W przededniu reformy kościelnego prawa procesowego

Abstract

The administration of justice is always exercised within the ecclesial community; This service is attentive to the common good and the salvation of souls. The legal procedure applied in matrimonial proceedings is not only a technical element according to which the organs of justice act, but it is the scope of the search for objective truth. This task falls into the hands of the judge. Therefore, its pronouncement, which must settle the controversy presented, is always imperative. What we will point out later in this article, the action of the ecclesiastical judge according to the norms of law, produces a close relationship between truth, the common good and the declaration of authority. It should be emphasized that both the judicial process and pastoral charity are linked together. There is no distinction between the procedure that declares the nullity of a marriage bond and the pastoral action of the Church. On the contrary, there is a close relationship between these two „phenomena”. Every action of an ecclesiastical tribunal regarding marriage is deeply pastoral, because on the one hand it affects the legal status of a faithful Christian, and on the other hand, its decision affects the ecclesial social good and the salus animarum. Indeed, Pope Francis underlines the need for a profound reform of the judicial structures of the Church, in which one of the fundamental elements will be a „pastoral conversion of the judicial power”, this means that it is not just about a simplification and streamlining of the procedure, but a total review of the administration of justice. This reform was already anticipated by doctrine. Specifically, there were proposals to eliminate the existence of the double conforming sentence; to establish some administrative procedure when dealing with the causes of nullity manifested under the responsibility of the diocesan Bishop, etc.