Canonical Issues Relating to the Civil Restructuring of Dioceses and Parishes

CANONICAL ISSUES RELATING TO THE CIVIL RESTRUCTURING OF DIOCESES AND PARISHES1 John J. M. Foster, J.C.D.* Nearly a century ago, a group of bishops in the United States sought the advice of the Holy See as to the manner of civilly protecting ecclesiastical property in their dioceses. In 1911, the Sacred Congregation of the Council responded: 1. Among the methods which are now in use in the United States for holding and administering church property, the one known as Parish Corporation is preferable to the others, but with the conditions and safeguards which are now in use in the state of New York. The Bishops, therefore, should immediately take steps to introduce this method for handling property in their dioceses , if the civil law allows it. If the civil law does not allow it, they should exert their influence with the civil authorities that it may be made legal as soon as possible. 2. Only in those places where the civil law does not recognize Parish Corporations and only until such recognition is obtained, the method commonly called Corporation Sole is allowed with the understanding that in the administration of ecclesiastical property, the Bishop is to act with the advice, and in more important matters with the consent, of those who have an interest in the premises and of the diocesan consultors, this being a conscientious obligation for the Bishop in person.2 While the response condones the establishment of a single corporation sole for holding the assets of a diocese and its parishes, it recommends that separate corporations be established for each parish within the diocese . Furthermore, in what is perhaps the most overlooked statement in The Jurist 69 (2009) 311–339 311 * School of Canon Law, Catholic University of America 1 This article is based on a presentation given by the author to the Bishops’ Symposium on Diocesan Reorganization: Canonical Concerns and Civil Structures sponsored by the California Catholic Conference in Los Angeles, California on January 25, 2008. The author is grateful to Nicholas Cafardi, J.D., J.C.D. and the Reverend Monsignor Craig Cox, J.C.D. for their assistance and contribution in preparing the presentation. 2 Sacred Congregation of the Council, Private reply on the Methods of Holding and Administering Church Goods in the United States ofAmerica, July 29, 1911: CLD 2:444– 445. 312 the jurist the response, the congregation urged that the bishops “should exert their influence with the civil authorities that [a system of parish corporations] may be made legal as soon as possible.” Unfortunately, in the years following the congregation’s response not only was the recommendation to press for changes in civil law largely unheeded; but even in jurisdictions where a diversity of civil entities was possible, many bishops did not move away from the diocesan corporation sole. As the effects of the clerical sexual abuse crisis have shown,3 the civil structures used by the Church in the United States have not been adequate to safeguard her ecclesiastical goods. Because of this situation, many dioceses have taken a serious look at how ecclesiastical goods can be civilly protected. At the same time, and in light of various issues concerning how diocesan officials handled allegations of sexual abuse by clerics over the years, there has been a renewed appreciation for the role of canon law in the Church. This article will attempt to identify and examine some of the canonical issues that a diocese needs to consider before it chooses the best civil structure for its parishes and other entities. After naming a few assumptions that underlie the present discussion, we will examine key values in ecclesiastical law concerning the nature and structure of dioceses and parishes. Next, we will identify the goals to be accomplished by civil restructuring . Finally, given these values and goals, we will consider what canonical institutes need to be addressed in a civil restructuring of diocesan entities. Assumptions Like any institution, the Church, throughout the centuries, has organized herself in society to fulfill her mission of proclaiming the Gospel of Christ to all people. The institutional structures of the Church, while 3 Among the many devastating effects of the clerical sexual abuse crisis...