Canon I.
For those who have been allotted a sacerdotal dignity, the representations of canonical ordinances amount to testimonies and directions. Gladly accepting these, we sing to the Lord God with David, the spokesman of God, the following words: I have delighted in the way of thy testimonies as much as in all wealth, and thy testimonies which thou hast commanded witness righteousness, . . . . Thy testimonies are righteousness forever: give me understanding, and I shall live (Ps. 119:14, 138 and 144). And if forever the prophetic voice commands us to keep the testimonies of God, and to live in them, it is plain that they remain unwavering and rigid. For Moses, too, the beholder of God, says so in the following words: To them there is nothing to add, and from them there is nothing to remove (Deut. 12:32). And the divine Apostle Peter, exulting in them, cries: which things the angels would like to peep into (1 Pet. 1:12). And Paul says: Though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you any gospel besides that which ye have received, let him be anathema (Gal. 1:8). Seeing that these things are so and are attested to us, and rejoicing at them as one that findeth great spoil (Ps. 119:162), we welcome and embrace the divine Canons, and we corroborate the entire and rigid fiat of them that have been set forth by the renowned Apostles, who were and are trumpets of the Spirit, and those both of the six holy Ecumenical Councils and of the ones assembled regionally for the purpose of setting forth such edicts, and of those of our holy Fathers. For all those men, having been guided by the light dawning out of the same Spirit, prescribed rules that are to our best interest. Accordingly, we too anathematize whomsoever they consign to anathema; and we too depose whomsoever they consign to deposition; and we too excommunicate whomsoever they consign to excommunication; and we likewise subject to a penance anyone whom they make liable to a penance. For Let your conduct be free from avarice; being content with such things as are at hand (Heb. 13:5), explicitly cries the divine apostle Paul, who ascended into the third heaven and heard unspeakable words (2 Cor. 12:2-4).
(c. I of the 4th; c. II of the 6th.)
Interpretation.
The divine Canons are testimonies so far as concerns those in holy orders in
that they attest and reveal to them how they ought to conduct themselves both
publicly and privately. They are directions in that when they are observed by
them they direct and steer their life. Joyfully accepting these Canons through
the present Canon, this Council offers up those prophetic words of David as a
song to God which run as follows in paraphrase: I have rejoiced, O Lord, in Thy
testimonies just as I should rejoice if I owned all the wealth of the world. And
Thou hast commanded me to keep Thy testimonies forever, wherewith be Thou
pleased to wisen me, and I shall live in them. And if this utterance of the
prophets commands us to keep the testimonies of God forever, and to live in
them, it is manifest that they themselves are permanent and rigid (for,
according to Zonaras, the Greek word for unwavering denotes the weak and fragile
branch of a fig-tree; unwavering things, therefore, are things that are solid
and unmovable). That is the reason, too, why Moses says that no one is to add
anything to the words of the Law, nor to take anything out of them. The
Coryphaeus of Apostles, St. Peter, exulting in them, says that the angels would
like to look into those things, viz. which the apostles preaching the gospel in
a spirit of God have revealed to us. And St. Paul anathematizes anyone, even
though he be an angel, that preaches anything as gospel that lies outside of
what has been handed down and delivered as the faith. For this reason, rejoicing
in the divine Canons just as soldiers rejoice when they happen to find a great
amount of booty on their vanquished enemies, as David says, we too joyfully
embrace them, and corroborate them, and confirm them all, including those set
forth by the holy apostles, as well as those of the six ecumenical councils and
of the regional councils, and those of the individual Fathers; anathematizing
those whom they anathematize; deposing those whom they depose; and
excommunicating those whom they excommunicate and, generally speaking,
disciplining those whom they discipline. For, just as those who are not of an
avaricious disposition are content with whatever money they have at hand, as St.
Paul says, so too do we refrain from adding or removing anything, but, on the
contrary, content ourselves with the Canons which have been enacted by the holy
Fathers. See also c. I of the 4th, and what has been said in the beginning of
this book in the Prolegomena to the Canons.
Canon II.
Since as a matter of fact we are binding ourselves to God by chanting: will meditate in thy rights; I will not forget they words (Ps. 119:16), it behooves all Christians to keep this for their own salvation, but more eminently so those invested with a sacerdotal dignity. Hence we decree that anyone who is about to be promoted to the rank of bishop shall by all means know the psalter, in order that he may be able to admonish all the clergy about him to become initiated; and that he be scrupulously examined by the metropolitan as to whether he is cheerfully willing to read searchingly and not cursorily the sacred Canons and the holy Gospel, the book of the divine Apostle, and all the divine Scripture, and in accordance with the divine commandments to hold intercourse with and teach the laity about him. For the essentiality of our prelacy is the words taught by God, or, at any rate, the true science of the divine Scriptures, just as great Dionysius declared. But if he should be in doubt, and not care to do and teach thus, he must not be ordained. For God has said prophetically: Because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee from acting as my priest (Hos. 4:6).
(c. XXIV of Carthage.)
Interpretation.
While all Christian laymen ought to meditate in the rights of God, and not
forget His words, just as they chant and promise every day with the prophet,
this is eminently so in the case of those in holy orders. For this reason the
present Canon decrees that anyone who intends to become a bishop must without
fail be acquainted with the thoughts in the psalter, in order to teach his laity
therefrom so that they may learn them too. Likewise any such person must be
examined by the metropolitan scrupulously as to whether he is cheerfully willing
to read, not superficially and as to the words alone, but with regard to depth
and with understanding of the thoughts, the sacred Canons, which we have
enumerated above, the holy Gospel, the Apostle, and all the divine Scripture,
and not only to know these, but also to conduct himself both publicly and
privately just as they prescribe, and to teach his fold in accordance with them.
For, as Dionysius the Areopagite declares, the essence and structure of the
ecclesiastical prelacy is the words taught by God., or, more precisely speaking,
the true comprehension and exact knowledge of the divine Scriptures. If not, and
he is in doubt, and is not minded to do these things himself, and to teach
others too, let him not be made a bishop; for God says through the prophet Hosea
(in paraphrase): Since thou hast spurned knowledge of my laws, I too will spurn
thee as a priest of mine.
