Conditions for excommunication

[JohnnyReb]

Under what conditions does the Catholic church excommunicate someone?

Will the church excommunicate someone if they do not believe all points of the Catechism of the Catholic church?

 

[Dispector]

From the excommunications I’m aware of it is generally a situation where a person is teaching a non-Catholic teaching and claiming that it is Catholic. By excommunicating an individual from the Roman Catholic church it is showing the teachings being made are not the teachings of the Roman Catholic church.

However, there may be other situations I’m not aware of. Any more (name removed by moderator)ut would be great.

 

[Br.Rich_SFO]

Under what conditions does the Catholic church excommunicate someone?

Will the church excommunicate someone if they do not believe all points of the Catechism of the Catholic church?

When a person freely chooses to do something that they know is an action that carries the penanty of excommunication.

 

[Ron_Conte]

There are two types of excommunication:

1. automatic excommunication, which occurs as a result of the individual knowingly choosing a particular act, and which does not require any subsequent judgment by the temporal authority of the Church.
2. excommunication brought by the temporal authority of the Church, either by the Bishop of a diocese or by the Holy See, which is a particular judgment of a particular individual(s) and situation

Apostasy, heresy, and schism, under Canon Law, carry the penalty of automatic excommunication. However, heresy should not be defined so broadly that any minor dissent from any Church teaching would be called heresy. An act of heresy with the penalty of excommunication would have to be formal heresy, that is, a knowing choice to reject definitive Church teaching; this would generally pertain to fundamental doctrines on faith or morals, or to any infallible or definitive teaching which is required belief.

 

[JohnnyReb]

There are two types of excommunication:

1. automatic excommunication, which occurs as a result of the individual knowingly choosing a particular act, and which does not require any subsequent judgment by the temporal authority of the Church.
2. excommunication brought by the temporal authority of the Church, either by the Bishop of a diocese or by the Holy See, which is a particular judgment of a particular individual(s) and situation

Apostasy, heresy, and schism, under Canon Law, carry the penalty of automatic excommunication. However, heresy should not be defined so broadly that any minor dissent from any Church teaching would be called heresy. An act of heresy with the penalty of excommunication would have to be formal heresy, that is, a knowing choice to reject definitive Church teaching; this would generally pertain to fundamental doctrines on faith or morals, or to any infallible or definitive teaching which is required belief.

What are definitive church teachings? Does that include all 2000 and some odd points of the Catechism of the Catholic Church?

Thanks

 

[cameron_lansing]

What are definitive church teachings? Does that include all 2000 and some odd points of the Catechism of the Catholic Church?

Thanks

As to an earlier question, the offenses (broadly understood as an external violation of a divine or canonical law with knowledge and culpability which may be punished are found in canons 1364-1399.

Canons 750-752 address the fact that there are differing levels of truths. Only the obstinate denial or obstinate doubt after the reception of baptism of some truth which is to be believed by divine and Catholic faith would constitute heresy for which excommunication would be involved. Not every thing in the Catechism would invoke the possibility of heresy.

Heresy investigations do take place, mostly by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, but there have been some local cases. The accused, usually a person who is involved in teaching or writing on theology or morals, is asked to explain and to clarify the teaching, after being presented with the reasons that it is considered as contrary to divine and Catholic faith that is binding. The obstinate refusal to revise the teaching or writing, after correction, can give rise to the threat, and possibly, the imposition of a penalty.

Take a look at the Vatican website under Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Look under Regulations for Doctrinal Examination under its disciplinary documents. Under doctrinal documents (a different page there), you will see a number of Notifications. Where it can, the congregation will teach rather than punish, and that is good to keep in mind. Penalties are the last resort, and only after a rigorous process in most cases. Still as noted above, some penalties are automatically imposed. Even then, some of them need to be declared as having been automatically imposed.