Source: https://ourcatholicfaith.org/canon-law-part-i-christs-faithful/
Timestamp: 2019-09-17 05:35:21
Document Index: 670382144

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Canon Law: PART I : CHRIST’S FAITHFUL – Our Catholic Faith
Can. 204 §1 Christ’s faithful are those who, since they are incorporated into Christ through baptism, are constituted the people of God. For this reason they participate in their own way in the priestly, prophetic and kingly office of Christ. They are called, each according to his or her particular condition, to exercise the mission which God entrusted to the Church to fulfill in the world.
Can. 207 §1 By divine institution, among Christ’s faithful there are in the Church sacred ministers, who in law are also called clerics­ the others are called lay people.
§2 Drawn from both groups are those of Christ’s faithful who, professing the evangelical counsels through vows or other sacred bonds recognized and approved by the Church, are consecrated to God in their own special way and promote the salvific mission of the Church. Their state, although it does not belong to the hierarchical structure of the Church, does pertain to its life and holiness.
Can. 208 Flowing from their rebirth in Christ, there is a genuine equality of dignity and action among all of Christ’s faithful. Because of this equality they all contribute, each according to his or her own condition and office, to the building up of the Body of Christ.
Can. 209 §1 Christ’s faithful are bound to preserve their communion with the Church at all times, even in their external actions.
Can. 210 All Christ’s faithful, each according to his or her own condition, must make a wholehearted effort to lead a holy life, and to promote the growth of the Church and its continual sanctification.
Can. 211 All Christ’s faithful have the obligation and the right to strive so that the divine message of salvation may more and more reach all people of all times and all places.
Can. 216 Since they share the Church’s mission, all Christ’s faithful have the right to promote and support apostolic action, by their own initiative, undertaken according to their state and condition. No initiative, however, can lay claim to the title ‘catholic’ without the consent of the competent ecclesiastical authority.
Can. 217 Since Christ’s faithful are called by baptism to lead a life in harmony with the gospel teaching, they have the right to a Christian education, which genuinely teaches them to strive for the maturity of the human person and at the same time to know and live the mystery of salvation.
Can. 219 All Christ’s faithful have the right to immunity from any kind of coercion in choosing a state in life.
Can. 221 §1 Christ’s faithful may lawfully vindicate and defend the rights they enjoy in the Church, before the competent ecclesiastical forum in accordance with the law.
§2 If any members of Christ’s faithful are summoned to trial by the competent authority, they have the right to be judged according to the provisions of the law, to be applied with equity.
§3 Christ’s faithful have the right that no canonical penalties be inflicted upon them except in accordance with the law.
Can. 223 §1 In exercising their rights, Christ’s faithful, both individually and in associations, must take account of the common good of the Church, as well as the rights of others and their own duties to others.
Can. 224 Lay members of Christ’s faithful have the duties and rights enumerated in the canons of this title, in addition to those duties and rights which are common to all Christ’s faithful and those stated in other canons.
Can. 225 §1 Since lay people, like all Christ’s faithful, are deputed to the apostolate by baptism and confirmation, they are bound by the general obligation and they have the right, whether as individuals or in associations, to strive so that the divine message of salvation may be known and accepted by all people throughout the world. This obligation is all the more insistent in circumstances in which only through them are people able to hear the Gospel and to know Christ.
Can. 227 To lay members of Christ’s faithful belongs the right to have acknowledged as theirs that freedom in secular affairs which is common to all citizens. In using this freedom, however, they are to ensure that their actions are permeated with the spirit of the Gospel, and they are to heed the teaching of the Church proposed by the Magisterium, but they must be on guard, in questions of opinion, against proposing their own view as the teaching of the Church.
Can. 231 §1 Lay people who are pledged to the special service of the Church, whether permanently or for a time, have a duty to acquire the appropriate formation which their role demands, so that they may conscientiously, earnestly and diligently fulfill this role.
Can. 233 §1 It is the duty of the whole Christian community to foster vocations so that the needs of the sacred ministry are sufficiently met in the entire Church. In particular, this duty binds Christian families, educators and, in a special way, priests, especially parish priests. Diocesan Bishops, who must show the greatest concern to promote vocations, are to instruct the people entrusted to them on the importance of the sacred ministry and the need for ministers in the Church. They are to encourage and support initiatives to promote vocations, especially movements established for this purpose.
