The Pontifical Lateran University (; ), also known as Lateranum, is a

pontifical university A pontifical university or athenaeum is an ecclesiastical university established or approved directly by the Holy See, composed of three main ecclesiastical faculties (Theology, Philosophy and canon law (Catholic Church), Canon Law) and at least o ...

based in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. The university also hosts the central session of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family. The university is known as "The Pope's University". Its Grand Chancellor is the Vicar General to the Holy Father for the Diocese of Rome. the Pontifical Lateran university had students from more than a hundred countries. It is also sometimes also known as the Pontifical University of Apollinaire.

History

The present Pontifical Lateran University was founded in 1773 by

Pope Clement XIV Pope Clement XIV (; ; 31 October 1705 – 22 September 1774), born Giovanni Vincenzo Antonio Ganganelli, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 May 1769 to his death in September 1774. At the time of his elec ...

after he had suppressed the Society of Jesus, and officially entrusted the secular clergy of the

Diocese of Rome The Diocese of Rome (; ), also called the Vicariate of Rome, is a Latin diocese of the Catholic Church under the direct jurisdiction of the pope, who is Bishop of Rome and hence the supreme pontiff and head of the worldwide Catholic Church. As ...

with the mission to teach

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

and

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

to seminarians of the diocese. In 1824

Pope Leo XII Pope Leo XII (; born Annibale Francesco Clemente Melchiorre Girolamo Nicola della Genga; 2 August 1760 – 10 February 1829) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 28 September 1823 to his death in February 1829. ...

restored the

Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

and returned to them the

Roman College The Roman College (, ) was a school established by St. Ignatius of Loyola in 1551, just 11 years after he founded the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). It quickly grew to include classes from elementary school through university level and moved to seve ...

. The diocesan seminary was relocated to the Palace of Sant’Apollinare. In 1853, Pope

Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...

founded the Faculty of

Canon Law Canon law (from , , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical jurisdiction, ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its membe ...

and Civil law and the ''Pontifical Institute Utriusque Iuris''. The College was known as ''Ateneo del Pontificio Seminario Romano''. Pope

Pius XI Pope Pius XI (; born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, ; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939) was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 until his death in February 1939. He was also the first sovereign of the Vatican City State u ...

gave the Ateneo its permanent seat at the Basilica of St. John Lateran.

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII (; born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli; 2 March 18769 October 1958) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death on 9 October 1958. He is the most recent p ...

in 1958 established the Pontifical Institute ''Pastorale''. The following year,

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII (born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death on 3 June 1963. He is the most recent pope to take ...

erected the institute into a university and gave it the name of the Pontifical Lateran University. In 1981

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

founded, in the university, the Pontifical Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family, which has the right to confer academic degrees.

Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...

modified its mission in September 2017, renaming it the

John Paul II Pontifical Theological Institute for Marriage and Family Sciences The John Paul II Pontifical Theological Institute for Marriage and Family Sciences is a Catholic Pontifical university, pontifical institute of theological studies on marriage and family with affiliated campuses around the world. Its main headq ...

. The institute has the authority to award its own academic degrees. In 2001 the Lateran University Press was established to publish scientific publications and seven magazines. In 2018 Vincenzo Buonomo, a professor of international law and a consultant to the Holy See since the 1980s, was appointed rector of the Pontifical Lateran University by

. Buonomo is the first lay person appointed to that position.

Structure

The Grand Chancellor is, under the statutes of the university, the vicar general of His Holiness for the Diocese of Rome.

Grand Chancellors

* Camillo Ruini (1 July 1991 – 27 June 2008) *

Agostino Vallini Agostino Vallini (born 17 April 1940) is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church. He has been a cardinal since 2006. From 2008 to 2017, he served as Vicar General of Rome. He is also the Archpriest emeritus of the Archbasilica of St. John L ...

(27 June 2008 – 26 May 2017) * Angelo De Donatis (26 May 2017 – present)

Rectors

* Pietro Rossano (1982–1991) * Umberto Betti, O.F.M. (1991–1995) *

Angelo Scola Angelo Scola (; born 7 November 1941) is an Italian Cardinal (Catholicism), Cardinal of the Catholic Church, philosopher and theologian. He was Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milan, Archbishop of Milan from 2011 to 2017. He served as Patriarch ...

(1995–2002) * Salvatore Fisichella (2002–2010) * Enrico dal Covolo, S.D.B. (2010–2018) * Vincenzo Buonomo (2018–2023) * Alfonso V. Amarante, C.SS.R. (2023 – present)

Faculties

The university is divided into four faculties:

Philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

Theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

, and Civil law. The University is one of the few places that offers a doctorate Utriusque Iuris, i.e., in both civil and church law. The Pastoral Institute "Redemptor Hominis" trains future teachers for teaching in seminaries and theological institutes as well as pastoral workers who are experts in the various fields of ecclesial life. In 2015, the Lateran and

Villanova University Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Saint Thom ...

's Center for Church Management and Business Ethics formed a cooperative program whereby students from each university can take courses online and study at the other institution. According to the Decree of the Ministry of university and Scientific Research of the Italian Republic of 21 September 2006, implementing Law No. 63, March 5, 2004, the

Laurea In Italy, the ''laurea'' is the main post-secondary academic degree. The name originally referred literally to the laurel wreath, since ancient times a sign of honor and now worn by Italian students right after their official graduation ceremo ...

in Law (L/31) and Laurea Magistrale in Law (LMG/01) are equivalent to degrees issued by Italian universities. In October 2021 Pope Francis established an interdisciplinary study cycle on ''Ecology and the Environment'' with a UNESCO chair on "the future of education for sustainability"."Letter of the Holy Father Francis to the Grand Chancellor of the Pontifical Lateran University", Holy See Press Office, October 7, 2021
/ref>

Library

The library of the Pontifical Lateran University – "Library of Blessed Pius IX", known originally as the "Biblioteca Pia" – was founded by Pope Pius IX in 1854. The history of the library is connected directly to the foundation of the university at its original seat at St. Apollinare in Rome. The library is in fact a collection of smaller libraries from various ecclesial and academic institutes in Rome which have been amalgamated to form the present library. The library consists of collections from the private libraries of Pope Gregory XIII, Pope Pius IX, Pope Pius XII, the German College, the monastery of SS. Bonifacio and Alessio on the Aventine, and the library of the Geronimiani fathers. Successively various ex-alumni have contributed to the library. A new building for the housing of the library and reading room was built and officially inaugurated by Pope Benedict XVI on 21 October 2007. the library had some 600,000 books and a collection of 40,000 rare and antique volumes.

Theological Institute of Assisi

The university is linked to university Pastoral Institute Redemptor Hominis and the Theological Institute of Assisi. The Theological Institute of Assisi is a training college established in 1971 in Assisi in the structures of Saint Francis sharing the premises of the Sacred Convent with the community of Friars Minor Conventual. The institute also has a documentation center. Since 1993, it is attached to the Faculty of Theology at the Pontifical University Lateran, and serves as the academic institution designed to train students in theology. It organizes courses of studies leading to diplomas of Bachelor of Sacred Theology and Licentiate of Sacred Theology, and Franciscan studies for those wishing to be recruited into church office or intending to teach the Catholic religion in schools. the institute was chaired by John Bishop Hats.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1773 establishments in Europe Education in Rome Educational institutions established in 1773 Universities and colleges established in the 18th century Lateran Catholic universities and colleges in Italy