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The Twenty-Eighth International Eucharistic Congress (Chicago, June 20-24, 1926) was an unprecedented celebration: hundreds of thousands of participants from thirty-seven nations attended, and about six hundred journalists covered the event. Such an impressive outcome was far from guaranteed, considering the predominantly Protestant population in the US, the lack of diplomatic relations between the US and the Holy See, and the significant doctrinal differences between Catholics and Protestant churches regarding the Eucharist. The Congress, along with the organizational effort that made it possible, greatly impressed Pope Pius XI, his representatives, and the Italian Catholic hierarchy. Drawing on Vatican archives and published documents to reconstruct the organization and development of the Congress, this article sheds light on how the Vatican and Italian Catholic hierarchy perceived American society's ability to conceive and execute a religious event of unprecedented proportions. This reconstruction also helps to illuminate the broader European fascination and anxiety toward the vision of the future emerging in American society and presented to the Old World after the Great War. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1622, a counter-reformist concept of the mission led to the foundation of Propaganda Fide, a congregation to which the Supreme Pontiffs entrusted various tasks at the global level, including the reassertion of the pope's authority over missionary activities, which had previously been dominated by European secular powers using the patronage system. In carrying out its mandate, the new Congregation also charged apostolic nuncios, almost entirely Italian, with collecting information from and establishing direct contacts with the states of Catholic Christianity and of missionary territories beyond. These nuncios not only performed activities of a religious nature but also served as diplomats and representatives of the pope, endowed with particular powers and faculties. This article introduces the role of apostolic nuncios and analyzes the results of the first of these sent by the Propaganda Fide to China, Charles Thomas Maillard de Tournon. It will show that, as the first papal legate to China, he was not entirely successful in his objectives, but his mission can be seen as a turning point in the history of relations between the Holy See and China and as an important episode which helps us to understand not only early Sino–papal relations but also the development of the new global vision of the Catholic Church as it was formulated by the Propaganda Fide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Opole Studies in Administration & Law (OSAO) / Opolskie Studia Administracyjno-Prawne (OSAP) is the property of University of Opole / Uniwersytet Opolski and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper seeks to bridge the gap between archival text analysis and network analysis by applying network clustering methods to analyze the coverage of Bulgaria in 123 issues of the newspaper Osservatore Romano published between January and May 1877. Utilizing optical character recognition and generalized homogeneity blockmodeling, the study constructs networks of relevant keywords. Those including the sets Bulgaria and Russia are rather isomorphic and they largely overlap with those for Germany, Britain, and War. In structural terms, the blockmodel of the two networks exhibits a clear core-semiperiphery-periphery structure that reflects relations between concepts in the newpaper's coverage. The newspaper's lexical choices effectively delegitimised the Bulgarian national revival, highlighting the influence of the Holy See on the newspaper's editorial line. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores the role of Pope Pius XII and the Vatican during World War Two, specifically focusing on the controversy surrounding Pius XII's actions towards Jewish refugees. It discusses the complex role of the Catholic Church during the war, including diplomatic efforts and negotiations with Germany and Italy. The article concludes by noting the challenges faced by Pius XII and highlights evidence that suggests he covertly arranged actions to protect and assist Jews. Despite controversy, many Jewish survivors praise Pius XII for his support. Overall, the controversy surrounding his actions is unwarranted given the evidence disproving it. [Extracted from the article]

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Not 3,000, but 300,000 visas were required to comply with all requests for emigration, Angelo Dell'Acqua, a member of the Roman Curia, said summarizing the so-called Brazilian Visa Project in 1940. Many people persecuted as Jews sought refuge in South America; thousands of them asked the pope and the Roman Curia for help with their emigration. The Brazilian government granted 3,000 visas on a singular basis. The new sources made accessible by the opening of the archival holdings pertaining to the pontificate of Pius XII allow us to reconstruct these cases in a detailed manner. Based on thousands of petitions written by Jewish people (which shall be published in a critical online edition at http://www.askingthepopeforhelp.de) as well as internal regulations, here