КОДЕКС КАНОНІВ СХІДНИХ ЦЕРКОВ

Ср. католичество. Каноны.

TITLE 16 Divine Worship and Especially the Sacraments

Canon 667 Through the sacraments, which the Church is bound to dispense so that the mystery of Christ is communicated under a visible sign, our Lord Jesus Christ sanctifies people by the power of the Holy Spirit, so that they become in a unique way true worshipers of God the Father and by which they are inserted into the Church, His Body; therefore all Christian faithful, especially sacred ministers, are to observe diligently the prescriptions of the Church in conscientiously celebrating and receiving the sacraments.

Canon 668 1. Divine worship, if it is done in the name of the Church by a person legitimately appointed for this and through an act approved by the authority of the Church, is called public; if not, it is called private. 2. For the regulation of divine public worship the competent authority is the one mentioned in can. 657, with due regard for can. 199, 1; no other person can add to, remove, or modify that which was established by this authority.

Canon 669 Since the sacraments are the same for the entire Church and belong to the divine deposit, it is for the supreme authority of the Church alone to approve or define those things which are required for their validity.

Canon 670 1. For a just cause Catholics can attend the liturgical worship of other Christians and take part in the same, observing those things which, by reason of the degree of communion with the Catholic Church, are established by the eparchial bishop or by a superior authority. 2. If non-Catholic Christians lack a place in which divine worship can be celebrated with dignity, the eparchial bishop can grant the use of a Catholic building or cemetery or church according to the norm of particular law of his own Church sui iuris.

Canon 671 1. Catholic ministers licitly administer the sacraments only to Catholic Christian faithful, who, likewise, licitly receive the sacraments only from Catholic ministers. 2. If necessity requires it or genuine spiritual advantage suggests it and provided that the danger of error or indifferentism is avoided, it is permitted for Catholic Christian faithful, for whom it is physically or morally impossible to approach a Catholic minister, to receive the sacraments of penance, the Eucharist and anointing of the sick from non-Catholic ministers, in whose Churches these sacraments are valid. 3. Likewise Catholic ministers licitly administer the sacraments of penance, the Eucharist and anointing of the sick to Christian faithful of Eastern Churches, who do not have full communion with the Catholic Church, if they ask for them on their own and are properly disposed. This holds also for the Christian faithful of other Churches, who according to the judgment of the Apostolic See, are in the same condition as the Eastern Churches as far as the sacraments are concerned. 4. If there is a danger of death or another matter of serious necessity in the judgment of the eparchial bishop, the synod of bishops of the patriarchal Church or the council of hierarchs, Catholic ministers licitly administer the same sacraments also to other Christians not having full communion with the Catholic Church, who cannot approach the ministers of their own ecclesial communities and who request them on their own, provided they manifest a faith consonant with that of the Catholic Church concerning these sacraments and are rightly disposed. 5. For the cases in 2, 3 and 4, norms of particular law are to be enacted only after consultation with at least the local competent authority of the non-Catholic Church or ecclesial community concerned.

Canon 672 1. The sacraments of baptism, chrismation with holy myron and sacred ordination cannot be repeated. 2. If a prudent doubt exists as to whether they have been truly or validly celebrated, and the doubt remains after a serious investigation, they are to be administered conditionally.

Canon 673 The celebration of the sacraments, above all the Divine Liturgy, as an action of the Church, inasmuch as it is possible, should be done with active participation of the Christian faithful.

Canon 674 1. In celebrating the sacraments that which is contained in the liturgical books is to be observed accurately. 2. The minister should celebrate the sacraments according to the liturgical prescriptions of his own Church sui iuris, unless the law establishes otherwise or he himself has obtained a special faculty from the Apostolic See.

Canon 675 1. In baptism a person through washing with natural water with the invocation of the name of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, is freed from sin, reborn to new life, puts on Christ and is incorporated in the Church which is His Body. 2. Only by the actual reception of baptism is a person made capable for the other sacraments.

Canon 676 In a case of urgent necessity, baptism can be licitly administered by doing only those things which are necessary for validity.

Canon 677 1. Baptism is administered ordinarily by a priest; but, with due regard for particular law, the proper pastor of the person to be baptized, or another priest with the permission of the same pastor or the local hierarch, is competent for its administration, which permission, for a serious reason is lawfully presumed. 2. In case of necessity, baptism can be administered by a deacon or, in his absence or if he is impeded, by another cleric, a member of an institute of consecrated life, or by any other Christian faithful; even by the mother or father, if another person is not available who knows how to baptize.

Canon 678 1. In the territory of another it is not licit for anyone to administer baptism without the required permission; this permission cannot be denied by a pastor of a different Church sui iuris to a priest of a Church sui iuris in which the person to be baptized is to be enrolled. 2. In places where there are not a few Christian faithful lacking a pastor of the Church sui iuris in which they are enrolled, the eparchial bishop should designate a priest of that Church, if it is possible, who should administer baptism.

Canon 679 Every person not yet baptized and only such a person is capable of receiving baptism.

Canon 680 An aborted fetus, if it is alive and if it can be done, should be baptized.

Canon 681 1. For an infant to be licitly baptized it is necessary that: (1) there is a founded hope that the infant will be educated in the Catholic Church, with due regard for 5; (2) the parents, or at least one of them, or the person who lawfully takes their place, consent. 2. An abandoned infant or a foundling, unless his baptism is certainly established, should be baptized. 3. Those who lack the use of reason from infancy are to be baptized as infants. 4. An infant either of Catholic parents or even of non-Catholics, who is in a critical situation wherein death is prudently foreseen before he or she reaches the use of reason, is licitly baptized. 5. The infant of non-Catholic Christians is licitly baptized, if the parents, or one of them or the one who legitimately takes their place, request it and if it is physically or morally impossible to approach their own minister.

Canon 682 1. For a person who is no longer an infant to be baptized, it is required that he or she manifest a desire to receive baptism and be sufficiently instructed in the truths of the faith and be tested in the Christian life; the adult is to be exhorted to have sorrow for personal sins. 2. A person who is no longer an infant and who is in danger of death can be baptized, if he or she has an understanding of the principal truths of the faith and in any way manifests the intention of receiving baptism.

Canon 683 Baptism must be be celebrated according the liturgical prescriptions of the Church sui iuris in which according to the norm of law the person to be baptized is to be enrolled.

Canon 684 1. According to the most ancient tradition of the Churches the person who is to be baptized should have at least one sponsor. 2. In fulfilling the function of a sponsor, the sponsor is to assist in the Christian initiation for a person who is no longer an infant; or to present the infant to be baptized and to help the baptized person lead a Christian life in harmony with baptism and to fulfill faithfully the obligations connected with it.

Canon 685 1. For a person to fulfill validly the role of a sponsor it is necessary that he or she: (1) be initiated with the three sacraments of baptism, chrismation with holy myron and the Eucharist; (2) belong to the Catholic Church, with due regard for 3; (3) have the intention of carrying out the responsibility of sponsor; (4) be designated by the person to be baptized or the parents or guardians, or, if there are not any, by the minister; (5) not be a father, mother or spouse of the person to be baptized; (6) not be bound by excommunication, even a minor one, suspension, deposition or deprived of the right of acting in the function of a sponsor. 2. To assume licitly the role of sponsor, in addition to what is required, the sponsor should be of the age required by particular law and lead a life in harmony with the faith and the role to be undertaken. 3. For a just cause, it is permitted to admit the Christian faithful of another Eastern non-Catholic Church to the function of a sponsor, but always at the same time with a Catholic sponsor.

Canon 686 1. Parents are held to the obligation that the infant be baptized as soon as possible according to legitimate custom. 2. The pastor is to see that the parents of the infant to be baptized and those who are given the function of sponsor, be instructed as to the meaning of this sacrament and the obligations connected with it and that they are prepared for an appropriate celebration of the sacrament.

Canon 687 1. Outside of a case of necessity, baptism is to be celebrated in a parish church with due regard for legitimate customs. 2. Baptism can be administered in private homes according to the prescriptions of particular law or with the permission of the local hierarch.

Canon 688 The person who administers the baptism is to see to it that, unless there is a sponsor, there be at least one witness, by whom the celebration of the baptism can be proven.

Canon 689 1. The pastor of the place where the baptism is celebrated, must record carefully and without delay in the baptismal register, the names of those baptized, the minister, parents, sponsors, and also the witnesses, if there are any, the place and date of the baptism, together with the place of birth and also the Church sui iuris in which the baptized persons are to be enrolled. 2. If it is a case of a child born of an unwed mother, the name of the mother is to be indicated if her maternity is publicly established or if she requests it on her own in writing or before two witnesses; likewise the name of the father is to be indicated if his paternity is proven with some public document or by his own declaration made before the pastor and two witnesses; in other cases the name of the baptized is to be recorded with no indication made of the name of the father or parents. 3. If it is a case of an adopted child, the names of the adoptive parents are recorded, and at least if it is done in the civil records of the region, the names of the natural parents, according to the norms of 1 and 2 and with due regard for particular law.

Canon 690 If the baptism was administered neither by the pastor nor in his presence, the minister must notify the pastor of the place.

Canon 691 In order to prove a baptism, if it is not prejudicial to anyone, the declaration of a single witness who is above all suspicion suffices or a declaration of the baptized person founded on undoubted arguments, especially if the person received baptism when no longer an infant.

Canon 692 It is necessary that those who are baptized be chrismated with holy myron, that by a seal they be signed with the gift of the Holy Spirit and be made more proper witnesses and co-builders in the Kingdom of Christ.

Canon 693 Holy myron, which is made from the oil of olives or other plants and from aromatics, is confected only by a bishop, with due regard for particular law which reserves this power to the patriarch.

