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MEDIA KIT
P O N T I F I C A L
ORIENTALI N S T I T U T E
Established 1917
1922
1928
The Jesuits
Rerum Orientalium
The pontifical institute was established in
1917 by Pope Benedict XV.
Pope Pius XI entrusted the Institute to the
Society of Jesus.
Bishops were encouraged to send students
to the Institute to be formed as future
professors in Oriental studies.
350
48
Post grad students
countriesFrom
In a typical year, the Oriental Institute has
between 300 and 400 students, both lay
and religious, from more than 40 countries.
It attracts students not only from the
Eastern Churches, but also from the Roman
Catholic and Protestant Churches, as well as
non Christians.
is the premier center for the study of Eastern
Christianity in Rome, Italy. The pontifical
institute was established in 1917 by Pope
Benedict XV. Pope Pius XI entrusted the
Institute to the Society of Jesus in 1922, and
with the 1928 encyclical “Rerum Orienta-
lium” encouraged bishops to send students
to the Institute to be formed as future
professors in Oriental studies. In that same
year, Pius XI associated the Institute with
the Pontifical Gregorian University and the
Pontifical Biblical Institute, thus forming
the Gregorian Consortium.
The Pontifical Oriental Institute or “Orientale”
In 1971, the Faculty of Oriental
Canon Law was erected alongside the
already existing Faculty of Oriental Eccle-
siastical Studies. The Faculty of Oriental
Canon Law had a crucial role in the produc-
tion of Code of Canon Law for the Oriental
Churches. The Institute has been located
across from the Basilica of Santa Maria
Maggiore since 1926. It is separated from
the Collegium Russicum by the Church of
Saint Antony. According to article 16 of
the Lateran Treaty, signed in 1929 between
Italy and the Holy See, the property of the
Oriental Institute enjoys a certain level of
extraterritoriality, with the Holy See having
all rights over the infrastructure without
interference from the Italian State, and free
from all Italian taxation.
Since 1993, the Grand Chancellor of the
Oriental Institute has been the Cardinal
Prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental
Churches, in 2016 it was
Cardinal Leonardo Sandri (left), while the
Rector was Fr. David Nazar, S.J. (right).
The first president of the Institute was
Alfredo Ildefonso Schuster, Abbot of
St. Paul and the Archbishop of Milan. With
“the grand design to build a bridge between
the East and the West”, Schuster expressed
that, “the Pontifical Oriental Institute had
to be an academy dedicated exclusively to
the study of various theological subjects
cultivated in the East” (Benedict XV on The
Union of Churches Conference held at the
Catholic University in 1940).
First President Institutional Focus• The Pontifical Oriental Institute offers Licentiate
and Doctoral degrees in Eastern Canon Law, Eastern
Ecclesiastical Studies and a Propaedeutic year of
formation for Seminarians.
• For Rome to have an Institute for the promotion of
Eastern Studies—placed under the special supervision
and care of the Supreme Pontiff—is thus awarded the
title of “Pontifical”
• The Institute will be directly aligned to the Sacred
Congregation for the Eastern Church
• The Institute will have its own distinct office in
the Vatican
• The Institute will teach the following subjects: a)
Orthodox Theology encompassing various Christian
Doctrine, with Eastern Patrology courses, and Histor-
ical Theology b) Canon law of all Christian peoples of
the East c) Eastern Liturgy d) History, both sacred and
civil, of Byzantium and the rest of the East; will conjoin
Geography courses, Sacred Archaeology, and Civil
Constitutions e) Literature and Oriental languages.
230K volumes
2,600 periodicals 2,000 volumes/year
The Library
The General Collectioncontains 184.000 volumes making the library of the Pontifical Oriental Institute the best gen-
eral collection in the world on Eastern Christianity. Nowhere else in the world can one find
together in the same library nearly everything an orientalist scholar could need to research
any aspect of Eastern Christendom.
The collection of liturgical books on Eastern Christian traditionsUnique to the general collection is its rich selection of the official liturgical books, Orthodox,
Oriental Orthodox, and Eastern Catholic, in the main Eastern Christian liturgical languages
(Greek, Slavonic, Romanian, Arabic, Syriac, Armenian, Coptic, Ge‘ez (Ethiopic), Malayalam,
as well as in translations of the modern vernacular tongues into which many of the Eastern
rites are gradually moving.This collection has been instrumental in facilitating the institute’s
scholarly work and more discretely their work for the Holy See as consultors of the Vatican
Congregation for the Oriental Churches.