Canon III.
Every appointment of a bishop, or of a presbyter, or of a deacon made by (civil) rulers shall remain void in accordance with the Canon which says: If any bishop comes into possession of a church by employing secular rulers, let him be deposed from office, and let him be excommunicated. And all those who communicate with him too. For it behooves anyone who is going to be promoted to a bishopric to be appointed by bishops, as was decreed by the holy Fathers assembled in Nicaea, in the Canon saying: It is most fitting that a bishop should be installed by all those in his province. But if such a thing is difficult either because of the urgency of circumstances, or because of the distance to be traveled, at least three should meet together somewhere and by their votes combined with those of the ones absent and joining in the election by letter they should carry out the ordination thereafter. But as for the ratification of the proceedings, let it be entrusted in each province to the Metropolitan.
(Ap. cc. I, II, XXX, LXI; c. IV of the 1st; cc. V, XIII of Laodicea; c. LIX of Carthage; c. VII of Timothy.)
Interpretation.
The present Canon is composed of Ap. c. XXX and c. IV of the 1st. Since we
have already explained these Canons, see the interpretation of them there, in
order to spare us from repeating the same things about them here. The only thing
in this Canon that is not found there, is that every appointment or election of
a bishop, or of a presbyter, or of a deacon that is made by authority and power
of civil rulers shall remain void and invalid; and that bishops are to be
elected by bishops, in accordance with a process previously described; that is
to say, on the other hand, that the fact that both presbyters and deacons are
elected is made plain indeed by the present Canon, concerning which see the
Footnote to Ap. c. II; as for the fact, moreover, that Christians ought to vote
subsequently after the bishops for those about to be admitted to holy orders,
this is made plain in the Interpretation of Ap. c. LXI. See also Ap. cc. I and
II, and the Footnote to c. V of Laodicea.
Canon IV.
The preacher of the truth Paul, the divine Apostle, as if laying down a Canon to the presbyters of the Ephesians, but rather to every sacerdotal aggregate, spoke openly and aboveboard as follows: I have coveted no ones silver, or gold, or apparel. I have shown you in all things that by thus laboring you ought to assist the weak, and remember that . . . It is more blissful to give than to receive (Acts 20:33, 35). Wherefore we too, having become pupils and disciples of His, decree that no bishop shall devise or think of ways of making shameful profits, alleging lame excuses such as are offered in the case of sins in general, to the effect that bishops, or clergymen, or monks serving under him demand gold, or silver, or any other commodity. For the Apostle says: The unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God (1 Cor. 6:9), and children ought not to lay up treasure for their parents, but parents for their children (2 Cor. 12:14). If, therefore, on account of any demand for gold, or for any other commodity, or on account of any idiosyncrasy, anyone be found to be excluding from the liturgy and excommunicating anyone among the clergymen under him, or shutting a venerable temple, to prevent liturgies of God from being conducted therein, venting his rage upon insentient objects, he himself is in reality insentient, and will become subject to self-torture, and his mischief shall return upon his own head (Ps. 7:16), as transgressor of a commandment of God, and of the Apostolic Ordinances. For Peter, the coryphaean summit of the Apostles, also commands: Tend the flock of God which is among you, not coercingly, but voluntarily after the manner of God. Not for the sake of shameful profits, but willingly. Not as lording it over the charges allotted to you, but as having become models for the flock. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear in person, ye shall receive the reward of an unwithering crown of glory (1 Pet. 5:2-4).
Interpretation.
Because great St. Paul both by word and by deed commanded the bishops of the
Ephesians, and through them all bishops subsequent thereto, not to desire
silver, or gold, or clothes, but by labor of their own hands to assist the weak
and needy, and to bear in mind that it is more blissful to give than to receive,
therefore the present Canon commands that no prelate or bishop shall seek to
extort gold or silver or anything else of value, with a view to shameful
profits, from bishops, or clergymen, or monks that are subject to his
jurisdiction, since any such demand is unjust and unrighteous, but the
unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God, according to the Apostle;
and since children are not obliged to amass treasure to give to their parents,
but, on the contrary, parents ought to give to their children. So any bishop who
is found suspending or excommunicating any priest or clergyman, or closing a
church in order to obtain money or on account of any other personal animus, let
him suffer what he is doing, to wit, let him be suspended, and let him be
excommunicated, if he is a bishop by his Metropolitan, or if he is a
Metropolitan by his Patriarch. For the Coryphaeus of Apostles St. Peter gives
the following orders to prelates: Tend the flock of God, not coercingly and
tyrannically, but voluntarily and after the manner of God; not for the sake of
shameful profits, but with cheerful willingness; not as domineering over the
clergy, but as furnishing models and examples to the flocks, in order that when
the chief shepherd Christ becomes manifest in His second advent, you may receive
from Him the reward of an unwithering crown of glory. Read also Ap. c.
XXIX.
Canon V.
