Moral Theology Part 130

2598. Sinfulness of Disregarding Vocation.--(a) He who enters the clerical state, not knowing that he has a vocation, is guilty of sin, as is clear from the previous paragraph. According to some, anyone who receives Major Orders, even with serious doubt about his vocation, commits a mortal sin, since he inflicts a serious injury on the rights of G.o.d, the Church, himself and his neighbor. According to others, the sin is only venial when one enters the clerical state conscious of the absence of vocation, but determined with the help of G.o.d to live up to all the duties; for, though the act is rash, there is good will and good intention, and grace will not be wanting.

(b) He who refuses to enter the clerical state, though knowing for certain that he has a vocation, is also guilty of sin, for only negligence or improper motives such as laziness, sensuality, or too great love of liberty can produce such reluctance. The sin is grave or light according to the circ.u.mstances. There is grave sin, if the resistance to the call const.i.tutes serious disobedience, pride or uncharitableness (e.g., if there were a great scarcity of priests and the bishop commanded a worthy layman to take Orders); there is venial sin in other cases when the rejection is only dissent to an invitation and exposes neither self nor other to grave peril of losing salvation.

Finally, if the signs of vocation do not produce certainty, there may be no sin at all, but rather virtue, in refusal to ascend to the clerical state, for no one is bound to take up grave obligations when uncertain of his duties, and many holy persons from humility or fear of unworthiness have decided, against the advice or invitation of others, not to become clerics.

2599. The Positive Duties of Clerics.--(a) Duties to G.o.d.--All clerics are held to frequent reception of the Sacrament of Penance, to daily devotions (i.e., mental prayer, visit to the Blessed Sacrament, a third part of the Rosary, examen), and to triennial spiritual retreats (Canons 125, 126). Moreover, clerics in Sacred Orders, benefice holders, and solemnly professed religious bound to the choir are obliged to the daily recitation of the Canonical Hours, each one according to his own rite and calendar (Canons 135, 213 sqq., 1475, 610). This obligation is grave, because its purpose is the important one of consecrating each hour of the day by the public prayer of the Church according to the usage that goes back to the earliest centuries.

But the choral obligation of simply professed religious is light, unless the choir is impossible without their presence.

(b) Duties to Superiors.--Clerics are especially obliged to show respect to their Ordinaries and to give them the obedience promised in ordination (Canon 127).

(c) Duties to the Clerical State.--Clerics are required to cultivate their minds by sacred and sound studies, and to this end examinations and conferences are also prescribed (Canons 129-131); to keep themselves pure in soul and body by the observance of celibate chast.i.ty (Canons 132, 133); to conduct themselves in externals (dwelling, dress, etc.) in a manner befitting their position (Canons 134, 136). The clerical garb in this country is the ca.s.sock or habit in the house and church, and dark clothes and the Roman collar, or other distinctive sign for priests and brothers elsewhere. The dress of the clergy should avoid the extremes of dudishness and slovenliness (Second Council of Baltimore, 148; Third Council, 77). The duty of wearing clerical dress at least away from home and regularly is of serious importance, since its purpose is the honor of the clerical state and the protection of its members. It is also forbidden to clerics to cultivate their hair (e.g., to grow long locks, to use curling irons, to oil or perfume their head in dandyish fashion), since this is unbecoming in the followers of a thorn-crowned Leader. The use of the beard is a thing indifferent in itself, and hence it is forbidden in some places (generally in the Latin Church) and required in others (as in the Orient), according to tradition and local usage.

2600. The Obligation of the Divine Office.--(a) Matter.--A cleric is gravely obliged to recite the Office according to his own rite and in the language of his rite, and not to make any notable change in the Office prescribed by the Ordo, either as to quant.i.ty (e.g., by omission of a Little Hour or of parts equally long) or as to quality (e.g., by subst.i.tution of a minor office for that of one of the great solemnities.) The omission of the Vespers of Holy Sat.u.r.day, of Pretiosa, or of the Rogation Litanies seems to be only a venial sin, because in the first two cases the prayer is short, while in the third case the precept seems to be _sub levi_. There is also lightness of matter in the omission of an inconsiderable part of the day's Office, or in the subst.i.tution without good reason of an equal part for a prescribed part.

