C9290 - LEGISLAZIONE E GOVERNANCE DEL PATRIMONIO CULTURALE DELLA SANTA SEDE E DEGLI ENTI ECCLESIASTICI

Learning outcomes

The course provides a legal-institutional framework for the protection, conservation and enhancement of the cultural heritage of the Holy See and ecclesiastical bodies, through the analysis of the main legal sources. By the end of the course, students will acquire historical and institutional knowledge of religious heritage and competences in the application of legal and managerial tools; they will develop skills in cultural project planning and in cooperation between civil and ecclesiastical institutions; and they will be able to operate in curatorship, cultural mediation and the management of ecclesiastical heritage.

Course contents

The course addresses the legislation and governance of the cultural heritage of the Holy See, Vatican City State and ecclesiastical bodies, considering religious heritage as a field in which legal sources, institutional responsibilities, cultural functions, community affiliations and professional practices of documentation, conservation and enhancement intersect. Ecclesiastical heritage is examined not only as a set of assets to be protected, but also as a system of places, works, documents, collections and practices whose management requires coordination between canon law, Vatican law, State legal systems, public authorities and ecclesiastical authorities.
The course analyses the main canon, Vatican, treaty-based, State and international legal sources, with specific attention to the competent bodies, cooperation instruments and procedures through which protection, conservation, access and enhancement are carried out. From this perspective, the course examines, on the one hand, the role of the Holy See, Vatican City State and Vatican institutions, distinguishing their respective normative, administrative, cultural and managerial competences; on the other hand, it considers the regulation of the widespread heritage of ecclesiastical bodies, with particular reference to dioceses, parishes, religious institutes, museums, archives, libraries, collections and places of worship.
A specific part of the course is devoted to the main issues of contemporary management: access to ecclesiastical archives and libraries, inventorying, cataloguing and digitisation, the use, decommissioning and compatible reuse of places of worship, tourist and cultural access to religious sites, and the conservation and enhancement of museums and collections. These topics are addressed through the relationship between the religious function of the asset, cultural interest, the needs of communities and the responsibilities of the bodies that administer it.
Finally, the course considers some emerging issues in the governance of religious heritage, including the provenance of objects, restitution, the cultural responsibility of missionary collections and the decolonisation of ecclesiastical heritage. The analysis of case studies makes it possible to connect the legal framework with cultural planning, showing how choices concerning protection, access, conservation and enhancement depend on the nature of the asset, its institutional context and the religious, cultural or community function that it continues to perform.

Readings/Bibliography

For the preparation of the final examination, attending students shall refer to the notes taken during lectures, the slides and the other teaching materials made available on the Virtuale.unibo platform, in the dedicated section.
Non-attending students shall refer to the teaching materials made available on the Virtuale.unibo platform, in the section specifically dedicated to exam preparation for non-attending students.
Working students and student-athletes shall refer to the materials made available in the section specifically dedicated to them on Virtuale.unibo.

Teaching methods

Lectures are accompanied by slides, used to support learning, facilitate the understanding of legal concepts and help students identify the key points progressively addressed during the course. Attending students are encouraged to participate actively through discussion, debate on practical cases and the analysis of applied situations relating to the protection, conservation, access and enhancement of ecclesiastical cultural heritage.
The course may also include practical simulations, case-study exercises, seminars with experts and professionals from the cultural and ecclesiastical sectors, as well as guided visits to institutions or sites of interest for religious heritage. Such visits will be organised subject to the availability of the external ecclesiastical bodies involved and to the organisational conditions of the relevant academic year.

Assessment methods

ATTENDING STUDENTS

Assessment is based on an oral examination. The examination covers the topics addressed during lectures, students’ notes, slides and the other teaching materials made available on the Virtuale.unibo platform, in accordance with the indications provided in the “Texts/Bibliography” section.
The oral examination is intended to assess knowledge of the main canon, Vatican, treaty-based, State and international legal sources concerning the cultural heritage of the Holy See, Vatican City State and ecclesiastical bodies. It also assesses students’ ability to distinguish the different competent bodies, to understand the instruments of cooperation between civil and ecclesiastical authorities, and to apply legal and institutional categories to the analysis of cases concerning the protection, conservation, access, use and enhancement of religious heritage.

NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS

For non-attending students, assessment is based on an oral examination on the texts and teaching materials indicated in the “Texts/Bibliography” section and made available in the section of Virtuale.unibo specifically dedicated to exam preparation for non-attending students.
The examination is intended to assess knowledge of the topics included in the course programme, with particular reference to legal sources, institutional actors, the legal regimes applicable to ecclesiastical cultural heritage, archives, libraries, museums, collections and places of worship. The oral examination also assesses students’ ability to present, in an orderly and critical manner, issues relating to the contemporary management of religious heritage, including inventorying, cataloguing, digitisation, the compatible reuse of places of worship, cultural and tourist access, the provenance of objects, restitution and the cultural responsibility of missionary collections.

WORKING STUDENTS AND STUDENT-ATHLETES

Working students and student-athletes shall refer to the instructions and teaching materials published in the section specifically dedicated to them on the Virtuale.unibo platform, in accordance with the indications provided in the “Texts/Bibliography” section. Assessment is based on an oral examination and covers the programme and materials indicated for this category of students.

STUDENTS WITH SLD OR DISABILITIES

Students with SLD or temporary or permanent disabilities should refer to the information provided in the “Teaching tools” section.

ASSESSMENT CRITERIA

Assessment takes into account students’ knowledge of the topics included in the programme and of the examination materials, their ability to navigate legal and institutional sources, the accuracy of their legal terminology, their ability to connect the different topics of the course, and their ability to apply the knowledge acquired to the analysis of concrete cases and problems.
In particular, assessment will consider: understanding of the distinction between the Holy See, Vatican City State, the canon law system and ecclesiastical bodies; knowledge of the main instruments of protection, conservation, access and enhancement; the ability to identify the responsibilities of the actors involved in the management of ecclesiastical cultural heritage; and the ability to critically discuss contemporary issues relating to archives, libraries, museums, collections, places of worship, provenance, restitution and the decolonisation of ecclesiastical heritage.

Grades will be awarded according to the following criteria:

- fail: fragmentary or seriously incomplete knowledge of the fundamental topics; difficulty in navigating the main sources, actors and legal institutions; inappropriate use of legal terminology; inability to develop a coherent argument on the topics covered by the programme;
- sufficient: essential knowledge of the main topics; overall correct presentation, although with some inaccuracies; basic understanding of the sources and legal institutions addressed; limited autonomy in analysis and in connecting the different topics of the course (18-22);
- good: adequate and reasonably structured knowledge of the topics; clear and correct presentation; ability to identify the main connections between sources, institutions and practical issues; generally appropriate use of legal terminology, although with some limits in critical analysis (23-27);
- very good or excellent: complete and systematic knowledge of the topics; full command of legal and institutional terminology; ability to critically connect the different parts of the programme; autonomy in the analysis of practical issues and ability to argue in a precise, coherent and well-grounded manner (28-30 with honours).

Teaching tools

The presentations used during lectures, the teaching materials and any additional materials for further study will be made available on the Virtuale.unibo platform, in the section dedicated to the course.
Students with SLD or temporary or permanent disabilities are invited to contact the competent University Office in good time: https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students. The Office will provide support in identifying the most suitable solutions for their specific needs.
Any adaptations must be submitted to the approval of the course lecturer at least 15 days before the examination date. The lecturer will assess their appropriateness in relation to the learning outcomes of the course and the assessment methods.
Students concerned are also advised to contact the course lecturer before the beginning of the course, so that suitable strategies for attending classes, using teaching materials and preparing for the examination can be identified in good time.

Office hours

See the website of Federica Botti