Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 04.djvu/181

CANONIZATION. 147 CANON LAW. tyrs. or Jistiiifriii-ihed themselves as eonfessors of the faith. In the case of a doubtful chiim to this honor, the decision at first rested with the bisliop of the diocese, but was later reserved to the metropolitans. They were not seldom as- sisted by a council, and the question was some- times referred to Kome. The first recorded Papal canonization, however, is that of Ulrich, Bishop of Augsburg, by John XV., in OS'S ; but no claim to exclusive right was made until Alex- ander III. laid down in 1170 the principle which has ever since formed the basis of the law in the matter. Here and there holy men and women were revered as saints in their own neighbor- hoods, even after this, until Urban VIII. put a stop to the practice in 1G34. Canonization, as understood in modern times, is the culmination of a lengthy process. The prospective saint must first pass through the earlier stages of being declared a "venerable ser- vant of God.' and of beatification (q.v. ). The last step involves an exceedingly minute inquiry, conducted with the most elaborate legal formali- ties; the rules of evidence applied to the testi- mony in support of alleged miracles (at least two of which nnist he proved to have been wrought since the beatification 1 are more strict than in any American or English court. An ecclesiastic kno«ii as the promotor fidei, and sometimes as the advocatus diaboli, is specially appointed to urge every possible objection and test to the utmost the validity of the claims ad- vanced. When a favorable decision is pronounced (which is never less than fifty years after the person's death), the ceremony of canonization is performed in Saint Peter's with great pomp. Among the Eastern churches the principle of canonrzation is recognized. The right to perform the ceremony is supposed to be vested in the Patriarch of Constantinople, biit it is rarely exercised. For the rules and ceremonies of Roman Catholic canonization, consult the stand- ard authority. Pope Benedict XIV., De .9frron/m Dei Beatifirnfione et Beatorum Canonizatione (Bologna. 17.34-38). of which a portion has been translated under the title Heroic Virtue (3 vols., London, 18.50). • CANON LAW. The law of the Roman Cath- olic Church, embodied in the Corpiis luri.i Ca- vo»iri. 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 PsKiDO-I.sinoBiAX Decretals.) But all earlier collections were superseded by the Decretum Cratiani. This was compiled juobably between 1130 and 1143, and was frequently known as the Concordantia Discordantium Canonuin. It is composed of three parts. The first, divided into 101 dintinrtiones, 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 caiiiiw, subdivided into quastiones, under which are given the pertinent canons, treats of judicial matters. The third, divided into five disttjic- tiones, under which are given the canons, treats of the sacrament and the liturgy. The Decre- tum forms the first part of the Corpus luris Cnnonici. The second part contains four collec- tions of decretals. 1. The Decretals 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 ft Liher Extravagantium or Pentateuchus, from its division into five books. 2. The Liber Sextus, published by Boniface yill. in 1298, containing decretals since 1234. 3. Constitutiones 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 Extravagaiites of -John XXII. (131(;- 1334) and the Extravagantes Communes. The first contains twenty decretals of John; the sec- ond seventy-three issued by various popes be- tween 1208 and 1484. 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, ludcT, Indicium, Clerus, Connuhia, Cri- men. The portions of the canon law are not all of equal authority, but the distinctions are too extensive to be discussed here, (See Bibliog- raphy at end.) In many editions of the canon law the Institntiones of Lancelottus are pul> 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 (he f'or/)«.s luris Ciiilis (q.v.). The Decretum corresponds to the Pandects ; the Decretals of Gregory IX. to the Code; the Sextus, Clemen- tince, and Extravagantes to the XotreUtF ; his work to the Institutes. It was published in 15G3, 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 ^liddle Ages the canon law was authoritative in all countries subject to the spiritual jurisdiction of Rome. The ecclesiasti- cal courts embraced w'ithin 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 jurisdiction. As the royal authority became stronger in the different countries, the kings he- came jealous of an authority independent of their own, and attempted to bring the members of the clergy- and certain classes of cases under their own jurisdiction. They were especially hostile