Pontifical University of the Holy Cross

The Pontifical University of Santa Croce stands in Rome’s historic centre, occupying two campuses. One occupies the Palazzo di Sant’Apollinare beside Piazza Navona, the other a library near the Palazzo Farnese. Founded in 1984 by Opus Dei, it became a pontifical university in 1998 under Pope John Paul II. The Grand Chancellor is the Prelate of Opus Dei, currently Msgr. Fernando Ocáriz. The university offers programmes in theology, canon law, philosophy and social communication. It also runs a higher institute for religious sciences with distance learning. The university attracts students from every continent, with more than 1,050 enrolled in a typical year. About half come from Europe, a third from the Americas, and smaller numbers from Africa, Asia and Oceania. Roughly a quarter are laypeople, while priests, seminarians and religious make up the rest. Since 1984 over 7,000 students from 102 countries have studied here. Faculty members hold degrees from both secular and ecclesiastical universities and teach in Italian, English, Spanish, French and German. Research projects include studies on family and mass media, ethics and politics, and science and theology. Inside the Palazzo di Sant’Apollinare visitors find lecture halls, seminar rooms and the main library. The canon law faculty publishes the journal Ius Ecclesiae, the theology faculty Annales Theologici, and the philosophy faculty Acta Philosophica. Students of Christian art can take courses that combine classroom study with visits to Rome’s churches and monuments. The university’s seal shows a Greek cross with the words Iesus Christus, Deus Homo, symbolising the light, joy and peace that flow from the mystery of the Cross.