Canon 694 According to the tradition of the Eastern Churches, chrismation with holy myron is administered by a presbyter either in conjunction with baptism or separately.

Canon 695 1. Chrismation with holy myron must be administered in conjunction with baptism, except in a case of true necessity, in which case, however, it is to be seen that it is administered as soon as possible. 2. If the celebration of chrismation with holy myron is not done together with baptism, the minister is obliged to notify the pastor of the place where the baptism was administered.

Canon 696 1. All presbyters of the Eastern Churches can validly administer this sacrament either along with baptism or separately to all the Christian faithful of any Church sui iuris including the Latin Church. 2. The Christian faithful of Eastern Churches validly receive this sacrament also from presbyters of the Latin Church, according to the faculties with which these are endowed. 3. Any presbyter licitly administers this sacrament only to the Christian faithful of his own Church sui iuris; when it is a case of Christian faithful of other Churches sui iuris, he lawfully acts if they are his subjects, or those whom he lawfully baptizes in virtue of another title, or those who are in danger of death, and always with due regard for the agreements entered between the Churches sui iuris in this matter.

Canon 697 Sacramental initiation in the mystery of salvation is perfected in the reception of the Divine Eucharist, and thus the Divine Eucharist is administered after baptism and chrismation with holy myron as soon as possible according to the norms of the particular law of the each Church sui iuris.

Canon 698 In the Divine Liturgy through the ministry of the priest acting in the person of Christ over the offering of the Church, there is perpetuated in virtue of the Holy Spirit, that which the Lord Jesus himself did at the Last Supper, who gave to the disciples His body on the Cross offered for us and his Blood poured out for us, establishing the true and mystical sacrifice, by which the bloody sacrifice of the Cross is commemorated with the action of grace, is actuated and shared by the Church both as an offering and as a communion to signify and perfect the unity of the people of God in the building up of His Body which is the Church.

Canon 699 1. Only bishops and presbyters have the power of celebrating the Divine Liturgy. 2. Deacons have their part in the celebration of the Divine Liturgy with bishops and presbyters according to the prescriptions of the liturgical books. 3. Other Christian faithful, by virtue of baptism and chrismation with holy myron, assembled in the celebration of the Divine Liturgy, participate actively in the Sacrifice of Christ in the manner determined by the liturgical books or particular law, and do so more fully if they consume the Body and Blood of Christ from the same Sacrifice.

Canon 700 1. With regard to the manner of celebrating the Divine Liturgy, whether it should be done individually or in concelebration, attention should be given above all to the pastoral needs of the Christian faithful. 2. If it is possible, presbyters should celebrate the Divine Liturgy united with the bishop as president or with another presbyter, who acts as the principal celebrant, since in such a way the unity of the priesthood and sacrifice will be suitably manifested; each priest retains the right to celebrate the Divine Liturgy individually, not, however, at the same time in which a concelebration is taking place in the same church.

Canon 701 A concelebration between bishops and presbyters of different Churches sui iuris for a just cause, especially that of fostering charity, and for the sake of manifesting unity between the Churches, can be done with the permission of the eparchial bishop, while observing all the prescriptions of the liturgical books of the principal celebrant, having removed any liturgical syncretism and wearing the appropriate vestments and insignia of his own Church sui iuris.

Canon 702 Catholic priests are forbidden to concelebrate the Divine Liturgy with non-Catholic priests or ministers.

Canon 703 1. A priest who is unknown is not admitted to celebrate the Divine Liturgy, unless he shows the rector of the church letters of recommendation from his own hierarch or in another way sufficiently establishes his integrity for the rector. 2. The eparchial bishop is free to make more specific norms concerning this matter which are to be observed by all priests, even those who are exempt in any way.

Canon 704 The Divine Liturgy can be praiseworthily celebrated on any day except those which are excluded according to the prescriptions of the liturgical books of the Church sui iuris in which the priest is enrolled.

Canon 705 1. A Catholic priest can celebrate the Divine Liturgy on the altar of any Catholic church. 2. In order for a priest to be able to celebrate the Divine Liturgy in a non-Catholic church, he needs the permission of the local hierarch.

Canon 706 In the Divine Liturgy the sacred gifts which are offered are bread made of wheat alone and recently made so that there is no danger of corruption and natural wine of the grape and not corrupt.

Canon 707 1. The preparation of the Eucharistic bread, the prayers performed by the priests before the Divine Liturgy, the observance of the Eucharistic fast, liturgical vestments, the time and place of the celebration and other like matters must be precisely established by the norms of each Church sui iuris. 2. For a just cause and having removed any astonishment on the part of the Christian faithful, it is permissible to use the liturgical vestments and bread of another Church sui iuris.

Canon 708 The local hierarchs and the pastors are to see that with every diligence the Christian faithful are instructed concerning the obligation of receiving the Divine Eucharist in danger of death and also at those times which are established by a most praiseworthy custom or by particular law of their own Church sui iuris, especially at Easter time, during which Christ handed down the eucharistic mystery.

Canon 709 1. The priest distributes the Divine Eucharist or if the particular law of his own Church sui iuris establishes it, also the deacon. 2. The synod of bishops of the patriarchal Church or the council of hierarchs is free to establish appropriate norms, according to which other Christian faithful can distribute the Divine Eucharist.

Canon 710 With respect to the participation of infants in the Divine Eucharist after baptism and chrismation with holy myron, the prescriptions of the liturgical books of each Church sui iuris are to be observed with the suitable due precautions.

Canon 711 A person who is conscious of serious sin is not to celebrate the Divine Liturgy nor receive the Divine Eucharist unless a serious reason is present and there is no opportunity of receiving the sacrament of penance; in this case the person should make an act of perfect condition, including the intention of confessing as soon as possible.

Canon 712 Those who are publicly unworthy are forbidden from receiving the Divine Eucharist.

Canon 713 1. The Divine Eucharist is to be distributed in the celebration of the Divine Liturgy, unless a just cause suggests otherwise. 2. Concerning the preparation for participation in the Divine Eucharist through fast, prayers and other works, the Christian faithful are to observe faithfully the norms of the Church sui iuris in which they are enrolled, not only within the territorial boundaries of the same Church, but, inasmuch as it is possible, everywhere.

Canon 714 1. In churches where public divine worship and, at least several times in a month, the Divine Liturgy is celebrated, the Divine Eucharistic is to be reserved especially for the sick, and also is to be adored with the greatest reverence by the Christian faithful, with due regard for the faithful observance of the prescriptions of the liturgical books of each Church sui iuris. 2. The reservation of the Divine Eucharist is under the vigilance and moderation of the local hierarch.

Canon 715 1. It is permissible for the priests to receive offerings for the celebration of the Divine Liturgy for the intentions which the Christian faithful make according to the approved custom of the Church. 2. It is also permissible, if it is thus established by lawful custom, to receive offerings for the Liturgy of the Presanctified and for commemorations in the Divine Liturgy.

Canon 716 With due regard for can. 1013, it is strongly recommended that eparchial bishops introduce the practice, inasmuch as it is possible, according to which only those offerings are received on the occasion of the Divine Liturgy which the Christian faithful make on their own; individual priests should also freely celebrate the Divine Liturgy without any offering for the intentions of the Christian faithful, especially the needy.

Canon 717 If they accept offerings for the Divine Liturgy from the Christian faithful of another Church sui iuris, priests are bound by the grave obligation of observing the norms of that Church, unless it is established otherwise by the donor.

Canon 718 In the sacrament of penance, the Christian faithful who committed sins after baptism, internally led by the Holy Spirit, turn back to God, moved by the pain of sin, intent on entering a new life through the ministry of the priest, having themselves made a confession and accepted an appropriate penance, obtain forgiveness from God and at the same time are reconciled with the Church which they injured by sinning; by this sacrament they are brought to a greater fostering of the Christian life and are thus disposed for receiving the Divine Eucharist.

Canon 719 Anyone who is aware of serious sin is to receive the sacrament of penance as soon as possible; it is strongly recommended to all the Christian faithful that they receive this sacrament frequently especially during the times of fasts and penance observed in their own Church sui iuris.

Canon 720 1. Individual and integral confession and absolution constitute the ordinary way by which the Christian faithful who is aware of a serious sin is reconciled with God and the Church; only physical or moral impossibility excuses one from confession of this type, in which case reconciliation can take place in other ways. 2. Absolution of many penitents at the same time without prior individual confession cannot be imparted unless: (1) the danger of death is imminent and there is not time for the priest or priests to administer the sacrament of penance to the individual penitents; (2) there is a grave necessity, that is, when in light of the number of penitents, a supply of priests is not available to administer the sacrament of penance to the individual penitents within a suitable time so that, through no fault of their own, they are forced for a long time to be deprived of sacramental grace or reception of the Divine Eucharist; it is not considered a sufficient necessity if confession cannot be readily available only because of the great number of penitents as can occur on the occasion of some great feast or pilgrimage. 3. The eparchial bishop is competent to decide when such grave necessity exists and can determine such a case of necessity with general prescriptions having taken counsel with the patriarch and eparchial bishops of the other Churches sui iuris exercising power in the same territory.

Canon 721 1. For a member of the Christian faithful to enjoy the sacramental absolution given to many at the same time, it is required not only that the person be properly disposed, but also at the same time intend in due time to confess individually the grave sins which at the present time cannot be confessed. 2. As much as can be done, the Christian faithful are to be instructed concerning these requirements; an exhortation that each person take care to make an act of contrition is to precede general absolution, even in danger of death if time is available.

