Definition of Decet romanum pontificem

Not to be confused with Romanum decet pontificem.

Decet Romanum Pontificem (1521) is the papal bull excommunicating Martin Luther, bearing the title of the first three Latin words of the text: [It] befits [the] Roman Pontiff in English. It was issued on January 3, 1521 by Pope Leo X to effect the excommunication threatened in his earlier papal bull Exsurge Domine (1520) since Luther failed to recant accordingly. Luther had burned his copy of Exsurge Domine on December 10, 1520 at the Elster Gate in Wittenberg, indicating his response to it.