analyzed for the first time, the inner-curial decision-making process is documented as a hermeneutic process reconstructing the fate of individuals, on the one hand, and providing answers to overarching questions on the other. The influence of antisemitic stereotypes about Jews and the behavior of the pope and the Curia during the Shoah are discussed. The focus of this article is on Catholics of Jewish origin, and on the question of their belonging to the Church, a subject that has been entirely underrepresented in research until today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Investigaciones Historicas is the property of Universidad de Valladolid, Facultad de Filosofia y Letras and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The Spanish Association of Contemporary Religious History held its first congress in Zaragoza from November 13th to 15th, 2023. The congress addressed topics related to the contemporary religious history of Spain and had the participation of researchers from different countries. On the other hand, an international congress was held in Rome to commemorate the opening of the archives of the Roman Inquisition 25 years ago. This congress was organized by the Pontifical Committee of Historical Sciences and the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, with the collaboration of other Italian institutes. The objective of the congress was to discuss new research and perspectives on the Roman Inquisition, highlighting the collaboration between the Holy See and the Italian State in its organization. [Extracted from the article]

The pontificate of Pius XII coincided with the emergence of various civic initiatives promoting the formation of a global consciousness and a future world government. The analysis of the documentation consulted in the Historical Archives of the Secretariat of State of the Holy See and in various archives in Spain, France, Italy and the United Sates where the personal collections of prominent supporters of globalism (Salvador de Madariaga, Frank Aydelotte or Alexandre Marc) are preserved, allows us to delve into the position that Catholics, their international organizations, the Vatican Curia and the pontiff himself adopted with respect to those proposals. American Catholics joined from 1937 onwards in a campaign for globalism that would spread throughout Europe after World War II. The context and the previous management of the audience and the speech delivered in April 1951 by Pius xii to the leaders of the World Movement for World Federal Government allows us to interpret the position of Vatican diplomacy in the face of the nuclear threat, the Cold War bloc policy. While the Holy See gave priority to the strengthening of the Vatican City State, the pontiff encouraged a third way that saw in integral federalism and Christian universalism a world more akin to the Gospel utopia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the opening of the Vatican Apostolic Archive, which contains documentation from the pontificate of Pius XII. Historians will now be able to access these primary sources to obtain more information about this historical period. The article also analyzes the relationship between the Vatican and the Kremlin in three Catholic attempts to establish contact, as well as the Vatican's attitude towards the worldist movement. Additionally, tensions in Spain, Mexico, and Peru during this period are mentioned. In Spain, the suspension of the weekly magazine ¡Tú! published by the Hermandad Obrera de Acción Católica (HOAC) is analyzed. In Mexico, the modus vivendi reached between the Church and the Mexican State during the pontificate of Pius XII is examined. In Peru, the cordial relationship between the Church and society is highlighted, as well as social concerns and the shortage of clergy in the country. [Extracted from the article]

The text explores the educational activities of French Roman Catholic missions in the nineteenth century, as they evolved from serving local Catholic needs to becoming crucial assets in advancing France's religious–cultural influences and the Holy See's efforts to unify Eastern Christian Churches under Rome. Focused on the Mission d'Orient, initiated during Pius IX's papacy, this study delves into the Assumptionists' educational activities in the Ottoman Empire (1863–1914), which aimed to inculturate the Christian communities of the Ottoman Empire, achieve union with Rome, and build a bridge of knowledge between the Ottoman Orient and Europe. Employing a transnational historical approach, this research utilizes primary sources from the Holy See and the Assumptionist Order, examining religious and educational interactions with Ottoman millets. This article argues that Assumptionist institutions succeeded in inculturation and acted as bridges for cultural exchange. The context includes the French protectorate of the Ottoman Empire, the protégé system, and the Capitulations of 1740, demonstrating the Holy See's use of political and religious alliances. The Assumptionists, influential in advancing the Holy See's interests, are studied regarding their engagement in France and the Orient. Despite valuable insights from existing research, this article seeks to fill gaps by using Assumptionists as a case study, exploring the specific impacts of their education on various religious groups within the context of France's religious–cultural imperialism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Materiales para la Historia del Deporte is the property of Polytechnic University of Madrid and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article discloses and analyses a selection of letters, reports, and official missives exchanged between the Holy See and the governments of Thailand during the Second World War. The collected documents are kept in the Archives of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, in Rome, and contain evidence of the attempts made by the two diplomacies, one Christian and the other Buddhist, to establish a dialogue and find a solution to the pressing problems that were complicating the country's already difficult situation during the world conflict. A beneficial solution to these problems was found by Thai diplomacy, based on a considered interpretation of Buddhist teachings and their fundamental tolerance, and by the Vatican, which not only recognised the value of this different religious thought but also Thailand's complex position within the balance of powers in Southeast Asia in the mid-20th century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the prelude to the First Vatican Council, the idea of a heretical pope was used as the primary argument against the solemn definition of papal infallibility. The medieval canonists and conciliarists had allowed for the notion of papal heresy by making a strict distinction between the apostolic seat itself and the individual occupants of the throne of Peter. However, when we examine the text of Pastor Aeternus in light of the contents of the official Relatio, which was drawn up at the council to explain the meaning of this document, we find that the above distinction used by the conciliarists was formally proscribed with an anathema. This article will argue that in doing so, the Council Fathers definitively excluded the possibility of a heretical pope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chile and Argentina signed a Treaty of Peace and Friendship in Vatican City in 1984. The result of six years of papal mediation, this treaty marked the end of a territorial dispute with roots over a century old. A successful resolution of conflicting territorial claims was by no means guaranteed at the outset, and hostilities threatened to break out during the negotiations. Nevertheless, the Treaty of Peace and Friendship resolved territorial issues and navigation rights, and Chile and Argentina remain at peace today. Contrary to predictions based on mechanisms borrowed from a theory of mediation and peacekeeping from Smith and Stam, a biased and powerless mediator credibly facilitated the exchange of the “wrong” kind of information and, without resorting to the “right” leverage, successfully formulated a peace treaty, and the treaty remains in force nearly four decades later. The fields of history, religious studies, international relations, and diplomacy offer an interdisciplinary framework to explore and explain this unexpected result. While it is not possible to derive a general theory of mediation and conflict resolution from a single example, this case highlights the importance of confidentiality, institutional patience, information management, and flexibility as salient characteristics of the Holy See’s successful role as a weak mediator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The presented study deals with the personality of the Greek Catholic bishop of Prešov Štefan Novák, especially with his resignation from office after the establishment of Czechoslovakia in the autumn of 1918. In the context of changed political and religious conditions, it analyzes his personality in the reflection of Church dignitaries and Czechoslovak-Vatican relations which it interprets as unacceptable for the Slovak environment Catholicism after the fall of the Habsburg Monarchy. In the completely new socio-political conditions after 1918, Štefan Novák was criticized not only for his numerous absences and moral life but also for not being accepted by the priests and Christians of the diocese. When he offered to resign from his post after leaving the country in 1919, he understood this step primarily as an expression of loyalty in relation to the Holy See. In a broader context, his resignation contributed to the establishment of diplomatic relations between Czechoslovakia and the Holy See and made it possible to replace him in Prešov with a bishop who was able to address his diocese a better pastoral care with an emphasis on the Slovak Catholic element. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Obnovljeni zivot is the property of University of Zagreb, Society of Jesus and Faculty of Philosophy & Religious Studies and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The renowned theologian and liturgical scholar Hans-Joachim Schulz has passed away at the age of 91. He was an expert on the Christian East and was awarded an honorary doctorate for his work on the history of Byzantine liturgy. The article also mentions the awarding of the Pope Sylvester Order to church musician Franz Karl Praßl and the Vatican's permission to bless same-sex couples. The Austrian Bishops' Conference has published the church statistics for 2022, which show a slight decrease in the number of Catholics but overall stability at 4.73 million. Church attendance has increased compared to previous years but is still lower than before the COVID-19 pandemic. Biblical events such as Bible Week and the Day of Judaism were also held. The Bible Society bids farewell to Lea Gremm, who has supported the team for the past two years. [Extracted from the article]

Research overviews of and historiography on the attitude of the Catholic Church and theologians towards athletes with intellectual and physical disabilities assume that the Church and theologians have only very recently begun to interest themselves in this subject. Starting from John Paul II's contribution to this field, and above all from his integral anthropological vision, this article assesses his position by comparing it with that of his two successors Benedict XVI and Francis. Especially the latter's addresses and interviews and the official documents on sport issued by the Holy See during his pontificate are testimony to his special commitment to athletes with disabilities. The article also examines the history of the Holy See and studies its attention to athletes with a disability. The results of this inquiry are that papal interest in this field is not limited to, nor did it start with the pontificate of John Paul II. Instead, it dates from the very beginning of the modern phenomenon of sport, with Pope Pius X at the beginning of the 20th century, continued by Pius XII and John XXIII. The latter's speech to the participants of the first Paralympic Games in 1960 is the strongest indication of a pre-John Paul II affirmation of disabled sport. This points to the importance of taking a more nuanced position in the current debate, although it is clear that Pope Francis must be considered the champion of the Holy See's commitment to the inclusion of athletes with a disability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on new sources freshly made available by the Holy See, the study aims to reassess the history of - supposed or real - efforts at rapprochement between the Holy See and the Soviet Union, initiated between 1942 and 1946, with the ultimate goal of identifying the considerations that shaped the eastern politics of the Holy See at the end of World War II. After a thorough investigation of the Orlemanski Action in Spring 1944, of the Flynn Mission in March 1945, and of the negotiations that were opened in ig46 via some Hungarian Jesuits, the author argues that, while at the end of the war there was indeed a moment when Moscow appeared open to cooperation, those efforts at rapprochement that in fact took place generally broke down because of the Kremlin's basic indifference, while the Holy See remained throughout ready for communications as long as the necessary conditions were fulfilled. As a result, the eastern politics of Pius XII should be interpreted in terms of the paradigm of the Holy See's traditional eastern politics of concordats rather than in that of intransigence. Yet the technical term of Ostpolitik cannot be applied to the eastern politics of Pius XII without further qualifications, for, while it does show connections with the Ostpolitik of the Holy See in the 1960s, several major differences can be identified between them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Araucaria is the property of Araucaria-Revista Iberoamericana de Filosofia, Politica y Humanidades and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article discusses the state of art concerning the explanations of attitude and reactions of Pope Pius II and the Vatican to the persecution and Holocaust of the Jews during the Second World War. In addition to references to the literature available in Czech and Slovak translations, it emphasizes the latest international research results after the opening of the Vatican archives in spring 2020. The focus of these revisions is primarily on the reconstruction of events during 1942, when more and more information about the genocide of the Jews on the Eastern Front and in the occupied Polish territories reached the Vatican. Recent archival discoveries show that the editors of the official edition of the historical documents have been selective and have not included important sources that show the contradictory reactions of some papal officials. The dispute between defenders and critics of Pius XII over whether his "silence" was due to diplomatic efforts to save the Jews or to inhibitions stemming from power calculations or even traditional prejudices must therefore be considered in a new context. Recent research has also clarified the ethical dimension of the Pope's dilemma to confine himself to diplomatic efforts or to come out in open protest, thus rehabilitating to some extent the literary impetus of these now more than half-century-long controversies, which was Rolf Hochhuth's play The Deputy (1963). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main documents and legal texts issued by the Pope in 2022 and the various dicasteries of the Roman Curia, as well as international agreements signed by the Holy See, are outlined. Canon law actions within the purview of the Spanish Episcopal Conference are also described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Ilahiyat Researches / Ilahiyat Tetkikleri Dergisi is the property of Ataturk University Coordinatorship of Scientific Journals and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article aims at analysing and commenting the approach and position of Pope Francis and the Holy See in the issue of Russia's war against Ukraine (2014--) since the full-scale invasion of 2022. Statements and gestures of the Pope that joined Russia and Ukraine together, were often received negatively in Ukraine. The encyclical Fratelli tutti, Vatican neutrality and Ostpolitik raised questions concerning peace ethics and reconciliation. The article presents guiding principles and ideas of the Catholic Church leadership on these issues and shows that there is a demand for active involvement of the Ukrainian side in the discussion process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For all their interest as social phenomena, nations and nationalism have proven to be difficult terms to define, which has resulted in a lack of consensus among scholars working on these subjects. In this paper, it is my intention to expose the deep chasm that engulfs our present knowledge about what nations are. My method for achieving this goal comprises a critical engagement with the most popular definitions of nations and nationalism based upon a single hypothetical premise: that the Holy See of the Catholic Church, with its seat in Vatican City, is a nation‐state which represents a purported Catholic nation. The results of this study suggest that current approaches to the definition of nations and nationalism – be they based on alleged objective criteria, voluntary association, political organization, communal imagination, or organizational patterns – are generally incapable of dismissing the claim of Catholics to nationhood. Despite this fact, certain elements sketched within some of these definitions might hold the key to developing more precise and usable definitions of these two concepts in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the summer of 1938, Italy's Fascist regime announced its new 'racial' policy, soon to be followed by a series of draconian racial laws. The policy was based on the principle that Catholic Italians were of the Aryan race and Jewish Italians belonged to a separate race of non-Aryans. Previously the Vatican had made no such racial distinction. Yet, notwithstanding the frequent claim that the Church has never distinguished between Catholics and Jews on racial grounds, the Vatican quickly began to assimilate to the Fascist state's distinction of Jews as racially marked as non-Aryan. The opening in 2020 of the Vatican archives for the papacy of Pius XII (1939–58) has made available a huge trove of documents bearing on the way the pope and the Vatican secretariat of state dealt with Italy's racial laws and with the subsequent persecution of Italy's Jews during German occupation. As shown in this article, these documents make clear the Vatican's use of racial language and racial concepts as it dealt with the racial laws and the persecution of Italy's Jews from the time the racial laws were introduced in 1938 to the years of the Holocaust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyzes the attitude of Fyodor Dostoevsky toward the Roman Catholic Church. The author shows how Dostoevsky comes to the Slavophile idea of unity and the impossibility of salvation outside church communion, while speaking of the Church as an ecclesia, that is, an assembly of believers. At the same time, the reception of Dostoevsky from the side of the Vatican is presented. In the article, special attention is paid to the perception of Dostoevsky's ideas by Pope Francis. The author notes that the point of attraction and repulsion between Dostoevsky and Catholic culture lies in the plane of his understanding of the concepts of nationality and universality. Dostoevsky's Russian idea and his view on the essence of Christianity grows from the synthesis of these concepts. The author emphasizes that only in this perspective it is necessary to interpret Dostoevsky's ideas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Relações Internacionais is the property of Relacoes Internacionais and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The Second Vatican Council's rejection of that doctrine has allowed the Holy See to affirm today's Jewish people as the inheritors of the divine covenant and to legitimize the State of Israel as an important part of Jewish identity. Some traditionalist bishops also had their excommunications lifted, including Holocaust denier Richard Williamson, which prompted Israel's chief rabbinate to temporarily cut off relations with the Vatican.[20] Although the Holy See has recognized the State of Israel, on occasion some of its statements have also caused upset. The Holy See's Relationship with Israel Israel does not see itself as a theocracy, but as a "Jewish and democratic" state (even if this notion has been put to the test since the November 2022 elections that brought a hardline Likud-led coalition back to power). This anti-supersessionist theology affirms the covenantal relationship between God and the Jewish people and supports their claim to the land, at least to the extent that Pope Francis claimed that opposition to the existence of the State of Israel is a form of antisemitism condemned by the Church. [Extracted from the article]

The article summarizes the main milestones of Benedict XVI's pontificate, highlighting his election as Pope in April 2005 and the beginning of his ministry in the same year. It mentions the publication of his first encyclical, his speech at the University of Regensburg, the publication of his trilogy "Jesus of Nazareth," and the opening of the Fifth General Conference of the Latin American and Caribbean Bishops in Aparecida. It also mentions the encyclicals "Spe Salvi" and "Caritas in Veritate," the pastoral letter to the Catholics of Ireland, and the opening of the "Year of Faith." The article highlights Benedict XVI's resignation in 2013, being the first papal resignation in almost 600 years, and his retirement to the Mater Ecclesiae convent in the Vatican. It mentions his spiritual testament, in which he thanks God and asks for forgiveness from those he may have offended. [Extracted from the article]

The article recounts a personal meeting between the author, Jaime Antúnez Aldunate, and Benedict XVI, the Pope Emeritus. The author received a letter from Father Georg, Benedict XVI's personal secretary, inviting him to meet with the Pope Emeritus at the Grotta di Lourdes in the Vatican Gardens. During the meeting, the Pope expressed his joy for the existence of the Humanitas magazine from the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile and mentioned the collaboration between him and the magazine for at least a quarter of a century. The Pope's connection with reality and his interest in young people and professional training are also highlighted. [Extracted from the article]

Definitive for the unitary and organic structure of the Romanian state, the minority component imposed itself in the foreign policy strategy, as an element of articulation of diplomatic relations with the Holy See during the interwar period. The approach of the Romanian legislator in the normative field regarding ethnic and religious minorities interfered with the imperatives of the Holy See in the elaboration and, subsequently, in the ratification of the Concordat between the two states. The article proposes a brief analysis of the blocking elements that stood out in the ratification process of the Concordat between the Kingdom of Romania and the Holy See, highlighting the contradictory understanding or use of the minority component as a negotiation tool in foreign policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the changes that took place after World War I in the life of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Alba Iulia led by Bishop Gusztáv Károly Mailáth. This was the only new diocese in Romania to retain all the historical territory it had previously held in the AustroHungarian Monarchy, whereas all others that have suffered significant territorial losses. The Roman Catholic Church in Transylvania was largely ethnically Hungarian. The diocese was thus faced with the challenge of integrating in the Romanian ecclesiastical-administrative structures, while preserving its religious and ethnic characteristics. We are witnessing here the beginning of a “diplomatic game” between the Romanian Government, the Holy See and Bishop Mailáth. The issue at stake for the Roman Catholic Church in Transylvania was the preservation of confessional and ethnic identity in a new political framework. The integration culminated with the signing of the Concordat between Romania and the Holy See in 1927, but the road to the completion of this document is marked by many interesting developments, which provide an insight in the challenges of preserving confessional and ethnic identity while accommodating to new political circumstances and redefining the mission of a Catholic Church belonging to an ethnic minority. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The following article analyzes the power structures within the Catholic Church from a sociological and historical perspective, especially the power of the Curia in relation to the various national bishops' conferences and individual dioceses, but also in relation to the Pope, as it developed above all from the 19th century to have. Unlike the spirit of the Second Vatican Council, it is the Roman Curia, not the College of Bishops, that holds the real power in its hands. The bishops appear before the competent Vatican authorities more as supplicants than as confreres. The Curia is not even well organized internally. There are often no clear boundaries between competencies and no regular cabinet meetings between the heads of authorities. While one has long since learned in the secular area to use systems of separation of powers and mutual control in order to remain capable of learning as an organization, the Roman Church apparently believes that it can do without such „checks and balances“. As the sacred aura of the papacy fades, the institutional character of the church becomes more and more conscious, and in many ways it contradicts generally accepted socio-ethical principles such as the rule of law, subsidiarity, the participation of those concerned and administrative control. It looks as if the largest religious community in the world is ruled by a small group of old men who shirk human responsibility in the name of God and demand unconditional obedience from the bishops, priests and believers of the universal Church for their decisions, regardless of theirs Reasons and their plausibility on site. This increasingly calls into question the credibility of the church's message itself. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports on the 60th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council, an important event in 20th-century Catholicism. During the Council, revisions and reforms were explored to improve the understanding and effectiveness of the Church in evangelization. During the fourth assembly of the German Synodal Way, various texts related to the Church's sexual teaching, women's equal rights, and the separation of powers in the Church were discussed and approved. It was also proposed to establish a synodal council of the diocese in Germany to make joint decisions on important matters, which has received criticism from the Holy See and other bishops. Despite concerns about a possible schism, it is stated that this process is not isolated and is taking place worldwide. [Extracted from the article]

The article "FROM THE HOLY SEE" reports on the Statistical Yearbooks of the Holy See, which show an increase in the number of baptized Catholics worldwide, especially in Africa. However, there is a decrease in the number of priests, mainly in Europe and Oceania. Additionally, the publication of the document "Dignitas infinita" on human dignity and new norms for discerning supernatural phenomena is highlighted. [Extracted from the article]

In her opinion on the case Congregación de Escuelas Pías Provincia Betania, independent lawyer Juliane Kokott has concluded that the Kingdom of Spain ought to take all necessary steps to eliminate existing incompatibility of the Treaty on Economic Issues between the Kingdom of Spain and the Holy See with the legislation of the European Union. In relation to that and as a final option, she proposes the termination of the Treaty that Spain should initiate. The aim of this article is to study the legal feasibility of this proposal, as well as of other ways in which the aforementioned treaty could be terminated, from the perspective of the international law and the legislation of the European Union. The article also will show why that option would not be acceptable in the case of the Treaty that the Republic of Croatia signed with the Holy See. This infeasibility stems from the relevant clauses of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treatises as well as from the Treaty on Functioning of the European Union. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The EU has differentiated legal relationships with its nearest geographical neighbours. Arguably, none is more unique than that of the EU with the Vatican City State (VCS) (and by extension, the Holy See). Between the parties is a mere 'monetary agreement' that facilitates the official use of the single currency in the territory. It is the only bilateral legal commitment that the parties have undertaken. Yet, this apparent simplicity masks a deeper reality. In fact, the monetary agreement currently in place, which replaced a prior monetary agreement, has now de facto put in an institutional framework on the legal relations of the EU with the Vatican City State and Holy See, with a Joint Committee to govern monetary arrangements, and an obligation to implement, in its own way, many aspects of EU financial regulation. The monetary agreement also provides for jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the European Union to settle disputes arising therefrom. This article contextualizes and analyses the legal relations of the EU with the Vatican City State and Holy See, and argues that more embedded legal relations in the future will be inevitable, leading beyond a mere monetary agreement, but one leading to the adopting of a more sophisticated international agreement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Episcopal Conference of Panama has been called upon to mediate in the country's social crisis, emphasizing the importance of protecting and promoting the dignity and integrity of the family. They also expressed concern about the growing violence and called for strengthening the economic, social, and emotional stability of Panamanian families. The Catholic Church accepted to facilitate dialogue to find solutions to the current situation in the country. Additionally, the Latin American and Caribbean Episcopal Council inaugurated its new facilities with the presence of representatives from the episcopal conferences of the continent and delegates from the Holy See. [Extracted from the article]

