Overview

"Law, Person, and Community: Philosophical, Theological, and Comparative Perspectives on Canon Law takes up the fundamental question ""What is law?"" through a consideration of the interrelation of the concepts of law, person, and community. As with the concept of law described by secular legal theorists, canon law aims to set a societal order that harmonizes the interests of individuals and communities, secures peace, guarantees freedom, and establishes justice. At the same time, canon law rests upon a traditional understanding of the spiritual end of the human person and religious nature of community.The comparison of one of the world's ancient systems of religious law with contemporary conceptions of law rooted in secular theory raises questions about the law's power to bind individuals and communities. Professor John J. Coughlin employs comparative methodology in an attempt to reveal the differing concepts of the human person reflected in both canon law and secular legal theory. Contrasting the contemporary positivistic view of law with the classical view reflected in canon law, Law, Person, and Community discusses the relationship between canon law, theology, and natural law. It also probes the interplay between the metaphysical and historical in the theory of law by an examination of canonical equity, papal authority, and the canon law of marriage. It juxtaposes the assumptions of canon law about church-state relations with those of the modern liberal state as exemplified by U.S. first amendment jurisprudence. No scholarly work has yet addressed this question of how the principles and substance of canon law, both past and present, relate to current issues in legal theory, such as the foundation of human rights and in particular the right of religious freedom for individuals and communities."

Full Product Details

Author:   John J. Coughlin, OFM (Professor of Law, Professor of Law, University of Notre Dame)
Publisher:   Oxford University Press Inc
Imprint:   Oxford University Press Inc
Dimensions:   Width: 23.40cm , Height: 2.50cm , Length: 16.00cm
Weight:   0.592kg
ISBN:  

9780199756773

ISBN 10:   0199756775
Pages:   320
Publication Date:   19 April 2012
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   To order  
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Table of Contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS Preface and Acknowledgments Abbreviations Introduction I. Knowledge II. Law III. Person IV. Community V. An Overview of This Study Chapter 1 Canon Law and Anthropology I. Anthropology and the Foundation of Law II. Anthropological Characteristics A. Human Nature B. The Body C. The Soul D. Reason E. Affect F. Conscience G. Free Will H. Memory I. The Person as Social Being J. The End of the Human Person III. Conclusion Chapter 2 Canon Law and Theology I. Canon Law: Ordinance of Faith and Reason A. Biblical Anthropology B. Historical and Ontological in Canon Law C. Anthropology and Revelation D. Epistemology and Canon Law II. The Theological Justification of Canon Law A. Thomas, Luther, and Calvin B. Charism and Institution C. Communio and Canon Law III. Conclusion Chapter 3 Canon Law and Natural Law I. Human Nature as a Foundation for Law A. The New Natural Law Theory B. The Function of Natural Law in Canon Law C. The Relation Between Natural Law and Theology in Canon Law II. Classical and Modern Conceptions of Law and Reason A. The Classical Understandings of Law and Reason B. Law and Competing Modern Conceptions of Reason III. Conclusion Chapter 4 Canonical Equity I. Historical Development of Canonical Equity A. The Medieval Canonists B. St. Thomas and Suárez C. The Standard of Canonical Equity II. Canonical Equity in the Twentieth Century Codes A. Expressed Equity B. The Equitable Character of the Statute C. Unwritten Equity III. Historical Consciousness and the Objectivity of Canon Law IV. Conclusion Chapter 5 Development in Canon Law I. The Development of Canon Law and the Development of Doctrine A. Newman's Anthropological Analogy B. Papal Primacy 1. Sacred Scripture and Tradition 2. Head and Body 3. The CIC-1983 II. Fundamental Rights in the CIC-1983 A. The Meaning of Ius B. The Doctrine of Human Dignity and Human Rights Law C. The Natural Foundation of Human Rights D. The Theological Foundation of Human Rights III. A Comparison of Development in Canon Law with Positivism's Secondary Rules IV. Conclusion Chapter 6 Personalism in Marriage I. The Goods of Marriage II. The Classical Understanding of Marriage and Secularization A. The Medieval Theory of Marriage B. The Demise of the Classical Understanding III. The Development of the Personalist Perspective in Canon Law A. Personalism and Vatican II B. Jurisprudence of the Roman Rota IV. Conclusion Chapter 7 Canon Law and the Secular State I. Traditional and Modern Views of Church State Relations II. Anthropological Assumptions and the First Amendment A. Theological Anthropology B. Rationalist Anthropology III. The Catholic Schools and the First Amendment A. Schools and the One Best System B. Strict-Separationism C. Problems with Public Policy by Judicial Review IV. Conclusion Chapter 8 The Impact of Neutral Rules on Hierarchical Churches I. The Supreme Court's Neutral Rules Approach A. Judicial Deference to Hierarchical Churches B. Neutral Rules C. Problems with Neutrality II. Questions about the Impact of Neutral Rules on Hierarchical Churches A. The Secular Court's Competency Over Church Doctrine and Law B. Congregational v. Hierarchical Church Government C. Tort Liability for Essentially Religious Decisions D. Excessive Entanglement and Judicial Review E. Generally Applicable Law and Religious Freedom III. Conclusion Conclusion I. Law II. Person III. Community

