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The baptistery of Biella.
From 1160, Biella was a fief, belonging to the bishops of Vercelli.[1] In 1379, Bishop Giovanni Fieschi (1349–1379) of Vercelli was driven out, as a supporter of Urban VI, and Biella came under the control of Amadeus VI, Count of Savoy.[2] Until 1772, the town of Biella was under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Vercelli. In that year Pope Clement XI, at the request of Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia, established the Diocese of Biella by the papal bullPraecipua.[3]
Among the religious edifices of the city of Biella, the most notable is the Gothic cathedral, built in 1402.[4] Its beautiful choir is by Galliari. The baptistery, in the form of a small temple, is said to be an ancient Roman edifice. It is in fact a work of the eleventh century, erected on the site of a Roman tomb.[5]
The Chapter of the Cathedral is far older than the Cathedral itself. The Canons of the Collegiate Church of San Stefano appear already in the twelfth century.[6] The Chapter was composed of a Provost, a Treasurer and a Primicerius, among a total of twenty canons. There were also twelve chaplains.[7] In 2023, the Chapter was composed of twelve canons, one of whom was the President.[8]
Sanctuary of Oropa
In the shrine of Maria Santissima d'Oropa, situated on a mountain near Biella,[9] the diocese preserves a memorial of St. Eusebius of Vercelli, who was banished to the Orient by Emperor Constantius for his defence of Catholicism against Arianism. St. Eusebius, according to tradition, upon his return from the East, is said to have brought three pictures of the Madonna painted on cedar wood, one of which, the image of Oropa, he placed in a small oratory he had built. In the tenth century the chapel was placed in charge of the Benedictines. When they abandoned the place, Pope Pius II, in 1459, made over the shrine to the Chapter of the Collegiate Church of San Stefano, now the Biella Cathedral, to which it has since belonged. In the sixteenth century, the inhabitants of Biella, in thanksgiving for their deliverance from the plague, built a church over the chapel. In the seventeenth century construction of the devotional complex known as the Sacro Monte di Oropa began.[10]
Bishop Bernardino Bollati (1818–1828) held a diocesan synod on 19–21 July 1825.[11] A diocesan synod was held by Bishop Basilio Leto (1873–1885) in 1882.[12] Bishop Carlo Rossi (1936–1972) presided over a diocesan synod in Biella on 24–25 October 1951.[13]
Napoleonic Piedmont
From 1801 to 1814, Piedmont, and Biella along with it, was annexed to metropolitan France. A French department was established, called Sésia, with its capital at Vercelli. Biella became an "arondissement" within Sésia.
One of the policies of the Franch government was the reduction in the number of dioceses both in metropolitan France and in its annexed territories. The French pointed out that there were sixteen dioceses and one metropolitan (Turin) in the Piedmont, of which five were without bishops at the time and three whose bishops had just resigned. They demanded that the sixteen be reduced to eight with one metropolitan.[14] In the bull "Gravissimis Causis" of 1 June 1803, Pope Pius VII authorized the papal legate to First Consul Bonaparte, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Caprara, to suppress a number of dioceses in the ecclesiastical province of Piedmont, including Biella.[15] Caprara carried out his instructions in a decree of 23 January 1805.[16]
After the defeat of Napoleon, the Congress of Vienna agreed to the restoration of the Kingdom of Sardinia. King Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia invited Pope Pius VII to restore the good order of the Church in his kingdom, which had been disrupted by the French occupation. On 17 July 1817, the pope issued the bull "Beati Petri", which began by establishing de novo the ten dioceses which had been suppressed under the French, including Biella, and delimiting the extent of each in detail,[17] In the same document, the pope also released the diocese of Vercelli from being a suffragan of the metropolitan of Turin,[18] and elevated the diocese to the rank of metropolitan archdiocese. The new metropolitan archdiocese had as suffragans the dioceses of Alessandria, Biella, and Casale.[19]
The diocese, which covers an area of 900 km², is divided into 114 parishes.[33] All but one are in the civil Province of Biella, the other falls within Province of Vercelli. A list of parishes by province and commune follows; locations (villages or neighbourhoods) within a commune are shown in brackets.[34]
^Rando (ed.), p. 38. The ‘History’ section of the article quotes extensively from Benigni 1907, which is in the public domain, and quite obsolete.
^Schiaparelli cites a Bull of Pope Celestine III of 26 November 1194, confirming the grant of concessions by Bishop Rainerio of Vercelli. Schiaparelli, Luigi (1896). "Origini del comune di Biella". Memorie della Reale Accademia delle Scienze di Torino. 46: 203–258, at p. 230 and 241-242.
^Synodus dioecesana Bugellensis quam illustrissimus et reverendissimus d.d. Bernardinus Bollati ord. min. s. Francisci de observantia Dei, et apostolicae sedis gratia episcopus Bugellensis habuit anno a Christi nativitate 1825 diebus 19, 20 et 21 Julii, (Biella diocesi: Joseph Amosso 1825).
