John Paul II Institute

Catholic research institute at the Catholic University of America, U.S.

For other uses, see John Paul II Institute (disambiguation), John Paul II Foundation, and John Paul II Centre (disambiguation).

Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and FamilyLatin: Pontificium Institutum Joannes Paulus II Studiorum Matrimonii ac Familiae Vashintoniae

Type| Private, Pontifical, Graduate School
Established| 1988
Affiliation| Catholic Church
Chancellor| Cardinal Baldassare Reina
President| Rev. Msgr. Philippe Bordeyne[1]
Vice-president| Rev. Antonio López F.S.C.B.[1]
Vice-Chancellor| Wilton Cardinal Gregory
Provost| Rev. Antonio López F.S.C.B.[1]

Academic staff

| 23[2]
Location|

Washington, D.C.

Campus| Urban
Website| http://www.johnpaulii.edu

The Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family is a Catholic research institution at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. The institute is devoted to the study of the truth about the human person in all of its dimensions: theological, philosophical, anthropological, and cosmological-scientific. The institute views that it centers its study of the person in the community that is the original cell of human society: marriage and family.[3]

## History

[edit]

At the conclusion of the 1980 Synod of Bishops devoted to the family, the Synod Fathers called for the creation of theological centers devoted to the study of the Church's teaching on marriage and the family. Accordingly, Pope John Paul II responded to the Synod with the establishment of the Pontifical Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family and the Pontifical Council for the Family. The institute's establishment was to be announced at the Holy Father's Wednesday audience on May 13, 1981. Because of the attempted assassination, the institute's Apostolic Constitution, Magnum Matrimonii Sacramentum, was instead given on October 7, 1982, the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. On that occasion the institute was entrusted in a special way to the care of the most Blessed Virgin Mary under her title Our Lady of Fatima.

The Washington session was founded in 1988 at the request of then-Archbishop of Washington Cardinal James Hickey and Virgil C. Dechant, who was then Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus.[4]

## Location

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The institute is located in McGivney Hall on the campus of Catholic University in the Brookland section of Washington, DC. It was previously housed at the nearby Dominican House of Studies, and later at McCormick Pavilion.

## Governance

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Despite its name and location, the institute is juridically separate from Catholic University. It falls under the authority of the Grand Chancellor and president at the Roman session of the institute, Cardinal Baldassare Reina and Monsignor Philippe Bordeyne, respectively.[5] Locally, it is governed by a Vice-Chancellor, who is always the archbishop of Washington, and a vice-president, currently Carl A. Anderson.[1]

## Academics

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The Washington session offers programs leading to the pontifical degrees of Doctor and Licentiate of Sacred Theology with special emphasis in marriage and family studies. It also confers the degrees of Ph.D. in Theology and Master of Theological Studies, both also specialized in marriage and family.

In 2007, the institute began offering an additional track for the M.T.S. degree focusing on biotechnology and ethics.

## Nature and Purpose

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Cultural issues are central for the work of the institute. The institute considers the study of culture, in particular the culture of modernity as developed in America, to be an integral part of the clarification of fundamental theological concepts. The institute engages this cultural study in light of the history of the Church and Christian thought, with special attention to the writings of the Second Vatican Council and Pope John Paul II.

The aim of such study is to generate a “culture of life”: a culture whose members “see life in its deeper meaning, its beauty and its invitation to freedom and responsibility”; “who do not presume to take possession of reality, but instead accept it as a gift, discovering in all things the reflection of the Creator and seeing in every person his living image” (Evangelium vitae, 83).[6]

## Publishing

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The institute is home to the North American edition of the theological journal Communio. The institute's former dean and provost, David L. Schindler (1943-2022),[7] served as editor-in-chief of the journal, and many other faculty members serve on its editorial board and are frequent contributors.

The faculty also joined that of the worldwide Institute to contribute to a 2006 collection of essays entitled The Way of Love reflecting on Pope Benedict XVI's first encyclical, Deus caritas est.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d "Leadership | About the Institute | John Paul II Institute".
2. ^ "John Paul II Institute > Faculty". John Paul II Institute. Archived from the original on 2008-10-14. Retrieved 2015-04-16.
3. ^ About the Institute John Paul II Institute. Retrieved 2015-04-16
4. ^ "About the Institute > History". John Paul II Institute. Archived from the original on 2005-11-04. Retrieved 2015-04-16.
5. ^ "Pontifical Degrees". Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage & Family. Retrieved 2025-05-20.
6. ^ About the Institute > Mission > Nature and Purpose John Paul II Institute. Retrieved 2015-04-16
7. ^ "'He Was a Great Soul': Remembering David L. Schindler". NCR. 19 November 2022. Retrieved 2022-12-18.

