Legal status of the Holy See Legal status of the Holy See The legal status of the Holy See, the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, both in state practice and according to the writing of modern legal scholars, is that of a full subject of public international law, with rights and duties analogous to those of States. Although the Holy See, as distinct from the Vatican City State, does not fulfill the long-established criteria in international law of statehood; i.e. having a permanent population, a defined territory, a stable government and the capacity to enter into relations with other states; its possession of
Multilateral foreign policy of the Holy See the various faith traditions." At the same time, the Holy See has condemned religious fanaticism and violence as a prevention of the freedom of religion, as well as "every form of hostility to religion that would restrict the public role of believers in civil and political life." Faced with a coordinated effort to incorporate "sexual and reproductive rights" within the body of the international recognized human rights, the Holy See has become the major advocate at the international level of traditional sexual mores and marriage. At the various international conferences, the Holy See argued that the traditional family, based on