A church dictionary

by Walter Farquhar Hook

This vicar went and resided upon his first living, for the canon reached him where he had the benefice; but having no benefice where he had only a vicarage, he thought himself secure against the said canons requiring residence.

This piece of management gave occasion to several papal decrees, and to the following constitution of Archbishop Langton, viz. “No ordinary shall admit any one to a vicarage, who will not personally officiate there.”—Lyndwood, 64.

And to another constitution of the same archbishop, by which it is enjoined, that vicars who will be non-resident shall be deprived.—Lyndwood, 131.

But the abuse still continued, and therefore Otho, in his legatine constitutions, applied a stronger remedy, ordaining, that none shall be admitted to a vicarage, but who, renouncing all other benefices (if he hath any) with cure of souls, shall swear that he will make residence there, and shall constantly so reside: otherwise his institution shall be null, and the vicarage shall be given to another.—Athon, 24.

And it is upon the authority of this constitution that the oath of residence is administered to vicars to this day. And this obligation of vicars to residence was further enforced by a constitution of Othobon, as followeth: If any shall detain a vicarage contrary to the aforesaid constitution of Otho, he shall not appropriate to himself the profits thereof, but shall restore the same; one moiety whereof shall be applied to the use of that church, and the other moiety shall be distributed half to the poor of the parish and half to the archdeacon. And the archdeacon shall make diligent inquiry every year, and cause this constitution to be strictly observed. And if he shall find that any one detaineth a vicarage contrary to the premises, he shall forthwith notify to the ordinary that such vicarage is vacant, who shall do what to him belongeth in the premises; and if the ordinary shall delay to institute another into such vicarage, he shall be suspended from collation, institution, or presentation to any benefices until he shall comply. And if any one shall strive to detain a vicarage contrary to the premises, and persist in his obstinacy for a month; he shall, besides the penalties aforesaid, be ipso facto deprived of his other benefices (if he have any); and shall be disabled for ever to hold such vicarage which he hath so vexatiously detained, and from obtaining any other benefice for three years. And if the archdeacon shall be remiss in the premises, he shall be deprived of the share of the aforesaid penalty assigned to him, and be suspended from the entrance of the church until he shall perform his duty.—Athon, 95.

So that, upon the whole, the doubt was not, whether rectors were obliged to residence; the only question was, whether vicars were also obliged; and to enforce the residence of vicars, in like manner as of rectors, the aforesaid constitutions were ordained.—Sherl. ibid. 20–22.

Canon 47. “Every beneficed man licensed by the laws of this realm, upon urgent occasions of other service, not to reside upon his benefice, shall cause his cure to be supplied by a curate that is a sufficient and licensed preacher, if the worth of the benefice will bear it. But whosoever hath two benefices, shall maintain a preacher licensed in the benefice where he doth not reside, except he preach himself at both of them usually.”

And by the last article of Archbishop Wake’s directions it is required, that the bishop shall take care, as much as possible, that whosoever is admitted to serve any cure, do reside in the parish where he is to serve, especially in livings that are able to support a resident curate; and where that cannot be done, that they do at least reside so near to the place, that they may conveniently perform all their duties, both in the church and parish.

By the faculty of dispensation, a pluralist is required, in that benefice from which he shall happen to be most absent, to preach thirteen sermons every year; and to exercise hospitality for two months yearly; and, as much as in him lieth, to support and relieve the inhabitants of that parish, especially the poor and needy.

By the 1 Will. & Mar. c. 26. If any person presented or nominated by either of the universities to a popish benefice with cure, shall be absent from the same above the space of sixty days in any one year; in such case, the said benefice shall become void.—Abridged from Burn.