Minor Basilica - Categories of Minor Basilicas

Categories of Minor Basilicas

As of 2008, there were four major basilicas and 1609 minor basilicas in the world. Of these 1609 minor basilicas, three have the title of papal minor basilica and four the title of pontifical minor basilica.

The three papal minor basilicas are Saint Lawrence outside the Walls, Rome, and the Basilica of San Francesco d'Assisi and the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli, both in Assisi.

The four pontifical minor basilicas are the Basilica of Saint Nicholas in Bari, the Basilica of the Holy House in Loreto, Italy, the Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua, and the Shrine of the Virgin of the Rosary of Pompei. All but the Paduan basilica were for some years jointly under the care of a Cardinalatial Commission for the Pontifical Shrines of Pompei, Loreto and Bari, which was suppressed in 1996 to establish the Pontifical Delegation for the Shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary of Pompeii and the Pontifical Delegation for the Shrine of the Holy House of Loreto. All four pontifical minor basilicas now have individual pontifical delegates. For the Bari basilica, which is a dependency of the Secretariat of State (Holy See), the pontifical delegate is the local metropolitan archbishop. For the basilicas of Loreto and Pompei, which are within their own territorial prelatures, the pontifical delegate is the local territorial prelate. Only for the Paduan basilica is the pontifical delegate (now Francesco Gioia, Archbishop Emeritus of Camerino-San Severino Marche) distinct from the local bishop (now Antonio Mattiazzo).

The remaining 1576 minor basilicas are all classified merely as such. Even the three recognized minor basilicas that are also pontifical basilicas are not classified as pontifical minor basilicas.

In Torre del Greco is the Pontifical Basilica of the Holy Cross, called by that name not only on its own site, which recalls the visits to it of Pope Pius IX in 1849 and Pope John Paul II in 1990, but also in the list of the world's minor basilicas, which, however, calls it simply a minor basilica.

Another such Italian church, recognized as a minor basilica, but not as a pontifical minor basilica, is the Pontificia Reale Basilica di S. Giacomo degli Spagnoli in Naples. This name, qualifying it as both pontifical and royal, is confirmed by several other sources.

One pontifical basilica in Spain listed not as a pontifical minor basilica, but simply as a minor basilica, is the Pontifical Basilica of St. Michael, Madrid, the ownership of which is since 1892 vested in the Apostolic Nunciature to the Kingdom of Spain.

The description "pontifical basilica" is sometimes given, perhaps without canonical justification, also to some churches that, whether pontifical or not, are not in the list of those with a right to the title of basilica. One in the town of Grumo Nevano in the province of Naples is called on the Italian Wikipedia the Pontifical Basilica of Saint Tammaro the Bishop, a designation confirmed by the inscription "Basilica Pontifica" on its façade. Others are the Pontifical Basilica of Saints Cosmas and Damian in Bitonto and the Pontifical Basilica of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Avigliano.

One patriarchal basilica, namely the Patriarchal Cathedral Basilica of St Mark in Venice, called patriarchal because it is the cathedral of the Patriarch of Venice, is a minor basilica.