2. What is the Vatican?
• The Vatican is a city State and the
spiritual and temporal headquarter
of the Roman and Eastern Catholic
Churches under the sovereign rule
of the Roman Pontiff or Pope.
• The official name for the Vatican is:
“Stato della Citta del Vaticano”
• The ecclesiastical, governmental
and diplomatic entity of the Vatican
is known as the Holy See.
3. Where is the Vatican Located?
• The Vatican is one of the oldest
European city state, landlocked, in
an enclave within the city of Rome,
Italy.
• The Vatican enjoys extra-territorial
privileges in 28 different places in
the Republic of Italy, included
among these: the Pope’s summer
residence at Castel Gandolfo and
the patriarchal basilicas.
• These extra-territorial privileges
are similar to those enjoyed by
foreign embassies in a host
country.
4. What is a city-state?
• Technically, a city-state is a region
controlled exclusively by a city,
usually having autonomy.
• City-states were frequent in ancient
times. Though sovereign, many
such cities joined in formal or
informal leagues under a high king.
• Some examples of modern city
states include: Monaco, Singapore,
Liechtenstein, Washington D.C.
and Vatican City.
5. Did you know?
• The Vatican is the smallest
state in the world, only 0.44
square kilometers, that is
roughly 108 acres of land.
• The Vatican is about 0.7 times
the size of The Mall in
Washington, DC.
• The Vatican has a land
boundary with Italy of only 3.2
kilometers.
• The Vatican has no coastline
or maritime claims.
6. When was the Vatican established?
• The Vatican state was established
In 1929 by the Lateran treaties.
These treaties between Italy and
the Holy See granted the Catholic
Church with a special status in Italy.
The Vatican is the only vestige left
of the Papal states that were seized
by the United Kingdom of Italy in the
19th
century.
• The Papal states were annexed to
Italy after more than a thousand
years of secular rule by the Popes
in the Italian Peninsula dating back
to the 8th
century.
7. The Papal States
• The Papal states is the name given
to the extensive lands granted to
the Pope in 754 by the Carolingian
king Pepin the Short ruler of the
franks and the father of
Charlemagne.
• These lands included vast
territories in the Mediterranean
coast of France and central Italy
including the city of Rome.
• These territories were gradually
expropriated from the Popes, the
last confiscation of land took place
in 1870 by the Italian reunification,
all that was left was the territory
comprising what is now the Vatican
and certain papal properties in Italy.
8. The Lateran Treaties of 1929
The Lateran agreements between the Holy
See and the Kingdom of Italy were signed on
February 11, 1929, and ratified on June7,
1929, putting an end to the “Roman
Question” and the self imposed “exile of the
Popes”.
• Prior to these concordats, the Popes
considered themselves “Prisoners in the
Vatican” refusing to leave the enclave as a
sign of protest.
• The Lateran agreements recognized:
A. The sovereignty of the Holy See and the
Vatican state.
B. The recognition of the Church as the
official religion of the State.
C. Financial compensation to the Vatican for
loss of territory and properties.
• Did you know? In a concordat signed in 1984
between Italy and the Holy See, Italy no
longer recognizes the Catholic Church as the
official state religion.
9. What is the Roman Question?
• The Roman questions is the name
given to the long dispute over
sovereignty and loss of territories
between the Holy See and the
Italian government.
• This dispute lasted from 1861 to
1929.It was resolved by the
Lateran treaties in 1929.
• Prior to Lateran treaties the Law of
Guarentees granted the Popes
immunity and financial
compensation. The Popes never
accepted this Law.
10. Did you know?
• The Lateran treaty was so called because
it was signed in the Lateran palace. This
palace was one of the first donations
Constantine gave to the Church after the
persecutions ended with the edict of Milan
in 313.
• In 1929, Pope Pius XI (1857-1939)
became the first sovereign Pontiff of
Vatican city.
• Fascist prime minister of Italy Benito
Mussolini signed the Lateran agreement
on behalf of king Victor Emmanuel III king
of the United Kingdom of Italy.
• The United Kingdom of Italy came to an
end with the birth of the Italian Republic on
June 2, 1946. Until then, Italy was ruled by
the House of Savoy.