It is a deadly sin when any sinners remain incorrigible. But what is worse than this happens if they insist upon rising up against piety and truth, preferring Mammon to obedience to God, and failing to cling fast to His canonical ordinances. Among those persons God is not the Lord, unless by any chance they be humiliated and again become sober enough to see their own mistake. For it rather behooves them to approach God, and with a contrite heart to ask for remission of this particular sin, and for pardon, instead of pluming themselves on their lawless behavior. For the Lord is nigh unto them that are contrite of heart (Ps. 34:18). As for those boasting that by giving gold they have obtained some rank in the Church and trusting to this wicked custom, which is alien to God and alienates men from God, and from every holy order; and as a result thereof with an impudent face and unbridled mouth dishonoring by reproachful words those who have been elected and installed through virtuousness of life by the Holy Spirit, without the giving of any money, those who have been doing this at first, are to receive the lowest rank in their own battalion. But if they insist and persist, they are to be corrected by means of a penance. If, on the other hand, anyone ever should appear to have done this with a view to ordination, let him suffer in accordance with the Apostolic Canon which says: If any bishop, or presbyter, or deacon gain possession (of this dignity by means of money, let both him and the one who ordained him be deposed from office, and exscinded, or cut off, altogether from communion, as was Simon by me Peter. Likewise also in accordance with the second Canon of the devout Fathers assembled in Chalcedon, which says: If any bishop ordain anyone for money, and make merchandise of the unvendible grace, and perform the ordination of a Bishop, Auxiliary Bishop, Presbyter, Deacon, or anyone on the roll of the Clergy, with a view to gain; or nominate any Steward, Ecdicus, or Paramonarius, or anyone else that belongs to the canon, for money, with the object of making a shameful profit for himself: let him who is found guilty of having undertaken this stand in peril of his office; and let him who has been thus ordained have no benefit from such traffic in ordinations or nominations, but, on the contrary, let him be without any claim upon the dignity or job which he has thus obtained by means of money. If, in fact, anyone even appear as a middleman or factor or intermediary for such shameful and illicit deals, let him too, if he be clergy, forfeit his office; but if he be a layman or a monk, let him be anathematized.
(Ap. c. XXIX; c. II of the 4th; John 1:16.)
Interpretation.
Some persons who intended to get themselves enrolled in the clergy of a
certain church, offered money to it of their own free will with a God-loving
frame of mind, not in order to get the clergyship therewith, but as devoting or
consecrating the money to God, according to Balsamon. But later, boasting of
giving the money, and preferring mammon and wealth to the sacred canons, they
sought and asked for chief seats (Matt. 23:6), and shamelessly and brazenly
reproached those clergymen who, being elected by the Holy Spirit, on account of
their virtuous conduct in life, were enrolled in the clergy without giving any
money. So for this reason the present Canon commands that those who boast of
this money and reproach the others because they gave none be reduced to the
lowest rank of the clergymen of the same order. But if they persist in this any
further, they are to be corrected by the chief priest with a suitable severer
penalty. Referring to the passage in the Epistle of St. John, these Fathers call
the incorrigible boasting of such clergymen about money a deadly sin; and they
call their shameless and insolent treatment of the other clergymen a worse than
deadly sin, and assert that among those men the God is no Lord, in accordance
with the Bible; while, on the other hand, they call their giving of money
lawless, not in itself for it was good at first and God-loving but on account of
the later boasting of the givers and their brazen shamelessness. So take care
not to take this gift of money for ordination, since this Canon appears to
consist of two parts. The first part forbids them to give money, not to be
ordained, for this comes in later but to get themselves enrolled in the parish
of a certain church, and afterwards to wax insolent and to hold the poor and
reverent clergymen in contempt: so it is this kind of giving that it forbids as
lawless. Then it goes on to present the second part, by saying that if they
should offer such money for ordination they must be deposed from office, in
accordance with Canons already issued. But this Canon adds that whoever should
give money to be ordained a clergyman or a priest is to receive the penalties
provided by Ap. c. XXIX and c. II of the 4th, both of which are quoted
verbatim: and see the Interpretation of them there.
Canon VI.
Since there actually is a Canon which says canonical discussions must be held twice a year in each province through an assembly of Bishops, but on account of the inconvenience and the lack of means of traveling those who were called upon to assemble had to face, the devout Fathers of the Sixth Council decreed that one assembly be held each year, by all means and on any pretext, and wrong things be corrected: therefore we renew this latter Canon. Accordingly, if any (civil) ruler be found attempting to prevent this, let him be excommunicated. If, on the other hand, any one of the Metropolitans should fail to see that this is done, except in case of necessity and violence, or some reasonable excuse, he is to be liable to the penalties. When a Council has been convoked in regard to canonical and evangelical matters, the Bishops assembled must engage in meditation and careful consideration of how the divine and vivifying commandments of God are to be kept. For in keeping them there is great reward (Ps. 19:11); and seeing that the commandment is a lamp; and the law is a light and reproof with instruction in the way of life (Prov. 6:23), and the commandment of the Lord shineth afar, illuminating the eyes (Ps. 19:8). But no Metropolitan shall have any right to demand a beast or other possession among the chattels which a Bishop takes along with him. But if he be proved to have done so, he shall pay back the value of it fourfold.
(App. c. XXXVII; c. V of the 1st; c. XIX of the 4th; c. VIII of the 6th.)
Interpretation.
The present Canon renews c. VIII of the 6th, which decrees that inasmuch as
two Councils of bishops cannot be held each year in regard to ecclesiastical
canonical questions, as the Canons prescribe Ap. c. XXXVII, that is to say, c. V
of the 1st, and c. XIX of the 4th owing to the difficulty of traveling, one
Council must be held by all means every year, in order to correct incidental
mistakes. But this Canon adds that any one among the (civil) rulers that tries
to prevent the holding of such a Council is to be excommunicated; and that any
Metropolitan that is remiss in regard to this (unless it be prevented by reason
of some necessity or logical reason), he shall become liable to penalties. But
since the object of holding a Council is to investigate whether the canonical
rules are being observed, relating, say, to excommunications, administrations of
ecclesiastical affairs, and other matters, as well as evangelical decrees,
therefore the bishops assembled must see to it that the vivifying commandments
of the Gospel are kept by their laities, because for the keeping of them a great
reward is given, according to David; and because, furthermore, the commandment
and law of God are a lamp and a light, and a way of life, according to the
author of the Book of Proverbs. But no Metropolitan has any permission to demand
of any bishop of his any animal or any other thing that he may have with him:
but if he should nevertheless do so, he must pay the bishop the fourfold amount
of its value. See also Ap. c. XXXVII.
Canon VII.
Paul the divine Apostle said: Some mens sins are plainly evident, . . . whereas those of other men follow inferentially (1 Tim. 5:24). Sins, therefore, being committed in advance, other sins follow them. Thus the impious heresy of accusers of the Christians was followed by other acts of impiety. For precisely as they removed the face in the venerable icons from the Church, they have also abandoned certain other customs which must be renewed, and in accordance with both the written and the unwritten law they must thus prevail. As to any venerable temples, therefore, that have been consecrated without holy relics of Martyrs, we decree that in them there shall be made a deposit of relics together with the usual prayer. Let anyone, then, that consecrates a temple without holy relics be deposed from office, on the ground that he has transgressed ecclesiastical traditions.
