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History

The title "Vicar of Christ" refers to the Pope's claims of divine commission. This title came into use in the fifth and sixth centuries. The Second Vatican Council confirmed the titles "Vicar of Christ" and "Successor of Peter".

The use of the term "Supreme Pontiff" (Pontifex Maximus) by the pope can be traced back to the end of the fourth century. This ancient title of the Roman High-Priest, whose origins date from the foundation of Rome, was assumed by the Bishops of Rome after being relinquished by the Emperor Gratian. The term has also been applied to other metropolitan bishops, although examples are limited (see Pontifex Maximus). It was in the eleventh century that the title came to be applied exclusively to the Bishop of Rome. The addition of the phrase "of the Universal Church" is a more recent alteration of this title.

Finally, the title attached to the pope, "Servant of the Servants of God", although used by Church leaders including St. Augustine and St. Benedict, was first used by Pope St. Gregory the Great in his dispute with the Patriarch of Constantinople after the latter assumed the title Ecumenical Patriarch. It was not reserved for the pope until the thirteenth century. The documents of Vatican II reinforced the understanding of this title as a reference to the pope's role as a function of collegial authority, in which the Bishop of Rome serves the world's bishops.

The titles "Primate of Italy", "Archbishop and Metropolitan of the Roman province", and "Sovereign of the State of the Vatican City" are references to the legal and canonical authority of the pope as defined by the laws of the Church and the Lateran Treaty of 1929.

The pope's signature is usually in the format NN. PP. x (e.g., Pope Paul VI signed his name as "Paulus PP. VI"), the "PP." standing for Papa ("Pope"), and his name is frequently accompanied in inscriptions by the abbreviation Pont. Max. or P.M. (abbreviation of the Latin title Pontifex Maximus, usually translated as "Supreme Pontiff"). The signature of papal bulls is customarily NN. Episcopus Ecclesiae Catholicae ("NN. Bishop of the Catholic Church"), while the heading is NN. Episcopus Servus Servorum Dei ("NN. Bishop and Servant of the Servants of God"). Other titles used in some official capacity in the past include Summus Pontifex ("Highest Pontiff"), Sanctissimus Pater and Beatissimus Pater ("Most Holy Father" and "Most Blessed Father"), Sanctissimus Dominus Noster ("Our Most Holy Lord"), and, in the Medieval period, Dominus Apostolicus ("Apostolic Lord"). This title, however, was not abandoned altogether: the pope is still referred to as "Dominum Apostolicum" in the Latin version of the Litany of the Saints, a solemn Catholic prayer. Writing informally, Catholics will often use the abbreviation H.H. (His Holiness), as in H.H., Benedict XVI.

The pope's official seat or cathedral is the Basilica of St. John Lateran, and his official residence is the Palace of the Vatican. He also possesses a summer palace at Castel Gandolfo (situated on the site of the ancient city-state Alba Longa). Historically, the official residence of the Pope was the Lateran Palace, donated by the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great.

The Pope's ecclesiastical jurisdiction (the Holy See) is distinct from his secular jurisdiction (Vatican City). It is the Holy See which conducts international relations; for hundreds of years, the papal court (the Roman Curia) has functioned as the government of the Catholic Church.

The name "Holy See" (also "Apostolic See") is in ecclesiastical terminology the ordinary jurisdiction of the Bishop of Rome (including the Roman Curia); the pope's various honors, powers, and privileges within the Catholic Church and the international community derive from his Episcopate of Rome in lineal succession from the Apostle St. Peter (see Apostolic Succession). Consequently, Rome has traditionally occupied a central position in the Catholic Church, although this is not necessarily so. The pope derives his Pontificate from being Bishop of Rome but is not required to live there; according to the Latin formula ubi Papa, ibi Curia, wherever the Pope resides is the central government of the Church, provided that the pope is Bishop of Rome. As such, between 1309 and 1378, the popes lived in Avignon (see Avignon Papacy), a period often called the Babylonian Captivity in allusion to the Biblical exile of Israel.

The title Patriarch of the West did not appear in the 2006 pontifical yearbook, and this led to considerable media speculation. The title Patriarch of the West was first used by Pope Theodore in 642, and was only used occasionally.

The Current titles of the Pope, in the order they are used in the Annuario Pontificio:

* Bishop of Rome * Vicar of Christ

* Successor of the Prince of the Apostles

* Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church

* Primate of Italy

* Archbishop and Metropolitan of the Roman Province

* Sovereign of the State of the Vatican City

* Servant of the Servants of God

The Former titles used:

* Patriarch of the West (dropped 2006)

* Vicar of the Apostolic See

Forms of address

"Your Holiness"

  "Holy Father"