Canon 722 1. Only a priest is the minister of the sacrament of penance. 2. All bishops by the law itself can administer the sacrament of penance everywhere, unless with regard to liceity, the eparchial bishop denies it in a special case. 3. For presbyters to act validly, they must be previously granted the faculty of administering the sacrament of penance, which is conferred either by the law itself or by a special grant made by a competent authority. 4. Priests who are endowed with this faulty by virtue of their office or by virtue of the grant of the local hierarch of the eparchy in which they are enrolled or in which they have domicile, can validly administer the sacrament of penance anywhere to any Christian faithful, unless the local hierarch in a special case expressly denies it; the same faculties are licitly used observing the norms made by the eparchial bishop and also with at least the presumed permission of the rector of the church or the superior, if it is a case of a house of an institute of consecrated life.

Canon 723 1. In virtue of his office and within his jurisdiction, in addition to the local hierarch, the pastor and also the one who takes the place of the pastor is endowed with the faculty of administering the sacrament of penance. 2. In virtue of his office every superior of an institute of consecrated life of pontifical or patriarchal right, if he is a priest, is endowed with the same faculty for the members of his own institute and also for those who day and night remain in the religious house.

Canon 724 1. Only the local hierarch is competent to confer on any presbyter by a special grant the faculty of administering the sacrament of penance to any of the Christian faithful. 2. The superior of an institute of consecrated life, provided he is endowed with the executive power of governance, can confer the faculty mentioned in can. 723, 2 on any presbyter according to the norms of the typicon or statutes.

Canon 725 Any priest can validly and licitly absolve any penitent in danger of death from any sin, even if there is present a priest endowed with the faculty of administering the sacrament of penance.

Canon 726 1. The faculty of administering the sacrament of penance should not be revoked except for a serious reason. 2. If this faculty is revoked by the hierarch mentioned in can. 722, 4 who bestowed it, the presbyter loses the same everywhere; however if it is revoked by another competent authority, the presbyter loses it only within the jurisdiction of the one who revoked it. 3. In addition to being revoked, the faculty ceases, for those mentioned in can. 722, 4, by dismissal from office, from the loss of enrollment in an eparchy, or from the loss of domicile.

Canon 727 In some cases, in order to provide for the welfare of souls, the faculty of absolving from sins can be appropriately restricted and reserved to a determined authority; these reservations cannot be done without the consent of the synod of bishops of the patriarchal Church or the council of hierarchs or the Apostolic See.

Canon 728 1. Absolution from the following sins is reserved to the Apostolic See: (1) direct violation of the sacramental seal; (2) absolution of an accomplice in a sin against chastity. 2. It is reserved to the eparchial bishop to absolve from the sin of procuring a completed abortion.

Canon 729 Any reservation of the absolution from sin lacks all force: (1) if a sick person who cannot leave the house or a spouse confess in order to celebrate marriage; (2) if in the prudent judgment of the confessor, the faculty cannot be requested from the competent authority without grave inconvenience to the penitent or without danger of violation of the sacramental seal; (3) outside the territorial boundaries in which the authority who makes the reservation exercises power.

Canon 730 Absolution of an accomplice in a sin against chastity in invalid except in danger of death.

Canon 731 One who confesses a false denunciation of an innocent confessor to ecclesiastical authority concerning the crime of solicitation to sin against chastity is not to be absolved unless that person formally retracts the denunciation and is prepared to repair damages if there are any.

Canon 732 1. The confessor is to offer a fitting cure for the illness by imposing appropriate works of penance in keeping with the quality, seriousness and number of the sins, and considering the condition of the penitent as well as his or her disposition for conversion. 2. The priest is to remember that he is placed by God as a minister of divine justice and mercy; as a spiritual father he should also offer appropriate counsel so that the penitent might progress in his or her vocation to sanctity.

Canon 733 1. The sacramental seal is inviolable; therefore the confessor must diligently refrain either by word, sign or any other manner from betraying the penitent for any reason. 2. The obligation of observing secrecy also binds an interpreter if one is present, and also all others, to whom knowledge of the sins from confession comes in any way.

Canon 734 1. A confessor is absolutely prohibited to use the knowledge acquired from confession when it might harm the penitent, even if every danger of revelation is excluded. 2. One who is placed in authority can in no way use for external governance knowledge about sins which he has received in confession at any time. 3. Directors of institutes of education ordinarily do not administer the sacrament of penance to their students.

Canon 735 1. All to whom the care of souls is committed by reason of an office are obliged to provide that the confessions of the faithful entrusted to their care be heard when they reasonably ask to be heard and that the opportunity be given to them to come to individual confession on days and hours set for their convenience. 2. In urgent necessity any confessor endowed with the faculty of administering the sacrament of penance is obliged to hear the confessions of the Christian faithful, and in danger of death any priest is so obliged.

Canon 736 1. The proper place for celebrating the sacrament of penance is a church, with due regard for the prescriptions of particular law. 2. Due to infirmity or another just cause, this sacrament can be celebrated outside the proper place.

Canon 737 1. By the sacramental anointing of the sick with prayers of a priest, the Christian faithful who are gravely ill and sincerely contrite receive grace, by which, strengthened by the hope of eternal reward and absolved from sins, they are disposed to correct their lives and are helped in patiently enduring their infirmity and suffering. 2. In the Churches in which it is the custom that the sacrament of anointing of the sick be administered by several priests, it should be seen to inasmuch as it is possible that this custom is preserved.

Canon 738 The Christian faithful freely receive anointing of the sick whenever they are gravely ill; pastors of souls and persons who are close to the sick are to see to it that they are supported by this sacrament at an opportune time.

Canon 739 1. All priests, and only priests, validly administer the anointing of the sick. 2. The administration of the anointing of the sick belongs to the pastor, parochial vicar and to all other priests for those persons committed to their care in virtue of their office; any priest can licitly administer this sacrament with at least the presumed permission of those mentioned, indeed, in case of necessity he must do so.

Canon 740 Christian faithful who are gravely ill, who lack consciousness or the use of reason, are presumed to want this sacrament to be administered to them in danger of death or even at another time according to the judgment of the priest.

Canon 741 The oil to be used in the sacrament of anointing the sick ought to be blessed, even by the priest himself who administers the sacrament, unless the particular law of the Church sui iuris determines otherwise.

Canon 742 The words, order and manner of anointing are to be carefully carried out according to the prescriptions of the liturgical books; however, in case of necessity only the anointing with the proper formula suffices.

Canon 743 Through sacramental ordination celebrated by a bishop in virtue of the working of the Holy Spirit, sacred ministers are constituted, who are endowed with the function and power the Lord granted to his apostles, and in varying degrees share in the proclamation of the gospel, shepherding and sanctifying the people of God.

Canon 744 Only a bishop validly administers sacred ordination by the imposition of hands and by the prayers prescribed by the Church.

Canon 745 Episcopal ordination is reserved according to the norm of law to the Roman Pontiff, patriarch or metropolitan, so that no other bishop is permitted to ordain anyone a bishop unless it is previously established that there is a legitimate mandate.

Canon 746 1. A bishop should be ordained by three bishops, except in case of extreme necessity. 2. The second and third bishop, if they cannot be bishops of the same Church sui iuris as the first ordaining bishop, can be of another Church sui iuris.

Canon 747 A candidate to the diaconate or presbyterate should be ordained by his own eparchial bishop or by another bishop with lawful dimissorial letters.

Canon 748 1. With regard to sacred ordination, for one who is enrolled in a certain eparchy, the proper eparchial bishop is the bishop of the eparchy in which the candidate has a domicile, or the eparchy in whose service the candidate declared in writing his desire to devote himself; with regard to the sacred ordination of one who is already enrolled in an eparchy, it is the bishop of that eparchy. 2. An eparchial bishop cannot ordain a candidate subject to him who is enrolled in another Church sui iuris without the permission of the Apostolic See; if, however, it is a case of a candidate who is enrolled in a patriarchal Church and has a domicile or quasi-domicile within the territorial boundaries of the same Church, the patriarch can also grant this permission.

Canon 749 In another eparchy, a bishop is prohibited from celebrating a sacred ordination without the permission of the eparchial bishop, unless particular law of a patriarchal Church, with regard to the patriarch, establishes otherwise.

Canon 750 1. With due regard for cann. 472, 537, and 560, 1, the following can give dimissorial letters: (1) the proper eparchial bishop; (2) the administrator of a patriarchal Church and also, with the permission of the eparchial consultors, the administrator of an eparchy. 2. The administrator of a patriarchal Church is not to grant dimissorial letters to those who were rejected by the patriarch, nor the administrator of eparchy to those who were rejected by the eparchial bishop.

Canon 751 Dimissorial letters are not granted unless all the testimonials which are required by law have been obtained.

Canon 752 Dimissorial letters can be sent from the proper eparchial bishop to any bishop of the same Church sui iuris; not, however, to a bishop of a Church different than that of the candidate, without the permission of those mentioned in can. 748, 2.

Canon 753 Dimissorial letters can be circumscribed with restrictions or revoked by the one who granted them or by his successor, but once they have been granted, they do not cease to be operative when the authority of the one granting them ceases.

Canon 754 Only a baptized man is able to receive sacred ordination validly.

Canon 755 An eparchial bishop or major superior, only for a most serious cause, even occult, can forbid a deacon subject to him who is destined for the presbyterate from being advanced to the presbyterate, with due regard for recourse to the norm of law.

Canon 756 It is not permitted in any way for whatever reason to force someone to receive sacred orders or to deter someone who is worthy according to the norm of law of receiving them.

Canon 757 He who refuses to receive a higher sacred order, cannot validly be prohibited from exercising the sacred order already received, unless he is bound by a canonical impediment or some other serious cause in the judgment of the eparchial bishop or major superior.

