History
Ripatransone is on a hill called Cuprae Mons ("Mountain of Cupra", an ancient deity of the pre-Roman inhabitants), and was a Picene settlement. The origin of the modern name has been disputed; it comes probably from Ripa Trasonis, "Hill of Traso", from the name of the first feudal lord. [3] The castle was erected there in the early Middle Ages, and enlarged later by the bishops of Fermo, who had several conflicts with the people.
Creation of the diocese
On 1 August 1571, in the bull "Illius Fulciti", Pope Pius V raised the castle town of Ripatransone to the status of a city (civitas) and made it an episcopal see, including in its jurisdiction small portions of the surrounding diocese of Fermo, diocese of Ascoli Piceno, diocese of Teramo, and the independent Benedictine monastery of Campo Fellonis. The parish church of S. Benigno was raised to the status of a cathedral. The Pope decreed that it should have a cathedral Chapter, composed of two dignities (the Archpriest and the Archdeacon) and twelve Canons. The archpriest was to act as pastor of the cathedral parish. [4]
In the same document, the Pope ordered that the new city of Ripatransone should have four parishes: one at the cathedral for the district of Agello, the church of S. Angelo de Rofflano for the district of S. Domenico; Ss. Nicholas, Rusticus and Eleutherius for the monte antiquo; and Ss. Gregory and Margarita for the caput montis. The three parish churches were to be prebends of three Canons, who would administer them through vicars.
On 3 October 1571, Pope Pius named as its first bishop Lucio Sassi, [5] who became a cardinal more than twenty years later.
Diocesan synods
A diocesan synod was an irregularly held, but important, meeting of the bishop of a diocese and his clergy. Its purpose was (1) to proclaim generally the various decrees already issued by the bishop; (2) to discuss and ratify measures on which the bishop chose to consult with his clergy; (3) to publish statutes and decrees of the diocesan synod, of the provincial synod, and of the Holy See. [6]
A diocesan synod was held in Ripatransone by Bishop Filippo Sega (1575–1578) in 1576; the acts of the synod were published at Macerata in 1577. [7] There is reference to a synod held in Ripatransone on 30 July 1616, which would have been summoned by Bishop Sebastiano Poggi (1607–1620). [8] Bishop Niccolò Orsini presided over a diocesan synod on 26–27 October 1642, and held his second diocesan synod in 1648. [9] On 1 May 1689, Bishop Giovan Giorgio Mainardi (1680–1693) held a diocesan synod. [10] Bishop Pietro Alessandro Procaccini (1695–1704) held a diocesan synod in 1699. [11]
Bishop Francesco Andrea Correa presided over a diocesan synod at Ripatransone on 18 September 1729. [12] In c. 1741, Bishop Giacomo Costa, C.R. (1739–1747) held a diocesan synod. [13]
On 19–21 October 1885, Giuseppe Ceppetelli (1882–1890) presided over a diocesan synod in Ripatransone. [14]
Bishop Lorenzo Azzolini (1620–1632) established the diocesan seminary in 1623. [15]
The diocese, at first directly subject to the Holy See, has been a suffragan see of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Fermo since 1680. [16]
Restructuring
In a bull of 18 December 1924, Pope Pius XI united the Diocese of Ripatransone with the diocese of Montalto ad personam episcopi. He appointed Luigi Ferri as Bishop of Ripatransone with Montalto, and ordered a change in the title of the bishop to Episcopus Montis alti et Ripanus. [17] In 1980, the diocese of Montalto had a population of only 31,500 persons. [18]
The Second Vatican Council (1962–1965), in order to ensure that all Catholics received proper spiritual attention, decreed the reorganization of the diocesan structure of Italy and the consolidation of small and struggling dioceses. It also recommended the abolition of anomalous units such as exempt territorial prelatures. [19] These considerations applied to Montalto and to Ripatransone as the population migrated in the post-war period to jobs on the coast at San Benedetto.
On 18 February 1984, the Vatican and the Italian State signed a new and revised concordat. Based on the revisions, a set of Normae was issued on 15 November 1984, which was accompanied in the next year, on 3 June 1985, by enabling legislation. According to the agreement, the practice of having one bishop govern two separate dioceses at the same time, aeque personaliter, was abolished. Instead, the Vatican continued consultations which had begun under Pope John XXIII for the merging of small dioceses, especially those with personnel and financial problems, into one combined diocese. On 30 September 1986, Pope John Paul II ordered that the dioceses of Ripatransone and Montalto be merged into one diocese with one bishop, with the Latin title Dioecesis Sancti Benedicti ad Truentum-Ripana-Montis Alti. The seat of the diocese was to be in San Benedetto del Tronto, and the church of S. Maria della Marina was to serve as the cathedral of the merged dioceses. The cathedrals in Ripatransone and Montalto were to become co-cathedrals, and the cathedral Chapters were each to be a Capitulum Concathedralis. There was to be only one diocesan Tribunal, in San Benedetto del Tronto, and likewise one seminary, one College of Consultors, and one Priests' Council. The territory of the new diocese was to include the territory of the former dioceses of Montalto and Ripatransone. [20]
As of July 2015, the number of Canons of the cathedral chapter was fixed at eight, including the Vicar General of the diocese, the Canon Penitentiary, the Canon Theologus, and the Exorcist. Three of these are considered dignities: the Archpriest of the cathedral, the Penitentiary, and the Theologus. [21]
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