(b) Manner.--Since the Office is a prayer, of a public and daily kind, it must be said: mentally, that is, there must be at least virtual intention (which is present from the fact that one takes up the Breviary to fulfill the obligation) and at least external attention (see 2166 sqq.); vocally, that is, the words must be consciously formed by the lips, mouth, or tongue, but it is not necessary that they be audible, unless two or more are saying the Office together; within the limits of the day, that is, Matins and Lauds may be antic.i.p.ated from 2 p.m. of the previous day, but the whole Office must be finished before midnight of the current day. These are substantial requisites and bind _sub gravi_, but there may be only venial sin when they are deviated from inconsiderably. Next, since the Office has a continuity of thought, an order of precedence among its hours and their subdivisions, and a special dignity, it must be said uninterruptedly (i.e., without break between the parts of an hour), in order (i.e., according to the succession of Matins, Lauds, Prime, etc.), with external respect as to place and posture (i.e., he who is bound to choral Office should say it in choir and with the rubrical postures, while he who is bound only to private Office should say it in church or some other becoming place, and should observe the rubrical or at least a respectful posture).

These are accidental requisites and bind _sub levi_. For a good reason one may interrupt the Office even for a notable part of the day (e.g., one may discontinue in the midst of a Psalm to pay a duty of politeness or to attend to business), and for convenience one may invert the order of hours or of parts of hours, or may say the evening hours in the morning.

2601. Excuses from the Obligation of the Divine Office.--(a) For Subst.i.tution.--A sufficient reason makes it permissible to subst.i.tute another office not notably different in quant.i.ty or quality, as when one lacks a new office, or has greater devotion for another office.

When subst.i.tution has been made unintentionally, the following rules may be observed, though the last two are not admitted by all: office counts for office, (e.g., he who through mistake has said the office of another day may let that office stand for today's office, but should add enough to make up for any notable shortness in the office said); hour does not count for hour (e.g., he who through mistake said Tierce twice cannot count the second Tierce for s.e.xt); an error should be corrected when noticed (e.g., he who notices at s.e.xt that he is not saying the right office should change from s.e.xt); an error is not corrected by another error (e.g., he who said today's office yesterday should not say yesterday's office today).

(b) For Omission.--The causes that excuse, in whole or in part, from recitation of the Office are physical inability (e.g., loss of the breviary, blindness of one who does not know the hours by heart, sickness or convalescence which makes the recitation a grave hardship), moral impossibility (e.g., when an urgent duty of charity or justice so takes up one's time that one cannot get in all the Office), just dispensation or commutation given by the Pope or, for temporary release, by the Ordinary.

2602. The Precept of Clerical Celibacy.--(a) Origin.--This law is not divine but ecclesiastical, since it arose, not from any command of Christ, but from a custom of the Church that goes back to the first centuries. Nevertheless, celibacy of the clergy is an imitation of Christ and the Apostles, a following of the counsel given by the Lord, an honor to the sacrifice of the altar, and an example that single chast.i.ty is possible. Moreover, by means of it the priest is freed from domestic relations and better enabled to minister as the father, pastor, confessor and counsellor of his people. The celibate is unenc.u.mbered by family responsibilities and expenses, and is therefore better able to respond to difficult and dangerous tasks, such as mission work in pagan lands and ministrations to the dying in fire, wreck, or plague, The Church does not denounce or condemn the married clergy of non-Catholic bodies; on the contrary, she permits to some extent a married clergy among the Oriental Catholics, who for many centuries have been accustomed to a married priesthood. But the law of celibacy for the Catholic clergy has not only proved itself more suitable for their work, but it has also justified itself by the general fidelity with which it has been observed and the attachment to it of clergy and laity alike.

