School of Canon Law

Diritto Canonico

The School of Canon Law strives to prepare canonists with a deep theoretical and practical knowledge of Church law, which helps them develop legal skills with pastoral sensibility, while meeting the practical demands of legal praxis among God's people.

English brochure


Teaching follows a systematic method. It attempts to integrate the many juridical institutions emerging from the study of the Church’s Law within the diverse branches of canonical science. All this, in conformity with the Church’s vision of herself as expressed in the Second Vatican Council.

The program’s realist perspective helps the student to appreciate the dimension of justice that belongs to the salvific goods of the Church even prior to their reception in positive law.  This metaphysical realism offers a much richer viewpoint than the old positivistic outlook, which still influences some currents of canonical thought.  Students learn to seek justice while exercising legal prudence in fidelity to sound ecclesiastical tradition.
The program integrates theoretical study with courses on legal praxis.

The School has a large number of permanent professors as well as many prestigious visiting professors from the Roman Curia and from all over the world.

The School’s research and teaching are enriched by the staff’s experience in various dicasteries of the Holy See and in the Tribunals of the Vicariate of Rome. Close links to and regular academic collaboration with colleagues from other universities of Rome and of other countries also enrich the School, along with the theological research and collaboration of the School of Theology.

 

Sezione: 

In evidenza

Starting from this academic year, our University has introduced multimedia interactive whiteboards in classrooms A209 (second floor) and A305 (third floor) for use by both faculty and students.

The new equipment will enable traditional lectures to be conducted with the aid of advanced technology. Simultaneously, interactive hybrid classes (in-person and streaming) can be facilitated.

The provision of these whiteboards will also allow for the recording of lectures and courses, which can be later disseminated to a broader audience.

This initial investment, currently in the experimental phase, may be expanded over time to include other classrooms. It positions the University of the Holy Cross as technologically advanced and a pioneer in such innovation among the other Pontifical Roman Universities.

The project is coordinated by the Department of Educational Resources, under the supervision of the Academic Vice-Rector.

On Thursday, January 11, 2024, the School of Canon Law celebrated the Academic Feast of the Patron Saint Raymond of Penyafort. Following the Holy Mass in the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare, presided over by the Dean of the Faculty, Fernando Puig, the Academic Ceremony was held in the "Álvaro del Portillo" Lecture Hall.

Professor Schanda Balázs, from the Péter Pázmány Catholic University of Budapest and Judge at the Hungarian Constitutional Court, gave a lecture on the State and Church in the Countries of the former Eastern Bloc three decades after the fall of communism.

"In quella notte resa santa dalla nascita del Salvatore troviamo un altro segno potente: la piccolezza di Dio. Gli angeli indicano ai pastori un bambino nato nella mangiatoia. Non un segno di potenza, di autosufficienza o di superbia. No. Il Dio eterno si annienta in un essere umano indifeso, mite, umile. Dio si è abbassato perché noi potessimo camminare con Lui e perché Lui potesse mettersi al nostro fianco, non sopra e lontano da noi." (Pope Francis, Introduction to the book "Il mio presepe" - LEV 2023)

The Rector and the Academic Community of the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross wish everyone a Holy Christmas and a Happy New Year 2024 filled with peace and serenity.

NOTICE

During the Assembly of the Conference of Rectors of Universities and Pontifical Roman Institutions (CRUIPRO) on November 20th, the inter-institutional agreement CRUIPRO to promote student mobility within the Roman ecclesiastical university system, which had been signed on December 7, 2020, was renewed for a second three-year term.

The agreement stipulates that every semester, regular students can attend a course free of charge at one of the participating institutions, subject to authorization from their home institution and acceptance by the hosting institution.

Access the Agreement | Executive Protocol

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