Titular church

In the Catholic Church, a titular church (Italian: titolo cardinalizio) is a church in Rome that is assigned to a member of the clergy who is created a cardinal. These are Catholic churches in the city, within the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Rome, that serve as honorary designations symbolising the relationship of cardinals to the pope, the bishop of Rome.^[1][2] According to the 1983 Code of Canon Law, a cardinal may assist his titular church through counsel or through patronage, although "he has no power of governance over it, and he should not for any reason interfere in matters concerning the administration of its good, or its discipline, or the service of the church".^[3]

There are two ranks of titular churches: titles and deaconries. A title (Latin: titulus) is a titular church that is assigned to a cardinal priest (a member of the second order of the College of Cardinals), whereas a deaconry (Latin: diaconia) is normally assigned to a cardinal deacon (a member of the third order of the college).^[3] If a cardinal priest or a cardinal deacon is later appointed a cardinal bishop (a member of the first order of the college), he is typically transferred from his titular church to the vacant title of a suburbicarian diocese in the vicinity of Rome. Patriarchs of Eastern Catholic Churches who are created cardinal bishops are not assigned titles of suburbicarian dioceses.^[3]

A cardinal may request that he be transferred to another titular church in a consistory; in addition, when a cardinal deacon opts to become a cardinal priest (usually after ten years), he may request either that his deaconry be elevated pro hac vice ('for this occasion') to a title or that he be transferred from his deaconry to a vacant title.^[3] Other churches in Rome can also be established as new titular churches. Occasionally, a titular church may be held in commendam ('in trust') by a cardinal who has been transferred to a different titular church or to a suburbicarian diocese.^[4]