Folia Canonica 11. (2008)
STUDIES - George D. Gallaro: Oikonomia and Marriage Dissolution in the Christian East
124 GEORGE D. GALLARO mental marriages, namely contracted without the liturgical rite, which were considered a necessary condition to receive the sacrament, g) Once the marriage was dissolved by a criminal act, the Church strongly recommended the separated partners to practice continence. In case of a recognized difficulty, economy was applied by tolerating a new union for the innocent party, while the guilty one was refused Holy Communion for many years, h) The second marriage of divorced was never considered sacramental but only tolerated, provided there was no other impediment, because marriage was still endowed with a sacred feature as stable union between a man and a woman capable to prevent polygamy and fornication, i) No canonical norms were ever defined to approve the application of economy. It was just a discretionary practice from immemorial times, j) Economy was never applied to Christian faithful over sixty years of age. k) Only under Emperor Justinian (f 565) there were laws on the matter with the abolition of marriage by mutual consent and the list of causes for divorce. l) The Sixth Ecumenical Council deals with this matter but only to reaffirm the criminal act of those responsible for divorcing and apply the canonical penalties. m) In practice economy was applied everywhere in the Christian East, although every case was reserved to the discretion of the local bishop who would verify the circumstances, n) From the Edict of Emperor Constantine to the present time this has been the uninterrupted practice in the Christian Churches of the East.
