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 Catholic Church in Italy | |
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| Italian:Chiesa cattolica in Italia | |
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| Type | National polity |
| Classification | Catholic |
| Orientation | Latin |
| Scripture | Bible |
| Theology | Catholic theology |
| Polity | Episcopal |
| Governance | Episcopal Conference of Italy |
| Pope | Leo XIV |
| President | Matteo Maria Zuppi |
| Primate | Pope Leo XIV |
| Apostolic Nuncio | Petar Rajič |
| Region | Italy,Vatican City |
| Language | Italian,Latin |
| Headquarters | Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran |
| Founder | ApostlesPeter andPaul |
| Origin | 1st century Rome,Roman Empire |
| Members | 57,000,000 |
| Official website | Episcopal Conference of Italy |
TheItalian Catholic Church, orCatholic Church in Italy, is part of the worldwideCatholic Church incommunion with thePope inRome, under theConference of Italian Bishops. The pope serves also asPrimate of Italy and Bishop ofRome. In addition to theItalian Republic, two other sovereign states are included in Italian dioceses:San Marino andVatican City. There are 225 dioceses in the Catholic Church in Italy, see further in this article and in the articleList of Catholic dioceses in Italy.
The pope resides in Vatican City, enclaved in Rome. Having been a major center for Christian pilgrimage since theRoman Empire, Rome is commonly regarded as the "home" of the Catholic Church, since it is whereSaint Peter settled, ministered, served as bishop, and died.[1] Hisrelics are located in Rome along withSaint Paul's, among many other saints ofEarly Christianity.
Owing to theItalian Renaissance, church art in Italy is extraordinary, including works byLeonardo da Vinci,Michelangelo,Fra Carnevale,Gian Lorenzo Bernini,Sandro Botticelli,Tintoretto,Titian,Raphael, andGiotto, etc.
Italian church architecture is equally spectacular and historically important toWestern culture, notablySt. Peter's Basilica in Rome,Cathedral of St. Mark's inVenice, andBrunelleschi'sFlorence Cathedral, which includes the "Gates of Paradise" doors at the Baptistery byLorenzo Ghiberti.
The status of the Catholic Church as the sole official religion in Italy ended in 1985, with the renegotiation of theLateran Treaty.
Christianity arrived on the Italian peninsula in the first century, probably by unknown travelers, traders or soldiers. TheLetter to the Romans ofPaul the Apostle is addressed and attests to the presence of Roman Christians in the first century. Christians inRome were also in touch withSt. Peter and St. Paul the Apostle, both of whom went to Rome on mission and were eventually martyred there. One of the first Italian bishops and popes wasClement of Rome who wrote a letter to the Christian community inCorinth (1 Clement) around AD 96.
Over its two thousand-year history, the Church of Italy grew in size and influence producing and harboring (sometimes beforemartyrdom) some of the greatest leaders and movers of Catholic Christianity includingPriscilla and Aquila;Ignatius of Antioch, martyred in Rome;Polycarp, martyred in Rome and a disciple ofJohn the Evangelist;Agnes, Roman martyr;Lawrence, martyr;Justin Martyr, teacher and martyr;Hippolytus, priest and martyr;Cecilia, Roman martyr;Ambrose of Milan, bishop andDoctor of the Church;Jerome, theologian and Doctor of the Church;Benedict of Nursia, founder of theBenedictine order and of Westernmonasticism;Leo the Great, bishop of Rome and Doctor of the Church;Gregory the Great, bishop of Rome and Doctor of the Church;Augustine of Canterbury, Roman monk, Benedictine missionary to England, later English bishop;Urban II, pope or Bishop of Rome who called for theFirst Crusade;Anselm of Canterbury, Italian-born philosopher, Doctor of the Church and later English bishop;Francis of Assisi, mystic and founder of theFranciscans;Bonaventure of Bagnorea, Franciscan theologian and Doctor of the Church;Thomas Aquinas,Dominican theologian, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church; Dante, poet;Catherine of Siena, mystic, reformer, and Doctor of the Church;Monteverdi, composer;Robert Bellarmine ofTuscany,Jesuit theologian and Doctor of the Church;Antonio Vivaldi, priest and composer;Leo XIII, bishop of Rome and social reformer;Pius XII, bishop of Rome;John XXIII, bishop of Rome and initiator ofSecond Vatican Council, among many others. One could add to this list the founders of various contemporary lay ecclesial movements, notablyLuigi Giussani, founder of Communion And Liberation, andChiara Lubich, founder of theFocolare Movement. Also,Andrea Riccardi, founder of theCommunity of Sant'Egidio, now one of the great faith based organizations in the world.
In 2021 approximately 79.2% of the Italian population identifies as Catholic.[2] Italy has 225dioceses andarchdioceses, more than any other country in the world with the exception ofBrazil. It also has the largest number of parishes (25,694), female (102,089) and male (23,719) religious, and priests (44,906 including secular (i.e.diocesan) andreligious (those belonging to a malereligious institute)).
In 1986,Pope John Paul II suppressed 101 Italian dioceses. As of 2024 Italy has a total of 41 dioceses united in persona episcopi, or “in the person of the bishop.”[3]
The bishops in Italy make up theConferenza Episcopale Italiana as a collaborative body to perform certain functions specified by Canon Law. Unlike mostepiscopal conferences, the president of the Italian conference is appointed by thepope, in his capacity asPrimate of Italy. Since May 2022, the president of the episcopal conference has been CardinalMatteo Maria Zuppi.
ThePrimate of Italy is theBishop of Rome, who is alsoex officio Pope of the Catholic Church. TheApostolic Nuncio to Italy is also the nuncio to San Marino; the incumbent is ArchbishopPetar Rajič, who has held the office since March 2024.
There are two Catholicparticular churches in Italy:
TheLatin Church in Italy is organized into:
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