Binding and Loosing

[rwoehmke]

In a thread titled* Annulment* one of the posters brought up the arguement of binding and loosing and there was discussion about Canon Law being changable. Now if the Apostles were indeed told, “Whatsoever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven and whatsoever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” does that not give the Church the ability to change some of the biblical strictures on human behavior? “Whatsoever” seems like a mighty broad injunction. Like think indissolubility of marriage in some circumstances, maybe women priests, how one keeps holy the Lords Day, pennance before first communion, some forms of contraception and whatsoever. Looks to me like opening a Pandora’s box but why not?

 

[Dr.Colossus]

Look at the context:

:bible1: "If your brother 12 sins (against you), go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won over your brother. If he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, so that ‘every fact may be established on the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If he refuses to listen to them, tell the church. 14 If he refuses to listen even to the church, then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector. Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Matthew 18:15-18

The authority is over the forgiveness of sin, not the sin itself. The Church has no authority to declare evil good or good evil. Regarding changes in Canon Law, only those things which are disciplinary in nature may be changed. Anything belonging to Sacred Tradition, which includes Male Priesthood, the indissolubility of marriage, and contracteption, cannot be changed.

 

[otm]

Dr. Colossus:

Look at the context:

:bible1: "If your brother 12 sins (against you), go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won over your brother. If he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, so that ‘every fact may be established on the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If he refuses to listen to them, tell the church. 14 If he refuses to listen even to the church, then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector. Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Matthew 18:15-18

The authority is over the forgiveness of sin, not the sin itself. The Church has no authority to declare evil good or good evil. Regarding changes in Canon Law, only those things which are disciplinary in nature may be changed. Anything belonging to Sacred Tradition, which includes Male Priesthood, the indissolubility of marriage, and contracteption, cannot be changed.

The lst few items are doctrine. Doctrine and discipline are two entirely different things.

Canon Law is by and large discipline. It is not revealed truth, but more about the regulation of our behavior, concerning revealed truth.

 

[Anima_Christi]

The Church is free to change her own laws. But even she cannot change divine law. That is why the Church can allow for married priests, if she saw fit, but she cannot ever allow women priests, because she has no authority to! Likewise, she can allow leavened or unleavened bread in the Eucharist, but she cannot allow anything but wheat and grape wine for the Eucharist (such as rice hosts, or potato chips and grape soda, or cookies and kool-aid, etc.), for this is what Our Lord used and the Church cannot allow otherwise!