Folia Theologica et Canonica 4. 26/18 (2015)

IUS CANONICUM - Szabolcs Anzelm Szuromi. O.Praem., Interpretation of the Church's discipline without the former sources?

FOLIA THEOLOGICA ET CANONICA (2015) 253-266

Szabolcs Anzelm SzuROMi, O.Praem.

INTERPRETATION OF THE CHURCH’S DISCIPLINE WITHOUT THE FORMER SOURCES?*

I. Importance of the Knowledge of those Canonical Sources which Came into Force Prior 1917, /. Peculiarities of Canon Law, 2. Historical Development of Interpretation of Canon Law and Its Role in the Instruction; II. The Corpus Iuris Canonici as Indispensable Basis in the Interpretation of the Current Canonical Norms; Conclusion: Ecclesiastical Disciplinary Sources as Essential Basis and Guarantee for the Constant Fulfilment of the Proper Goal of the Church

I. Importance of the Knowledge of those Canonical Sources which Came into Force Prior 1917

1. Peculiarities of Canon Law

Canon law, as a system of the Church’s disciplinary rules that directs Christ’s faithful (christifideles) “to divine worship, peace, and preserving Christian justice, at last to reach the eternal happiness” (i.e. Francis Xavier Schmalzgrue- ber S.J.'), may for this reason actually be considered as “sacred law” (ius sacrum), since its norms promote, directly or indirectly, the sanctification of the individual persons. If we contrast this with the norms regulating the common life of the human society (ius civile), then we may call it in a broad sense divine law (ius divinum), or law bound to the divine law, because a canonical law has a special bond to the divine law (i.e. Giovanni Paolo Lancelotti2). On one

* This article was written at the Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria with generous support of the Instituto de Derecho Euopeo Cldsico (I DEC) and was presented at the XVIF'1 International Canon Law Conference of the Pázmány Péter Catholic University, Canon Law Institute “ad instar facultatis” (Budapest, February 9"' 2015). This research was also supported by the OTKAK 106300 project.

1 Michiels, G., Normae generales iuris canonici, I. Lublin 1929. 1 1.

2 Leges omnes, ac iura omnia in dirigendis humanis actionibus ad bene, beateque vivendum, non aliter se habent, quam habenae, frena, et calcaria ad incitandos, et moderandos gressus, et cursus equorum: unde cum lex iubet alieno abstinere, ab iniuria temperare, neminem denique hominem laedere, contrafacientibusque poenas addir, nobis ac cupiditatibus nostris quasi frena quaedam iniicir, et habens praemit, flagellisque coercet. Cum vero honesta iubet, atque ad ea praemiis nos