Folia Theologica et Canonica 6. 28/20 (2017)

IUS CANONICUM - Szabolcs Anzelm Szuromi, O.Praem., Historical development of the aggravating and extenuating circumstances in the canonical penal law

FOLIATHEOLOGICA ETCANONICA (20171 241-252

Szabolcs Anzelm Szuromi, O.Praem.

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT

OF THE AGGRAVATING AND EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCES IN THE CANONICAL PENAL LAW*

I. The ORIGINAL LEGAL - CANONICAL - CHARACTER OF THE EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCES; II. THE “FONTES FORMALES” AND THE PRIMARY AUTHORS; III. THE CANONICAL COLLECTIONS AND THEIR CONTENTS; IV. Categories of the extenuating and aggravating circumstances, /. Extenuating circumstances (De causis quae minuunt delictum), 2. Aggravating circumstances (De causis quae dolum augent); Conclusion

“Propositis elementis imputabilitatis, scilicet dolo vei culpa, exponuntur natura et influxus causarum ex quibus dilectum obiective vel subjective oritur, tollitur, minuitur aut augetur; dein gradus imputabilitatis dilecti in complicitate.”' As Arthur Vermeersch and Joseph Creusen summarize the imputably of delicts. If we like to analyze the historical development of the aggravating and extenuating circumstances within the canonical penal law system, we must focus at least four essential elements: 1 ) the original legal - canonical - character of the extenuating circumstances as compared with the modern legal theory; 2) the “fontes formales” of this field of the canonical penal concept and the primary authors of them; 3) the particular role of the papal legislation and the very clear contents of the canonical collections - including the pre-Gratian- and the Gratian' Collection, moreover the contents of the Corpus iuris canonici -; 4) and finally the concrete list of the aggravating and extenuating circumstances, never forgetting that the original designation within the canonical terminology used “de causis quae minuunt delictum”2 and “de causis quae dolum augent”3 technical terms for these two fields.

* This article was written in the St. Michael’s Abbey of the Norbertine Fathers (Orange, CA), in the Bibliothèque Municipale Je Toulouse, and at the Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. It was presented at the XIX'1 International Canon Law Conference of the Pázmány Péter Catholic University, Canon Law Institute “ad instar facultatis” (Budapest, February 13lh 2017). This publication is supported by the Fundación Derecho y Europa (Coruna, Spain) and by the KAP 17-63018-3.6-JÁK project.

1 Vermeersch, A. - Creusen, J, Epitome iuris canonici cum commentants ad scholar et ad usum privatum. III. Brugis-Bruxellis 1925.3 187.

2 Vermeersch, A. - Creusen, J, Epitome iuris canonici. III. 191.

3 Vermeersch, A. - Creusen, J, Epitome iuris canonici. III. 192.