Fondo Pia Casa dei Catecumeni e Neofiti
Item
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Country
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IT
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Name of institution (English)
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Historical Archive of the Vicariate of Rome
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Language of name of institution
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ita
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Contact information: postal address
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Via dell’Amba Aradan 3, 00184 Rome
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Contact information: phone number
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0039 066986322
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0039 066986323
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Contact information: email
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archiviostoricodiocesano@diocesidiroma.it
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Reference number
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ASVR, Fondo Pia Casa dei Catecumeni e Neofiti
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Type of reference number
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Archival reference number
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Title (English)
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Pious House of Catechumens and Neophytes Fonds
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Title (official language of the state)
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Fondo Pia Casa dei Catecumeni e Neofiti
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Language of title
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ita
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Creator / accumulator
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Pia Casa dei Catecumeni e Neofiti
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Date(s)
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1419/1934
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Language(s)
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ita
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lat
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Extent
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313 volumes and 132 folders
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Type of material
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Textual Material
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Physical condition
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Good
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Scope and content
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The Fondo Pia Casa dei Catecumeni e Neofiti belongs to the extensive documentary collection preserved in the Historical Archives of the Vicariate of Rome. This fonds contains important documentation regarding converts to Christianity from other religions, mainly Muslims and Jews. For instance, the Registra series preserves the “Libri Baptizatorum”, in which the names, surnames, and origins of neophytes for the Early Modern period can be traced. Among these converts, there are a few Jews of Sephardic origin. The counting of the 17th-century registers carried out by De Collenberg (1986-1988) shows that a rather high number of people who requested baptism did not belong to the Roman community. The list includes a Jew of Spanish origin, Isache, son of Rodrigues de Ossuna, baptised in 1673 (De Collenberg, 1986-1988, n. 436), and numerous Jews from Constantinople and the Maghreb. Numerous documents regarding Jewish converts were cited by Marina Caffiero (2004), as well as by other more recent studies.
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Archival history
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The Fondo Pia Casa dei Catecumeni e Neofiti is divided into two documentary groups, according to document type: volumes and folders. There are a total of 313 volumes, dating from the 15th to the 20th century. This documentary group is divided into seven series: Instrumenta (71); Copies of “instrumenta” (18); Iuridica (5); Cameralia (19); Registra (24); Miscellaneous (22); and Finance and administration (154). There are 132 folders, dating from 1696 to 1940. This documentary group preserves various documents, such as handouts and wills, among others. Within the folders, the Registra series is of particular interest for the identification of baptised Jews and their origin.
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Administrative / Biographical history
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The House of Catechumens in Rome was founded by Pope Paul III (papacy: 1534-1549) in 1543. Its aim was to welcome converts to Christianity (Muslims, Jews, slaves) and prepare them for baptism. In addition, the House also provided grants and work for neophytes (newly baptised). Initially located in the church of S. Giovanni in Mercatello, it was composed of a male and female hospice, a female monastery, and a college of neophytes. In 1634, Pope Urban VIII (papacy: 1623-1644) merged these various institutions and placed them under the control of the headquarters in the church of S. Maria ai Monti. At present, the House of Catechumens is still located near the church.
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(source: Rocciolo, Domenico. 1998. “L’Archivio della Pia casa dei catecumeni e neofiti di Roma.” Ricerche per la storia religiosa di Roma 10: 545–82).
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Author of the description
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Andrea Cicerchia, 2021
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Bibliography
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Caffiero, Marina. 2004. Battesimi Forzati. Ebrei, Cristiani e Convertiti Nella Roma Dei Papi. Roma: Viella.
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Caffiero, Marina, and Lydia G. Cochrane. 2012. Forced Baptisms: Histories of Jews, Christians, and Converts in Papal Rome. The S. Mark Taper Foundation Imprint in Jewish Studies. Berkeley: University of California Press.
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Collenberg, Wipertus H. Rudt de. 1986. “Le Baptême Des Juifs de Rome de 1614 à 1798 Selon Les Registres de La Casa Dei Catecumeni.” In Archivum Historiae Pontificiae. Vol. 24–26.
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Del Monte, Anna, Marina Caffiero, and Giuseppe Sermoneta. 2008. Rubare le anime: diario di Anna Del Monte ebrea romana. Rome: Viella.
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Ferrara, Pierina. 2011. “Cattolici ed ebrei nella Roma di antico regime: per una sintesi metodologica della ricerca.” La Rassegna mensile Di Israel, 3, 77: 107–22.
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Michelson, Emily. 2022. Catholic Spectacle and Rome’s Jews: Early Modern Conversion and Resistance. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
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Rocciolo, Domenico. 1998. “L’Archivio della Pia casa dei catecumeni e neofiti di Roma.” Ricerche per la storia religiosa di Roma 10: 545–82.
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Stow, Kenneth R. 2016. Anna and Tranquillo: Catholic Anxiety and Jewish Protest in the Age of Revolutions. New Haven ; London: Yale University Press.
