Folia Canonica 10. (2007)
STUDIES - Péter Artner: The Canonical Protection of the Dignity of the Sacrament of Penance in the Penal Law
THE CANONICAL PROTECTION OF THE DIGNITY OF THE SACRAMENT OF PENANCE 89 II. The Delicts in Connection with the Sixth Commandment of the Decalogue In the penal law relatively a lot of regulations can be found about the offences against chastity. Among these are canons in connection with the Sacrament of Penance. This is not because his sin is much more serious than the others, but the protection of the dignity of the Sacrament requires, that to avoid the frequent or repeated occurrence of the scandals, abuses or sins, to connect punishments to certain misdeeds.2 The canons (cc. 977, 1387 and connected) are speaking of offences against the “sixth commandment”. The sixth commandment of the Decalogue (Ex 20,14 and Deut 5, 18) is: “Thou shall not commit adultery.” If we interpret the law strictly, these canons refer to those priests who are committing adultery with a married woman.3 De Paolis4 tells us that the Sixth Commandment is to be interpreted according to today’s explanation, and as c. 6 writes it must be assessed also in accord with canonical tradition. The origin of the sanctions that are in connection with the delicts against chastity and the Sacrament of Penance is in the Constitution Sacramentum Paenitentiae of Benedict XIV (1st June, 1741), which punishes all offences against the sixth Commandment of the Decalogue "in peccato turpi atque inhonesto, contra sextum dacalogi praeceptum commisso", namely all external sins against chastity: actions, words, looks etc, but not merely internals. The Eastern Code composes more unambiguously when it states “sins against chastity” (CCEO cc. 730, 1457, 1458). 1. Solicitation The “sollicitatio ad turpia” is an offence, when the priest solicits a penitent to sin against the sixth commandment of the Decalogue during (in the act, on the occasion, or under the pretext of) the confession. It can not be allowed in the least, that the sacrament of the forgiveness and peace may be an occasion for evil. The c. 13 87 punishes a priest if in the act, namely during the confession, or on the occasion this means immediately before or after the confession, or under the pretext of confession, that is if there was no confession, solicits the penitent to sin against the sixth commandment. On the occasion of the confession but inde2W. H. Woestman, Sacraments, Initiation, Penance, Anointing of the Sick, Saint Paul University, Ottawa, 1996, 268 3K. LOdicke, Münsterischer Kommentar zum Codex Iuris Canonici, Ludgerus Verlag, Essen, 1985 -, c. 1378/3 4 De Paolis, Delictis, 198
