| Quartus supra | |
| Type: | encyclical |
| Pope: | Pius IX |
| Language Of Title: | Latin |
| Signature Date: | January 6, 1873 |
| Papal Coats Of Arms: | C o a Pius IX.svg |
| Subject: | On the Church in Armenia |
| Number: | 33 |
| Total Number: | 41 |
| Web La: | https://www.vatican.va/content/pius-ix/la/documents/enciclica-quartus-supra-6-gennaio-1873.html |
| Web En: | https://archive.org/details/encyclical-quartus-supra-pope-pius-ix/ |
| Before: | Quae in patriarchatu |
| After: | Etsi multa |
Quartus supra ([Twenty-]four) is an encyclical of Pope Pius IX, dated 6 January 1873, addressed to the Armenian Catholic Church.[1] The encyclical discusses the then-ongoing schism within the Patriarchate of Cilicia, the election of bishops, and supremacy of the Holy See.
In 1867, the bull Reversurus imposed the Latin standards for electing bishops onto the Armenian Catholic Church, specifically by barring the laity from the elections.[2] This led to dissension among the Armenian Catholic laity. Additionally, the bull merged the Eparchy of Constantinople with the Patriarchate of Cilicia.
In 1870, the First Vatican Council ruled that the Pope is preserved from error when speaking ex cathedra. This prompted a schism within the Armenian Catholic Church in 1871 and the election of the rival Catholic Armenian patriarch Jacob Pahtiarian whom the Holy See considers, along with his followers, as schismatic. Followers of Jacob Pahtiarian seized local churches and forced the Patriarch Andon Bedros IX Hassoun into exile. Consequently Jacob Pahtiarian and his followers were excommunicated in 1872.
Pope Pius IX addresses the encyclical to the "Patriarch of Cilicia, and the Archbishops, Bishops, Clergy and Laity, Our Beloved Children of the Armenian Rite Who are in Loving Communion with the Apostolic See". The encyclical can be summarized into the following sections: