''Ad Petri Cathedram'' (; "To the

Chair of Peter The Chair of Saint Peter ( la, Cathedra Petri), also known as the Throne of Saint Peter, is a relic conserved in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, the sovereign enclave of the Pope inside Rome, Italy. The relic is a wooden throne that tradit ...

") was the first encyclical issued by

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Roman Catholic Church, Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 28 Oc ...

on 29 June 1959. It was

promulgate Promulgation is the formal proclamation or the declaration that a new statutory or administrative law is enacted after its final approval. In some jurisdictions, this additional step is necessary before the law can take effect. After a new law ...

d eight months into the

pontificate The pontificate is the form of government used in Vatican City. The word came to English from French and simply means ''papacy'', or "to perform the functions of the Pope or other high official in the Church". Since there is only one bishop of Ro ...

and addresses truth, unity and peace in the spirit of charity. The document makes several references to the planned

Second Vatican Ecumenical Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions), each lasting between 8 and ...

later held during 1962–1965. It was neither a trend-setting

social Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not. Etymology The word "social" derives from ...

document or

doctrinal Doctrine (from la, doctrina, meaning "teaching, instruction") is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the essence of teachings in a given branch of knowledge or in a belief system ...

exposition, but instead a fatherly message which was seen as addressing its issues with warmth and pastoral concern. The encyclical named indifference towards the truth as the cause of many of the world's social evils, and called for modern communications and the press to remember their responsibility to report only the truth. The encyclical advocated for greater unity between churches, nations, classes of people and within families. It asserted that the Catholic Church is distinguished by three unities: unity of doctrine, unity of organization, unity of worship.Ad Petri Cathedram §67-§78 The last part of the encyclical was a call to action in a number of crucial areas, including social justice and the combating of false ideas.

References

External links

Text of ''Ad Petri Cathedram'' on the Vatican website
Papal encyclicals Works by Pope John XXIII 1959 documents 1959 in Christianity June 1959 events {{RC-document-stub

See also

References

External links