Since the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965), the legislation and other official documents of the Roman Catholic Church have often characterized the Church's mission in terms of the tria munera, the threefold functions of teaching, sanctifying, and governing. According to Church law and teaching, all the baptized have the right and obligation to participate in their own manner in this threefold mission. This study explores the proper role of the deacon's exercise of the tria munera as set forth in the canon law of the Latin and the Eastern Catholic Churches with a special focus on the particular laws of the Ukrainian Catholic Church.
In response to the decrees of Vatican II, Pope Paul VI restored the permanent order of the diaconate to the Latin Church where it had been dormant for centuries; at the same time, the diaconate was reaffirmed and reawakened in the Eastern Catholic Churches where it had survived in law though only barely in practice. While much has been written about the identity and ministry of the deacon since Vatican II, this is the first study to examine thoroughly the juridical sources on the deacon's participation in the tria munera as it impacts his functions, rights, obligations, and relationship with the other members of the hierarchy and the laity.
The first chapter surveys the origin, nature, and distinguishing characteristics of the order of the deacon. This is developed mainly from juridical and liturgical sources with a particular focus on the similarities and differences in the diaconate in the Christian East and West. The second chapter analyzes in-depth the restoration of the permanent diaconate in the legislation of the Latin Church, noting also some differences and tensions between the so-called "transitional" and the permanent order of the diaconate. The third chapter develops and analyzes the laws on the diaconate in the Ukrainian Catholic Church, especially the Ukrainian Church in Canada.
The fourth chapter is a comparative analysis of the laws of the Latin Church and the common and particular law of the Ukrainian Catholic Church with regard to the order of deacons and the tria munera. The conclusions sum up the key similarities and differences in these two legal systems on this issue and offer some suggestions for future legislative reforms.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uottawa.ca/oai:ruor.uottawa.ca:10393/29797 |
| Date | January 2008 |
| Creators | Leclair, Douglas M |
| Publisher | University of Ottawa (Canada) |
| Source Sets | Université d’Ottawa |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | 275 p. |
Page generated in 0.0016 seconds