Canon 758 1. To be ordained licitly the following are required: (1) chrismation with holy myron; (2) both the morals and the physical and psychological qualities in harmony with receiving a sacred order; (3) the age prescribed by law; (4) the required knowledge; (5) reception of the lower orders according to the norm of particular law of each Church sui iuris; (6) observation of the interstices prescribed by particular law. 2. It is furthermore required that the candidate not be impeded according to the norm of can. 762. 3. The particular law of each Church sui iuris or special norms established by the Apostolic See are to be followed in admitting married men to sacred orders.

Canon 759 1. The prescribed age for the diaconate is completion of twenty-three years, for the presbyterate the completion of twenty-four years, with due regard for particular law requiring an older age in a particular Church sui iuris. 2. Dispensation beyond a year from the age required by common law is reserved to the patriarch, if it is a case of a candidate who has a domicile or quasi-domicile within the territorial boundaries of the patriarchal Church; otherwise, to the Apostolic See.

Canon 760 1. It is permissible to ordain a deacon only after he has successfully completed the fourth year of a curriculum of philosophical-theological studies, unless the synod of bishops of the patriarchal Church or the council of hierarchs determines otherwise. 2. If it is a case of a candidate who is not destined for the priesthood, it is permitted to ordain him deacon only after he has successfully completed the third year of studies mentioned in can. 354; if however it happens later that he is admitted to the priesthood, he must first complete his theological studies in the appropriate manner.

Canon 761 A candidate for the order of diaconate or presbyterate, in order to be licitly ordained, must give to the proper eparchial bishop or major superior a signed declaration written in his own hand, testifying that he is ready to receive sacred orders and that he accepts the obligations attached to the same of his own accord and freely and that he is to be perpetually devoted to the ecclesiastical ministry, at the same time requesting that he be admitted for the reception of sacred orders.

Canon 762 1. The following are impeded from receiving sacred orders: (1) a person who labors under some form of insanity or other psychic defect due to which, after consultation with experts, he is judged incapable of rightly carrying out the ministry; (2) a person who has committed the delict of apostasy, heresy or schism; (3) a person who has attempted marriage, even only a civil one, either while he was impeded from entering marriage due to an existing matrimonial bond, sacred orders or a public perpetual vow of chastity, or with a woman bound by a valid marriage or by the same type of vow; (4) a person who has committed voluntary homicide or who has procured a completed abortion and all persons who positively cooperated in either; (5) a person who has seriously and maliciously mutilated himself or another person or a person who has attempted suicide; (6) a person who has performed an act of orders which has been reserved to those who are in the order of episcopacy or presbyterate while the person either lacked that order or had been forbidden its exercise by a

Canonical penalty. (7) a person who holds an office or position of administration which is forbidden to clerics and for which he must render an account until he becomes free by relinquishing the office and position of administration and has rendered an account of it; (8) a neophyte, unless he has been sufficiently proven in the judgment of the hierarch. 2. The acts which are mentioned in 1, nn. 2-6 do not produce impediments unless they were serious and external sins perpetrated after baptism.

Canon 763 The following are impeded from exercising sacred orders: (1) a person who illegitimately received sacred orders while under an impediment from receiving sacred orders; (2) a person who committed a crime or an act which is mentioned in can. 762, 1, nn. 2-6; (3) a person who is afflicted with insanity or with another psychological illness which is mentioned in can. 762, 1, n. 1, until the hierarch, after consultation with an expert, permits the exercise of that sacred order.

Canon 764 Impediments for receiving or exercising sacred orders cannot be established by particular law; custom introducing a new impediment or contrary to an impediment established by common law is reprobated.

Canon 765 Ignorance of impediments does not exempt from them.

Canon 766 Impediments are multiplied when they arise from different causes, not however by the repetition of the same cause, unless it is a case of the impediment arising from voluntary homicide or from the procurement of a completed abortion.

Canon 767 1. The eparchial bishop or the hierarch of an institute of consecrated life can dispense his subjects from the impediments from receiving or exercising sacred orders except in the following cases: (1) if the deed, upon which the impediment is based, had been taken to the judicial forum; (2) from the impediments mentioned in can. 762, 1, nn. 2-4. 2. Dispensation from these impediments is reserved to the patriarch for candidates or clerics who have a domicile or quasi-domicile within the territorial boundaries of the Church over which he presides; otherwise, it is reserved to the Apostolic See. 3. A confessor has the same powers of dispensing in the more urgent occult cases, in which the competent authority cannot be reached and there is a danger of grave harm or infamy, but only to ensure that the penitents can licitly exercise the sacred orders already received, with due regard for the responsibility of approaching that authority as soon as possible.

Canon 768 1. In the petition for obtaining a dispensation, all of the impediments are to be indicated; a general dispensation, however, is valid also for those impediments which were omitted in good faith except those mentioned in can. 762, 1, n. 4, and those taken to the judicial forum, not however for those omitted in bad faith. 2. If it is a case of the impediment arising from voluntary homicide or from the procurement of an abortion, the number of offenses must also be mentioned for the dispensation to be valid. 3. A general dispensation from impediments to receive sacred orders is valid for all orders.

Canon 769 1. The authority who admits a candidate for sacred ordination should obtain: (1) the declaration which is mentioned in can. 761, also a certificate of the last sacred ordination or, if it is the case of the first sacred ordination, a certificate of baptism and chrismation with holy myron; (2) if the candidate is married, a certificate of marriage and the written consent of his wife; (3) a certificate of completed studies; (4) testimonial letters of the rector of the seminary or the superior of the institute of consecrated life or the presbyter in whose care the candidate was entrusted outside the seminary, of the good morals of the candidate; (5) the testimonial letters which are mentioned in can. 771, 3; (6) testimonial letters, if it is considered expedient, of other eparchial bishops or superiors of institutes of consecrated life, where the candidate resided for some time, concerning the qualities of the candidate and his freedom from all canonical impediments. 2. These documents are to be kept in the archive of the same authority.

Canon 770 The ordaining bishop with legitimate dimissorial letters, by which it is asserted that the candidate is worthy of receiving a sacred order, can agree to this attestation, but is not bound to; if indeed in conscience he considers the candidate not to be worthy, he should not ordain him.

Canon 771 1. The names of the candidates for sacred orders are to be made known publicly in the parish church of each candidate according to the norm of particular law. 2. All the Christian faithful are bound by the obligation to reveal impediments, if they know of any, to the eparchial bishop or the pastor before the sacred ordination. 3. The eparchial bishop shall entrust the pastor who makes the publication and even another presbyter, if its seems expedient, to inquire diligently about the morals and life of candidates from persons of upright faith and to send testimonial letters to the eparchial curia referring to the same investigation and publication. 4. The eparchial bishop should not omit to make other investigations, even private, if he judges it opportune.

Canon 772 Every candidate for sacred obligation must make a spiritual retreat in a manner determined by particular law.

Canon 773 Sacred ordinations should be celebrated with the greatest number of Christian faithful possible in a church on a Sunday or feast day, unless a just cause suggests otherwise.

Canon 774 1. After the sacred ordination has been celebrated, the names of those ordained and the ordaining bishop, the place and date of the sacred ordination are to be recorded in a special book to be kept in the archive of the eparchial curia. 2. The ordaining bishop should give an authentic certificate of the ordination which was received to each of the ordained, who, if they were ordained by a bishop with dimissorial letters, should show the certificate to their own eparchial bishop or major superior so that the registration of the sacred ordination is recorded in the special book to be kept in the archive.

Canon 775 The eparchial bishop or major superior is to send a notification of the ordination of each deacon to the pastor where the baptism of the ordained is registered.

Canon 776 1. The matrimonial covenant, established by the Creator and ordered by His laws, by which a man and woman by an irrevocable personal consent establish between themselves a partnership of the whole of life, is by its nature ordered toward the good of the spouses and the generation and education of the offspring. 2. From the institution of Christ a valid marriage between baptized persons is by that very fact a sacrament, by which the spouses, in the image of an indefectible union of Christ with the Church, are united by God and, as it were, consecrated and strengthened by sacramental grace. 3. The essential properties of marriage are unity and indissolubility, which in a marriage between baptized persons obtain a special firmness in virtue of the sacrament.

Canon 777 From marriage each of the spouses has equal obligations and rights to those things which pertain to the partnership of conjugal life.

Canon 778 All persons can enter into marriage who are not prohibited by law.

Canon 779 Marriage enjoys the favor of the law; consequently, in doubt, the validity of a marriage is to be upheld until the contrary is proven.

Canon 780 1. Even if only one party is Catholic, the marriage of Catholics is regulated not only by divine law but also by canon law, with due regard for the competence of civil authority concerning the merely civil effects of such a marriage. 2. In addition to divine law, marriage between a Catholic and a baptized non-Catholic is also regulated by: (1) the law proper to the Church or ecclesial community to which the non-Catholic belongs, if that community has its own matrimonial law; (2) the law that binds the non-Catholic, if it is an ecclesial community, if proper matrimonial law is lacking.

Canon 781 If the Church must judge the validity of a marriage between baptized non-Catholics: (1) there is to be concern for the law by which the parties were bound at the time of the celebration of marriage in the light of can. 780, 2; (2) with regard to the form of the celebration, the Church recognizes any form prescribed or admitted by the law to which the parties were subject at the time of the celebration of the marriage, provided that the consent be expressed in a public form and, when at least one of the parties is a baptized member of an Eastern non-Catholic Church, the marriage be celebrated with a sacred rite.

Canon 782 1. Engagements, which praiseworthily precede marriage in the ancient tradition of the Eastern Churches, are governed by the particular law of each Church sui iuris. 2. From the promise of marriage there does not arise an action to seek the celebration of marriage; however, there does arise an action for the reparation of damages, if it is warranted.

