| To work for the proper implementation of canon law is to play an extraordinarily constructive role in continuing the redemptive mission of Christ. Pope John Paul II |
| Gratianus Iuris Canonici Pater | CanonLaw.info Homepage and Resource Center of Edward N. Peters, JD, JCD
Edmund Cardinal Szoka Chair Sacred Heart Major Seminary (Detroit) | Dr. Peters | Raymond Peñafort Patron of Canonists |
| Overview
| This website provides information about the content and operation of canon law in the Catholic Church and assists canonists and other researchers toward locating and assessing canonical materials.
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| Canon Law in general
Invenerunt illum in templo sedentem in médio doctorum, audientem illos et interrogantem eos; stupebant autem omnes, qui eum audiebant, super prudéntia et responsis eius. | Canon Law, the oldest continuously functioning legal system in the Western world, is the internal legal system of the Catholic Church:
• Internal: canon law lies wholly within the Church's authority to compose and administer, this, in contrast to the wide variety of external (usually civil) laws to which the Church generally defers in the pursuit of her divine mission;
• Legal: canon law operates according to the principles of law chiefly as set out in Aristotelian-Thomistic legal philosophy, this, in contrast to suggestions that canon law is simply applied theology, morals, or the rules of religious cult;
• System: canon law must be read as a whole for proper understanding and use, this, in contrast to suggestions that canon law is a collection of principles or aphorisms that are capable of being rightly appreciated in isolation from each other.
Canon law affects virtually every aspect of the faith life of over one billion Catholic Christians around the world. But, as Pope St. John Paul II explained when he promulgated the Code in 1983, canon law "is in no way intended as a substitute for faith, grace, charisms, and especially charity in the life of the Church and of the faithful. On the contrary, its purpose is rather to create such an order in the ecclesial society that, while assigning the primacy to love, grace, and charisms, it at the same time renders their organic development easier in the life of both the ecclesial society and the individual persons who belong to it." John Paul II, ap. con. Sacrae disciplinae leges (1983) 16.
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| Codified Canon Law
| Modern Catholic canon law is "codified", that is, it is contained within (presently) two "codes", one for the Roman Church (1983) and one for all the Eastern Churches (1990). The codification of canon law (as opposed to the use of canon law itself) is a recent development in Church law.
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| 1983 Code | Master Page on the Johanno-Pauline Code, in force in the Roman Catholic Church since November 27, 1983.
The Johanno-Pauline Code of 1983 is the primary legislative document of the Roman Catholic Church. Promulgated by John Paul II in early 1983 and taking force later that year, the 1983 Code replaces the Pio-Benedictine Code of 1917 and, alongside the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches of 1990, governs the faith life of over one billion Catholic Christians around the world. • 1983 Code, current English • 1983 Code, current Latin • 1983 Code, original Latin. |
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| 1917 Code | Master Page on the Pio-Benedictine Code, in force in the Roman Catholic Church from May 19, 1918, through November 26, 1983.
The Pio-Benedictine Code of 1917, the first integrated code of canon law in the Catholic Church, was promulgated by Pope Benedict XV in 1917 and took force in 1918. It replaced the Quinque Libri Decretalium (1234) of Pope Gregory IX that had governed the Roman Church for several centuries. The 1917 Code was abrogated by the Johanno-Pauline Code of 1983. • 1917 Code, original Latin. | |
| Eastern Code | Master Page on Eastern Catholic Canon Law, in force in all Eastern Catholic Churches since October 1, 1991.
The Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches is the first integrated code of canon law for the Eastern Catholic Churches. Promulgated by John Paul II in 1990 and taking force in 1991, the Eastern Code replaced scattered legislation that had, in part, governed the Eastern Catholic Church during the second half of the twentieth century. The Eastern Code stands alongside the Johanno-Pauline Code of 1983 as a primary legislative document of the Catholic Church today. • Eastern Code, current English • Eastern Code, current Latin • Eastern Code, original Latin. |
Codificatio Iuris Canonici Orientalis I - IV
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| Collected Canon Law
| For many centuries before it was codified Catholic canon law was "collected", that is, it was found within collections of official documents, some of which collections were themselves official, while others were merely private. Most of these materials, and some later materials, were organized into the Corpus Iuris Canonici (a partly official, partly unofficial collection).
• Corpus Iuris Canonici Master Page
• Ius Decretalium, or Quinque Libri Decretalium, or Decretals of Gregory IX (an official collection of canon law, in force from 1234 to 1918) Master Page. • Direct to Resource Page on Ius Decretalium, here.
• Gratian's Concordia (an unofficial collection of canon law complied about 1140) Master Page
• Ius Antiquum (scattered unofficial collections prior to Gratian's Concordantia) Master Page
• Roman Law. Corpus Iuris Civilis research materials, here. |
| Selected topics
Is this man a saint?
| Popular pages Basic introductions to canon law, here. Overviews of history of canon law, here. Questions and consultations, here. Considering canon law school, here.
Canon Law Blog, here. Canon Law Facebook, inactive, here.
Current controversies Canon 0277, obligatory clerical continence, here. Canon 0983, seal of Confession, here. Canon 0915 & 0916, Communion participation, here. Canon 0919, extending the Communion fast, here. Canon 1055, Sine matrimonio nullum Matrimonium, here. Canon 1108, eliminating canonical form, here. Canon 1184, funeral controversies, here. Canon 1314, eliminating automatic penalties, here.
| Canonical research tools Codex Quondam, 1917 Code, developing, here. Codex Vigens, Western Code of 1983, here. Codex Vigens, Eastern Code of 1990, here.
Pan-Textual Commentaries, 1983 Code, here. Pan-Textual Commentaries, 1917 Code, here. Mero-Textual Commentaries, 1917 Code, here. Lygo-Textual Commentaries, 1917 Code, here.
The Second Vatican Council, here. The First Vatican Council, coming. The Council of Trent, coming.
Academic Works on Canon Law, here. Apparatus materials, here. Directory of writings, developing, here. |
| Abbreviations on these pages might include: | AAS CCC CLD CLSA Comm. | Acta Apostolicae Sedis (1909 et seq.) Catechism of the Catholic Church (1997) Canon Law Digest (beginning 1933) Canon Law Society of America Commentary (≠ Communicationes) | DDC DMC NCE NCE(2) QLD =, ~ | Dictionnaire de Droit Canonique (1935-1965) Dictionarium Morale et Canonicum (1962-1968) New Catholic Encyclopedia (1967) New Catholic Encyclopedia, 2nd ed. (2003) Quinque Libri Decretalium (1234) editorial markings, disregard |
| Purchases made through Amazon links provide me a small commission that help cover site costs. | Materials on this website represent the opinions of Dr. Edward Peters and are offered in accord with Canon 212 § 3. This website undergoes continual refinement and development. No warranty of completeness or correctness is made. Dr. Peters' views are not necessarily shared by others in the field nor are they intended as canonical or civil advice.
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