(c. XCI of Carthage.)
Interpretation.
St. Basil the Great interpreted this apostolic saying otherwise, but the
present Council has taken it more naively, since it says that the previous sins
one commits are followed by other sins, just as happened in the case of the
iconomachs who used to accuse the Christians and who, just as they deprived the
Church of the holy icons, also flouted some other things of the Church and cast
them out, which things must be renewed, in order that both the written
legislation and the unwritten tradition may prevail. So all the divine temples
that have been consecrated by them without relics of martyrs are to have such
relics deposited in them, while at the same time the prayer is said which
relates thereto in the ceremony of dedication. As for any prelate that
consecrates a temple hereafter without holy relics of martyrs, let him be
deposed from office as a transgressor of ecclesiastical traditions.
Canon VIII.
Inasmuch as some persons who have been misled by their inferences from the religion of the Jews have seen fit to sneer at Christ our God, while pretending to be Christians, but secretly and clandestinely keeping the Sabbath and doing other Jewish acts, we decree that these persons shall not be admitted to communion, nor to prayer, nor to church, but shall be Jews openly in accordance with their religion; and that neither shall their children be baptized, nor shall they buy or acquire a slave. But if any one of them should be converted as a matter of sincere faith, and confess with all his heart, triumphantly repudiating their customs and affairs, with a view to censure and correction of others, we decree that he shall be accepted and his children shall be baptized, and that the latter shall be persuaded to hold themselves aloof from Jewish peculiarities. If, on the other hand, the case is not thus, they are not to be accepted under any other circumstances whatever.
Interpretation.
The present Canon decrees that no one is to join in communion or prayer with,
or even admit into church, those Jews who only hypocritically have become
Christians and have joined the Orthodox faith, but secretly deny and mock Christ
our God, while keeping the Sabbath and other Jewish customs (or, more
explicitly, circumcising their sons, deeming anyone unclean that takes hold of a
corpse or leper, and other similar vagaries); but, on the contrary, such persons
are to be Jews as they were before, and no one shall baptize their children nor
let them buy a slave or acquire one by exchange or gift or in any other fashion.
But if any Jew should be actually converted in good and guileless faith and with
all his heart confess the orthodoxy of Christians, openly disparaging the
religion of the Jews, in order that other Jews may be reproved and corrected, we
ought to accept such a person, and baptize his children, ordering them
persuasively to abstain from Jewish superstitions. But as for those who do not
become converted in such a manner, we must not admit them on any account
whatever.
Canon IX.
All boyish whimwhams and mad bacchanalia, the false writings that have been brought forth against the venerable icons, must be turned in to the Bishopric of Constantinople to be put away together with the rest of heretical books. If, on the other hand, anyone should be found hiding these, if he be a Bishop, a Presbyter, or a Deacon, let him be deposed from office; but if he be a layman or a monk, let him be excommunicated.
(Ap. c. LX; cc. II and LXIII of the 6th; c. LI of Laodicea.)
Interpretation.
The present Canon decrees that all the false writings which the iconomachists
composed against the holy icons and which are flimsy as childrens toys, and as
crazy as the raving and insane bacchantes those women who used to dance drunken
at the festival of the tutelar of intoxication Dionysus all those writings, I
say, must be surrendered to the Patriarchate of Constantinople, to be put
together with the other books by heretics in such a place, that is to say, that
no one will ever be able to take them therefrom with a view to reading them. As
for anyone who should hide them, with a view to reading them himself or
providing them for others to read, if he be a bishop, a presbyter, or a deacon,
let him be deposed from office; but if he be a layman or a monk, let him be
excommunicated. See also Ap. c. LX.
Canon X.
Inasmuch as some of the Clergymen, flouting the canonical ordinance and leaving their own parish, run off into another parish, and for the most part into this God-guarded and imperial city, and become attached to civil magistrates, conducting services in their oratories, it is therefore not allowable to receive these persons in any house or church without the permission of their own bishop and of that of Constantinople. If anyone should do so persistently, let him be deposed from office. As for any of the Priests who do this notwithstanding what has been said in the foregoing, it is not for them to undertake secular and mundane cares, as they are forbidden to do so by the divine Canons. But if anyone be caught red-handed in the employ of the so-called magnates (meizoteri), let him be dismissed, or let him be deposed from office. To come at once to the point, therefore, let him keep re-reading the divine Scriptures with the object of teaching children and servants and slaves. For it was to this that he was called when holy orders fell to his lot.
(Ap. cc. XV, LXXXI, LXXXIII; cc. III, V, X, XXIII; c. XI of the lst-&-2nd; cc. XVIII, LXIII, XCVIII of Carthage; cc. XV, XVI of the 1st; cc. XVII, XVIII of the 6th; c. III of Antioch; cc. XV, XVI, XIX of Sardica.)
Interpretation.
The present Canon forbids two unlawful things in the same paragraph: the
action of clergymen in going from city to city, and especially to
Constantinople; and that of their applying to civil magistrates and officiating
in their prayer-houses without the permission both of their own bishop, from
whom they have gone away, and of the Patriarch, into whose parish they have
resorted, as both are contrary to the prescription of the divine Canons. So it
commands that any clergyman is to be deposed from office if without permission
of the above he comes to Constantinople, or officiates in oratories, and
persists in doing so. Clergymen, on the other hand, who have been admitted with
their permission must not undertake secular cares, but rather let them teach the
children and slaves and servants of Christians. If any clergyman should engage
in superintending the lati-fundia of civil magistrates (as this same thing is
decreed in c. XI of the lst-&-2nd), the superintendents of which used to be
called meizoteri (i.e., magnates), perhaps owing to their superintending
the largest and most profitable estates, either let him leave this employment
or, if he will not leave it, let him be deposed from office. See also Ap. cc. VI
and XV.
