Canon law (from Greek kanon, a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations
made by ecclesiastical authority (Church leadership), for the government of a Christian organization
or church and its members. It is the internal ecclesiastical law, or operational policy,
governing the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and the Eastern Catholic Churches),
the Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches, and the individual national churches
within the Anglican Communion. The way that such church law is legislated, interpreted
and at times adjudicated varies widely among these three bodies of churches. In all three
traditions, a canon was originally a rule adopted by a church council; these canons
formed the foundation of canon law.
== Etymology ==
Greek kanon / Ancient Greek: κανών, Arabic Qaanoon / قانون, Hebrew kaneh / קנה,
"straight"; a rule, code, standard, or measure; the root meaning in all these languages is
"reed" (cf. the Romance-language ancestors of the English word cane).
== Canons of the Apostles ==
The Apostolic Canons or Ecclesiastical Canons of the Same Holy Apostles is a collection
of ancient ecclesiastical decrees (eighty-five in the Eastern, fifty in the Western Church)
concerning the government and discipline of the Early Christian Church, incorporated with
the Apostolic Constitutions which are part of the Ante-Nicene Fathers.
In the Fourth century the First Council of Nicaea (325) calls canons the disciplinary
measures of the Church: the term canon, κανὠν, means in Greek, a rule. There is a very early
distinction between the rules enacted by the Church and the legislative measures taken
by the State called leges, Latin for laws.
== Catholic Church ==
In the Catholic Church, canon law is the system of laws and legal principles made and enforced
by the Church's hierarchical authorities to regulate its external organization and government
and to order and direct the activities of Catholics toward the mission of the Church.
However, despite the power of the church and its insistence on creating a specific format
for the way its members would live their lives, it was often not followed. Powerful and wealthy
individuals often simply did not abide by the rules and were allowed to approach family
life and marriage how they saw fit. A prime instance of this was shown through annulments
granted by the church. The church strongly disregarded and disallowed divorce. However,
powerful men could often annul their marriages. This was noteworthy due to the fact that an
annulment was very distorting to marriage law and contradicting to the disallowance
of divorce. An annulment would not only cease a marriage but rather end the marriage and
rule that the marriage was never valid, nor did it ever formally exist. Another potent
example of Canon Law not being enforced is in regards to polygyny. Men having multiple
wives was outright banned by the Catholic church. However, as seen previously in the
example of wealthy and powerful individuals it was allowed. Men (even priests) who were
powerful enough were allowed to have multiple wives, concubines, mistresses and could have
sex prior to marriage. Despite the aforementioned blatant nonobservance to Canon Law, the codes
set in place did shape and provide a code that the majority of the members of the catholic
church directly abode and lived their lives according to.In the Latin Church, positive
ecclesiastical laws, based directly or indirectly upon immutable divine law or natural law,
derive formal authority in the case of universal laws from the supreme legislator (i.e., the
Supreme Pontiff), who possesses the totality of legislative, executive, and judicial power
in his person, while particular laws derive formal authority from a legislator inferior
to the supreme legislator. The actual subject material of the canons is not just doctrinal
or moral in nature, but all-encompassing of the human condition.The Catholic Church also
includes the main five rites (groups) of churches which are in full union with the Holy See
and the Latin Church:
Alexandrian Rite Churches which include the Coptic Catholic Church and Ethiopian Catholic
Church. West Syriac Rite which includes the Maronite
Church, Syriac Catholic Church and the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church.
Armenian Rite Church which includes the Armenian Catholic Church.
Byzantine Rite Churches which include the Albanian Greek Catholic Church, Belarusian
Greek Catholic Church, Bulgarian Church, Byzantine Catholic Church of Croatia and Serbia, Greek
Church, Hungarian Greek Catholic Church, Italo-Albanian Church, Macedonian Greek Catholic Church,
Melkite Church, Romanian Church United with Rome, Greek-Catholic, Russian Church, Ruthenian
Church, Slovak Greek Catholic Church and Ukrainian Catholic Church.
East Syriac Rite Churches which includes the Chaldean Church and Syro-Malabar Church.All
of these church groups are in full communion with the Supreme Pontiff and are subject to
the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches.
=== History, sources of law, and codifications ===
The Catholic Church has what is claimed to be the oldest continuously functioning internal
legal system in Western Europe, much later than Roman law but predating the evolution
of modern European civil law traditions. What began with rules ("canons") adopted by the
Apostles at the Council of Jerusalem in the first century has developed into a highly
complex legal system encapsulating not just norms of the New Testament, but some elements
of the Hebrew (Old Testament), Roman, Visigothic, Saxon, and Celtic legal traditions.
The history of Latin canon law can be divided into four periods: the jus antiquum, the jus
novum, the jus novissimum and the Code of Canon Law. In relation to the Code, history
can be divided into the jus vetus (all law before the Code) and the jus novum (the law
of the Code, or jus codicis).The canon law of the Eastern Catholic Churches, which had
developed some different disciplines and practices, underwent its own process of codification,
resulting in the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches promulgated in 1990 by Pope John
Paul II.
