Pastor bonus

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Pastor bonus (Latin: "The Good Shepherd") is an apostolic constitution promulgated by Pope John Paul II on 28 June 1988. It instituted a number of reforms in the process of running the central government of the Catholic Church.

Contents

The document's article 1 defines the Roman Curia as dicasteries and institutes supporting the Roman Pontiff "in the exercise of his supreme pastoral office" on behalf of the whole Church, including both the Latin and Eastern Catholic Churches.

It was abrogated and replaced by Praedicate evangelium (released on 19 March 2022 under Pope Francis) when it became effective on 5 June 2022.

Background

Pastor bonus laid out in considerable detail the organization of the Roman Curia, specifying precisely the names and composition of each dicastery, and enumerating which competencies, or responsibilities, each dicastery was charged with overseeing. It replaced the previous governing document, Regimini Ecclesiae universae , which was released by Paul VI in 1967. [1]

It delineated the roles of the Secretariat of State, Congregations, Tribunals, Pontifical Councils, Administrative Services and Pontifical Commissions of the Roman Curia. It also established the norms for the ad limina visits of bishops to Rome and the relationship between the Holy See and the particular Churches and episcopal conferences.

Changes introduced

Among the changes formulated in the constitution was the re-integration of the Council for Public Affairs of the Church into the Secretariat of State as the Section for Relations with States (the Second Section). The Council for Public Affairs of the Church had previously been a section of the Secretariat of State, but was made an independent dicastery by Pope Paul VI in 1967. [2]

The constitution also opened membership in dicasteries to priests, deacons, religious, and lay persons. For centuries, only cardinals were eligible for membership in the organs of the Holy See, but Pope Paul VI allowed diocesan bishops to be members following calls for collegiality at the Second Vatican Council. Pastor bonus continued the opening of the central government of the church by allowing representatives of all the faithful to have a role in the Roman Curia. [3]

Modifications to Pastor bonus

As of March 2016, [4] Pastor bonus has been amended by Quaerit semper in 2011, [5] Ministrorum institutio and Fides per doctrinam in 2013, [6] [7] and Confermando una tradizione in 2014. [8]

In the Apostolic Letter Ministrorum institutio of 16 January 2013, Pope Benedict XVI transferred the governance of seminaries from the Congregation for Catholic Education to the Congregation for the Clergy. [6] On the same day the Apostolic Letter Fides per doctrinam transferred the competence of catechesis from the Congregation for Clergy to the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization. [9]

In October 2013, Pope Francis and his Council of Cardinals were reviewing Pastor bonus for possible further revisions. [10] On 24 February 2014, Francis issued the Apostolic Letter Fidelis dispensator et prudens establishing the Council for the Economy to oversee the administrative and financial structures and activities of the dicasteries of the Roman Curia, the institutions linked to the Holy See, and the Vatican City State. It also established the Secretariat for the Economy as a dicastery of the Roman Curia. [11]

Related Research Articles

The Roman Curia comprises the administrative institutions of the Holy See and the central body through which the affairs of the Roman Catholic Church are conducted. The Roman Curia is the institution which the Roman Pontiff ordinarily makes use of in the exercise of his supreme pastoral office and universal mission in the world. It is at the service of the Pope, successor of Peter, and of the Bishops, successors of the Apostles, according to the modalities that are proper to the nature of each one, fulfilling their function with an evangelical spirit, working for the good and at the service of communion, unity and edification of the Universal Church and attending to the demands of the world in which the Church is called to fulfill its mission.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith</span> Dicastery of the Roman Curia

The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) is the oldest among the departments of the Roman Curia. Its seat is the Palace of the Holy Office in Rome. It was founded to defend the Catholic Church from heresy and is the body responsible for promulgating and defending Roman Catholic doctrine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dicastery for the Clergy</span>

The Dicastery for the Clergy, formerly named Congregation for the Clergy, is the dicastery of the Roman Curia responsible for overseeing matters regarding priests and deacons not belonging to religious orders. The Congregation for the Clergy handles requests for dispensation from active priestly ministry, as well as the legislation governing presbyteral councils and other organisations of priests around the world. The Congregation does not deal with clerical sexual abuse cases, as those are handled exclusively by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

The Secretariat of State is the oldest dicastery in the Roman Curia, the central papal governing bureaucracy of the Catholic Church. It is headed by the Cardinal Secretary of State and performs all the political and diplomatic functions of the Holy See. The Secretariat is divided into three sections, the Section for General Affairs, the Section for Relations with States, and, since 2017, the Section for Diplomatic Staff.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments</span> Department of the Roman Curia

The Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments is the dicastery of the Roman Curia that handles most affairs relating to liturgical practices of the Latin Church as distinct from the Eastern Catholic Churches and also some technical matters relating to the sacraments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Congregation for Catholic Education</span> Former dicastery of the Roman Curia

The Congregation for Catholic Education (Institutes of Study) (Latin: Congregatio de Institutione Catholica (Studiorum Institutis)) was the pontifical congregation of the Roman Curia responsible for: universities, faculties, institutes and higher schools of study, either ecclesial or non-ecclesiastical dependent on ecclesial persons; and schools and educational institutes depending on ecclesiastical authorities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dicastery for the Eastern Churches</span> Dicastery of the Roman Curia

The Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, previously named Congregation for the Oriental Churches or Congregation for the Eastern Churches, is a dicastery of the Roman Curia responsible for contact with the Eastern Catholic churches for the sake of assisting their development and protecting their rights. It also maintains whole and entire in the one Catholic Church the heritage and canon law of the various Eastern Catholic traditions. It has exclusive authority over the following regions: Egypt and the Sinai Peninsula, Eritrea and northern Ethiopia, southern Albania and Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Israel, Syria, Jordan and Turkey, and also oversees jurisdictions based in Romania, Southern Italy, Hungary, India and Ukraine.