Canon 783 1. Pastors of souls are obliged to see to it that the Christian faithful are prepared for the matrimonial state: (1) by preaching and catechesis adapted to youths and adults, by which the Christian faithful are instructed concerning the meaning of Christian marriage and the obligations of spouses to each other and the primary right and obligation which parents have of doing all in their power to see to do the physical, religious, moral, social and culture upbringing of their children; (2) by personal preparation of the parties for the marriage, by which they may be predisposed to that new state. 2. It is strongly recommended to the Catholic parties that they receive the Divine Eucharist in celebrating the marriage. 3. After the marriage has been celebrated, pastors of souls should provide assistance to the couple, so that, while faithfully maintaining and protecting the conjugal covenant, they may day by day come to lead holier and fuller lives in their families.

Canon 784 In the particular law of each Church sui iuris, after consultation with the eparchial bishops of other Churches sui iuris exercising power in the same territory, norms are to be issued concerning the examination of the parties and other means for inquiries which are to be carried out before the marriage, especially those which concern baptism and the freedom to marry, which are to be diligently observed so that the celebration of the marriage can proceed.

Canon 785 1. Pastors of souls are obliged according to the needs of the times and place to prevent with suitable means every danger of an invalid or illicit celebration of marriage, and thus, before the marriage is celebrated, it must be established that nothing stands in the way of its valid and licit celebration. 2. In danger of death, if other means of proof cannot be obtained and there are no contrary indications, the affirmation of the spouses is sufficient, even under oath if the case warrants it, that they have been baptized and that they are not held back by any impediment.

Canon 786 All the Christian faithful are obliged to reveal any impediments they are aware of to the pastor or the local hierarch before the celebration of the marriage.

Canon 787 The pastor who conducted the investigation is to notify immediately, through an authentic document, the pastor who must bless the marriage of the results of the investigation.

Canon 788 If after a diligent investigation there persists a doubt concerning the existence of an impediment, the pastor is to defer the matter to the local hierarch.

Canon 789 Although the marriage can be entered validly with regard to other matters, the priest, beyond the other cases defined by law, without the permission of the local hierarch, is not to bless: (1) the marriage of transients; (2) a marriage which cannot be recognized or entered into according to the norms of civil law; (3) a marriage of a person who is bound by natural obligations toward a third party or toward children arising from a prior union with that party; (4) a marriage of a minor child of a family whose parents are unaware of or opposed to the marriage; (5) the marriage of one who is forbidden by an ecclesiastical sentence to enter into a new marriage unless the person fulfills certain conditions; (6) a marriage of a person who has publicly rejected the Catholic faith, even if that person did not become a member of a non-Catholic Church or ecclesial communion; the local hierarch in this case will not grant permission unless the norms of can. 814 are observed, making any necessary adaptations.

Canon 790 1. A diriment impediment disqualifies a person from contracting marriage validly. 2. An impediment, even if only one of the two parties has it, still renders the marriage invalid.

Canon 791 An impediment which can be proven in the external forum is considered to be a public one; otherwise it is an occult one.

Canon 792 The particular law of any Church sui iuris will not establish a diriment impediment, unless for a most serious reason, after taking the counsel of other eparchial bishops of other Churches sui iuris to whom it is of interest and after consultation with the Apostolic See; no lower authority, however, can establish diriment impediments.

Canon 793 A custom which introduces a new impediment or is contrary to existing impediments is reprobated.

Canon 794 1. In a special case, the local hierarch can prohibit the marriage of the Christian faithful subject to him wherever they are and also of other Christian faithful of his own Church sui iuris actually present within the territorial boundaries of his eparchy, but only for a time, for a serious cause and as long as that cause exists. 2. If the local hierarch is one who exercises his power within the territorial boundaries of the patriarchal Church, the patriarch can add an invalidating clause to a prohibition; in other cases only the Apostolic See can do so.

Canon 795 1. The local hierarch can dispense the Christian faithful subject to him wherever they are as well as other Christian faithful enrolled in another Church sui iuris actually present within the territorial boundaries of his eparchy from impediments of ecclesiastical law except those which follow: (1) holy orders; (2) public perpetual vows of chastity in a religious institute, unless it is a case of congregations of eparchial right; (3) conjugicide. 2. Dispensation from these impediments is reserved to the Apostolic See; however, the patriarch can dispense from the impediment of conjugicide as well as of the one of public perpetual vow of chastity made in congregations of any juridical condition. 3. A dispensation is never given from the impediment of consanguinity in the direct line or in the second degree of the collateral line.

Canon 796 1. In danger of death, the local hierarch can dispense the Christian faithful subject to him wherever they are and other Christian faithful actually present within the territorial boundaries of his eparchy from the form to be observed in the celebration of marriage, and from each and every impediment of ecclesiastical law, whether public or occult, except the impediment of the sacred order of priesthood. 2. In the same situation and only for those cases in which the local hierarch cannot be reached, the following have the same power: the pastor; another priest endowed with the faculty of blessing the marriage and the Catholic priest mentioned in can 832, 2; the confessor, if it is a question of an occult impediment for the internal forum, whether within or outside the act of sacramental confession. 3. The local hierarch is not considered to be accessible if he can be contacted only by means other than letter or personal access.

Canon 797 1. If an impediment is discovered after everything is prepared for the celebration of the marriage and the marriage cannot be delayed without probable danger of serious harm until a dispensation is obtained from the competent authority, the power of dispensing from all impediments except those mentioned in can. 795, 1, nn. 1 and 2 is held by the local hierarch and, provided the case is occult, all persons mentioned in can. 796, 2, observing all the conditions prescribed in the canon. 2. The faculty is also operative for the convalidation of a marriage if there is the same danger in delay and there is not sufficient time to have recourse to the competent authority.

Canon 798 The priests mentioned in cann. 796, 2 and 797, 1 are to inform immediately the local hierarch of a dispensation or convalidation granted for the external forum and it is to be recorded in the marriage register.

Canon 799 Unless there is a contrary determination in a rescript of the Apostolic See or of the patriarch or local hierarch within the limits of his competency, a dispensation from an occult impediment granted in the internal non-sacramental forum is to be recorded in the secret archive of the eparchial curia; no other dispensation for the external forum is necessary, even if the occult impediment should become public later.

Canon 800 1. A man before he has completed his sixteenth year of age and a woman before she has completed her fourteenth year of age, cannot validly celebrate a marriage. 2. It is within the power of the particular law of any Church sui iuris to establish an older age for the licit celebration of marriage.

Canon 801 1. Antecedent and perpetual impotence to have sexual intercourse, whether on the part of the man or of the woman, which is either absolute or relative, of its very nature invalidates a marriage. 2. If the impediment of impotence is doubtful, either by reason of doubt of law or of a doubt of fact, the marriage is neither to be impeded nor is it to be declared null as long as the doubt exists. 3. Sterility neither prohibits nor invalidates marriage, with due regard for can. 821.

Canon 802 1. A person who is held to a bond of a prior marriage invalidly attempts marriage. 2. Even if the first marriage is invalid or dissolved for any reason, it is not licit to celebrate another marriage before the invalidity or dissolution of the first is legitimately and certainly established.

Canon 803 1. Marriage with a non-baptized person cannot validly be celebrated. 2. If at the time of the celebration of the marriage the party was commonly held to be baptized or his or her baptism was doubtful, the validity of the marriage is to be presumed, according to the norm of can. 779, until it is proven with certainty that one party was baptized and the other was not. 3. Concerning the conditions for dispensing, can. 814 is to be applied.

Canon 804 Persons who are in holy orders invalidly attempt marriage.

Canon 805 Persons who are bound by a public perpetual vow of chastity in a religious institute invalidly attempt marriage.

Canon 806 No marriage can take place with a person who is abducted or at least detained for the purpose of entering into marriage, unless the person freely chooses marriage after having been separated from the abductor or detainer and is in a safe and free place.

Canon 807 1. A person who, with the intention of celebrating marriage with a certain person, brings about the death of that person's spouse or one's own spouse, invalidly attempts this marriage. 2. They also invalidly attempt marriage between themselves who have brought about the death of a spouse through mutual physical or moral cooperation.

Canon 808 1. In the direct line of consanguinity marriage is invalid between all ancestors and descendants. 2. In a collateral line of consanguinity, marriage is invalid up to and including the fourth degree. 3. Marriage is never permitted if there is any doubt whether the parties are related through consanguinity in any degree of the direct line or in the second degree of the collateral line. 4. The impediment of consanguinity is not multiplied.

Canon 809 1. Affinity invalidates a marriage in the direct line in any degree whatsoever; in the collateral line, in the second degree. 2. The impediment of affinity is not multiplied.

Canon 810 1. The impediment of public propriety arises: (1) from an invalid marriage after common life has been established; (2) from notorious or public concubinage; (3) from the establishment of common life of those who although bound to a required form for the celebration of marriage, attempted it before a civil official or non-Catholic minister. 2. This impediment invalidates marriage in the first degree of the direct line between a man and the blood relatives of the woman and between a woman and the blood relatives of the man.

Canon 811 1. From baptism there arises a spiritual relationship between a sponsor and the baptized person and the parents of the same that invalidates marriage. 2. If a baptism is repeated under condition, a spiritual relationship does not arise, unless the same sponsor was employed for the second ceremony.

Canon 812 They cannot validly contract marriage between themselves who are related in the direct line or in the second degree of the collateral line through a legal relationship arising from adoption.

Canon 813 Marriage between two baptized persons, one of whom is Catholic and the other of whom is non-Catholic, is prohibited without the prior permission of the competent authority.

