General premises on non-negotiable canonical duties

Abstract

The paper examines the specificity of the non-negotiable duties of the faithful in the ecclesial system. The peculiarity of the fundamental canonical obligations derives above all from the solidary and transcendent approach to justice in the Church. The epistemological framework deals with the question of the priority in the structure of duties-rights, of the category of “fundamentality” and of the exact qualification of juridical positions. The formalized primordial duties are related to communion, holiness, mission, and obedience, which are associated with participation (petition and collaboration), subsidization and the promotion of social justice and the relief of the poor. A constitutional approach, however, prefers reference to the goods of communion (the sacramental and Eucharistic nucleus, the educational-formative sphere, the social and institutional importance of the communio), Solidarity is intrinsic to the obligatoriness, and it is provided with an emphasis due to the propensity ad alios of juridical relations (autonomy and responsibility of the faithful). Ecclesial deontology therefore leads to the overcoming of a negative or unfavorable vision in the fulfillment of duties and to the respect for the principle of the maximum distribution of salvific goods.