(b) Obligation.--The law commands chast.i.ty as a grave duty of religion (Canon 132); it forbids the contract or use of marriage (Canon 1072).

It forbids, where there is danger to chast.i.ty or scandal, cohabitation and companionship with women (Canon 133). Cohabitation refers to dwelling in the same house, even though it be only during the day, and the woman be a servant; companionship refers to visits, conversations, signs of friendship, and the like. The danger to good name or virtue depends on circ.u.mstances, such as age, beauty, levity, and privacy of a.s.sociation; and the law presumes that a relationship is suspicious unless a woman is a near relative by blood or by marriage (i.e., in the first or second degree), or is mature in age (about forty years old) and proved in virtue and of good repute.

2603. Negative Duties of Clerics.--The negative duties of clerics are the avoidance of certain acts, occupations, or amus.e.m.e.nts forbidden as worldly, undignified, dangerous, distracting or scandalous (I Thess., v. 22; II Tim., ii. 4).

(a) Forbidden Acts.--A cleric may not go surety without permission, lest he or his church be involved in scandalous embarra.s.sments (Canon 137); nor engage in trade, lest he be distracted from his spiritual duties and exposed to the danger or suspicion of injustice or greed (Canon 142; for penalty attached see Decree of the Sacred Congregation of the Council, AAS, 42-33D).

(b) Forbidden Occupations.--These include, first, employments and pursuits unbecoming to clerics (such as those of butcher, actor, innkeeper); next, those that are incompatible with the ministry (such as the practice for profit of the medical profession, public magistracies, government jobs, civil court functions, legislative offices, Canon 139); finally, those that are contrary to the mildness that should distinguish clerics (viz, the occupation of fighting man or soldier, Canon 141; see also Canon 984 on executioners). But exceptions may be made for a just cause.

(c) Forbidden Amus.e.m.e.nts.--Clerics should not take part in undignified diversions or cruel sports, such as the hunting of big game with great uproar of dogs and guns (Canon 138) or in gambling, and they should not enter saloons or similar places (Canon 138). Clerics are also forbidden to a.s.sist at unbecoming shows, performances, dances, or at any theatrical entertainment where their presence gives scandal (Canon 140). To gamble much (say, several times a week and for a considerable time at each game) is considered a serious matter; but it is not sinful to indulge in a game of chance now and then, if the stakes are moderate and there is no scandal.

2604. The Prohibition against Trading.--(a) Meaning.--Trading as here understood is purely gainful merchandizing (i.e., buying an article at a lower price in order to sell it unchanged at a higher price) or industrial merchandizing (i.e., buying an article in order to sell it at a profit after it has been changed by hired labor). Hence, there is no canonical trading in commerce which lacks one of the conditions mentioned, for example, if one buys goods for one's household or community and, on discovering that a superfluity has been purchased, sells at a profit what is left over (see 2134, 2135). Trading includes not only a business conducted personally or for personal profit, but also one conducted through agents or for the benefit of others, such as the poor or pious causes.

(b) Obligation.--The violation of this law is grave in itself, but a serious sin demands on the part of the subject that there be real trading (i.e., a number of acts morally united and proceeding from a purpose to continue in lucrative merchandizing), and on the side of the object that there be a large amount involved. Hence, it would be venial to engage in lucrative trading with a large profit once, and with a small profit twice or thrice.

(c) Excuses.--Necessity (e.g., if a cleric needs the money to live or to maintain his state, or if a business has fallen to him by inheritance and cannot be given up without loss) justifies trading, if there is permission.