Canon 814 For a just reason the local hierarch can grant permission; however he is not to grant it unless the following conditions are fulfilled: (1) the Catholic party declares that he or she is prepared to remove dangers of falling away from the faith and makes a sincere promise to do all in his or her power to have all the offspring baptized and educated in the Catholic Church; (2) the other party is to be informed at an appropriate time of these promises which the Catholic party has to make, so that it is clear that the other party is truly aware of the promise and obligation of the Catholic party; (3) both parties are to be instructed on the essential ends and properties of marriage, which are not to be excluded by either spouse.

Canon 815 The particular law of each Church sui iuris is to establish the manner in which these declarations or promises, which are always required, are to be made, what proof of them there should be in the external forum and how they are to be brought to the attention of the non-Catholic party.

Canon 816 Local hierarchs and other pastors of souls are to see to it that the Catholic spouse and the children born of a mixed marriage do not lack spiritual assistance in fulfilling their spiritual obligations, and are to assist the spouses in fostering the unity of conjugal and family life.

Canon 817 1. Matrimonial consent is an act of the will by which a man and woman, through an irrevocable covenant, mutually give and accept each other in order to establish marriage. 2. No human power can replace this matrimonial consent.

Canon 818 They are incapable of contracting marriage: (1) who lack the sufficient use of reason; (2) who suffer from grave lack of discretion of judgment concerning essential matrimonial rights and duties which are to be mutually given and accepted; (3) who are not capable of assuming the essential obligations of matrimony due to causes of a psychic nature.

Canon 819 For matrimonial consent to be valid it is necessary that the contracting parties at least not be ignorant that marriage is a permanent consortium between a man and a woman which is ordered toward the procreation of offspring by means of some sexual cooperation.

Canon 820 1. Error concerning the person renders marriage invalid. 2. Error concerning a quality of a person, even if such error is the cause of the contract, does not invalidate matrimony unless this quality was directly and principally intended.

Canon 821 A person contracts invalidly who enters marriage deceived by fraud, perpetrated to obtain consent, concerning some quality of the other party which of its very nature can seriously disturb the partnership of conjugal life.

Canon 822 Error concerning the unity, indissolubility or sacramental dignity of matrimony does not vitiate matrimonial consent so long as it does not determine the will.

Canon 823 The knowledge or opinion of the nullity of a marriage does not necessarily exclude matrimonial consent.

Canon 824 1. The internal consent of the mind is presumed to be in agreement with the words or signs employed in celebrating matrimony. 2. But if either or both parties through a positive act of the will should exclude marriage itself, some essential element or an essential property of marriage, it is invalidly contracted.

Canon 825 A marriage is invalid if it is entered into due to force or grave fear inflicted from outside the person, even when inflicted unintentionally, which is of such a type that the person is compelled to choose matrimony in order to be freed from it.

Canon 826 Marriage based on a condition cannot be validly celebrated.

Canon 827 Even if a marriage was entered invalidly by reason of an impediment or defect of form for the celebration of marriage required by law, the consent which was furnished is presumed to continue until its revocation has been proved.

Canon 828 1. Only those marriages are valid which are celebrated with a sacred rite, in the presence of the local hierarch, local pastor, or a priest who has been given the faculty of blessing the marriage by either of them, and at least two witnesses, according, however to the prescriptions of the following canons, with due regard for the exceptions mentioned in cann. 832 and 834, 2. 2. That rite which is considered a sacred rite is the intervention a priest assisting and blessing.

Canon 829 1. From the day of taking canonical possession of office and as long as they legitimately hold office, everywhere within the boundaries of their territory, local hierarchs and pastors validly bless the marriage of parties whether they are subjects or non-subjects, provided that at least one of the parties is enrolled in his Church sui iuris. 2. The hierarch and the personal pastor, by virtue of their office, only validly bless marriages within the boundaries of their jurisdiction when at least one of the parties is a subject. 3. By the law itself, the patriarch is endowed with the faculty to personally bless marriages anywhere in the world, as long as at least one of the parties is enrolled in the Church over which he presides, observing the other requirements of law.

Canon 830 1. As long as they legitimately hold office, the local hierarch and the pastor can give the faculty to bless a determined marriage within their own territorial boundaries to priests of any Church sui iuris, even the Latin Church. 2. However, only the local hierarch can give a general faculty for blessing marriages with due regard for can. 302, 2. 3. In order that the conferral of the faculty for blessing a marriage be valid, it must be expressly given to specified priests; further, if the faculty is general, it must be given in writing.

Canon 831 1. The local hierarch or pastor licitly blesses a marriage: (1) after he has established the domicile, quasi-domicile, or month-long residence, or, if it is a case of a transient, actual residence of either party in the place of the marriage; (2) if, when these conditions are lacking, he has the permission of the hierarch or pastor of the domicile or quasi-domicile of either of the parties, unless a just cause excuses; (3) also, a place exclusively of another Church sui iuris, unless the hierarch who exercises power in that place expressly refuses. 2. The marriage is to be celebrated before the pastor of the groom, unless either particular law determines otherwise or a just cause excuses.

Canon 832 1. If one cannot have present or have access to a priest who is competent according to the norm of law without grave inconvenience, those intending to celebrate a true marriage can validly and licitly celebrate it before witnesses alone: (1) in danger of death; (2) outside the danger of death, as long as it is prudently foreseen that such circumstances will continue for a month. 2. In either case, if another priest, even a non-Catholic one, is able to be present, inasmuch as it is possible he is to be called so that he can bless the marriage, without prejudice for the validity of a marriage in the presence only of the witnesses. 3. If a marriage was celebrated in the presence only of witnesses, the spouses shall not neglect to receive the blessing of the marriage from a priest as soon as possible.

Canon 833 1. The local hierarch can give to any Catholic priest the faculty of blessing the marriages of the Christian faithful of an Eastern non-Catholic Church if those faithful cannot approach a priest of their own Church without great difficulty, and if they spontaneously ask for the blessing as long as nothing stands in the way of a valid and licit celebration. 2. Before he blesses the marriage, the Catholic priest, if he is able, is to inform the competent authority of those Christian faithful of the fact.

Canon 834 1. The form for the celebration of marriage prescribed by law is to be observed if at least one of the parties celebrating the marriage was baptized in the Catholic Church or was received into it. 2. If, however, a Catholic party enrolled in some Eastern Church celebrates a marriage with one who belongs to an Eastern non-Catholic Church, the form for the celebration of marriage prescribed by law is to be observed only for liceity; for validity, however, the blessing of a priest is required, while observing the other requirements of law.

Canon 835 Dispensation from the form for the celebration of marriage required by law is reserved to the Apostolic See or the patriarch, who will not grant it except for a most grave reason.

Canon 836 Outside the case of necessity, in the celebration of marriage the prescriptions of the liturgical books and the legitimate customs are to be observed in the celebration of marriage.

Canon 837 1. For the valid celebration of marriage, it is necessary that the parties be present at the same time and mutually manifest marriage consent. 2. Marriage cannot be validly celebrated by proxy unless the particular law of one's own Church sui iuris establishes otherwise, in which case it must provide the conditions under which such a marriage may be celebrated.

Canon 838 1. Marriage is to be celebrated in a parish church, or with the permission of the local hierarch or pastor, in another sacred place; however, it cannot be celebrated in other places without the permission of the local hierarch. 2. Concerning the time of the celebration of marriage, the norms to be observed are those established in the particular law of each Church sui iuris.

Canon 839 Before or after the canonical celebration of marriage, it is forbidden to have another religious celebration of the same marriage to furnish or renew consent; likewise, a religious celebration is forbidden in which both the Catholic priest and non-Catholic minister ask for the consent of the parties.

Canon 840 1. Permission for a secret marriage can be granted by the local hierarch for a serious and urgent reason and also includes the grave obligation of observing secrecy on the part of the local hierarch, the pastor, the priest who was granted the faculty of blessing the marriage, witnesses, and the one spouse if the other does not consent to revealing it. 2. The obligation of observing secrecy ceases on the part of the local hierarch if serious scandal or serious harm to the sanctity of marriage is threatened by the observance of secrecy. 3. A marriage which is secretly celebrated is to be recorded only in the special register which is to be kept in the secret archive of the eparchial curia unless a most grave reason prevents it.

Canon 841 1. After the celebration of the marriage, the pastor of the place of celebration or the person who acts in his place, even if neither blessed the marriage, should record as soon as possible in the marriage register the names of the parties, the priest who blessed the marriage and the witnesses, the place and date of the celebration of the marriage and, as the case may be, dispensation from form or from other impediments, the name of the grantor of the dispensations together with the name of the impediment and its degree, the granting of the faculty for blessing the marriage, and other matters according to the manner prescribed by the proper eparchial bishop. 2. Furthermore, the pastor of the place also is to record in the baptismal register that the spouse celebrated marriage on that day in his parish. If a spouse was baptized elsewhere, the pastor is to send the notice of marriage either personally or by means of the eparchial curia, to the pastor where that spouse's baptism is recorded. He is not to be satisfied until he receives notification that the notation of the marriage was made in the baptismal register. 3. Whenever a marriage is celebrated according to the norm of can. 832, the priest, if he blessed it, or the witnesses and the spouses, must see to it that the celebration of the marriage is recorded in the prescribed books as soon as possible.

Canon 842 If a marriage is convalidated in the external forum, declared null or is legitimately dissolved other than by death, the pastor of the place of celebration of the marriage must see to it that a notation is made in the marriage and baptismal registers.

Canon 843 1. To convalidate a marriage which is invalid due to a diriment impediment, it is required that the impediment cease or that it be dispensed and that at least the party who is aware of the impediment renew consent. 2. This renewal of consent is required for the validity of the convalidation even if both parties furnished consent at the beginning and have not revoked it later.

