A is the official measure with which the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

grants to institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life the recognition of ecclesiastical institution of pontifical right. When the decree of praise is issued in the form of an apostolic brief, it is referred to as a 'brief of praise'.

Canon law

To create a new religious community, it is necessary to get, in the beginning, permission from the proper department in the

Roman Curia The Roman Curia () comprises the administrative institutions of the Holy See and the central body through which the affairs of the Catholic Church are conducted. The Roman Curia is the institution of which the Roman Pontiff ordinarily makes use ...

of the Catholic Church (the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, the

Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples The Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples (CEP; ) was a congregation (Roman Curia), congregation of the Roman Curia of the Catholic Church in Rome, responsible for Catholic missions, missionary work and related activities. It is also kn ...

, or the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, depending on the purpose of the institute and the coverage of its activities) and also the approval of the Ordinary of the diocese of origin, usually the bishop (or the archbishop). When they are obtained, the congregation is then called “ of diocesan right”. When the congregation has grown in importance and when its spiritual and apostolic maturity is observed, it can be formally approved by the

Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...

with the ''decretum laudis'', which transforms it into a congregation of pontifical right, subject to immediate and exclusive authority of the Holy See. Generally, it is followed by the temporary approval and the final approval.

Structure

The ''decretum laudis'' contains, as a rule, a summary of the historical origins of the congregation, and a brief description of the purpose and the constitution of the same, references and letters from the bishops, and the examination made by the appropriate Congregation of the institute. It concludes with the approval and recommendation, ''amplissimis verbis'' (Latin, “in the strongest terms”), of the institute in question. The practice of using ''decretum laudis'' by the Popes to grant the recognition of the pontifical right to the congregations began to be consolidated in the years between the 18th and 19th centuries, although in the beginning these decrees were followed by formal acts in the form of the

Papal bull A papal bull is a type of public decree, letters patent, or charter issued by the pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the leaden Seal (emblem), seal (''bulla (seal), bulla'') traditionally appended to authenticate it. History Papal ...

and

Papal brief A papal brief or breve (from the Latin "''breve'', meaning "short") is a formal document emanating from the pope. History The introduction of briefs, which occurred at the beginning of the pontificate of Pope Eugene IV (3 March 1431 – 23 Februa ...

References

* (it) J. Torres, “''Documenti pontifici di approvazione''” apal Documents of Approval In: ''Dizionario degli istituti di perfezione'' ictionary of the Institutes of Perfection vol. III, (Milan: ''San Paolo Edizioni'' t. Paul Editions 1977) {{ISBN, 88-215-2196-6, pp. 751–777. Catholic canon law of religious Catholic canonical documents

Canon law

Structure

See also

References