Pius XI
11. Did you know?
• The name Vatican is
derived from the Latin
word Mons Vaticanus
a term that means
Vatican Mount, also
known as Vatican Hill.
12. What is the official language of the
Vatican?
• The official language of the
Vatican is Latin. The mother
tongue for all the Romance
languages like Spanish,
French and Rumanian.
• Latin is considered a dead
language, the Vatican is the
only place in the world where
one can find ATM machines
with directions in Latin.
• Latin is used for all the official
documents of the Holy See
such as: encyclicas.
13. What type of Government does the
Vatican Have?
• The Vatican is the only absolute
monarchy left in Europe.
• According to the new
fundamental law of Vatican city
promulgated by John Paul II on
the Feast of Christ the King,
November 26, 2000.
• The Supreme Pontiff has
absolute power over the
executive, legislative and judicial
power of the state.
• The New fundamental law of
Vatican city replaces the old one
enacted on 1929 by Pious XI.
14. The Pope
• The Pope, a word meaning
father, is elected for life by a
conclave.
• The conclave is compose of an
electorate of Cardinals called
the college of Cardinals all of
whom must be under 80 to be
eligible to vote.
• Upon his election the Pope
becomes: Sovereign of the
State of the Vatican City. This
is his official title as head of
state.
15. The Roman Curia
Delegation of Powers for the Vatican State
• The Pope exercises representation in
international and diplomatic relations,
through the Secretary of State, For instance,
the secretary of state represents the Pope in
the signing of concordats or agreements with
other countries.
• The legislative power has been delegated to
the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City
State. This commission is comprised of
Cardinals elected to a five year term and
headed by the President of the Pontifical
Commission.
• Executive authority is delegated by the
Supreme Pontiff to the Cardinal President of
the Pontifical Commission, but he must
submit questions of greater importance to
this Commission for examination. He is
assisted by a General Secretary and by a
Deputy General Secretary.
16. What is the Roman Curia?
• The word curia means “court”
not in a legal sense but rather
in an administrative one.
• The Roman curia is the
administrative system of the
Holy See that ensures the
proper management of the
Church in all her facets both
spiritual and temporal.
• The Roman curia is composed
of different departments or
dicasteries each with an
specific purpose in mind.
• The offices for the Roman
curia are:
A. Secretariat of State
B. Congregations
C.Tribunals
D. Pontifical Councils
E. Synods of Bishops
F. The offices
G. Pontifical Commissions
H. Swiss Guard
I. Institutions connected with the Holy
See
J. Labor office
K. Pontifical academics
L. Pontifical Committees
To understand the role of each of these departments please visit the following
official link: http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/index.htm
17. Where does the Pope resides?
• The Pope resides in
the Papal apartments
located in the Papal
palace also known as
the Apostolic palace.
• This complex is
located in the Vatican
and it accommodates
the offices of the
Roman curia.
18. Did you know?
• The Pope is in official
residence from October to
June of each year; from July to
September the pope is
officially in summer residence
at Castel Gandolfo.
• Three of the last four popes
John XXIII, John Paul I, and
John Paul II all died in the
Papal Apartments; the fourth,
Paul VI, died at Castel
Gandolfo.
19. What is the Swiss guard?
• The Papal Swiss Guard is the smallest
army in the world consisting of only
110 men. The Swiss Guard has a
tradition of nearly 500 years -- making
it the oldest, continually active military
corps in history.
• On June 1505, Pope Julius II formally
requested the service of Swiss
mercenaries -- famed for their courage
and loyalty.
• On May 6, new recruits are sworn to
serve at the Vatican. On this date in
1527, 147 Swiss Guards lost their lives
defending the life of Pope Clement VII,
during the sack of Rome.
• Requirements to be a Swiss guard are:
• Must Be Catholic in good moral
standing.
• Must be Swiss citizen between the
ages of 19-30 years old
• Must have attended military school in
Switzerland.
• Must be at least 174 cm tall
• Must be single and have completed
high school diploma.
20. Did you know?
• It was an undercover Swiss
Guard who helped shield Pope
John Paul II during the
assassination attempt against
his life May 13, 1981, in St.
Peter's Square.
21. Vatican Attractions
• The Vatican has an extensive cultural
legacy. Its patrimony is comprised among
other things of buildings, art collections,
sculptures, antiques, and historical archives.
