CANON LAW. The law of the Roman Cath olic Church, embodied in the Corpus luris Ca nonici. Its sources are the Bible, the writings of the Fathers, the canons of the councils. the decretals of the Popes. the manuals of penance, custom, and secular legislation, especially in the code of Justinian. Comparatively early, at tempts were made to codify the rules which gov erned the conduct of the Church and its mem bers. One of the earliest attempts gave rise to the Apostolic Constitutions and Canons (q.v.). There were many other compilations at various periods which were followed by portions of the Church. (See PSF,I" DO- ISMORIA N DECRETALS. ) But all earlier collections were superseded by the Decrctum Gratiani. 'Phis was compiled probably between 11:39 and 1143, and was frequently known as the Concordantia Discordantium Canonum. It is composed of three parts. The first, divided into 101 distinetiones, subdivided into canons. treats of the sources of canon law, the organiza tion of the Church, the ordination and the hier archy of the clergy, the election and consecration of the bishops, the authority of the legates and primates. The second, divided into thirty-six causa-, subdivided into quirstiocs. under which are given the pertinent canons. treats of judicial matters. The third, divided into five distinc tion( s, under which are given the canons. treats of the sacrament and the liturgy. The Deere tum forms the first part of the Corpus luris Canonici. The second part contains four collec tions of decretals, I. The Deerctals of Gregory IX., published in 1234. which contain the important decretals is sued since the publication of the Decretum. No name was given to the collection by Gregory: the old authors called it Liber Extravagantiunt or Pentateuchus, from its division into five books.
2. The Liber Sextus, published by Boniface VIII. in 129S, containing decretals since 1234.
3. Coast it a tiones Clementinw, published in 1313, withdrawn for revision and reissued in 1317. These contain the decretals of Clement V. and two issued by preceding popes.
4. The Extraragantes of John XXII. (131(7) 1334) and the Extraragantes COM PI noes. The first contains twenty decretals of John; the sec ond seventy-three issued by various popes be tween 1211S and 14S4. The Extravagantes were never formally promulgated and have obtained a place in the canon law only by custom. All four collections follow the traditional order of subjects, ludiciinn, Clerus, M17. The portions of the canon law are not all of equal authority, but the distinctions are too extensive to be discussed here. (See raphy at end.) In many editions of the canon law the Institutiones of Lancelottus are pub lished as a supplement. The author states that he wrote this at the request of the Pope in order to make the canon law correspond more closely to the Corpus Turis Cirilis (q.v.). The Deercturn corresponds to the Pandects; the Decretals of Gregory IX. to the Code; the Sextus, Clemen time, and Extraragantes to the :Vore/kr; his work to the Institutes. It was published in 1563, and frequently since, but never approved author itatively by the Pope. It is hardly necessary to add that, although the Corpus is still the au thoritative collection, canon law has been con stantly modified by later enactments.
During the Middle Ages the canon law was authoritative in all countries subject to the spiritual jurisdiction of Rome. The ecclesiasti cal courts embraced within their jurisdiction all members of the clergy, and, as a privilege, widows, orphans, crusaders, and students. But
their jurisdiction extended over many other per sons because they claimed the control over many cases, such as matters relative to the faith, sac raments. and vows; matters relative to marriage, ecclesiastical property. and wills: crimes against religion, or those committed in sacred places: violations of the truce of God (q.v.). the exac tion of usury, i.e. interest, etc. Some of these subjects the civil authorities admitted to be wholly within the province of the ecclesiastical courts; with regard to other subjects. the civil courts claimed an equal or superior right of jurisdietion. As the royal authority became stronger in the different• countries, the kings be came jealous of an authority in&pendent of their own, and attempted to bring the members of the clergy and certain classes of cases under their iNV a jurisdiction. They were especially hostile tip to R01111'. (See CLARENDoN, CONSTI TI•TIO)s OF.) Cltimately the royal authority triumphed and canon law became restricted al most everywhdrc to purely and eccle siastical questions. It is still authoritative in many countries on ninny subjects,and it has modi fied profoundly both international law and civil law in the vii riots countries of Europe. It is impossible to state briefly. and yet accurately. its varying authority in modern times in the dif ferent. countries. Until recently its importance in Germany was very great. Down to the end of the Eighteenth Century it was a constituent ele ment of the common law; since that time its au tho•ity has been greatly restricted and confined in civil matters to a comparatively few States. In France it was abrogated in 17110 by the 'Civil Constitution of the Clergy,' and it has never re gained its position. In England it has no direct authority, but some portions of the English law are based upon canon law. in Scotland, curious ly enough. when one considers Scotch history, the 'Roman canon law still prevails to a certain ex tent. Lord Stair said, in his Institutes of the Scotch Law, "So deep bath this canon law been rooted. that even where the Pope's authority is rejected, yet consideration must he had to these laws, not only as those by which church bene fices have been erected and ordered, hut as like wise containing, many equitable and profitable laws, which, because of their weighty matter, and their being once received, may more fitly be retained than rejected.'' In two old Scotch acts of Parliament, made in 1540 and 1551, the canon law is used in conjunction with the Roman law to denote the common law of the country, the expression used being "the common law, baith canon, civil, and statutes of the realme." In the 'United States some laws borrowed from the English common law are based upon the canon law.
The best edition of the Corpus luris Canonici is edited by Friedberg (2 vols., Leipzig, 1879 81). The number of good works on the canon law is very great. Tardif, Histoire des sources du droit canonique (Paris, 1887), gives an excel lent bibliography down to that date. See also Phillips, Kirchenreeht (7 vols.. Regensburg, 1845-72, incomplete; continued by Vering, Vol. VII T., Regensburg, 1889) ; Schulte, Gesell Mille der Quellrn ii nil Litt(Tatur des canon you Oration his auf (lie G Cy en wait (3 vols., Stuttgart, 1875-83) ; Das Kirehrn re C hi der Katholiken und Protestantcn (4 vols., Berlin, 1869-86) ; Maitland, 72canan Canon Law in the Church of England (Cambridge.