Formalny i materialny wymiar zadań Rady Kapłańskiej

Abstract

The Presbyteral Council is the highest consulting body in each diocese. The council forms the diocesan bishop’s senate, represents the whole presbyterium and performs advisory functions with regard to the most important issues of the local church. The theological and legal foundations for the establishment and operation of the Presbyteral Council can be found in the doctrine of the Second Vatican Council, specifically in two decrees: Christus Dominus and Presbyterorum Ordinis. The post-council period saw the doctrinal development the Presbyteral Council mainly due to Paul VI’s Motu proprio Ecclesiae Sanctae from 1966, the Presbyteri Sacra circular letter issued by the Sacred Congregation for the Clergy in 1970 and the Directory on the Pastoral Ministry of Bishops Ecclesiae Imago from 1973. In this way the Presbyteral Council gradually took over the competence which – in compliance with the Pio-Benedictine Code of 1917 – was proper to cathedral chapters. Finally, John Paul II’s Code of 1983 recognized the Presbyteral Council as a bishop’s senate and limited the powers of cathedral chapters to liturgical and representative functions. However, the present day’s Presbyteral Councils, in spite of their solid legal position, do not seem to fulfill the tasks bestowed upon them by the Second Vatican Council and the modern Code of Canon Law. The establishment and operation of a Council is not only a legal requirement but also a necessity resulting from the dynamic aspect of life in the local area and worldwide. Therefore, this article presents the formal and material dimensions of the Presbyteral Council’s actual competence. It aims to answer two principal questions: how can and should the Presbyteral Council operate and what is its competence. If the Council functions well both formally and materially, it will meet its legal requirements and reach its fundamental goal of establishment and operation, that is to use its counsels and opinions to effectively support the bishop in guiding the local church for the benefit of the faithful.