PAPAL AWARD “PRO ECCLESIA ET PONTIFICE”
PRESENTED TO REV. FR. DOMINIC SANTAMARIA

"FOR THE CHURCH AND FOR THE POPE" Benedict XVI, the Supreme Pontiff, by the symbol of the glorious Cross, having specially considered his conspicuous services and zeal, is gracious enough to decide and to confer to Reverend Dominic J.B.A. Santamaria the dignity "PRO ECCLESIA ET PONTIFICE" and similarly to grant him the faculty to decorate himself with this ornament. From the Vatican See, on May 26, 2005 sd/- ASSESSOR

On November 30, 2005, Fr. Dominic Santamaria was presented with the Cross of Honor ‘Pro Ecclesia Et Pontifice’ in recognition of his dedicated service spanning three decades, to the Vicariate of Kuwait. The medal was conferred on him during a private ceremony by H.E. Bishop Camillo Ballin, MCCI, Vicar Apostolic of Kuwait at the Bishop’s House (Kuwait City). 

Fr. Dominic Santamaria (center) with the award. Pictured alongside him are
(L to R) H.E. Archbishop Mounged El-Hachem, Nuncio to Kuwait, H.E. Archbishop
Giuseppe de Andrea, Former Nuncio to Kuwait and  H.E. Bishop Camillo Ballin.

“Pro Ecclesia Et Pontifice” has its origin in 1888 as a token of the Golden Sacerdotal Jubilee of Pope Leo XIII. He bestowed the decoration on those who had assisted in the observance of his jubilee and on persons responsible for the success of the Vatican Exposition. The medal, cruciform in shape, bears the likeness of Saints Peter and Paul, the tiara and the Papal Keys, the words “Pro Ecclesia Et Pontifice” and the name of the present Pontiff on the same side; it is attached to a ribbon of yellow and white, the Papal colors. Originally the medal was issued in gold, silver or bronze. It is awarded in recognition of service to the Church and the Papacy.