Cracking the Code: Amending Canon Law to Exclude Sexual Abuse Offenders from Roman Catholic Ordination

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah C. Dugan
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Canon Law ◽  
Roman Catholic

The Caroline Divines and the Church of Rome: A Contribution to Current Ecumenical Dialogue – A Review Article

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Christopher Hill
Keyword(s):  
Great Britain ◽  
Canon Law ◽  
Direct Consequence ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Moral Theology ◽  
Review Article ◽  
Ecumenical Dialogue ◽  
Ecclesiastical Law ◽  
Founder Member ◽  
The Church

Readers of the Journal will recall the Ecclesiastical Law Society's long tradition of serious ecumenical engagement, embodied in the biennial Lyndwood Lecture with the Canon Law Society of Great Britain and Ireland, and recall that a number of members of the Society are regularly engaged with the Colloquium of Anglican and Roman Catholic Canon Lawyers. Moreover, ecumenical agreement and disagreement have canonical consequences, as, for example, in the debate about Anglican orders. In moral theology, particularly Roman Catholic moral theology, the relation between moral teaching, the confessional and canon law is obvious to any practitioner. My own interest in the Ecclesiastical Law Society was a direct consequence of my involvement in Anglican–Roman Catholic dialogue as successively co-secretary, member and consultant of the various embodiments of the Anglican–Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) from 1974 onwards. An ecumenical conversation with Canon Graham Routledge, a founder member, led me to seek membership of the Society in its early days.

‘Anglicanism’ and the Origins of the Church of England

2014 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 319-334
Author(s):  
Peter McCullough
Keyword(s):  
Sixteenth Century ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Canon Law ◽  
Church Of England ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Roman Catholic Church ◽  
The Church ◽  
Historical Sketch ◽  
Formative Years

This article aims to provide an introductory historical sketch of the origins of the Church of England as a background for canon law in the present-day Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church. Written by a specialist for non-specialists, it summarises the widely held view among ecclesiastical historians that if the Church of England could ever be said to have had a ‘normative’ period, it is not to be found in its formative years in the middle decades of the sixteenth century, and that, in particular, the origins of the Church of England and of what we now call ‘Anglicanism’ are not the same thing.

The Never-Ending Story? Or, Does the Roman Catholic Church Remain Vulnerable to Charges of Improper Handling of Clergy Child Sex Abuse?

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 270-299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick S Nash
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Change ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Canon Law ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Roman Catholic Church ◽  
Religious Institutions ◽  
Sex Abuse ◽  
Organizational Settings ◽  
High Profile ◽  
Child Sex Abuse

Abstract This article explores whether the Roman Catholic Church’s response to the clergy child sex abuse scandal shields it from further charges of improper handling of cases. It begins by noting the current topicality of institutionalized abuse and how several high-profile public inquiries have recently been established to investigate child sex abuse across a range of secular and religious organizational settings. Although numerous religious institutions have become embroiled in clergy child abuse crises, the Catholic Church has come in for particular scrutiny and condemnation on account of its distinctive institutional characteristics which have exacerbated its own abuse scandal in a uniquely severe way. The Church’s own understanding of this issue is that a culture of antinomianism has taken root within the clerical hierarchy and that, were canon law to be applied properly, the crisis would be resolved. This contrasts quite dramatically with the typical external understanding of the crisis which sees the canonical legal system as part of the problem, namely the Church’s refusal to cooperate fully with the secular criminal justice system and effective assumption of a criminal jurisdiction of its own. The article concludes with a final prognosis of the prospects of fundamental legal and cultural change.

scholarly journals Ritual Void or Ritual Muddle? Deconsecration Rites of Roman Catholic Church Buildings

Religions ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 517
Author(s):  
Kim de Wildt
Keyword(s):  
Pastoral Care ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Canon Law ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
Sacred Space ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Roman Catholic Church ◽  
Church Building ◽  
Subject Orientation ◽  
Church Buildings

The decrease in people who regularly celebrate liturgy in western Europe has led to the question of what to do with so-called obsolete church buildings. This question not only refers to whether or not a church building will be converted, reused or demolished, but also to the question of whether or not such a building needs to be deconsecrated, and if so, what does deconsecration of a church building actually entail? In this contribution, I will consider the role deconsecration rites play in the Roman Catholic church when a church building is taken out of liturgical use. In Roman Catholic liturgy, there are no prescribed, official deconsecration rites that are mandatory for a church building that is to be taken out of liturgical use. The actual deconsecration of a church building is, according to canon law, established by a decree that is issued by the responsible diocesan bishop. In the case of a church being taken out of liturgical use, however, there seems to be a shift from having a ritual void with regard to deconsecration rites, and also a focus on the “legitimate” way (in the sense of canon law) to deconsecrate a church building (object orientation), towards, in recent decades, paying more attention to a growing pastoral need (subject orientation) for deconsecration rites. These new ritual initiatives can be regarded as forms of pastoral care intended to help parishioners cope with the loss of their church building. I will show that different interpretations of canon law articles complicate straightforward answers to the question of which arguments are legitimate to deconsecrate a church. Furthermore, I will address the “ritual muddle”, the mixture of the actual deconsecration act in the sense of canon law and deconsecration rites that, from the perspective of canon law, do not effect church deconsecration. I will also address the differentiation between desecration and deconsecration, address historical forms of deconsecration rites and pay attention to the making and unmaking of sacred space. Finally, I will focus on contemporary deconsecration rites against the background of the complex reality in which such rites are situated.

Alienation of Temporal Goods in Roman Catholic Canon Law: A Potential for Conflict

2010 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-52
Author(s):  
Eithne D'Auria
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Canon Law ◽  
Civil Law ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
The United States ◽  
Current Wave ◽  
Civil Courts ◽  
Temporal Goods

Alienation of church property is governed by both canon law and civil law, which may give rise to conflict. This paper addresses issues surrounding the Roman Catholic canonical requirements for alienation including the need to consult experts. Failure to consult, itself may give rise to concerns over the validity of the diocesan bishop's permission to alienate and, in turn, the lawfulness of the sale. This is not merely academic. Churches in the United States find themselves in the position where ownership of temporal goods is of increasing interest to the civil courts in the pursuit of compensation for successful litigants in the current wave of abuse cases.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document