The Vatican: a halt to investitures in churches by unrecognised chivalric orders

Academic qualifications of no value to the Holy See and ceremonies held in inappropriate churches. The Vatican has issued a reminder regarding chivalric orders, stating that, apart from its own five chivalric orders, the Holy See recognises and protects only the Sovereign Military Order of Malta and the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. ‘All other orders of chivalry, whether newly established or derived from medieval ones, are not recognised by the Holy See.’

This clarification has been issued by the Vatican Secretariat of State following numerous enquiries received regarding the Holy See’s stance on chivalric orders dedicated to saints or bearing sacred names. The Vatican “confirms that it attaches no value to knighthood diplomas and the associated insignia issued by unrecognised organisations and – it emphasises – does not consider it appropriate to use churches and chapels for so-called investiture ceremonies”.

The Vatican chivalric orders are the Supreme Order of Christ, the Order of the Golden Spur, the Order of Piano, the Order of St Gregory the Great and the Order of St Sylvester the Pope. With the exception of the two orders of the Knights of Malta and the Order of the Holy Sepulchre ‘all other equestrian orders, whether newly established or derived from medieval ones, are not recognised by the Holy See, as the Holy See cannot vouch for their historical and legal legitimacy, their aims or their organisational structures’ the Holy See emphasises that, in order to ‘avoid misunderstandings which are, unfortunately, possible, not least due to the unlawful issuance of documents and the improper use of sacred places’ and ‘to prevent the continuation of abuses which ultimately cause harm to many people acting in good faith, the Holy See confirms that it attaches no value whatsoever to knighthood diplomas and the associated insignia issued by unrecognised associations, and does not consider it appropriate to use churches and chapels for so-called investiture ceremonies’.