Canon XI.
All of us being obliged to keep the divine Canons, we ought to maintain by all means inviolable the one saying that there should be Stewards in every church. Accordingly if each Metropolitan appoints a Steward in his church, it is well and good; but if not the Bishop of Constantinople is given permission to appoint a Steward in the same church ex officio. Like permission is given also to Metropolitans if the Bishops under them do not care to appoint Stewards in their own churches. The same rule is to be observed also in the case of Monasteries.
(Ap. cc. XXXVIII, XLI; c. XXVI of the 4th; c. XII of the 7th; c. VII of the lst-&-2nd; c. XV of Ancyra; c. VII of Gangra; cc. XXIV, XXV of Antioch; cc. XXXIV, XLI of Carthage; c. X of Theophilus; c. II of Cyril.)
Interpretation.
Inasmuch as c. XXVI of the 4th commands that every church shall have a
steward to manage its affairs with permission and approval of the bishop,
therefore the present Canon, while confirming that one, adds that if any
Metropolitan appoints a steward of his own accord, it will be all right; but if
he fail to do so, the Patriarch of Constantinople has authority to appoint a
steward for that same Metropolis and for other ones, too, which are subject to
him, that is to say. Likewise in case bishops fail to appoint a steward for
their bishoprics their Metropolitan is to be allowed to appoint them. This same
thing is to be done also in the case of monasteries that have no steward that is
to say, stewards are to be appointed for them by their abbot, or, if he will not
do this, by the bishop, or if he will not appoint one in this event by the
Metropolitan, or if even the Metropolitan neglects to take care of the matter,
by the Patriarch. See also Ap. c. XXXVIII.
Canon XII.
If any Bishop or any Abbot be found disposing of productive property of the bishopric or monastery respectively into the hands of lay rulers, or of any other person, the transfer is to be invalid and void, in accordance with the Apostolic Canon saying: Let the Bishop have the care of all ecclesiastical matters and let him manage them on the understanding that God is overseeing and supervising. Let him not be allowed to appropriate anything therefrom or to give God things to his relatives. If they be indigent, let him provide for them as indigents, but let him not trade off things of the Church under this pretext. If it be alleged as an excuse that the property is actually a liability involving a loss or overall expense and that the fields are not rendering any profit or benefit, even so the place must not be sold or let out to the civil rulers of the region, but to Clergymen or to farmers (i.e., husbandmen). But if by employing some cunning rascality, a civil ruler should buy the fields from a Clergyman or a farmer, even so let the sale be invalid and void, and let the property be restored to the Bishopric, or to the Monastery, as the case may be, and let the Bishop, or the Abbot, respectively, who does this be driven out the Bishop out of the Bishopric, and the Abbot out of the Monastery on the ground that they are plundering wrongfully what they did not gather together.
(Ap. cc. XXXVIII, XLI; c. XXVI of the 4th; c. XI of the 7th; c. VII of the lst-&-2nd; c. XV of Ancyra; c. VII of Gangra; cc. XXIV, XXV of Antioch; cc. XXXIV, XLI of Carthage; c. X of Theophilus; c. II of Cyril.)
Interpretation.
By the phrase productive property is meant all those things that produce an
income, and especially real estate: such as arable fields, vineyards, olive
groves, etc. So as concerning these things the present Canon decrees that if
anyone who should alienate them, as bishop from the bishopric, or an abbot from
a monastery, and turn them over to civil rulers, either by sale or by exchange,
any such transfer is to remain invalid and of no effect, and the things are to
revert to the bishopric or monastery, as the case may be, just as Ap. c. XXXVIII
decrees, which the present Canon quotes verbatim and in full. But if it
should happen that the bishop or abbot alleges that such or such a field, or
vineyard, is not producing any income or profit, but rather a loss, let them
sell it, not to civil rulers and autocrats, but to clergymen or farmers, men,
that is to say, who are humble and paltry. But if by employing some villainy
they should first have given them to the latter with the object of letting them
be taken from them later by a civil ruler, this sale is to be invalid and void,
while the bishop who has sold the property in such a manner is to be ousted from
the bishopric, and any abbot who has done so is to be ousted from the monastery,
because they have wrongfully dissipated and lost the property which had been
rightfully gathered together and consecrated by others. See also the
Interpretation of Ap. c. XXXVIII.
Canon XIII.
In view of the fact that on account of the disaster attending our sins certain charitable institutions have been pillaged by men, including both bishoprics and monasteries, and have been made into common resorts; if those who now have possession of them are willing to return them, in order that they may be restored to their pristine condition, it is well and good: but if not, in case those men who now have them in their possession are on the sacerdotal list, we command that they be deposed from office, or, if they be monks or laymen, that they be excommunicated, on the ground that they stand condemned by the Father, and by the Son, and by the Holy Spirit; and let them be relegated thither where their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched (Isa. 66:24; Mark 9:44, 46, 48), since they are opposed to the Lords utterance saying: Make not my Fathers house a house of merchandise (John 2:16).
(cc. IV, XXIV of the 4th; c. XLIX of the 6th; cc. XII, XIX of the 7th; c. I of the lst-&-2nd; c. II of Cyril.)
Interpretation.
In the time of the iconomachists, besides other evils that occurred, many
prelates were ousted by them on account of the holy icons from their bishoprics
and metropoleis, and many monks were ousted from their monasteries. These
institutions being left in a state of desolation certain secular persons
snatched hold of them and converted them into secular habitations. So for this
reason the present Canon commands that in case those holding possession of these
bishoprics and monasteries are willing to give them back, in order that they may
be restored again as bishoprics and monasteries to their former condition, it is
all right. But if they are unwilling, in case they are clerics let them be
deposed from office, but in case they are monks or laymen let them be
excommunicated, as persons condemned on this account by the Holy Trinity; and
let them be relegated to that region where their worm dieth not, and their fire
is not quenched, according to the utterance of Isaiah and of the Gospel, since
they are opposing the words of the Lord which say, Make not the house of my
Father a house of merchandise, etc. Read also cc. IV and XXIV of the
4th.