=== Catholic canon law as legal system === Roman canon law is a fully developed legal
system, with all the necessary elements: courts, lawyers, judges, a fully articulated legal
code principles of legal interpretation, and coercive penalties, though it lacks civilly-binding
force in most secular jurisdictions. One example where it did not previously apply was in the
English legal system, as well as systems, such as the U.S., that derived from it. Here
criminals could apply for the Benefit of clergy. Being in holy orders, or fraudulently claiming
to be, meant that criminals could opt to be tried by ecclesiastical rather than secular
courts. The ecclesiastical courts were generally more lenient. Under the Tudors, the scope
of clerical benefit was steadily reduced by Henry VII, Henry VIII, and Elizabeth I. The
Vatican disputed secular authority over priests' criminal offences, and this in turn contributed
to the English Reformation. The benefit of clergy was systematically removed from English
legal systems over the next 200 years, although it still occurred in South Carolina in 1827.
The structure that the fully developed Roman Law provides is a contribution to the Canon
Law. The academic degrees in canon law are the J.C.B. (Juris Canonici Baccalaureatus,
Bachelor of Canon Law, normally taken as a graduate degree), J.C.L. (Juris Canonici Licentiatus,
Licentiate of Canon Law) and the J.C.D. (Juris Canonici Doctor, Doctor of Canon Law). Because
of its specialized nature, advanced degrees in civil law or theology are normal prerequisites
for the study of canon law. Much of the legislative style was adapted
from the Roman Law Code of Justinian. As a result, Roman ecclesiastical courts tend to
follow the Roman Law style of continental Europe with some variation, featuring collegiate
panels of judges and an investigative form of proceeding, called "inquisitorial", from
the Latin "inquirere", to enquire. This is in contrast to the adversarial form of proceeding
found in the common law system of English and U.S. law, which features such things as
juries and single judges. The institutions and practices of canon law
paralleled the legal development of much of Europe, and consequently both modern civil
law and common law (legal system) bear the influences of canon law. Edson Luiz Sampel,
a Brazilian expert in canon law, says that canon law is contained in the genesis of various
institutes of civil law, such as the law in continental Europe and Latin American countries.
Sampel explains that canon law has significant influence in contemporary society.Canonical
jurisprudential theory generally follows the principles of Aristotelian-Thomistic legal
philosophy. While the term "law" is never explicitly defined in the Code, the Catechism
of the Catholic Church cites Aquinas in defining law as
"...an ordinance of reason for the common good, promulgated by the one who is in charge
of the community" and reformulates it as "...a rule of conduct enacted by competent authority
for the sake of the common good."
=== The Code for the Eastern Churches ===
The law of the Eastern-rite Churches in full communion with the Roman papacy was in much
the same state as that of the Latin or Western Church before 1917; much more diversity in
legislation existed in the various Eastern Catholic Churches. Each had its own special
law, in which custom still played an important part. One major difference in Eastern Europe
however, specifically in the Orthodox Christian churches was in regards to divorce. Divorce
started to slowly be allowed in specific instances such as adultery being committed, abuse, abandonment,
impotence and barrenness being the primary justifications for divorce. Eventually, the
church began to allow remarriage to occur (for both spouses) post-divorce. In 1929 Pius
XI informed the Eastern Churches of his intention to work out a Code for the whole of the Eastern
Church. The publication of these Codes for the Eastern Churches regarding the law of
persons was made between 1949 through 1958 but finalized nearly 30 years later.The first
Code of Canon Law (1917) was almost exclusively for the Latin Church, with extremely limited
application to the Eastern Churches. After the Second Vatican Council, (1962 - 1965),
another edition was published specifically for the Roman Rite in 1983. Most recently,
1990, the Vatican produced the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches which became the 1st
code of Eastern Catholic Canon Law.
== Orthodox Church == The Eastern Orthodox Church, principally through
the work of 18th-century Athonite monastic scholar Nicodemus the Hagiorite, has compiled
canons and commentaries upon them in a work known as the Pēdálion (Greek: Πηδάλιον,
"Rudder"), so named because it is meant to "steer" the Church in her discipline. The
dogmatic determinations of the Councils are to be applied rigorously, since they are considered
to be essential for the Church's unity and the faithful preservation of the Gospel.