The East European Collection (Russian, Ukrainian)Prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Library was regularly visited by Soviet and other
East-Bloc scholars to read the Russian, Ukrainian, and other Slavic and Slavonic sources that
were difficult to access under the Communist regime. Especially rich are the PIO Library
holdings on the two most important lands of Slavic Eastern Christianity, Ukraine and Russia,
the historic “Kievan Rus’,” heartland and cradle of Slavia Orthodoxa.
Current Periodicals 2,600 periodicals including 500 current ones still being pub-
lished—represent a rich collection of scholarly journals from every corner of the world and
every Eastern Church. These current periodicals are an essential tool for maintaining knowledge
of the current situation of those Churches and their present life, with its problems and interests.
Pre-Soviet Russian Theological Periodicals: Among the no-longer current journals is the
collection of pre-revolutionary Russian-Orthodox theological scholarly periodicals, mis-
cellaneous Russian Orthodox religious journals, and official Russian Imperial government
publications concerning related issues like public education. In pre-Soviet times the Russian
Church had an extraordinarily vital academic theological culture of the highest scholarly level,
and their publications are a goldmine for anyone doing research on the history of Orthodoxy
and its scholarship.
Pre-Soviet Russian collection on Russian Orthodox Monasteries: Much smaller, and less well-
known, is the collection of pre-Soviet booklets in Russian on Russian Orthodox monasteries.
Slavonic Manuscripts Collection: The PIO Library collection is the second largest Slavonic
manuscript collection in Italy after the Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana. These manuscripts,
dating from the 16th c. on, are largely Orthodox liturgical books in Church Slavonic, the
historic traditional liturgical language of the Slavic Churches.
Rare Manuscripts and Imprints: Of perhaps even greater importance are rare early imprints,
including early imprint holdings in Slavonic, an astounding collection of 113 volumes dating
from 1491 to 1596. These holdings comprise some of the most important Slavonic books
ever printed. A notable book within the collection of rare sources is Trebnik (Book of Needs)
of St. Peter Moghila, published in Kiev in 1646 (66), is one of the most historically important
liturgical books for the study of the Byzantine Slavonic rite in the turbulent 17th c.
Pre-Soviet Russian Theological PeriodicalsAmong the no-longer current journals is the collection of pre-revolutionary Russian-Ortho-
dox theological scholarly periodicals, miscellaneous Russian Orthodox religious journals, and
official Russian Imperial government publications concerning related issues like public educa-
tion. In pre-Soviet times the Russian Church had an extraordinarily vital academic theological
culture of the highest scholarly level, and their publications are a goldmine for anyone doing
research on the history of Orthodoxy and its scholarship.
Pre-Soviet Russian collection on Russian Orthodox MonasteriesMuch smaller, and less well-known, is the collection of pre-Soviet booklets in Russian on
Russian Orthodox monasteries.
Slavonic Manuscripts CollectionThe PIO Library collection is the second largest Slavonic manuscript collection in Italy after
the Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana. These manuscripts, dating from the 16th c. on, are large-
ly Orthodox liturgical books in Church Slavonic, the historic traditional liturgical language of
the Slavic Churches.
Rare Manuscripts and ImprintsOf perhaps even greater importance are rare early imprints, including early imprint holdings
in Slavonic, an astounding collection of 113 volumes dating from 1491 to 1596. These
holdings comprise some of the most important Slavonic books ever printed. A notable book
within the collection of rare sources is Trebnik (Book of Needs) of St. Peter Moghila, pub-
lished in Kiev in 1646 (66), is one of the most historically important liturgical books for the
study of the Byzantine Slavonic rite in the turbulent 17th c.
The Orientale hosts the only Catholic faculty of Oriental Canon Law in the world.
This faculty of Oriental Canon Law played a significant role in the production of
the Code of Canon Law for the Oriental Churches. Studies in the faculty also deal
with the historical development of canons, the theology and practice of canon law,
as well as the particular canons of specific churches.
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