Canon XIV.
It is perfectly plain to everybody that order reigns in the Church, and that it is pleasing to God for the transactions of the Priesthood to be maintained with rigorousness. Since, then, we behold some persons receiving the tonsure of the Clergy from infancy and without imposition of hands, and reading from the pulpit at the synaxis, but doing so in an uncanonical fashion, we forbid the doing of this from now on. The same rule is to be observed also with reference to Monks. As for the appointment of an Anagnost (or Reader) by imposition of hands, each Abbot is given permission to do this but only in his own Monastery, provided that imposition of hands has been laid upon that very same Abbot himself by a Bishop to enable him to have the presidency of an Abbot that is to say, more plainly speaking, if he is a Presbyter (or Priest). Likewise also in accordance with the ancient custom, Auxiliary Bishops may only with the permission of the Bishop appoint Anagnosts (with imposition of hands).
(c. XXXIII of the 6th ; c. XXII of Carthage.)
Interpretation.
Since some persons have been consecrated from infancy to God, and have donned
garments befitting clerics, and have also received the tonsure at the hands of
their own parents, in accordance with a certain custom, on the pretext that they
have been and are, allegedly, consecrated, and these same children on coming to
age have had the temerity to read the divine books to the laity (perhaps
trusting to that tonsure received in their infancy), without having had the
requisite imposition of hands and without having received the requisite seal and
tonsure of an Anagnost from a prelate; therefore the present Canon commands that
such a thing be not done, on the ground that it is disorderly and uncanonical.
Not only are laymen forbidden to act as Readers without a bishops seal, but so
are monks too. But it is permissible for the abbot of a monastery, provided he
is a priest and has been made an abbot by imposition of the hands of a prelate,
to ordain Anagnosts (or Readers), but only in his own monastery, and not
elsewhere. Likewise even Auxiliary Bishops (Chorepiscopi) are permitted
to ordain Anagnosts, in accordance with an ancient custom (respecting which see
also the Footnote to c. VIII of the First). Read also c. XXXIII of the
6th.
Canon XV.
From now on let no Clergyman be attached to two churches. For this is a mark of commerciality and of greediness for profits, and is alien to ecclesiastical usage. For we have been told by the voice of the Lord Himself that no one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will cling to the one, and despise the other (Matt. 6:24). Each person, therefore, in accordance with the Apostolical utterance, wherever he happens to be, ought to stay there and serve in one church. For things done on account of greediness for profits in connection with ecclesiastical matters are alien to Gods institutes. To supply the needs of this life there are various occupations. Let anyone, therefore, who so wishes gain the needs of the body from them. For the Apostle has said, these hands have ministered unto my needs, and unto those of them who were with me (Acts 20:34). Accordingly, what is said here is to be applied in this God-guarded city; but in small towns outside of it, for want of men, let there be concessions.
(Ap. c. XV; cc. XV, XVI of the 1st; cc. X, XX, XXIII of the 4th; cc. XVII, XVIII of the 6th; cc. X, XV of the 7th; c. III of Antioch; cc. XV, XVI, XIX of Sardica; cc. LXIII, XCVIII of Carthage; Matt. 6:24; 1 Cor. 7:20; Acts 20:34.)
Interpretation.
The present Canon prohibits the enrolling of any clergyman in the clergy of
two churches situated either in the same city or in two cities, because this is
being done for the sake of shameful profits, in order, that is to say, that the
clergyman so enrolled may gain the emoluments of both churches; but what is done
for the sake of shameful profits is foreign both to God and to ecclesiastics.
For the Lord says that nobody can serve two masters; for either he will hate and
despise one of them, or he will love and embrace the other. And St. Paul
commands that everybody stay in the place whither he has been called by God. If
these clergymen allege as an excuse that they cannot get along with the
emoluments of the one church, why, behold, there are many kinds of manual work
in the world that are more decent; accordingly, let them work with their hands
to obtain the needs of the body. For even St. Paul obtained his needs and the
needs of those with him by the work of his own hands, as he himself says. So for
a clergyman to be attached to two churches, in this imperial city at any rate,
is not to be tolerated because of the great number of clerics already in it; but
as for the villages and towns outside of it, let it be allowed to be done on
account of the scarcity of priests and clerics. See also Ap. c.
XV.
Canon XVI.
Every luxury and adornment of the body is alien to the sacerdotal order. Bishops or clergymen, therefore, who adorn themselves with splendid and conspicuous clothes need to be corrected; but if they insist upon it, they must be condemned to a penance. Likewise as regards those who anoint themselves with perfumes. But inasmuch as a root of bitterness growing up, the heresy of Christianocategori (i.e., accusers of Christians), has become a pestilence, and those who have joined it not only have deemed iconic representations in paintings to be an abomination, but have even rejected every form of reverence, being inclined to loathe those who live decently and piously, and that which has been written has been fulfilled in them, viz., Godliness is an abomination to a sinner (Sirach A.28) I'm not sure what the true citation for this verse is. If, therefore, persons are found laughing at those clothed in cheap and decent vestments, let them be corrected with a penance. For ever since the days of old every priestly man has contented himself with moderate and decent vestments. For everything that is worn not because of any real need or necessity, but for embellishment incurs the discredit of being frippery, as Basil the Great has said. But neither did they put on any garments made of silk fabrics and embroidered with various designs; nor did any of them add any differently colored appendages to the edges of their vestments. For they had been told by the Speaker of Gods language that those who wear soft raiment are in the houses of kings (Matt. 11:8).
(c. XXVII of the 6th; cc. XII, XXI of Gangra.)
Interpretation.
The present Canon decrees that bishops and clerics who wear splendid clothes,
as well as those who anoint themselves with perfumes, ought to correct this
impropriety, since every embellishment and adornment of the human body is
foreign to those in holy orders. But if they insist on doing so and will not
correct themselves, let them be canonized with a suitable penance. Moreover, the
iconomachists, besides rejecting holy icons, rejected also everything making for
decency in the matter of clothing, and were wont to laugh at those wearing cheap
or paltry garments (that is why they were wont to call monks darkies, that is to
say, wearers of dark-colored clothes, making fun of the decency of the monkish
habit, according to Metaphrastes in his Life of Stephen the Younger);
accordingly, I say, let these men be corrected with a penance, for ever since
the beginning men in holy orders have been wearing humble clothes. Hence St.