2605. Is It Lawful for Clerics to Purchase and Sell Stocks and Bonds?--(a) If this conduct has the character of gambling or trading for profit, it is forbidden by Canon 138 or 142, as the case may be, and is gravely or venially sinful according to the circ.u.mstances. Thus, pure speculation or mere betting on the market is a game of chance, and the frequent purchase of stocks with the thought of quick sales and huge profits from sudden changes of the market is lucrative trading.

(b) If the gambling or trading element is absent, the conduct in question is not forbidden by Canon Law. It is generally admitted that bond investments are permissible, since they are only a loan of one's money at interest. There are two views about stock dealings: the stricter view regards them as always containing the character of forbidden trading (since all the notes of strict negotiation are found in them), or at least as being a game of chance; the milder view, which is common, holds that they are no more an affair of chance than many other business undertakings, and that there is no strict negotiation, if the stockholder is not a member or director of the corporation, since the buying and selling is done neither directly nor indirectly by him. Buying of stocks, then, may be nothing more than a prudent investment of money in a deserving enterprise with the hope of a reasonable return, and selling out the stocks at a large profit may be nothing more than the disposal of superfluous goods which it would be inconvenient to retain. It must be remembered, though, that it is unlawful to coperate with a company whose purpose is evil or suspect, or to have part in frauds, or to give disedification.

2606. Special Duties of Clerical Superiors from Divine Law.--(a) As individuals, they should strive to be personally more perfect than their subjects, for they are supposed to give an example in faith, religion, zeal, labor, and self-denial, "being made a pattern of the flock from the heart" (I Peter, v. 3).

(b) As rulers, they must have the virtues of good superiors, such as legal justice or firm devotion to the common good, distributive justice or avoidance of partiality and prejudice, prudence or knowledge of how to direct men and means successfully to the glory of G.o.d and the salvation of souls, and commutative justice or respect for the rights of subjects.

(c) As pastors, they must avoid the qualities of the wolf and of the hireling, and cultivate those of the good shepherd, being kind and amiable to Catholic and non-Catholic, and practising the spiritual and corporal works of mercy.

2607. Special Duties from Canon Law of Those Who Have Care of Souls.--(a) Bishops have grave obligations of residing in their see or diocese (Canon 338), of attending to the instruction of their flock (Canons 1327, 336), of applying the Ma.s.s _pro populo_ (Canon 339), of making a diocesan report (Canon 340), of confirming and of ordaining worthy candidates (Canon 785), of visiting their dioceses (Canon 343), of making the _ad limina_ visit (Canons 340, 342), and of calling a diocesan synod at least every tenth year (Canon 356).

(b) Pastors must reside generally in their parish (Canon 465), and, if lawfully absent, they must make provision for the sick calls and other spiritual necessities of their flocks. They must preach the word of G.o.d on Sundays and holydays, and it would be a serious matter to neglect this duty for a considerable time (e.g., a whole month) without good reason (Canon 1344). It is also a serious obligation to attend to the necessary catechetical instruction of young and old (Canons 1330, 1332), to apply the Ma.s.s _pro populo_ (Canon 466), and to administer the Sacraments (at least Baptism, Penance, Extreme Unction) to those in grave spiritual need (see 1167). Pastors are also obliged to know their flock, to visit the sick and dying, to correct abuses, to see that the customary administration of the Sacraments and the usual church functions are attended to, to watch over the schooling of the children, and to direct the temporalities and attend to the reports and records of the parish. The duties of chaplains of hospitals, inst.i.tutions, soldiers, etc., are similar to those of pastors, but in particular cases the former are subject to special prescriptions or to local usage or to rules made by the Ordinary.

(c) a.s.sistant pastors are subject in the care of souls to the instruction and direction of the parish-priest. Their particular duties are known from the diocesan statutes, the letters of the Ordinary, and the commission of the pastor. Regularly, they are bound to reside in the parish rectory and to a.s.sist the pastor or supply for him in all the parish work, the Ma.s.s _pro populo_ excepted (Canon 476).

