The Apostolic Penitentiary, formerly called the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Penitentiary, is a dicastery of the Roman Curia and is one of the three ordinary tribunals of the Apostolic See. The Apostolic Penitentiary is chiefly a tribunal of mercy, responsible for issues relating to the forgiveness of sins in the Catholic Church. The Apostllic Penitentiary has jurisdiction only over matters in the internal forum (an act of governance made without publicity). Its work falls mainly into these categories: the absolution of excommunication latae sententiae (a latae sententiae penalty is a penalty that is inflicted ipso facto , automatically, by force of the law itself, at the very moment the law is contravened), reserved to the Holy See the dispensation of sacramental impediments reserved to the Holy See the issuance and governance of indulgences The head of the Apostolic Penitentiary, the Major Penitentiary , is one of the few Vatican officials who retain their positions sede v...

 Historiography is the study of the methods of historians in developing history as an academic discipline, and by extension is any body of historical work on a particular subject. The historiography of a specific topic covers how historians have studied that topic by using particular sources, techniques, and theoretical approaches. Scholars discuss historiography by topic--such as the historiography of the United Kingdom, that of WWII, the pre-Columbian Americas, early Islam, and China--and different approaches and genres, such as political history and social history. Beginning in the nineteenth century, with the develpment of academic history, there developed a body of historiographic literature. The extent to which historians are influenced by their own groups and loyalties--such as the nation state--remains a debated question. In the ancient world, chronological annals were produced in civilizations such as ancient Egypt and Ancient Near East. The discipline of historiography wa...

 Political economy is a branch of political science and economics studying economic systems (e.g. markets and national economies) and their governance by political systems (e.g. law, institutions and government). Widely studied phenomena within the discipline are systems like the labor markets and financial markets, as well as phenomena such as growth, distribution, inequality, and trade, and how these are shaped by institutions, laws, and government policy. Originating in the 16th century, it is the precursor to the modern discipline of economics. Political economy in its modern form is considered an interdisciplinary field, drawing on theory from both political science and modern economics. Political economy originated within 16th century western moral philosophy, with theoretical works exploring the administration of the states' wealth; "political" signifying the Greek word polity and "economy" signifying the Greek word oikonomos, or household management. Th...