Mamachi, Thomas Maria

Mamachi, Thomas Maria, a distinguished Dominican, was born on the island of Chio Dec. 3,1713; was brought to Italy when yet a youth, and joined the Dominicans. He became professor of theology at Florence, and in 1740 was called to Rome as a member of the college of the Propaganda. Benedict XIV made him a doctor of divinity, and appointed him member of the congregation of the Index, of which he became secretary in 1779. Under Pius VI he was appointed Magisterpalatii. He died in 1792, at Corneto, near Montefiascone. His principal works are Ad Joh. D. Mansium de ratione temporum Athanasiorum deque aliquot Synodis iv sceculo celebrats Epistoole iv (Flor. 1748), against Mansi, who, in his De epochis conciliorum Sardicensis et Sirmiensium, cceterumque in causa A rianorum, hac occasione simul rerum potissimarum S. A thanasii Chronologiam restituit (Lucre, 1746), asserted, contrary to general opinion, that the Council of Sardica was held in 344, and that the return of Athanasius to Alexandria took place in 346. His Oriqinum et antiquitatum Christianarum Libb. xx (Rom. 1749-55), of which only five books, however, were completed, is a very important work, holding the same position among the Roman Catholics as Bingham's Origines ecclesiasticoe among the Protestants; it is written in view of the later work, which it often attempts to refute. De Costumi deprimitivi Christiani libri tres (Rome, 1753; Venice, 1757) is an interesting work on the early ages of Christianity, and contains some valuable and curious information. Epistolarum ad Justinum Febronium, de ratione regende Christiance reipublicce, deque legitima Romani Pontificis potestate, Liber primus (Romans 1776), in answer to Justinus Febronius's (J. N. von Hontheim, q.v.) De statu Ecclesiae et legitina potestate Romani Pontificis liber singularis, etc. (Bullioni. 1763), is but a weak production compared to that which it attacked. See Neue theol. Bibliothek, 55. 392 sq.; Acta historico- eclesiastica nostri temporis, 39:888; Göttinger gel. Anzeigen, 1757, p. 1189 sq.; 1759, p. 595; Richard et Giratud, Biblioth. sacree. — Hoefer, Nouv. Biog. Generale. 33. 123; Herzog, Real-Encyklopädie, 8:772; Pierer, Universal-Lexikon, 10:806.