Can. 234 §1 Minor seminaries and other institutions of a similar nature promote vocations by providing a special religious formation, allied to human and scientific education­ where they exist, they are to be retained and fostered. Indeed, where the diocesan Bishop considers it expedient, he is to provide for the establishment of a minor seminary or similar institution.
Can. 235 §1 Young men who intend to become priests are to receive the appropriate religious formation and instruction in the duties proper to the priesthood in a major seminary, for the whole of the time of formation or, if in the judgment of the diocesan Bishop circumstances require it, for at least four years.
Can. 237 §1 Where it is possible and advisable, each diocese is to have a major seminary; otherwise, students preparing for the sacred ministries are to be sent to the seminary of another diocese, or an inter­diocesan seminary is to be established.
§2 An inter­diocesan seminary may not be established unless the prior approval of the Apostolic See has been obtained, both for the establishment of the seminary and for its statutes. Approval is also required from the Episcopal Conference if the seminary is for the whole of its territory; otherwise, from the Bishops concerned.
Can. 239 §1 In all seminaries there is to be a rector who presides over it, a vice­rector, if circumstances warrant this, and a financial administrator. Moreover, if the students follow their studies in the seminary, there are to be professors who teach the various subjects in a manner suitably coordinated between them.
§3 The seminary statutes are to determine the manner in which the other moderators, the professors and indeed the students themselves, are to participate in the rector’s responsibility, especially in regard to the maintenance of discipline.
§2 The norms of the Charter mentioned in §1 are to be observed in all seminaries, whether diocesan or inter­diocesan.
Can. 243 In addition, each seminary is to have its own rule, approved by the diocesan Bishop or, in the case of an inter­diocesan seminary, by the Bishops concerned. In this, the norms of the Charter of Priestly Formation are to be adapted to the particular circumstances and developed in greater detail, especially on points of discipline affecting the daily life of the students and the good order of the entire seminary.
§2 Students are to be so trained that, filled with love for Christ’s Church, they are linked to the Roman Pontiff, the successor of Peter, in humble and filial charity, to their own Bishop as his faithful co­workers and to their brethren in friendly cooperation. Through the common life in the seminary, and by developing relationships of friendship and of association with others, they are to be prepared for the fraternal unity of the diocesan presbyterium, in whose service of the Church they will share.
Can. 246 §1 The celebration of the Eucharist is to be the center of the whole life of the seminary, so that the students, participating in the very charity of Christ, may daily draw strength of soul for their apostolic labor and for their spiritual life particularly from this richest of sources.
Can. 247 §1 By appropriate instruction they are to be prepared to observe celibacy and to learn to hold it in honor as a special gift of God.
Can. 248 The doctrinal formation given is to be so directed that the students may acquire a wide and solid teaching in the sacred sciences, together with a general culture which is appropriate to the needs of place and time. As a result, with their own faith founded on and nourished by this teaching, they ought to be able properly to proclaim the Gospel to the people of their own time, in a fashion suited to the manner of the people’s thinking.
Can. 253 §1 The Bishop or the Bishops concerned are to appoint as teachers in philosophical, theological and juridical subjects only those who are of outstanding virtue and have a doctorate or a licentiate from a university or faculty recognized by the Holy See.
Can. 254 §1 In their lectures, the professors are to be continuously attentive to the intimate unity and harmony of the entire doctrine of faith, so that the students are aware that they are learning one science. To ensure this, there is to be someone in the seminary who is in charge of the overall organization of studies.
Can. 256 §1 Students are to be carefully instructed in whatever especially pertains to the sacred ministry, particularly in catechetics and homiletics, in divine worship and in a special way in the celebration of the sacraments, in dealing with people, including non-Catholics and unbelievers, in parish administration and in the fulfillment of other tasks.
Can. 259 §1 It belongs to the diocesan Bishop or, in the case of an inter­diocesan seminary, to the Bishops concerned to determine those matters which concern the overall control and administration of the seminary.
§2 The diocesan Bishop or, in the case of an inter­diocesan seminary, the Bishops concerned, are frequently to visit the seminary in person. They are to oversee the formation of their students, and the philosophical and theological instruction given in the seminary. They are to inform themselves about the vocation, character, piety and progress of the students, in view particularly to the conferring of sacred orders.
Can. 263 The diocesan Bishop must ensure that the building and maintenance of the seminary, the support of the students, the remuneration of the teachers and the other needs of the seminary are provided for. In an inter­diocesan seminary this responsibility devolves upon the Bishops concerned, each to the extent allotted by their common agreement.