## External links

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* JPII Institute - Washington \- official site
* Communio International Catholic Review \- official site

* v
* t
* e

Pope John Paul II

Born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 1920 – 2 April 2005

* Archbishop of Kraków (1963–1978)
* Cardinal Priest of San Cesareo de Appia (1967–1978)
* Pope (1978–2005)

| Biography|

* Early life
* Karol Wojtyła (father)
* Beatification and canonization

Coat of arms Pope John Paul II

|
|

Papacy|

* October 1978 papal conclave
* Inauguration
* Apologies
* Cardinals created
* People declared venerable
* Beatifications
* Canonizations
* Papal mediation in the Beagle conflict
* Assassination attempt
* World Youth Day
* World Day of the Sick
* Death and funeral
* dignitaries

Visits (selected)|

* Brazil
* Ireland
* Nicaragua
* United Kingdom
* United States

Relations|

* Eastern Orthodox Church
* Judaism

Other topics|

* Abbà Pater
* Criticism
* Family home (historic house)
* Health
* John Paul II Foundation
* Monuments
* Totus tuus

* Bibliography
* Teachings

| Constitutions|

* Sacrae disciplinae leges
* Pastor bonus
* Ex corde Ecclesiae
* Fidei depositum
* Universi Dominici gregis

|

Exhortations|

* Catechesi tradendae
* Familiaris consortio
* Redemptionis donum
* Reconciliatio et paenitentia
* Christifideles laici
* Redemptoris custos
* Pastores dabo vobis
* Ecclesia in Africa
* Vita consecrata
* Une espérance nouvelle pour le Liban
* Ecclesia in America
* Ecclesia in Asia
* Ecclesia in Oceania
* Ecclesia in Europa
* Pastores gregis

Letters|

* Dominicae cenae
* Salvifici doloris
* Mulieris dignitatem
* Ordinatio sacerdotalis
* Tertio millennio adveniente
* Letter to Women
* Ad tuendam fidem
* Novo millennio ineunte
* Misericordia Dei
* Rosarium Virginis Mariae
* The Rapid Development

Encyclicals|

* Redemptor hominis
* Dives in misericordia
* Laborem exercens
* Slavorum Apostoli
* Dominum et vivificantem
* Redemptoris Mater
* Sollicitudo rei socialis
* Redemptoris missio
* Centesimus annus
* Veritatis splendor
* Evangelium vitae
* Ut unum sint
* Fides et ratio
* Ecclesia de Eucharistia

Books|

* Love and Responsibility
* Crossing the Threshold of Hope
* Memory and Identity

Other writings|

* The Jeweler's Shop
* Theology of the Body
* "Roman Triptych"
* Testament

Documents|

* Catechism of the Catholic Church
* Quattuor abhinc annos
* We Remember: A Reflection on the Shoah
* Dominus Iesus

Related|

* Papal Concert to Commemorate the Shoah
* Political views
* Scriptural Way of the Cross

* Eponymous places
* In popular culture

| Secondary
schools|

| United States|

* Huntsville, AL
* Boca Raton, FL
* Tallahassee, FL
* Slidell, LA
* Hyannis, MA
* Greenville, NC
* Royersford, PA
* Hendersonville, TN
* Corpus Christi, TX
* Plano, TX
* Schertz, TX
* Dumfries, VA
* Lacey, WA

|

Other countries|

* Australia: Sydney
* Canada: London
* Canada: Toronto
* New Zealand: Greymouth
* New Zealand: Rotorua
* Poland: Tarnów

Colleges and
universities|

* John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin
* John Paul II Institute
* John Paul the Great Catholic University
* Pontifical University of John Paul II
* Pope John Paul II College of Education
* St. John Paul II Minor Seminary

Airports|

* Bari Karol Wojtyła Airport
* João Paulo II Airport
* John Paul II International Airport Kraków–Balice

Bridges|

* El Puente del Papa
* John Paul II Bridge, Puławy
* Juan Pablo II Bridge
* Third Millennium John Paul II Bridge

Other places|

* Saint John Paul II National Shrine
* Ioannes Paulus II Peninsula
* John Paul II Center for the New Evangelization
* John Paul II Center for Interreligious Dialogue
* John Paul II Foundation for Research and Treatment
* Museum of John Paul II and Primate Wyszyński
* Museum of John Paul II Collection
* Pope John Paul II Park Reservation

Films|

* Pope John Paul II
* The Papal Chase
* Have No Fear: The Life of Pope John Paul II
* The Pope's Toilet
* Nine Days that Changed the World

TV miniseries|

* Pope John Paul II
* Karol: A Man Who Became Pope
* Karol: The Pope, The Man
* In Search of the Pope's Children

Other media|

* The Planet Is Alive...Let It Live!
* Red Rabbit
* The Pope's Children
* Credo: John Paul II

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