Vatican plans Latin academy

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VATICAN CITY, Aug. 31 (UPI) -- The Vatican said Pope Benedict XVI will establish a pontifical academy for the study and promotion of the Latin language.

Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, the president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, said the Pontificia Academia Latinitatis will employ a staff of "eminent academics of various nationalities, whose aim it will be to promote the use and knowledge of the Latin language in both ecclesiastical and civil contexts, including schools," the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph reported Friday.

Ravasi said the academy is part of the Vatican's aim to increase the popularity of Latin, which is the official language of the Roman Catholic Church.