In the Roman Curia, a congregation is a type of department of the Curia. They are second-highest-ranking departments, ranking below the two Secretariats, and above the pontifical councils, pontifical commissions, tribunals and offices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace</span>

The Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace was a pontifical council of the Roman Curia dedicated to "action-oriented studies" for the international promotion of justice, peace, and human rights from the perspective of the Roman Catholic Church. To this end, it cooperates with various religious institutes and advocacy groups, as well as scholarly, ecumenical, and international organizations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Franc Rode</span>

Franc Rode is a Slovenian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He is the prefect emeritus of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, having served as prefect from 2004 to 2011. He was elevated to the cardinalate in 2006.

The Pontifical Biblical Commission is a pontifical commission established within the Roman Curia to ensure the proper interpretation and defense of the Bible.

The Pontifical Council for Social Communications was a dicastery of the Roman Curia that was suppressed in March 2016 and merged into the Secretariat for Communications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stanisław Ryłko</span>

Stanisław Marian Ryłko is a Polish Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He held positions in the Roman Curia beginning in 1987 and was president of the Pontifical Council for the Laity from 2003 to 2016. He was made a cardinal in 2007. He has been Archpriest of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore since 28 December 2016.

The Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People was a pontifical council of the Roman Curia. The council, established by Pope John Paul II on 28 June 1988, was dedicated to the spiritual welfare of migrant and itinerant people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of the Roman Curia</span> Aspect of history

The history of the Roman Curia, the administrative apparatus responsible for managing the affairs of the Holy See and the Catholic Church, can be traced to the 11th century when informal methods of administration began to take on a more organized structure and eventual a bureaucratic form. The Curia has undergone a series of renewals and reforms, including a major overhaul following the loss of the Papal States, which fundamentally altered the range and nature of the Curia's responsibilities, removing many of an entirely secular nature.

Vatican News is a Catholic news website provided by the Vatican's Dicastery for Communication that partners with Vatican Radio, L'Osservatore Romano, and Vatican Media to provide multimedia pertaining to the global Catholic Church and the operations of the Holy See.

The Secretariat for the Economy is a dicastery of the Roman Curia with authority over all economic activities of the Holy See and the Vatican City State.

The Dicastery for Communication is a division (dicastery) of the Roman Curia with authority over all communication offices of the Holy See and the Vatican City State. Its various offices can be accessed through its website. These are the Pope's website and other offices such as Vatican News on internet, the Holy See Press Office, L'Osservatore Romano, Photograph Service, Vatican Radio, Vatican Press, and the Vatican Publishing House. The Pontifical Council for Social Communications has been subsumed into this new Dicastery.

The Eastern Catholic canon law is the law of the 23 Catholic sui juris (autonomous) particular churches of the Eastern Catholic tradition. Eastern Catholic canon law includes both the common tradition among all Eastern Catholic Churches, now chiefly contained in the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, as well as the particular law proper to each individual sui juris particular Eastern Catholic Church. Oriental canon law is distinguished from Latin canon law, which developed along a separate line in the remnants of the Western Roman Empire, and is now chiefly codified in the 1983 Code of Canon Law.

Praedicate evangelium is an apostolic constitution reforming the Roman Curia and was published and promulgated on 19 March 2022 by Pope Francis; the document took effect on 5 June 2022.

References

  1. ↑ Akin, Jimmy (2 October 2013). "Is Pope Francis about to 'rip up' the Vatican constitution? 12 things to know and share". National Catholic Register. Archived from the original on 8 April 2016. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  2. ↑ "Secretariat of State: Profile". The Holy See . Retrieved 23 April 2007.
  3. ↑ Sodano, Angelo Cardinal (2001). "The Holy See's Presence in International Affairs". Seton Hall Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations. 2: 87.
  4. ↑ "Norms of current canon law of the universal Church". iuscangreg.it. Rome, IT: Pontifical Gregorian University. n.d. [current as of 10 March 2016]. Archived from the original on 23 March 2016.
  5. ↑ Benedict XVI, Pope (30 August 2011). "Quaerit semper". vatican.va. Archived from the original on 3 April 2015. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  6. 1 2 Benedict XVI, Pope (16 January 2013). "Ministrorum institutio". vatican.va. Archived from the original on 8 September 2015. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  7. ↑ Benedict XVI, Pope (16 January 2013). "Fides per doctrinam". vatican.va. Archived from the original on 12 February 2015. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  8. ↑ Francis, Pope (8 July 2014). "Confermando una tradizione". vatican.va. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  9. ↑ "Fides per doctrinam". news.va. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016.
  10. ↑ MacDonald, Sarah (4 October 2013). "Council of Cardinals signals major changes to Pastor Bonus". catholicireland.net. Archived from the original on 8 April 2016.
  11. ↑ Francis, Pope (24 February 2014). "Fidelis dispensator et prudens". vatican.va. Archived from the original on 22 April 2014. Retrieved 22 March 2016.

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