• The following Vatican Museums offer a
glimpsed of this vast cultural heritage:
Gregorian-Egyptian Museum
Gregorian-Etruscan Museum
Pinacoteca
Missionary-Etnological Museum
• To enjoy a virtual tour of these museums
please visit the link below:
http://mv.vatican.va/3_EN/pages/MV_Home.html
22. Vatican Police
• Besides the Swiss Guards,
Vatican City also maintains a
modern security police corps
known as the Vatican
gendarmes.
• The corps is responsible for
security, public order, border
control, traffic control, criminal
investigation, and other
general police duties in
Vatican City. It has 130
personnel.
23. Vatican landmarks
• Some of the most well known
landmarks in the Vatican are:
• St. Peter’s Basilica
• The Sistine Chapel
• Raphael Rooms also known as the
stanze of Raphael.
• St Peter’s Square
• The Apostolic Palace: residence of the
Pope.
• The Pieta
• The Obeliscus Vaticanus
• Note: Most of the Vatican is closed to
the Public
24. Did you know?
• As of December 31st 2005, there were
557, persons having the Vatican
citizenship, of which 58 Cardinals, 293
of the Clergy having status as
members of the Pontifical
Representations, 62 other members of
the Clergy, 101 members of the
Pontifical Swiss Guard and 43 other
lay persons.
25. Interesting Facts about the Vatican
• The Vatican mints its own coins
and issues its own stamps.
• The Currency of the Vatican is
the Euro
• The Vatican has its own heliport,
railroad station, printing press,
radio station, Television, internet
portal, newspaper, fire brigade
and bank system.
• The Vatican is a permanent U.N.
observer
26. U.N observer
• The Vatican has been a U.N observer for
about 40 years.
• As a U.N observer: the Holy See enjoys,
among other things, the right to participate
in the general debate of the General
Assembly.
• The right of reply; the right to have its
communications issued and circulated
directly as official documents of the
Assembly.
• And the right to co-sponsor draft
resolutions and decisions that make
reference to the Holy See.
• Link to the Vatican U.N observer website:
http://www.holyseemission.org/
27. Did you know?
• The Holy See has one of the largest
and the oldest diplomatic
representations in the world, with
diplomatic relations with 174 countries.
• Seventy-one countries have resident
Embassies to the Holy See.
• The Holy See participates actively in
international organizations, and has
membership or observer status in the
United Nations, European Union,
OSCE, OAS, UNHCR, WHO, and
World Trade Organization.
• The Pope's views and the Holy See's
worldwide diplomacy can and do affect
an array of U.S. international goals.
28. Newspaper and Radio
• The official newspaper of the
Vatican is the L’ Osservatore
Romano. It is published in
Italian and in English, French,
Portuguese, Spanish, and
Dutch in a weekly edition.
• Vatican Radio is the official
radio of Vatican City. It can
listened to through a short-
wave frequency. It was
founded on February 12, 1931.
29. Vatican’s Economy
• The Vatican Economy is non-
commercial is based on financial
contributions from Catholic dioceses
from all over the world called Peter’s
pence and local revenues from
tourism.
• Peter’s Pence is a practice dates back
to the beginnings of the Church and
more formally to the 8th
century’s
Anglo-Saxon practice known as Alms
of St. Peter.
• Peter’s pence contributes among other
things to the charitable mission of the
Pope and the Holy See all over the
world.
• Catholics can contribute online by
going to the official site website of the
Holy See. Credit cards are accepted.
30. National Symbols
“The Flag” and National anthem
• The Vatican Flag was officially
adopted in 1929. All Catholic
Churches and institutions
display the Vatican flag
• The national anthem is the
“Papal march” by 19th century
French composer Charles
Gounod.
31. Vatican Heraldry
Holy See’s Coat of Arms The Vatican’s Coat of Arms
Pope Benedict XVI’s Coat of Arms
The Vatican’s zeal
33. Prayer
Lord, source of eternal life and truth, give to Your shepherd, the
Pope, a spirit of courage and right judgment, a spirit of knowledge
and love.
By governing with fidelity those entrusted to his care may he, as
successor to the apostle Peter and vicar of Christ, build Your church
into a sacrament of unity, love, and peace for all the world.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, Who lives and
reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever.
Amen.
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