== Anglican Communion ==
In the Church of England, the ecclesiastical courts that formerly decided many matters
such as disputes relating to marriage, divorce, wills, and defamation, still have jurisdiction
of certain church-related matters (e.g. discipline of clergy, alteration of church property,
and issues related to churchyards). Their separate status dates back to the 12th century
when the Normans split them off from the mixed secular/religious county and local courts
used by the Saxons. In contrast to the other courts of England the law used in ecclesiastical
matters is at least partially a civil law system, not common law, although heavily governed
by parliamentary statutes. Since the Reformation, ecclesiastical courts in England have been
royal courts. The teaching of canon law at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge was
abrogated by Henry VIII; thereafter practitioners in the ecclesiastical courts were trained
in civil law, receiving a Doctor of Civil Law (D.C.L.) degree from Oxford, or a Doctor
of Laws (LL.D.) degree from Cambridge. Such lawyers (called "doctors" and "civilians")
were centered at "Doctors Commons", a few streets south of St Paul's Cathedral in London,
where they monopolized probate, matrimonial, and admiralty cases until their jurisdiction
was removed to the common law courts in the mid-19th century.
Other churches in the Anglican Communion around the world (e.g., the Episcopal Church in the
United States, and the Anglican Church of Canada) still function under their own private
systems of canon law. Currently, (2004), there are principles of
canon law common to the churches within the Anglican Communion; their existence can be
factually established; each province or church contributes through its own legal system to
the principles of canon law common within the Communion; these principles have a strong
persuasive authority and are fundamental to the self-understanding of each of the churches
of the Communion; these principles have a living force, and contain in themselves the
possibility of further development; and the existence of these principles both demonstrates
unity and promotes unity within the Anglican Communion.
== Presbyterian and Reformed churches ==
In Presbyterian and Reformed churches, canon law is known as "practice and procedure" or
"church order", and includes the church's laws respecting its government, discipline,
legal practice and worship. Roman canon law had been criticized by the
Presbyterians as early as 1572 in the Admonition to Parliament. The protest centered on the
standard defense that canon law could be retained so long as it did not contradict the civil
law. According to Polly Ha, the Reformed Church Government refuted this claiming that the
bishops had been enforcing canon law for 1500 years.
== Lutheranism == The Book of Concord is the historic doctrinal
statement of the Lutheran Church, consisting of ten credal documents recognized as authoritative
in Lutheranism since the 16th century. However, the Book of Concord is a confessional document
(stating orthodox belief) rather than a book of ecclesiastical rules or discipline, like
canon law. Each Lutheran national church establishes its own system of church order and discipline,
though these are referred to as "canons."
== United Methodist Church ==
The Book of Discipline contains the laws, rules, policies and guidelines for The United
Methodist Church. Its last edition was published in 2016.
== See also ==
== References ==
== Further reading == Baker, J.H. (2002) An Introduction to English
Legal History, 4th ed. London : Butterworths, ISBN 0-406-93053-8
Brundage, James A., The Medieval Origins of the Legal Profession: Canonists, Civilians,
and Courts, Chicago : University of Chicago Press, c2008.
Brundage, James A., Medieval Canon Law, London ; New York : Longman, 1995.
The Episcopal Church (2006) Constitution and Canons, together with the Rules of Order for
the Government of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America, otherwise
known as The Episcopal Church, New York : Church Publishing, Inc.
Hartmann, Wilfried and Kenneth Pennington eds. (2008) The History of Medieval Canon
Law in the Classical Period, 1140-1234: From Gratian to the Decretals of Pope Gregory IX,
Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press.
Hartmann, Wilfried and Kenneth Penningon eds. (2011) The History of Byzantine and Eastern
Canon Law to 1500, Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press.
R. C. Mortimer, Western Canon Law, London: A. and C. Black, 1953.
Robinson, O.F.,Fergus, T.D. and Gordon, W.M. (2000) European Legal History, 3rd ed., London
: Butterworths, ISBN 0-406-91360-9 Nedungatt, George, ed. (2002). A
Guide to the Eastern Code: A Commentary on the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches.
Rome: Oriental Institute Press.
== External links ==
=== Catholic === Codex Iuris Canonici (1983), original text
in Latin (the only official text) Code of Canon Law (1983) but with the 1998
modification of canons 750 and 1371, English translation by the Canon Law Society of America,
on the Vatican website Code of Canon Law (1983), English translation
by the Canon Law Society of Great Britain and Ireland, assisted by the Canon Law Society
of Australia and New Zealand and the Canadian Canon Law Society
Codex canonum ecclesiarum orientalium (1990), original text in Latin
"Code of canons of Oriental Churchs" (1990), defective English translation
Codex Iuris Canonici (1917), original text in Latin
Catholic Encyclopedia: Canon Law: outdated, but useful
Salvific Law 1983 Code of Canon Law - Notes, Commentary,
Articles, Bibliography
=== Anglican === "Canons of the Church of England"
"Ecclesiastical Law Society"
=== Canon law societies === Canadian Canon Law Society
Canon Law India Canon Law Society of America
Canon Law Society of Australia and New Zealand Canon Law Society of Great Britain & Ireland
Canon Law Society of the Philippines Midwest Canon Law Society (the United States)
Sociedade Brasileira de Canonistas