2608. The Duty of Charity to the Poor.--(a) According to Canon Law all beneficed clergy (Cardinals excepted) must give all the superfluous fruits of their benefice to charitable or pious causes (Canon 1473).

But it is an extremely strict view which holds that all the secular clergy are beneficed.

(b) According to the divine law of charity (see 1226, 1252) even the unbeneficed clergy have the duty of giving alms from their surplus wealth. Thus, it would be unmerciful if a clergyman spent on himself all the fortune he had inherited from his relatives without thought of the poor; it would be often a source of scandal if a priest enriched his relatives with money received in ministerial ways, but left nothing to pious causes.

2609. Canon 1473 on the Disposition of Superfluous Wealth by Beneficed Clergy.--(a) The Money to be Spent.--The Canon does not refer to the property of the Church (i.e., the foundation or endowment of the benefice), for of this the beneficed clergyman is only the administrator, and he would be unjust if he alienated its funds to other purposes; nor does it refer to the clergyman's own property, such as goods received by inheritance or other profane t.i.tle (_patrimonialia_), or by t.i.tle of personal ministerial service, such as stipends and fees (_quasi-patrimonialia_). It refers, then, to the revenues of the benefice (e.g., the bishop's or pastor's salary) and to the amount that is left over after the deduction of all reasonable and customary expenses that have been made, or could have been made for decent personal support.

(b) The Use of Surplus Money.--The alms should be given to any pious or charitable cause, such as the promotion of divine worship, the a.s.sistance of needy missions, the spiritual or corporal works of mercy.

The cleric is free to bestow his gift either during his lifetime (which is better) or to leave it in his will.

2610. The Obligation of Canon 1473.--(a) The obligation is most probably not one of justice, since the holder of the benefice owns the superfluous fruits, but one of obedience to the Church. Some authors also consider this precept as binding in virtue of religion and charity, and regard its violation as a sacrilege or sin against charity. The holder of the benefice is not held to rest.i.tution, however, since neglect of the precept is not an injustice. As to his successors through gift inter vivos or testament, they are not bound to give the superfluities as an alms, since the church precept was for the cleric himself. Successors to an intestate should observe the wishes of the deceased, but, if the character of the goods they inherit is doubtful, they may usually be left in good faith.

(b) The obligation is grave, since it is commanded as an act of religion, or at least as an act of obedience in a very important matter. From the time of the Apostles it was customary to distribute to the poor what was left over of the goods of the Church, and the clergy were regarded as the fathers and protectors of the needy. Again, since the goods of a benefice originated in gifts offered to G.o.d Himself, it is most becoming that their superfluities be devoted to the causes most pleasing to G.o.d. Grave matter would be three times the amount required in theft, because a violation of this precept is not the taking of what is not one's own, but the using in a forbidden way of what is one's own.

2611. The Special Duties of Religious.--The particular obligations of religious are declared in the proper rules of the various inst.i.tutes, just as the particular obligations of the secular clergy are set forth in the statutes of local synods and councils. We shall outline here only the general obligations of religious, to which they are held by the common law of the Church.

(a) By reason of his profession, a religious is obliged to strive after the perfection of charity (see 1560, 367) through the religious life, that is, by means of the rules and const.i.tutions of his own inst.i.tute (Canon 593). All religious, superiors and subjects, are bound to observe their laws, but _per se_ these laws oblige under penalty, not under sin (see 570). _Per accidens_, however, the transgression of rule or const.i.tutions may be sinful, as when the matter belongs also to divine or church law or to the observance of a vow, or when the transgression includes contempt, scandal, or demoralization of discipline.

(b) By reason of the vows, a religious is obliged to follow the three evangelical counsels (see 2191 sqq.) and any other vows of his inst.i.tute according to his rule (e.g., poverty is a renunciation of even community possession in some rules and of individual possession in others). The vows oblige _per se_ under grave sin, on account of the duty of religion (see 2209) and the intention of the religious to bind himself gravely; but there may be venial sin on account of imperfection of act or lightness of matter.

