Are the illegitimate barred from the priesthood?

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Hello everyone. I asked this question in the Apologists’ Forum a few days ago, but it has not answered. I think that I overcomplicated it. Anyway, I was merely curious as to whether men of illegitimate birth can become priests. From historical examples, I know that a person in that situation can enter a monastic order, but I heard that they are not allowed to join the priesthood. Is that true? I remember the verse in the Book of Ezra forbidding natural children and their descendants(to the 9th generation) to enter the Temple, but would this, to some extent, apply to priests of the Church? I would appreciate any responses upon this issue.
 
The 1917 code of canon law contained a prohibition against illegitimate men become priests, but this was removed in the present 1983 code.
 
Realize that “illegitimate” is a legal term, and really has no bearing in the religious realm. A person is a person is a person.
 
Even the 1983 code defines who is legitimate and who is not:

Can. 1137 The children conceived or born of a valid or putative marriage are legitimate.

Can. 1138 §1. The father is he whom a lawful marriage indicates unless clear evidence proves the contrary.

§2. Children born at least 180 days after the day when the marriage was celebrated or within 300 days from the day of the dissolution of conjugal life are presumed to be legitimate.

Can. 1139 Illegitimate children are legitimated by the subsequent valid or putative marriage of their parents or by a rescript of the Holy See.

Can. 1140 As regards canonical effects, legitimated children are equal in all things to legitimate ones unless the law has expressly provided otherwise.
 
Young_Thinker said:
Hello everyone. I asked this question in the Apologists’ Forum a few days ago, but it has not answered. I think that I overcomplicated it. Anyway, I was merely curious as to whether men of illegitimate birth can become priests. From historical examples, I know that a person in that situation can enter a monastic order, but I heard that they are not allowed to join the priesthood. Is that true? I remember the verse in the Book of Ezra forbidding natural children and their descendants(to the 9th generation) to enter the Temple, but would this, to some extent, apply to priests of the Church? I would appreciate any responses upon this issue.
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I would rather think that the Canon says otherwise. A person’s worth is measured in the heart, not by where he came from.

Think about this: What would happen to the line of Jesus if all firstborn were strictly required by law. Many Forefathers of the Jews are illegitimate by definition.

I believe that our Faith says it is God who judges our worthiness, not anyone else.
 
See here for a commentary on the 1917 code canon 984 which made illegitimacy an irregularity for ordination as consequence of a defect.
 
Just_Lurking said:
Even the 1983 code defines who is legitimate and who is not:

Can. 1137 The children conceived or born of a valid or putative marriage are legitimate.

Can. 1138 §1. The father is he whom a lawful marriage indicates unless clear evidence proves the contrary.

§2. Children born at least 180 days after the day when the marriage was celebrated or within 300 days from the day of the dissolution of conjugal life are presumed to be legitimate.

Can. 1139 Illegitimate children are legitimated by the subsequent valid or putative marriage of their parents or by a rescript of the Holy See.

Can. 1140 As regards canonical effects, legitimated children are equal in all things to legitimate ones unless the law has expressly provided otherwise.
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Thank you. Would one whose parents had been bethrothed(e.g. nowadays, having a marriage-license but not go through with the ceremony) be able to enter the Church? I am thinking about the circumstances of Pope Clement VII’s birth(his parents were going to be wed but his father, a Medici, was then assassinated).
 
Just_Lurking said:
See here for a commentary on the 1917 code canon 984 which made illegitimacy an irregularity for ordination as consequence of a defect.
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I appreciate your information. As for the 1983 code, are they still forbidden to become bishops or cardinals?
 
Young_Thinker said:
Hello everyone. I asked this question in the Apologists’ Forum a few days ago, but it has not answered. I think that I overcomplicated it. Anyway, I was merely curious as to whether men of illegitimate birth can become priests. From historical examples, I know that a person in that situation can enter a monastic order, but I heard that they are not allowed to join the priesthood. Is that true? I remember the verse in the Book of Ezra forbidding natural children and their descendants(to the 9th generation) to enter the Temple, but would this, to some extent, apply to priests of the Church? I would appreciate any responses upon this issue.
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What a ridiculous question! I can understand why it was ignored in the Apologists thread.
 
Young_Thinker said:
I appreciate your information. As for the 1983 code, are they still forbidden to become bishops or cardinals?
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No, that restriction is removed as well. Illegitimacy has no negative effects as regards ordination to any level or suitability for any ecclesiastical office under the 1983 code.

See here for the first page of a commentary on canon 1137 in the 1983 code.
 
Young_Thinker said:
Thank you. Would one whose parents had been bethrothed(e.g. nowadays, having a marriage-license but not go through with the ceremony) be able to enter the Church? I am thinking about the circumstances of Pope Clement VII’s birth(his parents were going to be wed but his father, a Medici, was then assassinated).
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Betrothal no longer legitimates sexual activity or children prior to the actual marriage. Canon law now fully recognizes the distinction between betrothal = “I will marry you” (words of the future) versus marriage = “I do marry you” (words of the present). See here in the section “The Middle Ages”.

