Pontifical Armenian College
The Pontifical Armenian College ( Italian Pontificio Collegio Armeno ) in Rome is a papal educational institution with a seminary for priests and priesthood candidates of the Armenian Catholic Church .
The first initiative to establish an Armenian College came from Pope Gregory XIII. , he was planning to build a seminary for Armenian clergy as early as 1584 . Only in 1885 this idea was taken up again and by Pope Leo XIII. put into practice. The church of San Nicola da Tolentino was assigned to the papal college as the spiritual center .
On November 1, 1883, the Armenian College was officially opened. In the first 100 years of its existence, around 270 students were accepted here. The seat of the new university was built between 1939 and 1943 next to San Nicola da Tolentino. The college and the church quickly became a cultural and religious reference point for the Armenian Christians in Rome. Thanks to a generous donation from Cardinal Grégoire-Pierre Agagianian , a new library was opened on July 8, 1961.
organization
The college is headed by a rector , assisted by a vice-rector, a director and a spiritual father. The rector is always an Armenian prelate . This body is responsible for the structural, spiritual and organizational management. On average, the college accepts around 20 to 25 students, who can already be priests or prepare for the priesthood.
Personalities
- Cardinal Grégoire-Pierre Agagianian (1895–1971) was a teacher from 1921 to 1932, later vice-rector and from 1932 to 1937 rector.
- Mikail Nersès Sétian (1918–2002), was Rector of the College, Armenian Catholic Bishop and Apostolic Exarch of the United States and Canada
- Nerses Bedros XIX. (1940–2015), was Patriarch of the Armenian Catholic Patriarchate of Cilicia , he studied philosophy at the college from 1959 to 1965.
- Mikaël Antoine Mouradian (* 1961) is an Armenian Catholic bishop in New York and a former seminarian at the college
Web links
- Website of the Pontifical Armenian College (Italian and English)
Coordinates: 41 ° 54 ′ 18.4 " N , 12 ° 29 ′ 28.5" E