LA BRECCIA DI PORTA PIA Raccolta di Studi nel 150° anniversario (1870-2020)

150 years after the so-called "Breach of Porta Pia", and a little over 90 years after the signing of the Lateran Pacts, this multidisciplinary collection of studies illustrates the various aspects and the numerous consequences of an event that definitively changed the relationship between the Pope and the world: as never before, the figure of the Roman Pontiff became, throughout the world, that of the universal Father, free from any particular interest linked to one of his States, and reaching out
towards all humanity. For its part, the Church nourished the inalienable consciousness of being an international juridical subject for itself. The Holy See's conception of itself was not based on the idea of temporal power, but on the very nature of the Church, on its sovereign spiritual authority, confirmed by the fact that it had the power to act.
sovereign spiritual authority, confirmed by international consensus. Even after 1870, in fact, many states maintained their own diplomatic representation at the Holy See, which continued to be an active subject in the international community, even if it did not have its own territory. From the Presentation by Bernard Ardura