A pontifical academy is an academic
honorary society established by or under the direction of 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 ...
. Some were in existence well before they were accepted as "Pontifical."
List
There are ten Pontifical academies headquartered at the Vatican in Rome.
* The
Pontifical Academy of Fine Arts and Letters of the Virtuosi al Pantheon or in
Italian was established in 1542. Its purpose is to study, cultivate, and perfect the fine arts.
* The
Pontifical Academy of Sciences or was founded in 1603 to honor and promote research.
* The
Pontifical Academy of Theology or , founded in 1718, promotes the Catholic faith.
* The
Pontifical Academy of Archaeology or , founded in 1810, promotes
Christian archeology and the history of
Christian art
Christian art is sacred art which uses subjects, themes, and imagery from Christianity. Most Christian groups use or have used art to some extent, including early Christian art and architecture and Christian media.
Images of Jesus and narrative ...
.
* The
Pontifical Academy of Martyrs or dates from 1879 and promotes the veneration of the martyrs and the study of the
catacombs
Catacombs are man-made underground passages primarily used for religious purposes, particularly for burial. Any chamber used as a burial place is considered a catacomb, although the word is most commonly associated with the Roman Empire.
Etym ...
.
* The
Pontifical Academy of St. Thomas Aquinas or , founded in 1879, promotes the study of
Thomism
Thomism is the philosophical and theological school which arose as a legacy of the work and thought of Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274), the Dominican philosopher, theologian, and Doctor of the Church.
In philosophy, Thomas's disputed ques ...
.
* The
Pontifical Academy of Mary or was established in 1946 and promotes
Mariology.
* The
Pontifical Academy for Life or was founded in 1994 to promote the
consistent life ethic of the Roman Catholic Church; it was formerly headed by
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...
Elio Sgreccia, and now by
Archbishop
In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...
Salvatore Fisichella, former rector of the
Pontifical Lateran University
The Pontifical Lateran University (; ), also known as Lateranum, is a pontifical university based in Rome. The university also hosts the central session of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family. The university ...
.
* The
Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences or , founded 1994, promotes social, economic, political, and legal sciences in the light of the church's social teachings.
* The
Pontifical Academy for Latin, also or was established in 2012 for the dissemination and education of
Latin
Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
.
Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy
The
Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy, an institution for the training of Catholic clergy to serve as
apostolic nuncio
An apostolic nuncio (; also known as a papal nuncio or simply as a nuncio) is an ecclesiastical diplomat, serving as an envoy or a permanent diplomatic representative of the Holy See to a state or to an international organization. A nuncio is ...
s, pro-nuncios or papal delegates, is not one of the pontifical academies, but is one of the
Roman Colleges.
[The Dictionary of Popes and the Papacy, Crossroad Publishing Co. NY]
See also
*
Global organisation of the Catholic Church
*
Index of Vatican City-related articles
References
External links
Pontifical Academies - Website of the Holy SeeThe website of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences
{{Catholicism