The Anglican Communion, unlike the canon law of the Catholic Church, does not have its own centralized canon law. [1] However, each of the autonomous member churches of the community has a canonical system. Some, like the Church of England, have an ancient and highly developed canon law, while others, like the Episcopal Church in the United States, have more recently developed canonical systems originally based on English canon law. To put it as simply as possible, canon law is the right enacted by the Christian Church(s) to deal with legal matters within its jurisdiction. It must be distinguished from «ecclesiastical law,» a broader concept that includes secular and unwritten laws relating to the Church, as well as canon law. At earlier points in our history, there were certain questions (e.g., Marriage and reference to wills), which were considered to fall within the domain of the Church and were therefore subject to canon law. On the other hand, there were also a number of ostensibly ecclesiastical issues, such as the possession of church buildings and property, which fell within the jurisdiction of secular courts. Another complication is that many things overlap, such as the regulations for appointing ordained clergy as benefactors. The Church has always sought to maintain control over the qualifications and conditions of service required for ordination, especially on the thorny issues of residence and pluralism (i.e., keeping more than one sinecure at a time). But the state has consistently asserted that the advowson, or the right of presentation to a living person, is a matter of property and that disputes concerning him should be reserved for secular courts.
Finally, there are certain issues (such as defamation) where, for a long time, it has been possible to hear cases before secular or ecclesiastical courts. In the history of canon law and ecclesiastical courts, there are at least four periods of English legal history that must be distinguished. Until 1072, there was little effective distinction between ecclesiastical and secular law, as most cases were heard by secular courts in which bishops and their officials participated, allowing for canonical and civil precedents. From 1072 in theory and from the reign of Henry III (1216-72) in practice, there was a separate ecclesiastical jurisdiction, which was more or less governed by its own canon law, which corresponded more or less to the common lines of Western Europe as a whole. What are the biblical, theological, historical and legal principles that have shaped and continue to shape the way Anglicans govern themselves in North America at all levels of the Church? This seminar will provide a critical assessment of the constitution and canon of the Anglican Church in North America, its dioceses and congregations in light of these principles – principles that also shape the leadership of churches in the Anglican Communion. This information is useful for those who practice canon law or work in the administration of canon law, as well as for those who wish to study canon law. The Church of England, like the other autonomous member churches of the Anglican Communion, has its own system of canon law. There is no recognized body of binding law that applies worldwide to all churches in the Anglican Communion. Superficially, each church is autonomous, free to make rules in order to facilitate and order its inner life. This book, of global importance, provides a comparative study of the constitutions, canons and other legal forms of the churches in the Anglican World Communion. The analysis of the book highlights the similarities and differences between them and, starting from the coincidence of the current laws and the world ecclesiastical conventions proclaimed by the Lambeth Conference, explains the global principles of Anglican canon law that can apply to all the churches of the community.
Topics include: government; service; doctrine and liturgy; rites; Ownership; inter-church relations; and ecumenism. The in-depth and practical analysis of a hitherto little-studied subject is placed directly in its jurisprudential and theological context. The main part of canon law promulgated since the Reformation is the Book of Canons, which was approved by the convocations of Canterbury and York in 1604 and 1606 respectively. There are 141 canons in the collection, some of which confirm medieval recipes, while others depend on Matthew Parker`s Book of Advertisements and the thirty-nine articles. They were written in Latin by Richard Bancroft, Bishop of London, and only the Latin text is authoritative. They were published in 1604 in separate Latin and English editions. A few, for example canon 37, were modified in the 19th century. A Canon Law Commission was established in 1939 to re-examine the question of canon law in the Church of England: it held eight sessions between 1943 and 1947, and then published a report containing a comprehensive set of new canons that were then considered by the convocation.
[1] Trinity School for Ministry offers an introduction to Anglican canon law with the Reverend Canon Phil Ashey via the online format from 8 to 9 June 2020. The registration deadline is May 22nd. The new canons of the Church of England were proclaimed by the Convocations in 1964 (Canterbury) and 1969 (York) and replaced all the canons of 1604 with the exception of the reserve in canon 113 (which refers to confession). The 7th edition, which contains the changes made by the General Synod until 2010, was published in 2012. An updated version is available online.