^Synodus dioecesana Bugellensis, quam ill. et rev. D.D. Basilius Leto, episcopus Bugellensis habuit anno 1882, (Biella: typis Amosso 1882).
^Synodus dioecesana Bugellensis tertia ab exc.mo D. D. Carolo Rossi ep. diebus XXIV-XXV octobris MCMLI celebrata. (in Latin). Biella: ex typis «Unione biellese», 1952.
^"Gravissimis Causis' § 1: "ab eodem gubernio postulari, ut Nos in hoc rerum statu apostolica auctoritate Nostra praefatas sexdecim ecclesias episcopales, atque unam metropolitanam ad octo redigere dignemur, nimirum ad unam metropolitanam et septem ejus suffraganeas...."
^Bulletin des lois de l'Empire français 4e Série, Tome troisième (Paris: Imprimerie impériale, An. XIV [1804]), pp. 69-92, at p. 70: "supprimimus, annullamus, ac perpetuo extiguimus, titulum , denominationem, totumque statum præsentem, supradictarum ecclesiarum Secusina, Pineroliensis, Fossanensis, Albensis, Derthonensis, Bobiensis, Casalensis, Bugellensis et Augustana...."
^Bullarii Romani Continuatio XIV, pp. 345-351 § 4-22.
^"...praevia illius omnimoda solutione et exemptione a quocumque metropolitico jure, dependentia ac subjectione archiepiscopali ecclesiae Taurinensi, cui ad praesens suffragatur...."
^Bullarii Romani Continuatio XIV, pp. 351-352 § 16 and 18.
^Born in the town of Savigliano (diocese of Turin) in 1726, Giulio Cesare Viancini de' conti di Torricella e Viancino had been Archbishop of Sassari (Sardinia) (1763–1772). He was nominated bishop of Biella by King Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia on 17 June 1772, and approved by Pope Clement XIV on 1 October 1772. He was allowed to retain the title of archbishop. He died on 22 October 1796. Casimiro Turletti, Storia di Savigliano, (in Italian) Volume 3 (Tipografia Bressa, 1883), pp. 348-355. Ritzler, p. 133, with note 2. Gams, pp. 813 and 840. Cappelletti, p. 662.
^Canaveri was born in Mari in the diocese of Albenga, and obtained a Doctorate in theology from the University of Turin (1773). He was nominated by Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia on 14 June 1797, approved by Pope Pius VI on 26 November, and consecrated in Rome on 6 August 1797 by Cardinal Hyacinthe Gerdil. He was transferred to the diocese Vercelli on 1 February 1805, by Pope Pius VII. He died on 11 January 1811. Ritzler, p. 134, with note 3. Gams, pp. 813, 826.
^Bollati was born in Carde (diocese of Saluzzo), and taught philosophy in the convent of Fossano; he then taught theology in Parma and Turin, and finally in Rome at S. Maria in Aracoeli. He also worked in the Congregation of the Propaganda. During the French occupation of Rome he returned to Saluzzo. He was nominated bishop of Biella by King Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia on 10 October 1818, and approved by Pope Pius VII on 21 December 1818. He was consecrated a bishop in Rome on 5 January 1819. He held a diocesan synod in 1825. Bollati died on 11 June 1828. Raccolta di regi editti, proclami, manifesti ed altri provvedimenti de' magistrati ed uffizi, Volume 10 (Torino: Davico & Picco), p. 370. Sigismondo da Venezia, Biografia serafica degli uomini illustri, (Venice: G. B. Merlo, 1846), p. 878. Cappelletti, pp. 663-670. Bima, p. 112. Ritzler & Sefrin VII, p. 120.
^Tadini was nominated bishop of Biella by the King of Sardinia on 28 September 1829, and confirmed by Pope Pius VIII on 28 September 1829. He was appointed apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Genoa on 28 October 1831, and named Archbishop of Genoa on 2 July 1832 by Pope Gregory XVI. He was named a cardinal by Pope Gregory on 6 April 1835. He died on 22 November 1847. Ritzler & Sefrin, Hierarchia catholica VII, pp. 121, 220.
^Losana was born in Vigone on 22 January 1793. He obtained a degree in theology from Turin in 1815, and was ordained in 1816. He joined the theological faculty at Turin in 1817; in 1818 he was Prefect of Studies in Casale-Monferrato. In 1819 and 1820 he was regent in Scripture and then in theology at the University. In 1824 he was granted the Abbey of S. Andrea in Savigliano. In 1826 Pope Leo XII named him titular bishop of Abydus and sent him to Syria as Vicar Apostolic of Aleppo and Delegate of the Holy See in Monte Lebano; his jurisdiction also extended to Cyprus, Egypt, Arabia and Syria as far as the Euphrates. During that time he became Administrator of the diocese of Baghdad, on the death of its bishop, Petrus Cuprié in 1832. In 1833 he was appointed titular Latin Patriarch of Constantinople. A Gio. Pietro Losana vescovo di Biella e conte grand'ufficiale dell'ordine dei SS. Maurizio e Lazzaro prelato domestico di S. Santità ed assistente al soglio pontificio nel cinquantesimo anniversario della sua prima messa il Capitolo e Clero della citta 27 maggio 1866 (in Italian). tip. Amosso. 1866. pp. 14–19. Cappelletti, p. 670. Losana spoke against the idea of papal infallibility at the First Vatican Ecumenical Council: Quirinus; Dollinger, J.J.I. (1870). Letters from Rome on the Council. Rivingtons. p. 668. Bessone, Angelo Stefano (2006). Giovanni Pietro Losana, (1793-1873). Biella: Fondazione Cassa di risparmio di Biella. OCLC848944992.
