In a recent letter (Prot. N. 144/2023) dated October 25, 2024, Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, has issued a directive through the Apostolic Nunciature regarding a petition presented by several priests of the Archeparchy of Ernakulam-Angamaly. These priests had filed a petition challenging a June 9, 2024, Circular Letter mandating adherence to the liturgical norms set forth by the Syro-Malabar Synod and upheld by Pope Francis.
The Dicastery's official response, conveyed through Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli, Apostolic Nuncio, clarifies that the directives in the Circular Letter align with canonical penal law as stipulated by the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches (CCEO). The letter reinforces the Synod's authority and the obligations of the Syro-Malabar faithful to observe these resolutions, including the use of excommunication as a penalty for disobedience, as outlined in CCEO Canons 82, 1437, and 1446.
Specifically, the Circular Letter underscores that refusal to comply with the Synod’s liturgical norms constitutes an act of disobedience comparable to schism, with Canon 1446 supporting excommunication as the consequence for those defying the ecclesiastical hierarchy, which includes the Pope, Patriarch, Major Archbishop, and other equivalent authorities.
Furthermore, the Dicastery highlights that the priests' petition does not meet the criteria for an appeal since the Circular Letter is not a criminal precept directed at individual cases but a general ecclesiastical instruction. This general nature means that it cannot be contested collectively as a penal law would typically apply to specific individuals.
The Apostolic Nunciature has instructed that this directive be communicated to the petitioning priests, affirming that the Circular Letter remains binding. This decision underscores the Vatican's commitment to maintaining unity within the Syro-Malabar Church through adherence to its liturgical resolutions.
Letter:
Your Beatitude,
With Letter, Prot. N. 144/2023, dated 25 October 2024, His Eminence, Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, has requested this Apostolic Nunciature to convey to you the following information.
As you are aware, some priests of the Archeparchy of Ernakulam Angamaly presented a petition against the Circular Letter, of 9 June 2024 applying to the same Archeparchy.
In this regard, after careful consideration of the matter, the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches has made the following observations.
The Circular Letter recalls the duty for all the Syro-Malabar faithful to comply with the resolutions of the Syro-Malabar Synod, maintained by the Holy Father, regarding the celebration of the Divine Liturgy and to rectify any relevant abuses (cf. Can 82 §§ 1 and 2 of CCEO).
In particular, number 2 of the Circular Letter specifies that disobedience of abovesaid resolutions entails excommunication, similar to that provided for schism (cf. Can. 1437 of CCEO).
Furthermore, Can. 1446 of CCEO states that disobedience towards the Hierarch a term that in the understanding of Can. 984 §1 of CCEO, includes the Holy Father, the Patriarch, the Major Archbishop, the Metropolitan who presides over the Metropolitan Church sui iuris, the Eparchial Bishop and those who, by law, are equivalent to them - is punishable by an indeterminate penalty.
In this regard, number 2 of the Circular Letter applies Can. 1446 of CCEO, stipulating major excommunication as the established penalty for the crime of disobedience (cf. Can. 1405 § 2 of CCEO). Moreover, it provides for a specific norm that prescribes the same penalty of excommunication for those who disobey the Synod of Bishops (cf. Can. 1405 § 1 CCEO).
According to the common law, the Major Archbishop, endowed with legislative power in his own Archeparchy, has the authority: to promulgate particular penal norms, to incorporate an appropriate penalty with an ecclesiastical norm issued by a superior authority, and to establish a determined and obligatory penalty in cases where the common law provides for an indeterminate and optional penalty (cf. Can.1405 § 1 and 2 CCEO)
In the light of all the abovesaid, the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches considers that the obligations, contained in the above said Circular Letter, are fully in conformity with ecclesiastical penal law.
Besides, the petition presented by some priests against the Circular Letter cannot be considered as an appeal, since the Circular Letter doesn't constitute the form of a criminal precept, which must be specific and aimed at single individuals, never collective.
For these reasons, the said petition cannot be taken into consideration, as it is not addressed to a concrete and individual subject.
Your Beatitude, you are kindly requested to communicate the above to the complainants.
Thanking you for your precious collaboration, with my deepest regards, I remain,
Yours respectfully,
+ Leopoldo Cicori
+ Archbishop Leopolde Girelli Apostolic Nuncio