Canon 844 The renewal of consent must be a new act of the will concerning a marriage which the person who is renewing consent knows or thinks was null from the beginning.

Canon 845 1. If the impediment is a public one, the consent is to be renewed by both parties according to the form for the celebration of marriage required by law. 2. If the impediment is occult, it is sufficient that the consent be renewed privately and in secret by the party who is aware of the impediment, provided the other party perseveres in the consent already given, or by both parties when each of them knows about the impediment.

Canon 846 1. A marriage which is invalid due to a defect of consent is convalidated when the party who has not consented now gives consent, provided the consent given by the other party still exists. 2. If the defect of consent cannot be proven it is sufficient that the party who did not consent gives consent privately and in secret. 3. If the defect of consent can be proven it is necessary that the consent be given according to the form for the celebration of marriage required by law.

Canon 847 A marriage which is invalid due to a defect of form for the celebration of marriage required by law must be contracted anew according to that form in order to become valid.

Canon 848 1. The radical sanation of an invalid marriage is its convalidation without the renewal of consent, granted by competent authority and including a dispensation from an impediment, if there was one, and from the form for the celebration of marriage required by law, it if was not observed, and the retroactivity into the past of canonical effects. 2. The convalidation occurs at the moment the favor is granted; it is understood to be retroactive, however, to the moment the marriage was celebrated unless something else is expressly stated.

Canon 849 1. A radical sanation of the marriage can be granted validly even when one or both of the parties are unaware of it. 2. A radical sanation is not to be granted except for a grave reason and unless it is probable that the parties intend to persevere in conjugal life.

Canon 850 1. An invalid marriage can be sanated provided the consent of each party continues to exist. 2. A marriage which is invalid due to an impediment of divine law cannot be sanated validly until after the impediment has ceased to exist.

Canon 851 1. A marriage cannot be radically sanated if consent is lacking in either or both the parties, whether the consent was lacking from the beginning or was given in the beginning but afterwards revoked. 2. If, however, consent was indeed lacking in the beginning but afterwards was given, a sanation can be granted from the moment the consent was given.

Canon 852 A patriarch and an eparchial bishop can grant a radical sanation in individual cases if the validity of the marriage is prevented by a defect of form for the celebration of marriage required by law or some impediment from which they can dispense, and, if the conditions mentioned in can. 814 are fulfilled. In other cases, and in cases involving an impediment of divine law which has now ceased, a radical sanation can be granted only by the Apostolic See.

Canon 853 The sacramental bond of marriage for a consummated marriage cannot be dissolved by any human power nor by any cause other than death.

Canon 854 1. A marriage entered by two non-baptized persons is dissolved by means of the pauline privilege in favor of the faith of a party who has received baptism by the law itself when a new marriage is celebrated by the party who has been baptized, provided the non-baptized party departs. 2. The non-baptized party is considered to depart, if he or she does not wish to cohabit in peace with the baptized party without insult to the Creator, unless, after receiving baptism, the baptized party gave the other party a just cause for departure.

Canon 855 1. In order for the baptized party to celebrate another marriage validly, the non-baptized party must be interrogated as to whether: (1) he or she wants to receive baptism; (2) he or she at least wishes to cohabit with the baptized party in peace without insult to the Creator. 2. This interrogation must be conducted after baptism, but the local hierarch for a serious reason can permit the interrogation to be conducted before the baptism, or even to dispense with the interrogation either before or after the baptism, if by means of at least a summary and extra-judicial process it is established that it cannot be done or that it would be useless.

Canon 856 1. Ordinarily the interrogation is made by the authority of the local hierarch of the converted party; if the other party requests time for responding, the same hierarch is to grant it with the warning that after the period elapsed without any answer, the person's silence is considered to be a negative response. 2. An interrogation can also be done privately by the converted party and is indeed licit, if the form prescribed above cannot be observed. 3. In either case, the fact that the interrogation took place and its outcome must legitimately be evident in the external forum.

Canon 857 The baptized party has the right of celebrating a new marriage with a Catholic party if: (1) the other party responds negatively to the interrogation; (2) the interrogation is legitimately omitted; (3) the non-baptized party, either already interrogated or not, at first persevering in peaceful cohabitation but later departed without just cause, in which case, however, an interrogation is to be done according to the norms of cann. 855 and 856.

Canon 858 For a serious reason the local hierarch can permit the baptized party who employs the pauline privilege to contract marriage with a non-Catholic party, whether baptized or not, while observing the prescriptions of the canons on mixed marriages.

Canon 859 1. A non-baptized man who at the same time has several non-baptized wives, after having received baptism in the Catholic Church, if it is difficult to remain with the first, can keep one of them while dismissing the others; the same is true for a non-baptized woman, who at the same time has several non-baptized husbands. 2. In this case the marriage is to be celebrated according to the form prescribed by law while observing the other requirements of law. 3. After considering the moral, social, and economic conditions of the place and of the persons, the local hierarch is to take care that sufficient provision is made in accordance with the norms of justice, charity, and equity for the needs of those who are dismissed.

Canon 860 A non-baptized person who, having received baptism in the Catholic Church, cannot restore cohabitation with a non-baptized spouse due to captivity or persecution, can licitly celebrate another marriage, even if the other party has received baptism in the meantime, with due regard for can. 853.

Canon 861 In a doubtful matter the privilege of the faith enjoys the favor of the law.

Canon 862 A non-consummated marriage can be dissolved by the Roman Pontiff for a just cause, with both parties making the request or only one making the request and the other opposed.

Canon 863 1. Although it is earnestly recommended that a spouse, moved by charity and a concern for the good of the family, not refuse pardon to an adulterous partner and not break up conjugal life, nevertheless, if the spouse has not expressly or tacitly condoned the misdeed of the other spouse, the former does have the right to end conjugal living, unless he or she consented to the adultery, gave cause for it, or likewise committed adultery. 2. Tacit condonation exists if the innocent spouse, after having become aware of the adultery, continued voluntarily to live with the other spouse in marital affection. Tacit condonation is presumed if the innocent spouse continued conjugal living for a period of six months and has not had recourse to ecclesiastical or civil authority. 3. If the innocent spouse spontaneously severed conjugal living, that spouse within six months is to bring a suit for separation before the competent ecclesiastical authority; this authority, after having investigated all the circumstances, is to decide whether the innocent spouse can be induced to forgive the misdeed and not to prolong the separation permanently.

Canon 864 1. If either of the spouses causes serious danger to the other spouse or to the children, or renders common life too hard, that spouse gives the other a legitimate cause for separating in virtue of a decree of the local hierarch, or even on his or her own authority if there is danger in delay. 2. In the particular law of individual Churches sui iuris other reasons can be established according to the customs of the people and circumstances of the place. 3. In all cases, when the reason for the separation ceases, the conjugal life is to be restored, unless it is established otherwise by competent authority.

Canon 865 After the separation of the spouses, suitable provision is to be made for the adequate support and education of the children.

Canon 866 The innocent spouse can praiseworthily readmit the other spouse to conjugal life, in which case the former renounces the right to separate.

Canon 867 1. Through the sacramentals, which are sacred signs, by which in imitation of the sacraments effects, especially spiritual ones, are signified and obtained through the intercession of the Church, people are disposed to received the principal effect of the sacraments and the various circumstances of life are sanctified. 2. Concerning the sacramentals the norms of the particular law of the individual Church sui iuris should be observed.

Canon 868 Sacred places, which are destined for divine worship, cannot be erected without the permission of the eparchial bishop, unless it is expressly established otherwise by common law.

Canon 869 A church is a building exclusively dedicated for divine worship by consecration or blessing.

Canon 870 No building destined to be a church is to be built unless the express consent of the eparchial bishop is given in writing, unless something else is expressly established by common law.

Canon 871 1. Cathedral churches and, if possible, parish churches, churches of monasteries and churches attached to religious houses, should be dedicated through consecration. 2. Consecration is reserved to the eparchial bishop, who can grant the faculty of consecrating to another bishop; after the consecration or blessing has been performed, a document is to be drawn up for preservation in the archive of the eparchial curia.

Canon 872 1. Anything which is not consonant to the sanctity of the place is forbidden in a church. 2. All whose concern it is are to care that such cleanliness is maintained in a church as befits the house of God, and that security means are taken to protect the sacred and precious objects.

Canon 873 1. If a church in no way can be used any longer for divine worship and there is no possibility to repair it, the eparchial bishop can relegate it to profane but not sordid use. 2. If other grave reasons suggest that a certain church can no longer be used for divine worship, the eparchial bishop can relegate it to profane but not sordid use, after having consulted with the presbyteral council, and with the consent of those who legitimately claim rights concerning the church, and as long as the good of souls is not thereby impaired.

Canon 874 1. It is the right of the Church to possess its own cemeteries. 2. The Church is to have its own cemeteries whenever it can be done, or at least a space in the civil cemeteries destined for departed Christian faithful, and both should be blessed; if this cannot be done, on the occasion of the funeral the grave of the departed is to be blessed. 3. The departed are not to be buried in churches, any contrary customs to be reprobated, unless it is the case of someone who was a patriarch, bishop or exarch. 4. Parishes, monasteries and other institutes of consecrated life can have their own cemeteries.

Canon 875 All Christian faithful and catechumens, unless they are deprived by law, must be given an ecclesiastical funeral, by which the Church asks for spiritual assistance for the departed, honors their bodies, and at the same time brings the solace of hope to the living.