Basil the Great (see his Epitomized Def. 49) describes as frippery every piece
of clothing that is not designed to meet some need of the body, but only for
embellishment or beautification; and they were not accustomed to wear garments
embroidered with silk (for silkworms are called in Greek seres after the Seres,
or Chinese, who used to cultivate these worms, and from there they were carried
to other regions); nor did they attach to the edges of their garments pieces of
a different color from that of their garments. For they had heard from the
utterance of the Lord that those wearing soft clothes are found in palaces, and
not in bishoprics and churches. See also c. XXVII of the 6th.
Canon XVII.
Some of the monks, after leaving their monasteries, having become imbued with a yearning to rule and with a loathness to obey, undertake to build prayer-houses without having the needments to finish them. If, therefore, anyone shall undertake to do this, let him be prevented by the local bishop. But if he has the needments for their completion, let him carry out his plans. The same rule is to be observed also as regards laymen and clerics.
(c. IV of the 4th; c. XXI of the 7th; c. I of the lst-and-2nd.)
Interpretation.
Seeing that some ambitious monks inclined to rule and not to obey others,
having left their monasteries, attempt to build prayer-houses without having the
expenses required to complete them, therefore the present Canon commands that
such persons be prevented by the bishop from engaging in such an enterprise. But
if they have sufficient capital for this end and the accomplishment of their
object, let them undertake the work. This same rule applies also to laymen or
clerics if they undertake to build oratories. See also c. IV of the 4th, and c.
XXI of the present Council.
Canon XVIII.
Be ye unoffending even to outsiders, says the Apostle (1 Cor. 10:32). But for women to be dwelling in bishoprics, or in monasteries, is a cause for everyones taking offense. If, therefore, anyone be caught in possession of a female slave or of a free woman in a bishopric, or in a monastery, for the performance of any service, or ministration, let him be penanced; and if he persists, let him be deposed from office. If, on the other hand, it should happen that in the suburbs there are women, and a Bishop, or an Abbot, wants to go to there, while the Bishop or Abbot is present, let no woman perform any sort of service whatever for him during that time, but let her keep to herself in a different place until the Bishop takes his departure, to avoid any reproach.
(c. III of the 1st; c. V of the 6th; c. XXII of the 7th; c. XIX of Ancyra; c. XLV of Carthage; c. LXXXIX of Basil.)
Interpretation.
The present Canon prohibits women from being within bishoprics and
monasteries in prder to act as servants, since such a thing causes great scandal
and brings great discredit upon prelates and monks both among secular Christians
and among the heathen. In fact, the Apostle orders us not to give any offense to
even Jews and Greeks outside the Church. So if any prelate or abbot should be
caught doing this, let him be duly canonized. But if he should persist in doing
it and be incorrigible, let him be deposed from office. If, on the other hand,
in the latifundia of a bishopric or of a monastery there should be any women,
and the prelate or the abbot should go there to any part of them, as long as
these men are there the women are not to perform any act of service, but are to
keep away until they depart, on account of the necessity of avoiding any offense
or reproach. See also c. III of the First.
Canon XIX.
Among the headmen of the Church the hatred of avarice has been abated to such an extent that even some of the men and women called reverent, having forgotten the Lords commandment, have been deceived or misled into allowing the admission for money of those joining the Sacerdotal Order, or the monastic life. The result is that, as Basil the Great says, what is disreputable from the start is wholly rejectable. For neither is it possible to serve both God and Mammon. If, therefore, anyone be found doing this, in case he is a Bishop, or an Abbot, or anyone in the Priesthood, either let him cease or let him be deposed in accordance with the second Canon of the holy Council held in Chalcedon; but if the offender is an Abbess, let her be driven out of the Nunnery, and let her be delivered to a different Nunnery for subordination. Likewise, too, in the case of an Abbot who lacks ordination as a Presbyter. As regards property of any kind given by parents to their children by way of dowry or personal belongings that have been donated by donators who acknowledge them to be things consecrated to God, we have decreed that whether they stay or leave, those things are to remain in the monastery, in accordance with his promise, unless his departure has been caused by the Prior.
(Ap. c. XXIX; c. II of the 4th; cc. XXII, XXIII of the 6th; c. XCI of Basil; Epistles of Gennadius and of Tarasius; Matt. 6:24.)
Interpretation.
Headman is a designation for prelates and priests, and for abbots of
monasteries, since they have been appointed to stand at the head of the laymen,
both with respect to the right faith and with respect to good works. So the
present Canon says that inasmuch as these men have been so overcome by avarice
as to take money as an inducement to admit those coming to the Sacerdotal Order
or to monastic life; and thus is fulfilled in them the saying of St. Basil the
Great to the effect that if the beginning of anything is inefficient and bad,
the whole of it thereafter will be inefficient and bad. If any bishop, or abbot
in holy orders, or anyone else on the sacerdotal list, does this hereafter, let
him either cease or be deposed from office, in accordance with c. II of the 4th
C., which decrees that anyone is to be deposed from office who in exchange for
money should nominate even a Prosmonarius. But if the person doing this
be an abbot not in holy orders or an abbess, let them be driven out of their
monasteries and be put in other monasteries, in order to render them obedient,
as not being worthy of the abbotship and of the right to subordinate others,
seeing that they demand money in advance in order to consent to admit those
applying as candidates for the position of caloyer or monk. As for those things
(whether they are chattels, that is to say, or real estate of any kind) which a
person may possess either as dowry from his parents or as belongings of his own
and which he may consecrate to the monastery in which he has decided to take up
his abode as a monk, the present Canon decrees that these things are to remain
inalienable from the monastery in accordance with the promise or vow of the one
who consecrated them, no matter whether he stays in the monastery or departs
from it for reasons of his own and of his own free will. But if he should depart
from the monastery in consequence of any occasion (such as we shall mention in
the Interpretation of the following c. XXI of this same 7th) due to the abbot,
he can take them back.
