History is being written: First treaty with the Vatican!

History is being written: First treaty with the Vatican!

On Monday, September 29, 2025, an important event will take place in the columned hall of the Red Town Hall in Berlin. At 9:30 a.m. the state treaty between the Holy See and the State of Berlin will be signed. This agreement concerns the Institute for Catholic Theology at Humboldt University and represents a milestone in the cooperation between the Berlin state government and the Vatican. The Governing Mayor of Berlin, Kai Wegner, and the Apostolic Nuncio, H.E. Monsignor Dr. Nikola Eterović, will sign this contract, which marks the first treaty between Berlin and the Vatican. berlin.de explains more about this.

One day before the signing, on Sunday, September 28th, there will be a photo appointment with the Apostolic Nuncio at 9:00 a.m., followed by a non-public conversation in the mayor's office. The official part with the signing and the subsequent press statements begins in the pillared hall of the town hall.

Content of the state treaty

The state treaty regulates the framework conditions for cooperation with the Institute for Catholic Theology, which has been located at Humboldt University since 2019. The agreements concern important areas such as the range of courses, organizational integration, the right to award doctorates and the appointment of professors. In addition, the contract gives the Catholic Church a say, similar to theological institutions of other religious communities at state universities, as katholisch.de reports.

However, the agreement was not reached overnight. The signing was originally planned for the end of 2022. There were various meetings in the Berlin Senate in which the draft contract was discussed and approved. Senator Ulrike Gote, responsible for science, health, care and equality, introduced the draft in the Senate on June 21, 2022, which marked the beginning of a series of negotiations. These were necessary to replace old regulations that were anchored in a final protocol from the 1970s and that have since been valid for Catholic theology at the Free University of Berlin. This protocol was repealed in favor of the Central Institute for Catholic Theology, which is now being replaced by the new regulations in order to create a contemporary framework.

Important information for the media

There is a registration deadline for media representatives. Interested journalists must register via a press event registration form by Friday, September 26, 2025 at 4 p.m. to attend the event. The confirmation and the exact procedures will be announced in advance.
These details are very important for live reporting and are intended to ensure that the event can be comprehensively documented.