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76 Jurist 197 (2016)
The Notion of Canonical Jurisprudence and Its Application to the Tribunal of the Roman Rota and Causes of Nullity of Marriage

handle is hein.journals/juristcu76 and id is 203 raw text is: 

THE  JURIST   76(2016)  197-229


                                 WILLIAM L. DANIEL*


The Notion of Canonical Jurisprudence

and its Application to the Tribunal

of   the   Roman Rota and Causes

of   Nullity of Marriage



I. Introduction
Those  engaged  in the governance  of and  the administration of jus-
tice in the Church are bound by the duty of their office to act always in
accord with the sacred discipline of the Church. That discipline cannot be
reduced to the bald text of the canons of the codes but, in the first place,
presupposes a profound appreciation for what is just (iustum) in the soci-
etal relationships of Christ's faithful. One critical source for attaining such
an appreciation is the body of jurisprudence that is an integral portion of
the canonical tradition and science.
    In the contemporary ecclesial milieu, where the stability and nullity of
marriage have been called into question in a public way reminiscent of the
1960s and 1970s,l and where the norm of procedural law governing causes
of nullity of marriage has just undergone some profound modifications,2
the stability of ecclesiastical jurisprudence, especially in the area of mar-
riage, seems also to have been impacted. Accordingly, the time is most

    * Assistant Professor, School of Canon Law, The Catholic University of America,
Washington, DC.
    i. Cf. III Extraordinary Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, Relatio post disceptationem,
October 13, 2014 (Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2014).
    2. Cf. Francis, motu proprio Mitis iudex Dominus lesus, August 15, 2015 (Vatican
City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2015); idem, mot proprio Mitis et misericors lesus, August 15,
2015 (Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2015).

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