Canon 876 1. An ecclesiastical funeral can also be given to baptized non-Catholics according to the prudent judgment of the local hierarch; unless it is against their will and as long as the proper minister is not available. 2. Children, whose parents intended to baptized them, and others who in some way were considered to be close to the Church, if before they received baptism died, can also be given an ecclesiastical funeral, according to the prudent judgment of the local hierarch. 3. Those who choose cremation for their bodies, unless such a choice was made for reasons contrary to the conduct of Christian life, are to be granted an ecclesiastical funeral, provided that it does not obscure the preference of the Church for the burial of bodies and that scandal is avoided.

Canon 877 Sinners are to be deprived of an ecclesiastical funeral who could not be granted it without public scandal to the Christian faithful unless priorto death they gave some signs of penance.

Canon 878 1. In the celebration of ecclesiastical funerals all favoritism is to be avoided. 2. With due regard for can. 1013, eparchial bishops insofar as possible are to see that the practice is introduced according to which the offerings on the occasion of an ecclesiastical funeral be only those which the Christian faithful offer on their own.

Canon 879 After the internment has taken place, a record is to be made in the register of the departed, according to the norm of particular law.

Canon 880 1. Only the supreme authority of the Church can establish, transfer or suppress feast days and days of penance which are common to all of the Eastern Churches, with due regard for 3. 2. The authority of a Church sui iuris which is competent to establish particular law can constitute, transfer or suppress feast days and days of penance for that Church sui iuris, however having sought the opinions of the other Churches sui iuris and with due regard for can. 40, 1. 3. Holy days of obligation common to all the Eastern Churches, beyond Sundays, are the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Epiphany, the Ascension, the Dormition of the Holy Mary Mother of God and the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul except for the particular law of a Church sui iuris approved by the Apostolic See which suppresses a holy days of obligation or transfers them to a Sunday.

Canon 881 1. The Christian faithful are bound by the obligation to participate on Sundays and feast days in the Divine Liturgy, or according to the prescriptions or legitimate customs of their own Church sui iuris, in the celebration of the divine praises. 2. In order for the Christian faithful to fulfill this obligation more easily, the available time runs from the evening of the vigil until the end of the Sunday or feast day. 3. The Christian faithful are strongly recommended to receive the Divine Eucharist on these days and indeed more frequently, even daily. 4. The Christian faithful should abstain from those labors or business matters which impede the worship to be rendered to God, the joy which is proper to the Lord's day, or to the proper relaxation of mind and body.

Canon 882 On the days of penance the Christian faithful are obliged to observe fast or abstinence in the manner established by the particular law of their Church sui iuris.

Canon 883 1. The Christian faithful who are outside the territorial boundaries of their own Church sui iuris can adopt fully for themselves the feast days and days of penance which are in force where they are staying. 2. In families in which the parents are enrolled in different Churches sui iuris, it is permitted to observe the norms of one or the other Church, in regard to feast days and days of penance.

Canon 884 To foster the sanctification of the people of God the Church recommends to the special and filial veneration of the Christian faithful the Holy Mary ever Virgin, the Mother of God, whom Christ established as the Mother of the human race; it also promotes true and authentic devotion to the other saints by whose example the Christian faithful are edified and through whose intercession they are sustained.

Canon 885 Veneration through public cult is permitted only to those servants of God who are listed among the saints or the blessed by the authority of the Church.

Canon 886 The practice of displaying sacred icons or images in churches for the veneration of the Christian faithful is to remain in force in the manner and order established by the particular law of each Church sui iuris.

Canon 887 1. Sacred icons or precious images, that is, those which are outstanding due to antiquity or art, which are exposed in churches for the veneration of the Christian faithful, cannot be transferred to another church or alienated without the written consent given by the hierarch who exercises authority over that same church, with due regard for cann. 1034-1041. 2. Sacred icons or precious images are also not to be restored without the written consent given by the same hierarch, who before he grants it, is to consult experts.

Canon 888 1. It is not permitted to sell sacred relics. 2. Significant relics, icons or images, which are honored in a certain church with great veneration by the people, cannot in any manner be validly alienated nor perpetually transferred to another church without the consent given by the Apostolic See or by the patriarch, with the consent of the permanent synod, with due regard for can. 1037. 3. Concerning the restoration of these icons or images, can. 887, 2 is to be observed.

Canon 889 1. A vow, which is a deliberate and free promise made to God concerning possible and better good, must be fulfilled by the virtue of religion. 2. All who have the suitable use of reason are capable of making a vow, unless they are prohibited by law. 3. A vow made through grave and unjust fear or fraud is null by the law itself. 4. A vow is public if it is accepted in the name of the Church by a legitimate ecclesiastical superior; otherwise, it is private.

Canon 890 By its nature a vow obliges no one except the one who made it.

Canon 891 A vow ceases when the time appointed for the fulfillment of the obligation has passed, when there is a substantial change in the matter promised or when the condition on which the vow depends or the purpose for which it was made no longer exists; it also ceases through dispensation or commutation.

Canon 892 A person who has power over the matter of a vow can suspend its obligation for as long as its fulfillment would prejudice such a person.

Canon 893 1. The following persons can dispense from a private vow for a just reason provided the dispensation does not injure a right acquired by others: (1) for his own subjects, any hierarch, pastor, and local superior of an institute of consecrated life who has the power of governance; (2) for other Christian faithful of his own Church sui iuris while they are present within the territorial boundaries of the eparchy, a local hierarch; and also a local pastor within the territorial boundaries of his own parish; (3) for those who are present day and night in a house of an institute of consecrated life, the local superior, who has the power of governance, and his major superior. 2. Under the same condition, but only for the internal forum, this dispensation can be granted by any confessor.

Canon 894 Vows made before monastic or religious profession are suspended while the person who makes the vow remains in the monastery, order or congregation.

Canon 895 An oath, that is, the invocation of the divine name as a witness to truth, can only be made before the Church in cases established by law, otherwise it produces no canonical effect. TITLE 17 Baptized Non-Catholics Coming into Full Communion with the Catholic Church

Canon 896 Whether it is a group or an individual, no obligation except what is necessary can be imposed on the Christian faithful who have been baptized in non-Catholic Churches or ecclesial communities and who ask of their own to enter into full communion with the Catholic Church.

Canon 897 A member of the Christian faithful of an Eastern non-Catholic Church is to be received into the Catholic Church with only the profession of the Catholic faith, after doctrinal and spiritual preparation according to each one's condition.

Canon 898 1. Besides the Roman Pontiff, the patriarch with the consent of the synod of bishops of the patriarchal Church, or the metropolitan of a metropolitan Church sui iuris with the consent of the council of hierarchs, can receive a bishop of an Eastern non-Catholic Church into the Catholic Church. 2. The right of receiving anyone else into the Catholic Church pertains to the hierarch of the place, or if the particular law provides for it, also to the patriarch. 3. The right of receiving individual lay persons into the Catholic Church belongs also to the parish priest, unless this is forbidden by particular law.

Canon 899 The cleric of an Eastern non-Catholic Church entering into full communion with the Catholic Church can exercise his own sacred order according to the norms established by the competent authority; a bishop cannot validly exercise the power of governance except with the consent of the Roman Pontiff, head of the college of bishops.

Canon 900 1. One who has not yet completed his fourteenth year shall not be received if the parents are opposed to it. 2. If from the same reception, grave inconveniences are foreseen either to the Church or to the person, the reception may be put off unless there is imminent danger of death.

Canon 901 If non-Catholics, who do not belong to an Eastern Church, are received into the Catholic Church, the norms given above are to be observed with the necessary adaptations, provided they have been validly baptized. TITLE 18 Ecumenism or Fostering the Unity of Christians

Canon 902 Since concern for the restoration of the unity of all Christians belongs to the entire Church, all Christian faithful, especially pastors of the Church, shall pray for that fullness of unity desired by the Lord and work zealously participating in the ecumenical work brought about by the grace of the Holy Spirit.

Canon 903 The Eastern Catholic Churches have a special duty of fostering unity among all Eastern Churches, first of all through prayers, by the example of life, by the religious fidelity to the ancient traditions of the Eastern Churches, by mutual and better knowledge of each other, and by collaboration and brotherly respect in practice and spirit.

Canon 904 1. The undertakings of the ecumenical movement in every individual Church sui iuris are to be encouraged by special norms of particular law; the Apostolic Roman See directing the movement for the universal Church. 2. For this purpose, there should be in each individual Church sui iuris a commission of experts on ecumenical matters, to be constituted, if the circumstances warrant it, in consultation with the patriarchs and eparchial bishops of other Churches sui iuris who exercise their power in the same territory. 3. It pertains to the eparchial bishops to promote a council for ecumenical efforts for their individual eparchies, or, if it seems better, for many eparchies together; in those eparchies which cannot a have their own council, there should be at least one member of the Christian faithful appointed by the eparchial bishop with the special function of promoting this movement.

Canon 905 In fulfilling ecumenical work especially through open and frank dialogue and common undertakings with other Christians, due prudence has to be kept avoiding the dangers of false irenicism, indifferentism and immoderate zeal.

Canon 906 That it may become clearer to the Christian faithful what is truly taught and handed down by the Catholic Church and other Churches or ecclesial communities, a special effort is to be made by preachers of the word, those who control the means of social communication, and all who dedicate themselves as teachers or as directors to Catholic schools and especially in institutes of higher studies.

Canon 907 Directors of schools, hospitals and other similar Catholic institutions are to see to it that other Christians who are visiting or working in the institution are able to receive spiritual aide and the sacraments from their own ministers.

Canon 908 With due regard for the norms on communicatio in sacris, it is desirable that the Catholic faithful, undertake any project in which they could cooperate with other Christians, not alone but together, such as works for charity and social justice, defense of the dignity and the fundamental rights of the human person, promotion of peace, days of commemoration for the country, and national holidays.