Folia Canonica 5. (2002)
STUDIES - Szabolcs Anzelm Szuromi: The Development of the Clerical Orders prior to the Discipline of Statuta Ecclesiae Antique (5th Century)
104 SZABOLCS ANZELM SZUROMI (bishop, priest, deacon);54 19 of the 52 refer only to bishops;5510 of the 52 speak about bishops and priests without deacons;56 and only 3 of the 52 contain rules concerning priests and deacons without mentioning bishops.57 Therefore, the texts of the Canones apostolid particularly stress the importance of the episcopal office. The best summary of the bishop’s superiority in the Canones apostolid is c. 35.58 Furthermore, c. 40 declares the bishop’s superintendent power over deacons and priests.59 But, in fact, most of the above listed canons deal with the three higher clerical orders without any distinction. III.. Summ ary Based on what has been said above, we can see the gradual clarification of the deacon-priest-bishop hierarchical order (i. e. the proper power of bishops). On the one hand the peculiarities of the different orders were not defined exactly in these two early canon law collections just as in the Gregorian compilations of patristic writings, especially in the works of St. Jerome, St. Cyprian and St. Augustine, which have become the most important theological (ecclesiological) canons in the canon law collections of the 11th Century.60 On the other hand, we can see clearly the close connection between the bishop and the priests association. The function of archpriest belonged to the church hierarchy in this time. It can be found first in the 43rd prayer of St. Gregory ofNazianzus,61 and also in the 125th 54Cc. 7-9, 17-18, 25, 28-30, 33-34, 42, 44-45, 51, 53, 63, 68-70, 83. 55 Cc. 1-2, 14, 16, 21, 31-32, 35-39, 41, 55, 74-78. 56 Cc. 3, 5-6, 46^17, 49-50, 52, 58-59. 57 Cc. 15, 40, 56. 58 C. 35 „Episcopos gentium singularum scire convenit, quis inter eos primus habeatur, quem velut caput existiment, et nihil amplius praeter eius conscientiam gerant, quam illa sola singuli, quae parochiae, et villis quae sub ea sunt, competunt, sed nec ille praeter omnium conscientiam faciat aliquid, sic enim unanimitas erit, et glorificabitur Deus per Christum in Spiritu sancto.” PL 67. col. 145. 59 C. 40 „Presbyteri et diaconi praeter episcopum nihil agere pertentent. Nam Domini populus ipsi commissus est, et pro animabus eorum hic redditurus est rationem. Sint autem manifestae res propriae episcopi (si tamen habet proprias), et manifestae Dominicae, ut potestatem habeat, de propriis moriens episcopus, sicut voluerit, et quibus voluerit derelinquere. Nec sub occasione ecclesiasticarum rerum, quae episcopi esse probantur, intercidant; fortassis enim aut uxorem habet, aut filios, aut propinquos, aut servos. Et iustum est hoc apud Deum et homines, ut nec Ecclesia detrimentum patiatur, ignoratione rerum pontificis, nec episcopus, vel eius propinqui sub obtentu Ecclesiae proscribantur, et in causas incidant, qui ad eum pertinent, morsque eius iniuriis et malae famae subiaceat.” PL 67. col. 146. 60 See SZUROMI, Die patristische Wurzel (nt. 49), 262-263. 61 PG 36. coll. 493-606.