^Leto was born in Masserano (archdiocese of Vercelli), some 7 miles (12 km) from Biella. He held a degree in theology from the Seminary in Vercelli. He was Provost-Canon of the Collegiate Church of Trino and its parish priest; and Archdeacon of Vercelli when appointed bishop. He was appointed bishop of Biella on 10 August 1873 by Pope Pius IX. He resigned the diocese on 19 December 1885. On 15 January 1886, he was appointed titular bishop of Sebaste (Samaria) in Palestine by Pope Leo XIII. He died on 15 February 1896. La Gerarchia Cattolica e la Famiglia Pontificia: 1881 (in Italian). Roma: Monaldi. 1881. p. 118. La Gerarchia Cattolica...per l'anno 1888 (Roma: Tip. Vaticana 1888), p. 326. Ritzler & Sefrin, Hierarchia catholica VIII, pp. 162, 496.
^Born in 1837, Cumino had been parish priest of Santa Maria del Carmine in Turin, and was pro-Vicar General of the diocese of Turin. He was appointed bishop of Biella by Pope Leo XIII on 15 January 1886, and was consecrated a bishop on 16 May 1886 by Cardinal Gaetano Alimonda. He died on 21 June 1901. Ritzler & Sefrin VIII, p. 162.
^Gamba was born at San Damiano d'Asti in 1857. He was named vice-curate of the cathedral of Asti in 1881, and parish priest of the cathedral in 1884. He obtained a degree in theology from the Collegio S. Apollinaire in Rome, and in 1892 he was appointed pro-Vicar General of the diocese of Asti. In 1898, he was appointed Vicar General. He was appointed bishop of Biella on 16 December 1901. On 13 August 1906, Gamba was made Bishop of Novara by Pope Pius X. On 20 December 1923, he was appointed Archbishop of Turin, and on 20 December 1926 was named a cardinal by Pope Pius XI. He died on 26 December 1929. Ritzler & Sefrin VIII, p. 162. Bartolo Gariglio, "Gamba, Giuseppe," in: Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani Volume 51 (1998). Harris M. Lentz III, Popes and Cardinals of the 20th Century: A Biographical Dictionary (McFarland 2015), p. 76.
^Born in 1867 at Moncalieri (diocese of Turin), Masera held the degrees of doctor of theology and doctor of canon law. He had been pro-Vicar General and chancellor of the diocese of Fossano, and Chaplain to Princess Clotilda of Savoy. He was appointed bishop of Biella on 19 August 1906 by Pope Pius X. On 2 December 1912, Masera was named titular bishop of Himeria, and auxiliary Bishop of Sabina by Pope Pius X. In 1921 he became Bishop of Colle di Val d'Elsa. He died in 1926. La Gerarchia cattolica 1910, (Roma: tip. polyglotta Vaticana 1910), p. 126. Pięta, Hierarchia catholica IX, pp. 95, 134.
^Serafino was born in Genoa in 1861. He was appointed bishop of Biella by Pope Pius X on 2 December 1912. He was transferred to the diocese of Chiavari on 22 March 1917 by Pope Benedict XV; he resigned, and was named titular bishop of Tricala on 4 August 1917. He died on 2 September 1924. La Gerarchia cattolica 1920, (Roma: tip. polyglotta Vaticana 1920), p. 314. Pięta, Hierarchia catholica IX, p. 95.
^Garigliano was born in Poirino (diocese of Turin) in 1872. On 9 September 1911, Garigliano was appointed titular bishop of Eucarpia, and named apostolic administrator of the diocese of Aquila. He was appointed Bishop of Biella in the consistory of 22 March 1917, by Pope Benedict XV. He died on 10 October 1936. La civiltà cattolica, 68 (Roma: Uffizio della civiltà cattolica, 1917), p. 106. Annuario pontificio per l'anno 1918 (Roma: tipografia polyglotta Vaticana 1918), p. 89.
^Bishop Mana retired on 27 July 2018. From 27 July 2018 to 14 October, he was apostolic administrator of the diocese. Diocesi di Biella, "Vescovo Emerito;" retrieved 25 March 2023.
^Farinella was born in Castellamonte (TO) (diocese of Ivrea), on 24 May 1968. He was consecrated a bishop on 29 September 2018 in Ivrea. He took possession of the diocese of Biella on 14 October 2018. Diocesi di Biella, "Il Vescovo Mons. Roberto Farinella;"(in Italian); retrieved: 23 March 2023.
