Canon Law: Basic Principles

This course will examine the nature, history and function of law in the Catholic Church by presenting an overview of the 1983 Code of Canon Law and other ecclesiastical laws and regulations concerning general norms (Book I), the rights and obligations of the Christian faithful and ecclesiastical structures (Book II), the teaching office of the Church (Book III) and temporal goods (Book V). The course will provide students with an understanding of the structures, processes and discipline directed to harmony and order for the Christian faithful. It will seek to engender a knowledge and respect for ecclesiastical law as a pastoral instrument and practical science that translates the Church’s teaching into reasonable norms for members’ everyday lives. Students will learn about the basic structures in the Church at the universal, national, diocesan and parochial levels and about resources helpful to their effective participation and ministries in the Church. The course will introduce students to a significantly different juridical system and body of law and will enhance their abilities to deal with legal issues arising in a distinctly different juridical context.
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