The Holy See and Vatican City: Permanent Neutrality
Overview
The Lateran Treaty signed February 11, 1929, with Italy recognizing the Vatican City as an independent state under the sovereignty of the Holy See. What have been the consequences and the results since the Vatican City (State) was created 91 years ago as a permanently neutral state?The range of issues that the Holy See embraces through the pontificates beginning with Pius XI (1922-1939), Pius XII (1939-1958) through John Paul II (1978-2005) to Pope Francis (2013- current) is broader than many states engage. The analysis of the Holy See policy does not easily fit within standard methods of international relations scholarship or the foreign policy critiques used for secular states.A group of scholars will discuss the changing style and the substance of Holy See diplomacy, in particular, since the creation of the Vatican City (State). The analysis will be framed in terms of the international system each faced, their conception of the role of the Church in the world, and the pastoral and policy vision which informed each pope’s ministry into the 21st century.
Session 1
Introduction and Overview (13:00 – 13:10)
Prof. Marshall Breger, CUA
The Holy See and Neutrality in the Aftermath of World War I: The Consequences of the Treaty of Versailles and Other Peace Treaties (13:10 – 13:30)
Prof. Kurt Martens, CUA
The Lateran Treaty and Neutrality: Political and Theological Considerations (13:30 – 13:55)
Prof. Emeritus Gerald P. Fogerty, S.J., University of Virginia
No Neutrality in Ideology: The Holy See and the Cold War (13:55 – 14:20)
Prof. Piotr Koisicki, University of Maryland
The Holy See Efforts to Secure the Departure of Cardinal Mindszenty: Diplomacy in a Cold War Context
(14:20 – 14:45)
Prof. Arpad v. Klimo, CUA
Session 2
The Vatican and the Third Reich (15:30 – 15:55)
Dr. Suzanne Brown-Fleming (USHMM)
The Vatican and the Empire of Japan (15:55 – 16:20)
Prof. Pascal Lottaz, Waseda University (Tokyo)
Positive Neutrality as a Vatican Negotiating Tool
(16:20 – 16:45)
Father Thomas J. Reese, Senior Analyst, Religion News Service, and Senior Fellow, Markula Center, Santa Clara University
The Vatican & Permanent Neutrality in the 21st Century: Faith, Freedom & Foreign Policy (16:45 – 17:10)
Prof. Herbert Reginbogin, Fellow at CUA