Catholic studies

Catholic studies is an interdisciplinary academic field devoted to the study of the teaching, life and culture of the Catholic Church.
A number of Catholic universities started offering programs in Catholic studies as a response to Pope John Paul II's 1990 encyclical Ex corde Ecclesiae. Such universities include Ave Maria University, DePaul University, Georgetown University, Loyola University Chicago, , and the University of Mary. The University of St. Thomas has a specialist Center for Catholic Studies, which was founded in 1992.