§2 Every ecclesiastical juridical person is subject to the levy for the seminary, including even private juridical persons, which have a center in the diocese. Exception is made for those whose sole support comes from alms, or in which there is actually present a college of students or of teachers for furthering the common good of the Church. This levy should be general, proportionate to the revenue of those who are subject to it and calculated according to the needs of the seminary.
Can. 265 Every cleric must be incardinated in a particular church, or in a personal Prelature, or in an institute of consecrated life or a society which has this faculty: accordingly, acephalous or ‘wandering’ clergy are in no way to be allowed.
Can. 268 §1 A cleric who has lawfully moved from his own particular Church to another is, by virtue of the law itself, incardinated in that latter Church after five years, if he has declared this intention in writing to both the diocesan Bishop of the host diocese and his own diocesan Bishop, and neither of the two Bishops has indicated opposition in writing within four months of receiving the cleric’s written request.
§3 A cleric who lawfully moves to another particular Church while remaining incardinated in his own, may for a just reason be recalled by his own Bishop, provided the agreements entered into with the other Bishop are honored and natural equity is observed. Under the same conditions, the Bishop of the other particular Church can for a just reason refuse the cleric permission to reside further in his territory.
§2 Unless excused by a lawful impediment, clerics are obliged to accept and faithfully fulfill the office committed to them by their Ordinary.
Can. 277 §1 Clerics are obliged to observe perfect and perpetual continence for the sake of the Kingdom of heaven, and are therefore bound to celibacy. Celibacy is a special gift of God by which sacred ministers can more easily remain close to Christ with an undivided heart, and can dedicate themselves more freely to the service of God and their neighbor.
§3 The diocesan Bishop has authority to establish more detailed rules concerning this matter, and to pass judgment on the observance of the obligation in particular cases.
§2 The secular clergy are to hold in high esteem those associations especially whose statutes are recognized by the competent authority and which, by a suitable and well tried rule of life and by fraternal support, promote holiness in the exercise of their ministry and foster the unity of the clergy with one another and with their Bishop.
§3 Clerics are to refrain from establishing or joining associations whose purpose or activity cannot be reconciled with the obligations proper to the clerical state, or which can hinder the diligent fulfillment of the office entrusted to them by the competent ecclesiastical authority.
Can. 279 §1 Clerics are to continue their sacred studies even after ordination to the priesthood. They are to hold to that solid doctrine based on sacred Scripture which has been handed down by our forebears and which is generally received in the Church, as set out especially in the documents of the Councils and of the Roman Pontiffs. They are to avoid profane novelties and pseudo­science.
§3 Married deacons who dedicate themselves full­time to the ecclesiastical ministry deserve remuneration sufficient to provide for themselves and their families. Those, however, who receive a remuneration by reason of a secular profession which they exercise or exercised, are to see to their own and to their families’ needs from that income.
§2 Goods which they receive on the occasion of the exercise of an ecclesiastical office, and which are over and above what is necessary for their worthy upkeep and the fulfillment of all the duties of their state, they may well wish to use for the good of the Church and for charitable works.
Can. 286 Clerics are forbidden to practise commerce or trade, either personally or through another, for their own or another’s benefit, except with the permission of the lawful ecclesiastical authority.
§2 They are not to play an active role in political parties or in directing trade unions unless, in the judgment of the competent ecclesiastical authority, this is required for the defense of the rights of the Church or to promote the common good.
Can. 288 Permanent deacons are not bound by the provisions of canon 284, 285 §§3 and 4, 286, 287 §2, unless particular law states otherwise.
§2 Clerics are to take advantage of exemptions from exercising functions and public civil offices foreign to the clerical state, which are granted in their favor by law, agreements or customs, unless their proper Ordinary has in particular cases decreed otherwise.
1° by a judgment of a court or an administrative decree, declaring the ordination invalid;
TITLE V: ASSOCIATIONS OF CHRIST’S FAITHFUL
Can. 298 §1 In the Church there are associations which are distinct from institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life. In these associations, Christ’s faithful, whether clerics or laity, or clerics and laity together, strive with a common effort to foster a more perfect life, or to promote public worship or Christian teaching. They may also devote themselves to other works of the apostolate, such as initiatives for evangelization, works of piety or charity, and those which animate the temporal order with the Christian spirit.
