The Code of Canon Law
Introduction
Any body without a rule, a guide or law is doomed to chaos, anarchy, and disharmony. Any group without a guiding principle will be more disorganized than organized. A people without a distinguishing mark will surely be buried in the sand of time. They will suffer extinction wrought about by their irrelevance which is the consequence of the absence of laws and hence, absence of a pattern of behavior.
The church is both organized and relevant. It follows then that she must have a law guiding her children to a way of life. This serves as a distinguishing factor between her members and those who are not her members; making them truly salt of the earth and light of the nations. What then are those guiding principles? How did they come about? What are the antecedents that necessitated their emergence? What is (are) the importance of the history of these laws? These are some of the questions this work shall be addressing.
Canon Law Defined
Etymologically the word canon is derived from the Greek word “kavόνεҁ” meaning a stick or rod. It also means a standard measurement, the rule, norm, or yardstick.1 law on the other hand means a rule usually made by a government that is used to order the way a society behaves. In other words it is a system of rules of a particular society.2 according to Thomas Aquinas, law is a specific ordinance of reason meant to promote common good and promulgated by one who has the responsibility for the commminity.3
Therefore the code of canon law is a book containing the universal and fundamental laws of the Roman Catholic Church. By code is meant a unified systematic body of law and not just a loose collection of law
Epochs In The Emergence of The Code of Canon Law
According to The Modern Catholic Encyclopedia, “the evolution of the church law can generally be divided into three major eras: the ius antiquum (old law), the ius novum (new law), and the ius novissimum (newest law).”4 The old law spans through the first eleven
Any body without a rule, a guide or law is doomed to chaos, anarchy, and disharmony. Any group without a guiding principle will be more disorganized than organized. A people without a distinguishing mark will surely be buried in the sand of time. They will suffer extinction wrought about by their irrelevance which is the consequence of the absence of laws and hence, absence of a pattern of behavior.
The church is both organized and relevant. It follows then that she must have a law guiding her children to a way of life. This serves as a distinguishing factor between her members and those who are not her members; making them truly salt of the earth and light of the nations. What then are those guiding principles? How did they come about? What are the antecedents that necessitated their emergence? What is (are) the importance of the history of these laws? These are some of the questions this work shall be addressing.
Canon Law Defined
Etymologically the word canon is derived from the Greek word “kavόνεҁ” meaning a stick or rod. It also means a standard measurement, the rule, norm, or yardstick.1 law on the other hand means a rule usually made by a government that is used to order the way a society behaves. In other words it is a system of rules of a particular society.2 according to Thomas Aquinas, law is a specific ordinance of reason meant to promote common good and promulgated by one who has the responsibility for the commminity.3
Therefore the code of canon law is a book containing the universal and fundamental laws of the Roman Catholic Church. By code is meant a unified systematic body of law and not just a loose collection of law
Epochs In The Emergence of The Code of Canon Law
According to The Modern Catholic Encyclopedia, “the evolution of the church law can generally be divided into three major eras: the ius antiquum (old law), the ius novum (new law), and the ius novissimum (newest law).”4 The old law spans through the first eleven
Bibliography: Anyanwu C. A., An Introduction to the Essentials of Fundamental Theology. Nigeria: San Press, 200. Anieke C., Unpublished Lecture Note. Saviourite House of Formation Enugu, 2012/2013. Burke J, A Short History of Canon Law. P. 58. Glazier M. and Hellwig M. K. ed., The Modern Catholic Encyclopedia. Collegeville: Liturgical Press. 2004. Procter P. ed., Cambridge International Dictionary of English. India: Thomson Press, 1995.