In this short essay Author deals with the experience of the Roman Catholic Church in Hungary after the year 1945. In the introduction one finds a synthesis of the years after the WWI, and the sketch of the consequencies of the WWII. The statistics of the faithful are to be find in the years 1949 and 2001, the changed diocese' border and the administration of the dioceses after the changeing and shrumping state borders. In the lack of Concordate, after the regime of „Apostolic King", the appointment of the bishops by the Pope happened according to the both „intesa semplice"s of 1927 and 1964. The communist take over changed the religious landscape, the Catholic Church was on the defeat of human rights until Cardinal Mindszenty was in office in the years 1945 - 1948. The Communists secularized the Scholar System which was 50 % Catholic (see table). Between the years 1948 and 1986 the number of youth catechized was shrunken onto 5 - 7 %. Religious order were closed and the members were persecuted (see table). Some of them, as Norbertines (California), Benedictines (California, Brazil, Bavaria), Cistercians (Texas), Franciscans and Piarists (USA) could establish some foundations in the West. Catholic press was suppressed and only some press was tolerated in vigilated liberty (see table). There ist a list of priests and sisters killed and/or persecuted (see table). There is a statistics of the seminarists the same. The political opposition was partly on religious base. Vatican diplomacy could arrange only the appointment of bishops. In the eighties the normalization was on the way, the diplomatic contacts with the Holy See was possible only after the year of Annus mirabilis (1989), in 1990. In the conclusion Author cites the words of the Norbertine Abbot Eugene Horváth: „we were condamned to death, but we are alive". Pope John Paul II, during his pastoral visit in 1996 asked the wind of the Holy Spirit onto the Church in Hungary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study focuses on the nature and discipline of administrative liability derived from crimes committed by legal entities in the Vatican system, in compliance with the commitments assumed by the Holy See on the occasion of its Monetary Agreement with the European Union (2010) for the fight against financial malfeasance at an international level. The situation is examined in its various aspects, from the particular attribution criteria to the scope of legislative application to its sanctioning protocol, coming to the conclusion that its incidence is limited in the Vatican order due to its particular characteristics as a small state devoid of a free market and private entities running financial operations. Finally, the author focuses on the argument that the introduction of this institution in the Vatican legal system would mark a reaffirmation of criminal responsibility of legal entities in the canonical system, making some critical observations and placing the institution in the context of possible signs of the principle of canonization of civil laws (can. 22, CIC). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main documents and legal texts issued by the Pope in 2021 and the various dicasteries of the Roman Curia, as well as internationalagreements signed by the Holy See, are outlined. Canon law actions within the purview of the Spanish Episcopal Conference are also described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the Holy See has been accused of violating its human rights obligations because of acts of sex abuse by the Catholic clergy. Such accusations are based, in various ways, on the authority of the Holy See over the clergy. The Holy See is often referred to as a state and its obligations as state obligations. UN treaty bodies understand that the human rights obligations of the Holy See, as a treaty party, are of a legal––not moral––nature and apply extraterritorially, i.e., beyond the territory of the Vatican City State. The notion of state jurisdiction is, therefore, applied to the Holy See in the same way as to any other state. UN treaty bodies implicitly conclude that, for the purpose of human rights responsibility, the crimes of the clergy must be attributed to the Holy See and that anyone under the religious authority of the Holy See is under its state jurisdiction. However, a closer examination of the nature of the Holy See and its authority under international law, church doctrine, and church law paints a more complex and nuanced picture, where it is hard to describe the clergy as state organs or religious authority as state jurisdiction. Still, there are reasons to understand that certain acts and omissions of the Holy See in the context of the sex abuse crisis can be characterized as violations of its positive obligations of conduct. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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In the interwar period, the Hungarian revisionist actions determined the Romanian state to direct itself towards actors who could serve as weighting factors in order to maintain the status quo. The Holy See was considered one of the most relevant actors, having the necessary tools for intervention both inside the Romanian state, through the clergy and Catholic hierarchs of the Latin rite, mostly of Hungarian ethnicity, and externally, through the mediation offered by pontifical diplomats and Catholic hierarchs to the Hungarian government. This study proposes an analysis of the manner in which Romanian diplomacy articulates its strategy of swaying the Roman Curia in order to determine, on the one hand, a mediation at the political and diplomatic level with the Budapest government, and on the other hand, a weighting of the revisionist tendencies manifested by the Hungarian Catholic population within the Romanian state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]