How to Cover the Catholic Church

How to Cover the Catholic Church

delict.

The church term for a crime. Church crimes are spelled out in the

Code of Canon Law

for the Latin rite and in the

Code of Canons of the Eastern

Churches

for Eastern Catholic churches.

diaconate.

See

deacon

diaconate

dicastery.

A church term for one of the major departments of the Roman

Curia—the Secretariat of State, Vatican congregations, tribunals, pontifical

councils and a few other departments. The term does not appear with this

definition in most English dictionaries, which is part of the reason it is listed

here. It ordinarily does not come into play in news coverage of the Vatican,

but it may do so in certain limited contexts. Generally, it is more appropriate

to refer to a Vatican dicastery by its more specific proper name: congregation,

pontifical council, etc.

diocesan bishop.

A bishop who heads a diocese. He may be assisted by aux-

iliary bishops or a coadjutor bishop (see

auxiliary bishop

and

coadjutor

Also sometimes referred to as a

residential bishop

diocesan curia.

The personnel and offices assisting the bishop in directing the

pastoral activity, administration and exercise of judicial power of a diocese.

diocese.

A particular church; the ordinary territorial division of the church

headed by a bishop. The chief diocese of a group of dioceses is called an

arch-

diocese

; see that entry.

Adj

diocesan

Eastern Catholic churches.

The Catholic churches with origins in Eastern

Europe, Asia and Africa that have their own distinctive liturgical, legal and

organizational systems and are identified by the national or ethnic character

of their region of origin. Each is considered fully equal to the Latin tradition

within the church. In the United States there are 15 Eastern church dioceses

and two Eastern church archdioceses. In addition, there is one non-territorial

Eastern church apostolate in the United States whose bishop is a member of

the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. See

archeparchy

and

eparchy

eparchy.

Eastern Catholic equivalent to a

diocese

in the Latin Church. It is

under the pastoral care of an

eparch

(bishop). Unless some legal distinction

between a Latin rite diocese and an Eastern Church eparchy is relevant to a

news report, in most cases it is appropriate to refer to an eparchy as a diocese

and to its leader as a bishop.

Adj.

eparchial

. See

archeparchy