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The Metropolitan Chapter

The Chapter of the Valencia Metropolitan Cathedral, whose origin dates back to the first days after King James conquest of Valencia on 28 september 1238, has a glorious history of chapter members whose priestly spirit of generous devotion and love to the Diocesan Church, has had an important influence on the spiritual and scientific education of the diocesan clergy and an invariable and faithful cooperation with its Archbishop in the Diocese management.

Its organization has been improved throughout the time. Pope Innocent VIII named it as Metropolitan Chapter on 9 July 1492. The structure, kept so far, was acquired under the 1851 concordat, agreed between Spain and the Holy See.

The Canon Chapter of the Valencia Cathedral is a priest college with public legal status under the authority of the Apostolic See and the Archbishop of the Archdiocese, whose commitment, rights and obligations are determined in the Canon Law Code and the current Statutes.

The Cathedral Chapter, due to its century-old existence, its bound to the Church «Mother and head of all the churches within the Diocese», its legal stability conferring the canon law as well as its traditional prestige, is sign of the historical progression of the faith in the Valencia Diocese.

The Chapter fulfills its mission in cooperation with the Archbishop, supreme minister of the Valentine Archdiocese.

According to a secular tradition and the church right, the main aim of the Chapter is to give God, a more solemn worship in the cathedral, in order to specially represent the church in the fulfillment of the prayer.

The choral worship consists of Lauds, Holy Mass, Intermediate time and also some Eves in certain solemn occasions. The day of the Lord and more liturgical ceremonies are celebrated as deserved, trying to promote the active participation of the faithful people.

The conventual mass is applied in a special way by the living and deceased benevolent people of the Cathedral and spiritual and material needs of the diocesan community are also commended.

At the Cathedral, the Chapter organizes the ordinary and extraordinary pastoral service requiring the good for the faithful. Facilitating the reception of the sacrament of penance is a typical service of the Cathedral. Hence, the Chapter tries to have enough confessors for the support of the faithful.

The Chapter encourages the Holy Sacrament, through the solemn celebration of the XL Times and other Eucharistic devotion acts such as the “Holy Chalice Thursdays”.

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