Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith

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Roman Curia

Dicastery

Apostolic Constitution Pastor Bonus

Secretariat of State

The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) (Congregatio pro Doctrina Fidei), previously known as the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Roman and Universal Inquisition (wherefrom arose the names Roman Inquisition or Holy Inquisition popularly used in reference to the 16th century tribunals against witchcraft and heresy), and after 1904 called the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Holy Office, is the oldest of the nine congregations of the Roman Curia. Among the most active of the congregations, it oversees Catholic Church doctrine. Its offices are housed at the Palace of the Holy Office at the Vatican.

Contents

History

On July 21, 1542, Pope Paul III proclaimed the Licet ab initio Apostolic Constitution, establishing the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Roman and Universal Inquisition, staffed by cardinals and other officials whose task it was "to maintain and defend the integrity of the faith and to examine and proscribe errors and false doctrines". It served as the final court of appeal in trials of heresy and served as an important part of the Counter-Reformation.

This body was renamed the Supreme Sacred Congregation of the Holy Office in 1904 by Pope Saint Pius X.

The Congregation's name was changed to Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on December 7, 1965, at the end of the Second Vatican Council. In 1988, with the promulgation of the Apostolic Constitution on the Roman Curia called Pastor Bonus, "Sacred" was dropped from the names of Curial Congregations, and so the dicastery adopted its current name, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

Role

According to Article 48 of the Apostolic Constitution on the Roman Curia, Pastor Bonus, promulgated by Pope John Paul II on June 28, 1988: "the duty proper to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith is to promote and safeguard the doctrine on the faith and morals throughout the Catholic world: for this reason everything which in any way touches such matter falls within its competence."

This includes investigations into what are known as "delicta graviora"; i.e., the crimes which the Catholic Church considers as being the most serious of all: crimes against the Eucharist and against the sanctity of the Sacrament of Penance, and crimes against the sixth Commandment ("thou shall not commit adultery") committed by a cleric against a person under the age of eighteen. These crimes, in a "motu proprio" of 2001, "Sacramentorum sanctitatis tutela", come under the competency of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. In effect, it is the "promoter of justice" who deals with, among other things, the question of priests accused of paedophilia, which are periodically highlighted in the mass media.[1][2] In other words, the CDF was given a broader mandate to address the sex abuse cases only from 2001.

Within the CDF are the International Theological Commission, the Pontifical Biblical Commission and the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei. The Prefect of the CDF is ex officio president of these commissions.

Organization

Until 1968, the Pope himself held the title of prefect but never exercised this birth office. Instead, he appointed one of the cardinals to preside over the meetings, first as Secretary, then as Pro-Prefect.

Since 1968, the Cardinal head of the dicastery has borne the title of Prefect, without further qualification. Therefore, from 1968 onwards, the title of Secretary refers to the second highest ranking officer of the Congregation. There are usually ten other cardinals on the Congregation, as well as a prelate and two assistants.

The work of the Congregation is divided into four sections: the doctrinal, disciplinary, matrimonial, and clerical office. The Congregation holds biennial plenary assemblies, and is occasionally obligated to censure theologians whose writings and teachings are contrary to Church doctrine (e.g., Hans Küng, Charles Curran, and Leonardo Boff).

Members (2009):

On 6 May 2006 Cardinals Antonio Cañizares Llovera and Jean-Pierre Ricard were named members of the Congregation.

Recent opinions and publications

(with comments; February 22, 2001)

Heads of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith

Grand Inquisitors

When the Supreme Sacred Congregation for the Roman and Universal Inquisition was first established in 1542, it was led by an officer who bore the title of Grand Inquisitor. Grand Inquisitors led the Congregation for the Inquisition until 1602, when the Pope himself assumed formal presidency of the Congregation.

Secretaries

Unless stated otherwise, the secretaryship ended with the relevant man's death. From 1602 until 1965, the leading prelate of the Congregation was the Secretary, as the Pope himself presided over the congregation as its Prefect. However, the daily administration of the affairs of the Congregation was discharged by the Secretary, aided by the Accessor. Thus, unlike other Congregations, that were led by a Prefect aided by a Secretary, the Holy Office was led by a Secretary, aided by an Accessor, with the Pope as Prefect.

Pro-Prefect

On December 7, 1965, along with changing the name of the dicastery, Pope Paul VI changed the title of the head of the Congregation from Secretary to Pro-Prefect, the Roman Pontiff retaining the role of Prefect. Cardinal Alfredo Ottaviani, who was then Secretary, having been appointed to lead the Holy Office in 1959, continued leading the newly reorganized dicastery without any break in continuity since that date. In spite of that, a few months later, on February 8, 1966, Cardinal Ottaviani was formally confirmed as Pro-Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

Prefects

Since the appointment of Cardinal Franjo Šeper in 1968, the head of the dicastery has been titled Prefect. The Pope no longer holds the office of Prefect of the CDF himself. Although Cardinal Ottaviani had served as Pro-Prefect, upon his retirement he was declared Prefect emeritus of the Congregation, and not Pro-Prefect emeritus. The following Prelates have presided over the Congregation as Prefects since then:

Modern Secretaries of the CDF

With the reorganization of the Holy Office as the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in December 1965, the head of the Congregation was no longer titled Secretary. The dicastery's second-in-command, until then titled accessor, was then given the title of Secretary, as was already the case with the other Roman Congregations. The following Archbishops have served as the CDF's second-in-command with the title of Secretary:

See also

References

  1. ^ "Promoter Of Justice At Doctrine Of Faith On Paedophilia". Avvenire. http://www.stevencwelsh.com/faith/Catholic-News-sexual-abuse-data-Vatican-news-april-203.php. Retrieved 2010-04-16. 
  2. ^ "Sacramentorum Sanctitatis Tutela". Vatican. http://www.bishop-accountability.org/resources/resource-files/churchdocs/SacramentorumAndNormaeEnglish.htm. Retrieved 2010-04-16. 
  3. ^ Dominus Iesus
  4. ^ Considerations Regarding Proposals To Give Legal Recognition To Unions Between Homosexual Persons
  5. ^ Doctrinal Note on some questions regarding the participation of Catholics in political life
  6. ^ Pullella, Philip (April 23, 2007). "Gay marriage evil, abortion terrorism: Vatican". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2007-04-26. http://web.archive.org/web/20070426054130/http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070423/wl_nm/pope_gays_dc. Retrieved 2007-04-23. 
  7. ^ CNN, Six Arkansas nuns excommunicated for heresy
  8. ^ Vatican letter directs bishops to keep parish records from Mormons

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