Elite Peruvian university stripped of Catholic credentials

Last updated on: July 21, 2012 at 2:07 pm by CNA Daily News

Elite Peruvian university stripped of Catholic credentials 2012-07-21T14:07:00+00:00 CNA Daily News

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Vatican City, Jul 21, 2012 / 08:07 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The Vatican has announced it is stripping the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru of its Catholic identity after the elite university repeatedly refused to comply with the Church’s requirements for colleges.

“The Holy See, with Decree of His Eminence the Secretary of State, under a specific Pontifical mandate, has decided to remove from the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru the right to use in its name the titles “Pontifical” and “Catholic” in accordance with canon law,” reads a Vatican statement issued in Spanish and Italian on July 21.

Today’s move follows months of discussions between both sides, which began after a 2011 Vatican inspection of the university carried out by Cardinal Peter Erdo of Budapest. He traveled to Peru, where he found the Lima-based institution at odds with the Catholic Church in several significant areas of policy.

Today’s statement explains that the university’s management has, in fact, continually refused to comply with the Church’s guidelines over the past 22 years, despite numerous requests to do so by the Vatican.

It also reveals that the Peruvian university’s management sent two letters in recent months to the Vatican’s Secretary, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, re-confirming their “inability to implement the requirements” of changing their statutes.

The statement notes that the university has also been defying a ruling by the Peruvian civil courts to give the Archdiocese of Lima a seat on its board of directors.

The guidelines on what is expected of an authentically Catholic university were laid out in the papal document “Ex Corde Ecclesiae,” which was promulgated in 1990 by Pope John Paul II.

The Pontifical University of Peru was founded in 1917 and was awarded its pontifical status by Pope Pius XII in 1942. It currently has over 16,000 undergraduate students and is regarded as one of the top universities in Peru.

Its alumni include President Ollanta Humala of Peru, as well as his immediate predecessor, Alan García, and the former Secretary General of the United Nations, Javier Pérez de Cuéllar. In 1986 the university gave an honorary doctorate to Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI.

The July 21 Vatican statement concluded with the promise that “the Holy See will continue to monitor the situation of the University” in the hope that the academic authorities will reconsider their position “in the near future.”

“The renewal requested by the Holy See will make the University more capable of responding to the task of bringing the message of Christ to man, society and culture, according to the mission of the Church in the world.”

Vatican

Previous Post

July 21, 2012

Catholic chaplain helps families and survivors after Aurora shootings

Next Post

July 21, 2012 Home is where the box is

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Americas Asia - Pacific Europe Middle East - Africa Uncategorized US Vatican

Select a Month November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

I carried a letter from the king giving me authority and resources to rebuild Jerusalem. Who am I?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Artaxerxes Nehemiah Zerubbabel Ezra