Reviews

John J. Coughlin's book, Law, Person, and Community: Theological, Philosophical, and Comparative Perspectives on Canon Law, is a breath of fresh air in the positivistic polluted atmosphere of the Western legal systems. His approach, instead of following the rule: 'whatever the Queen in Parliament enacts is law', which often has been concretized in legislation contrary to the 'Creator's operating manual', opens a path to a better understanding of human ecology and recognition that human nature needs to be better understood and respected in legislation. --Ernest Caparros, Visiting Professor, Pontifical University of the Holy Cross (Rome, Italy) A notably significant contribution to a better understanding both of human law in general and of the special character of a religious law that, by its insight into the nature and destiny of human persons and into the community established to bring these persons to eternal life, differs profoundly from the laws held out by religions earlier and later than Catholicism. --John Finnis, Professor of Law & Legal Philosophy Emeritus University of Oxford John Coughlin's book should be required reading not only in civil [secular] and canon law schools but also in theological institutions. His understanding and elucidation of canon law as both an ordinance of reason and an ordinance of faith has important implications not only for specifically theological disciplines - e.g., ecclesiology, Christology, systematic theology, and Christian anthropology - but also for understanding both canon and civil law and each discipline's origin and application. Law, Person, & Community provides the necessary foundation to approach a variety of issues much to the fore in contemporary legal debate: the role of law in civil society and in the Catholic Church; the intentionality of both civil and canon law; and the interaction between civil and canon law. These issues in turn permit a logical and intelligent discussion on the essential question of human rights - their origin and teleology. --Robert J. Kaslyn, SJ, Dean, School of Canon Law, Catholic Unive

<br> John J. Coughlin's book, Law, Person, and Community: Theological, Philosophical, and Comparative Perspectives on Canon Law, is a breath of fresh air in the positivistic polluted atmosphere of the Western legal systems. His approach, instead of following the rule: 'whatever the Queen in Parliament enacts is law', which often has been concretized in legislation contrary to the 'Creator's operating manual', opens a path to a better understanding of human ecology and recognition that human nature needs to be better understood and respected in legislation. <br>--Ernest Caparros, Visiting Professor, <br>Pontifical University of the Holy Cross (Rome, Italy) <br><p><br> A notably significant contribution to a better understanding both of human law in general and of the special character of a religious law that, by its insight into the nature and destiny of human persons and into the community established to bring these persons to eternal life, differs profoundly from the laws held out by

"""John J. Coughlin's book, Law, Person, and Community: Theological, Philosophical, and Comparative Perspectives on Canon Law, is a breath of fresh air in the positivistic polluted atmosphere of the Western legal systems. His approach, instead of following the rule: 'whatever the Queen in Parliament enacts is law', which often has been concretized in legislation contrary to the 'Creator's operating manual', opens a path to a better understanding of human ecology and recognition that human nature needs to be better understood and respected in legislation."" --Ernest Caparros, Visiting Professor, Pontifical University of the Holy Cross (Rome, Italy) ""A notably significant contribution to a better understanding both of human law in general and of the special character of a religious law that, by its insight into the nature and destiny of human persons and into the community established to bring these persons to eternal life, differs profoundly from the laws held out by religions earlier and later than Catholicism."" --John Finnis, Professor of Law & Legal Philosophy Emeritus University of Oxford ""John Coughlin's book should be required reading not only in civil [secular] and canon law schools but also in theological institutions. His understanding and elucidation of canon law as both an ordinance of reason and an ordinance of faith has important implications not only for specifically theological disciplines - e.g., ecclesiology, Christology, systematic theology, and Christian anthropology - but also for understanding both canon and civil law and each discipline's origin and application. Law, Person, & Community provides the necessary foundation to approach a variety of issues much to the fore in contemporary legal debate: the role of law in civil society and in the Catholic Church; the intentionality of both civil and canon law; and the interaction between civil and canon law. These issues in turn permit a logical and intelligent discussion on the essential question of human rights - their origin and teleology."" --Robert J. Kaslyn, SJ, Dean, School of Canon Law, Catholic Unive"

Author Information

Rev. John J. Coughlin, O.F.M is a Franciscan friar and Catholic priest. He presently serves as Professor of Law and Concurrent Professor of Theology at the University of Notre Dame. Father Coughlin has also taught at St. Bonaventure University, St. Joseph's Seminary (Dunwoodie), St. John's University Law School, and the Pontifical Gregorian University (Rome). His book Canon Law: A Comparative Study with Anglo-American Legal Theory was published by Oxford University Press in 2011.

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