During the
Muslim conquests of the Middle East and North Africa, some bishops fled to Christian-ruled areas. Even if they did not return and the Christian population of their dioceses dispersed, were killed or abandoned the Catholic faith, they continued to be seen as the bishops of those dioceses, who could give rise, even after long interruption (exile and/or vacancy), to a 'restored' line of
apostolic succession on each see. The
Ordinary or hierarch of a Catholic titular see may be styled a "Titular Metropolitan" (highest rank), "Titular Archbishop" (intermediary rank) or "
titular bishop" (lowest rank), which normally goes by the status conferred on the titular see (mostly corresponding to its historical rank), but exceptions
ad hoc are currently made on a regular basis, either above or below the titular see's rank, while titular sees have repeatedly been promoted or demoted. There are practical advantages in certain circumstances in not establishing a permanent diocese in a given territory, for reasons of the limited size of the Catholic population, its lack of permanence, the likelihood of having to divide the jurisdiction in the near future, and so on. In these circumstances the Catholic Church establishes sometimes not a diocese but a canonical jurisdiction of another kind. This may be, for example, a Mission
sui iuris, an Apostolic Administration (permanently constituted), an Ordinariate, a Prefecture Apostolic, a territorial Abbey, a Vicariate Apostolic, or a Prelature. The ecclesiastic placed in charge of one of these jurisdictions has a corresponding title, such as Superior of a Mission
sui iuris, Apostolic Administrator, Ordinary, Prefect Apostolic, territorial Abbot, Vicar Apostolic, or Prelate. The ecclesiastic may be in priestly or episcopal orders. In recent practice an Apostolic Administrator, Vicar Apostolic, or Prelate (in this precise sense) is often appointed (and consecrated) a bishop. If that happens he is assigned a titular see, in addition to his status as head of the territorial jurisdiction. the appointment as bishop is less likely in the case of a Superior of a Mission
sui iuris, or a Prefect Apostolic, but may happen, especially when a man who is already a bishop governing a particular jurisdiction is appointed cumulatively to govern one of these others. A particular territory may have its canonical status changed more than once, or may be united to a neighbouring territory or subdivided, according to developing circumstances. An example might be the uniting on November 30, 1987, of two Egyptian
vicariates apostolic, Heliopolis of Egypt and Port Said, to become the single
Vicariate Apostolic of Alexandria of Egypt–Heliopolis of Egypt–Port Said, governed by Egypt's only Latin Ordinary at present. A different example would be the division, on 6 July 6, 1992, of the Ghanaian diocese of Accra, to separate from its territory the new diocese of
Koforidua. At the same date, the diocese of Accra became a Metropolitan Archdiocese. After a name change, an abandoned name may be 'restored' as a titular see, even though a residential successor see exist(ed). Furthermore, the Catholic Church may create more than one titular see named after a single city, by creating one or more lines of apostolic succession assigned to the Latin and/or one or more Eastern Catholic rites, which are not necessarily of the same rank. It was formerly the practice to add the term '
, often shortened to ' or
i.p.i., meaning "in the lands of the unbelievers", to the name of the see conferred on titular (non-diocesan)
Latin Church bishops. Formerly, when bishops fled from invading Muslims, they were welcomed by other churches, while preserving their titles and their rights to their own dioceses. They were entrusted with the administration of vacant sees of other dioceses, or with assisting in such government of a see which already had a residential bishop. In later days it was deemed fitting to preserve the memory of ancient Christian churches which no longer existed; this was done by giving their names to auxiliary bishops or bishops in missionary countries. These bishops did not reside in the sees whose titles they bore, nor could they exercise any power over them, and are not entrusted with their care. They are therefore called
titular bishops, as opposed to
diocesan bishops, and the sees themselves are called titular sees, as opposed to
residential sees. The regular appointment of titular bishops is said to date back to the time of the
Fifth Lateran Council, in 1514; cardinals alone were authorized to ask for titular bishops to be appointed to assist them in their dioceses.
Pope Pius V extended the privilege to all sees in which it had become customary to have auxiliary bishops. Since then the practice has become more widespread. The foundation of the
Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, in 1622, gave a great impetus to the missionary work of the Church in China and Japan, and elsewhere a great increase in the number of bishops became necessary and those received their titles from the ancient abandoned sees. Moroni acknowledged the great difficulties in compiling this work, even after he thoroughly examined all the sources available to him. --> The custom, when Boudinhon wrote his article, was to join to the name of the see that of the district to which it formerly belonged, or else merely to say "titular bishop". Although it did not claim to be perfect, it contained the names of the sees and the bishops who had held the titles as far back, in some cases, as the 14th century.
Crusader see-in-exile titles The crusading
William IV, Count of Nevers, dying in the Holy Land in 1168, left the building known as the Hospital of Panthenor in the town of
Clamecy in
Burgundy, together with some land, to the Bishops of Bethlehem, in case Bethlehem should fall under
Muslim control. After
Saladin took Bethlehem in 1187, the Bishop took up residence in 1223 in his property, which remained the seat of
titular Bishops of Bethlehem for almost 600 years, until the
French Revolution of 1789. The
Roman Catholic Archbishopric of Nazareth first had two centuries of Metropolitan Archbishops of Nazareth in
Barletta (southern Italy), and gave rise in the 19th century to two separately 'restored' titular successor sees: a Latin titular archbishopric of Nazareth and a Maronite (
Antiochian Rite) titular (Arch)bishopric of Nazareth, both suppressed only in the early 20th century. == Eastern and Oriental Orthodoxy ==