Clarification from the Secretariat of State

The Holy See and the Equestrian Orders

Following numerous requests for information regarding the Holy See’s position on chivalric orders dedicated to saints or bearing sacred titles, the Secretariat of State deems it appropriate to reiterate what has been published in the past.

In addition to its own chivalric orders (the Supreme Order of Christ, the Order of the Golden Spur, the Pian Order/Order of Pope Pius IX, the Order of Saint Gregory the Great, and the Order of Saint Sylvester the Pope), the Holy See recognizes and protects only the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (that is, the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta) and the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem. It does not intend to change this policy.

All other equestrian orders, whether newly established or claiming descent from medieval orders, are not recognized by the Holy See, since the Holy See cannot vouch for their historical and juridical legitimacy, their purposes or their organizational structures.

To avoid misunderstandings that are unfortunately possible due in part to the unlawful issuance of documents and the improper use of sacred places, and to prevent the continuation of abuses that ultimately harm many people acting in good faith, the Holy See reaffirms that it attaches no value to knighthood diplomas and related insignia issued by unrecognized organizations and does not consider the use of churches and chapels for so-called “investiture ceremonies” to be appropriate.