the priesthood, but his father had other plans for him, and sent...
, founder of the Oblates of the Sacred Heart