Canon XX.
As from now on we decree that no double monastery is to be made, because this becomes a scandal and offense to many persons. But if certain persons with their relatives choose to renounce the world and to follow a solitary life, the men must retire to a monastery for men, and the women must enter a nunnery (or monastery for women). For it is in this that God takes pleasure. As for those which have been double hitherto, let them be maintained, in accordance with the Canon of our Holy Father St. Basil, and in accordance with his injunction let them be so formulated. Let not monks and nuns dwell in a single monastery. For adultery will creep in where there is a chance due to their dwelling together. Let no monk have the liberty to address a nun, or a nun to address a monk, with a view to speaking in private. Let no monk look into a nunnery, nor let any nun eat with a monk alone. And when the necessaries of life are being conveyed from the mens quarters to those of the canonesses, let the abbess of the nunnery receive these outside the gates with some aged nun. If it should happen that any nun should want to see a monk who is her relative, let him speak with her briefly and in a few words in the presence of the abbess.
(cc. XLVI, XLVII of the 6th; cc. XVIII, XX, XXII of the 7th.)
Interpretation.
Zonaras asserts that a double monastery was two neighboring monasteries so
near together that voices could be heard from one to the other. Some other
authorities, with whom Balsamon agrees, say that it was one and the same
monastery, within which men and women lived in the same building, though not
strangers to another in respect of the flesh, but relatives of one another. I
would say that this second opinion seems nearer the truth, in so far as it is
confirmed by the style in the beginning and the context of this Canon. But the
injunction which the Canon cites further below of St. Basil the Great,
concerning double monasteries, proves the first opinion to be most true and
incontestable. But whether one takes it this way or that, the present Canon
commands that henceforth such double monasteries are not to be made, on the
ground that they are causes of scandal. If, nevertheless, certain men and women,
who are relatives of one another, wish to become monks or nuns, as the case may
be let the men go apart to monasteries for men and let the women go to a
nunnery, or monastery exclusively for women; for it is in this way that God is
pleased. But as for all monasteries that have survived till now and are double,
let them live in accordance with the injunction and legislation of St. Basil the
Great, which is as follows, that is to say: monks and nuns are not to be allowed
to dwell together in one and the same monastery, because adultery will follow in
the wake of this dwelling together. Let no monk have the liberty to speak
privately with a nun, or a nun with a monk. Let no monk sleep in a nunnery, nor
let one eat with a nun. And when monks from a monastery are conveying the
necessaries of life to the nuns, they are to leave them outside the doors of the
nunnery, and from there the abbess with some other aged nun is to take them in.
But if any monk wishes to see a nun who is a relative of his, let him see her,
and let him speak a few words to her, with the abbess present, and let him
depart quickly.
Canon XXI.
A monk or nun must not leave his or her monastery or nunnery, respectively, and go away to another. But if this should occur, it is necessary that he or she be afforded a hospitable reception as a guest. But it is not fitting that he or she be entered without the approval of his abbot, or of her abbess, as the case may be.
(c. IV of the 4th; c. XIX of the 7th; cc. III, IV, V of the lst-&-2nd; c. LXXXVIII of Carthage.)
Interpretation.
The present Canon decrees that a monk or nun must not leave that monastery or
nunnery in which he or she, respectively, has been tonsured, and go to another.
But if anyone should do this, such a one ought to be received as a guest and
hospitably treated by the Fathers of that strange monastery (or the Mothers of
that strange nunnery, as the case may be) for some days (lest as one not
accorded a proper welcome he or she be compelled to betake himself or herself to
the world and to associate with indifferent persons). Nevertheless, he or she
must not be held to be enrolled in the brotherhood or sisterhood there, as the
case may be, without the approval and a dimissory letter from his own abbot (or
from her own abbess, if it be a nun).
Canon XXII.
For everything to be dedicated to God, and not to be slavishly subject to
ones own will, is undoubtedly a great thing in itself. For whether you are
eating or you are drinking, the divine Apostle says, you are doing everything
for the glory of God. Christ, therefore, our God, in His Gospels has ordered us
to cut out the origins of sins. For not only is adultery chastised by Him, but
even a mental tendency to attempt adultery is condemned, in that He says:
Whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with
her already in his heart (Matt. 5:28). Taking a cue from this assertion, we
ought to purify our thoughts. All things are lawful, but not all things are
expedient (1Cor. 10:23), we are taught by an Apostolic utterance. It is
therefore indispensable for every man to eat in order to live. Accordingly, for
those whose life is one of marriage and children and popular amusement it is
proper for men and women to eat in mixed company, though to avoid calumny and
reproach they ought to take food merely in order to obtain nourishment, and not
for the enjoyment of it, and in absence of theatrical arts, or what may be
called Satanic songs, music of harps, and whorish twistings of the body. For
upon such as participate in these things the prophetic curse descends speaking
as follows: Woe unto them who drink wine with harp and lute, but regard not
the work of the Lord, neither have considered the works of his hands
comprehendingly (Isa. 5:12). And if there ever should be such among the
Christians, let them correct themselves or be corrected; but if not, let the
rules laid down by those before us canonically and promulgated prevail in regard
to them. But as for those persons whose life is quiet and monotonous, he who has
joined hands with the Lord God ought to bear the yoke solitary . . . as he
sitteth alone and broodeth in silence (Lam. of Jer. 3:27-28). But what is
more even for those who have chosen a priestly life, it is not at all
permissible for them to eat privately in the company of women, unless it be
somewhere together with God-bearing and reverent men and women, in order that
the banquet itself may lead to some spiritual guidance. And in the case of
relatives, too, let him do the same. If, again, during a journey a monk or a
priestly man should happen to be in want of what he needs, and as a matter of
necessity wishes to put up somewhere, be it at an inn or in someones home, he is
to have the right to do this, on the ground of the exigency.