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Rota

Rota

1 9.9
A high court of the Roman Catholic Church in Rome that decides cases from lower church courts
  • noun
  • Formal
: Rota
  • The same can be said for Pius XII's commentary on the canon in his 1941 allocution to the Roman Rota, recognized as the most extensive papal commentary on canon 1118.
  • Rota Island

Examples

  • All major decisions regarding church law are ultimately determined by the Roman Rota.

  • In contentious matters, the final judgment rests with the Roman Rota.

  • The priest appealed his case to the Roman Rota after being dismissed from his parish.

Surface Forms

rota singular
rotas plural

Etymology

Rota comes from the Latin rota, meaning 'wheel'. One helpful way to remember it is to imagine a 'wheel' bringing judges and cases from many places together, because the Rota is the Roman Catholic Church's high court that hears important appeals.