§2 Christ’s faithful are to join especially those associations which have been established, praised or recommended by the competent ecclesiastical authority.
Can. 299 §1 By private agreement among themselves, Christ’s faithful have the right to constitute associations for the purposes mentioned in can. 298 §1, without prejudice to the provisions of can. 301 §1.
§3 No private association of Christ’s faithful is recognized in the Church unless its statutes have been reviewed by the competent authority.
Can. 300 No association may call itself ‘catholic’ except with the consent of the competent ecclesiastical authority, in accordance with can. 312.
Can. 301 §1 It is for the competent ecclesiastical authority alone to establish associations of Christ’s faithful which intend to impart Christian teaching in the name of the Church, or to promote public worship, or which are directed to other ends whose pursuit is of its nature reserved to the same ecclesiastical authority.
§2 The competent ecclesiastical authority, if it judges it expedient, can also establish associations of Christ’s faithful to pursue, directly or indirectly, other spiritual ends whose attainment is not adequately provided for by private initiatives.
§3 Associations of Christ’s faithful which are established by the competent ecclesiastical authority are called public associations.
Can. 302 Associations of Christ’s faithful are called clerical when they are under the direction of clerics, presuppose the exercise of sacred orders, and are acknowledged as such by the competent authority.
Can. 304 §1 All associations of Christ’s faithful, whether public or private, by whatever title or name they are called, are to have their own statutes. These are to define the purpose or social objective of the association, its center, its governance and the conditions of membership. They are also to specify the manner of action of the association, paying due regard to what is necessary or useful in the circumstances of the time and place.
Can. 305 §1 All associations of Christ’s faithful are subject to the supervision of the competent ecclesiastical authority. This authority is to ensure that integrity of faith and morals is maintained in them and that abuses in ecclesiastical discipline do not creep in. The competent authority has therefore the duty and the right to visit these associations, in accordance with the law and the statutes. Associations are also subject to the governance of the same authority in accordance with the provisions of the canons which follow.
Can. 306 To enjoy the rights and privileges, indulgences and other spiritual favors granted to an association, it is necessary and sufficient that a person be validly received into the association in accordance with the provisions of the law and with the association’s own statutes, and be not lawfully dismissed from it.
§2 The moderator of a public association may be removed for a just reason, by the person who made the appointment or the confirmation, but the Moderator himself and the senior officials of the association must be consulted, in accordance with the statutes. The chaplain can, however, be removed by the person who appointed him, in accordance with canon 192­­195.
Can. 321 Christ’s faithful direct and moderate private associations according to the provisions of the statutes.
Can. 322 §1 A private association of Christ’s faithful can acquire juridical personality by a formal decree of the competent ecclesiastical authority mentioned in can. 312.
§2 No private association of Christ’s faithful can acquire juridical personality unless its statutes are approved by the ecclesiastical authority mentioned in can. 312 §1. The approval of the statutes does not, however, change the private nature of the association.
Can. 323 §1 Although private associations of Christ’s faithful enjoy their own autonomy in accordance with can. 321, they are subject to the supervision of ecclesiastical authority, in accordance with can. 305, and also to the governance of the same authority.
Can. 324 §1 A private association of Christ’s faithful can freely designate for itself a moderator and officers, in accordance with the statutes.
§2 If a private association of Christ’s faithful wishes to have a spiritual counselor, it can freely choose one for itself from among the priests who lawfully exercise a ministry in the diocese, but the priest requires the confirmation of the local Ordinary.
Can. 325 §1 A private association of Christ’s faithful is free to administer any goods it possesses, according to the provisions of the statutes, but the competent ecclesiastical authority has the right to ensure that the goods are applied to the purposes of the association.
Can. 326 §1 A private association of Christ’s faithful is extinguished in accordance with the norms of the statutes. It can also be suppressed by the competent authority if its activity gives rise to grave harm to ecclesiastical teaching or discipline, or is a scandal to the faithful.
Can. 327 Lay members of Christ’s faithful are to hold in high esteem associations established for the spiritual purposes mentioned in can. 298. They should especially esteem those associations whose aim is to animate the temporal order with the Christian spirit, and thus greatly foster an intimate union between faith and life.
Can. 328 Those who head lay associations, even those established by apostolic privilege, are to ensure that their associations cooperate with other associations of Christ’s faithful, where this is expedient. They are to give their help freely to various Christian works, especially those in the same territory.