Lesser Basilica ( Latin Basilica minor ) - a title in Catholicism for special temples ( basil ). The title is assigned by the pope , or by the Congregation of Divine Services and Discipline of the Sacraments , to which the pope delegates the appropriate authority.
According to the data for 2017, 1753 churches all over the world, primarily historically significant and pilgrimage, are called the “small basilica”. Of these, 571 are in Italy [1] . The only small basilica in Russia is the Basilica of St. Catherine in St. Petersburg [2] . In Ukraine, two churches have the honorary status - the Basilica of the Assumption in Lviv and the Basilica of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in Chernivtsi [3] . In Belarus, three churches have been awarded honorary status: the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Budslau , the Cathedral of St. Francis Xavier in Grodno and the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Pinsk [4] .
The title “Small Basilica” has a number of privileges compared to ordinary temples [5] : under certain conditions, it can be granted complete indulgence , priests serving in the small basilica have the right to special vestments, tintinnabulum is used in divine services and processions, and in the interior, an archaic version of the temple’s banner is traditionally set in the form of a striped red-yellow conical canopy - “ umbrella ” ( lat. umbraculum ). He is depicted on the coat of arms of the basilica.
The current situation of the small basilica is regulated by the decree "On the title of the small basilica" ( lat. De Titulo Basilicae minoris ), published on November 9, 1989.
See also
- Great Basilica
- Lists of basilicas for some countries and territories