2612. The Obligation of the Three Princ.i.p.al Vows.--(a) Poverty is a renunciation of the independent use of external corporal goods, such as money and lands and chattels (simple vow), or also of the radical dominion (see 1697) or right of ownership of such goods (solemn vow).

Grave matter in the unjust violation of poverty seems to be the same as in other acts of unjust damage or acquisition, and hence in thefts from outsiders a less amount is grave matter, in domestic thefts from the monastery a greater sum is required (see 1900, 1903). Grave matter in the violation of poverty that is not unjust (e.g., in use of money without permission) seems to be the same as absolutely grave matter for thefts, unless the const.i.tutions rule otherwise; but grave matter here does not coalesce from many small violations. The virtue, but not the vow, of poverty is offended by purely internal acts (e.g., attachment to wealth), and there is no offense at all in dominion over spirituals (such as fame, good reputation) which are not renounced by the vow of poverty, and in certain acts of disposition (e.,g., acceptance of deposit, distribution of alms) or proprietorship (e.g., of ma.n.u.scripts) permitted by rule.

(b) Chast.i.ty is a renunciation of all venereal pleasure, internal and external, lawful and unlawful. Grave matter is the same as for the virtue of chast.i.ty, but the vow could be violated without the violation of the virtue (e.g., in the use of marriage by one simply professed).

For the protection of this vow the Church has made the law of cloister, which forbids under certain conditions the entrance of outsiders into a religious house or the egress of the religious (Canons 547, 598, 600-604, 679, 2342).

(c) Obedience is the renunciation of one's own will with the duty of submission to commands of a Superior given according to the rules and const.i.tutions. There is grave matter against the vow if one disobeys in an important matter imposed by the Superior in the name of obedience and according to the rite prescribed by the rule or const.i.tutions (see 2364). The virtue, but not the vow, is offended by internal insubordination (see 2357); neither virtue nor vow is offended when a Superior commands what is above the rule (e.g., the accomplishment of the impossible, heroic acts that do not pertain to the nature of the inst.i.tute), or against the rule, unless he has power to dispense, or probably what is beneath the rule (such as things manifestly ridiculous and useless). Since obedience is vowed to the precepts of the Superior, the vow is not broken by transgression of points of the rule not expressly included under the vow, nor by transgressions of the general precepts of G.o.d and the Church.

Art. 2: THE DUTIES OF MEMBERS OF DOMESTIC AND CIVIL SOCIETY

2613. The Duties of Husbands and Wives.--Conjugal obligations may be cla.s.sed under three heads according to the three ends of marriage.

(a) Thus, the first blessing of marriage is offspring, and this imposes upon parents the obligation of providing for their children and of training them in mind and will (see 2630 sqq.).

(b) The second blessing of marriage is fidelity to the engagement made by husband and wife to deliver to each other exclusive power over their bodies for procreation (conjugal debt) and to love each other with a special but pure affection: "The wife hath not power of her own body, but the husband; and in like manner the husband hath not power of his own body but the wife" (I Cor., vii. 4); "Husbands, love your wives as Christ also loved the Church" (Eph., v. 25). Conjugal love admits no rivals; the husband must prefer his wife to every other woman, and the wife likewise must think more of her husband than of any other man (see 1179).

(c) The third blessing of marriage is the Sacrament or the unbreakable bond of marriage: "The Lord commanded that the wife depart not from the husband, and if she depart that she remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her husband. And let not the husband put away his wife" (I Cor., vii. 10). This imposes the duties of a permanent domestic society in which the spouses dwell together permanently and each has certain special functions of a.s.sistance to the other.

2614. The Obligation of Paying the Conjugal Debt.--(a) The duty is one of justice, since it arises from the contract of marriage, in which the parties freely and solemnly bind themselves to it as the subject-matter of their pact.