Concordat of 1922
foreign minister Zigfrīds Meierovics and Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Gasparri. Ratifications were exchanged at the Vatican on 3 November 1922 by Latvian deputy foreign minister Hermanis Albats and Cardinal Gasparri,[1] and the agreement became effective on the same day. It was registered in League of Nations Treaty Series on 16 June 1923.[2] The concordat became obsolete in 2000, as it was replaced by a new agreement between the Holy See and Latvia.[3]
Terms of the agreement
- Article 1 granted the Catholic Church in Latvia freedom to operate, as well as the status of corporate entity.
- Article 2 required the Catholic Church to elevate its Diocese for Riga (reestablished in 1918) to an Archdiocese and stipulated all the Bishops should be of Latvian nationality.
- Article 3 stipulated that the Archdiocese of Riga shall be under Vatican jurisdiction on all church matters.
- Article 4 gave the Latvian government the right to veto every candidate for Bishop in its territory.
- Article 5 made it compulsory for every Bishop in Latvia to swear allegiance to Latvian law.
- Article 6 stipulated the Archdiocese of Riga shall be run under Canon Law.
- In Article 7 the Latvian government undertook to provide the proper buildings for the Archbishop and the operation of the Archdiocese of Riga.
- Article 8 gave the Archbishop of Riga the right to appoint the Priests under his jurisdiction.
- Article 9 exempted members of the clergy from military service as well as jury service.
- Article 10 allowed the Catholic Church in Latvia to establish its own system of schools.
- Article 11 provided for the operation of a priestly seminary in the Latvian language.
- Article 12 limited the right to appoint non-Latvian nationals as members of the clergy.
- Article 13 regulated the activities of Catholic associations in Latvia.
- Article 14 made church property inviolable.
- Article 15 made churches and cemeteries inviolable.
- Article 16 regulated the taxation of church property.
- Article 17 gave the Latvian authorities the freedom to prosecute priests accused of crimes.
- Article 18 gave the Archdiocese of Riga the right to be informed of any criminal proceedings initiated against a priest accused of crimes.
- Article 19 permitted priests convicted of crimes to serve their sentence in monasteries, with the consent of the Archbishop.
- Article 20 stipulated the agreement shall remain in force for three years, unless extended later.
- Articles 21-22 provided for ratification by Vatican and Latvian authorities.
The concordat was modified by a supplementary protocol signed on 25 January 1938.[4]
See also
References
- ^ Conventio eum republica Lettoniae, Acta Apostolicae Sedis, Volume 14 (1922), p. 581
- ^ League of Nations Treaty Series, vol. 17, pp. 366–373.
- ^ Agreement between the holy See and Latvia
- ^ Text in League of Nations Treaty Series, vol. 186, pp. 320–323.