From the 1983 code:

Can. 1062 §1. A promise of marriage, whether unilateral or bilateral, which is called an engagement, is governed by the particular law established by the conference of bishops, after it has considered any existing customs and civil laws.

§2. A promise to marry does not give rise to an action to seek the celebration of marriage; an action to repair damages, however, does arise if warranted.

See here.
 
Just_Lurking said:
No, that restriction is removed as well. Illegitimacy has no negative effects as regards ordination to any level or suitability for any ecclesiastical office under the 1983 code.

See here for the first page of a commentary on canon 1137 in the 1983 code.
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I see.
 
I read upon the website for a seminary(St. Mary in Cleveland, OH) that they ask applicants who are ordinational candidates for copies of their parents’ marital certificates. Why is that? Do that anything to do with that particular school being apparently diocesian?
 
Just_Lurking said:
Can. 1140 As regards canonical effects, legitimated children are equal in all things to legitimate ones unless the law has expressly provided otherwise.
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Does anyone know any case where the law expressly provides otherwise? It seems ridiculous to me for the circumstances surrounding a person’s birth, which they had no control over, to prevent them from following a vocation in the Church.
 
Young_Thinker said:
I read upon the website for a seminary(St. Mary in Cleveland, OH) that they ask applicants who are ordinational candidates for copies of their parents’ marital certificates. Why is that? Do that anything to do with that particular school being apparently diocesian?
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It is common to ask for a copy of the parents’ marriage certificate, even in religious communities. The purpose is not to rule out those who may be illegitimate. In my community we place these documents in the brother’s file, because they are important for historical purposes. Let’s say, on the wild chance, that I were a saint, the community has a documented history of my background.

The reason that the Code of 1917 did not allow the ordination of illegitimate children without permission from the Holy See was because there was a belief that such children were not raised in a proper Catholic enviornment. There was always the question about their faith formation. By 1983 the Church realized that children born to married parents often lacked proper faith formation. The reason that triggered the forumation of the law in 1917 was no longer valid.

To the person who said that what is important is what is in the heart . . . I don’t disagree. However, canon law has nothing to do with love. The word love does not appear anywhere in canon law. Canon law is just that, cold objective law. It has to be void of any kind of emotion or it runs the risk of losing objectivity. That’s why canon lawyers are not considered theologians and canon law is not a branch of theology. It is its own discipline. You protect its objectivity by keeping it as far as humanly possible from what is affect.

That’s why I’m not a canon lawyer, besides the fact that it is a very difficult area of study. LOL If you want to deal in the matters of the heart and soul, Mystical Theology is the field to study. OK, I’m biased because it’s my area. 😃

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF 🙂
 
m134e5 said:
Does anyone know any case where the law expressly provides otherwise? It seems ridiculous to me for the circumstances surrounding a person’s birth, which they had no control over, to prevent them from following a vocation in the Church.
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The 1983 code doesn’t have any situations where legitimate, legitimated, and/or illegitimate children/people are treated any differently. My understanding is that the canon law defines these categories because in some countries the civil law follows the church law definitions.

The 1917 code had only the provision where illegitimate men could not become priests without special permission from the Vatican. JR gives a nice explanation of this above, but historically there were also reasons of propriety involved.
 
JReducation said:
It is common to ask for a copy of the parents’ marriage certificate, even in religious communities. The purpose is not to rule out those who may be illegitimate. In my community we place these documents in the brother’s file, because they are important for historical purposes. Let’s say, on the wild chance, that I were a saint, the community has a documented history of my background.

The reason that the Code of 1917 did not allow the ordination of illegitimate children without permission from the Holy See was because there was a belief that such children were not raised in a proper Catholic enviornment. There was always the question about their faith formation. By 1983 the Church realized that children born to married parents often lacked proper faith formation. The reason that triggered the forumation of the law in 1917 was no longer valid.

To the person who said that what is important is what is in the heart . . . I don’t disagree. However, canon law has nothing to do with love. The word love does not appear anywhere in canon law. Canon law is just that, cold objective law. It has to be void of any kind of emotion or it runs the risk of losing objectivity. That’s why canon lawyers are not considered theologians and canon law is not a branch of theology. It is its own discipline. You protect its objectivity by keeping it as far as humanly possible from what is affect.

That’s why I’m not a canon lawyer, besides the fact that it is a very difficult area of study. LOL If you want to deal in the matters of the heart and soul, Mystical Theology is the field to study. OK, I’m biased because it’s my area. 😃

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF 🙂
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I thank you, Brother, and mystical theology does sound rather fascinating.
 
Young_Thinker said:
I thank you, Brother, and mystical theology does sound rather fascinating.
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You’re welcome. I was just kidding about Canon Law. It’s a very interesting area of study. But it is very difficult. It requires an almost mathematical mind.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, OSF 🙂
 
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