Pascite gregem Dei
Pascite gregem Dei is an apostolic constitution issued by Pope Francis on 1 June 2021 which reforms Book VI of the 1983 Code of Canon Law. It took effect on 8 December 2021.
Background
The Catholic Church updated Book VI of its 1983 Code of Canon Law in June 2021 for clearer rules on numerous offences, including sexual ones.The revision was the result of a long process commenced in 2009 to better prevent and address Catholic Church [sexual abuse cases], mostly committed by clerics against underage children entrusted in their care, but also against vulnerable adults, or other sexual offences the Church regards as sinful due to breaching the clerical celibacy in the Catholic Church. Pope Francis, archbishop Filippo Iannone and other officials stated that bishops had been too lenient in penalising offenders in the past, in part because of the wiggle room the vague wording of canon law allowed for, and formally introduced laicization as a penalty for certain sexual offences.
Analysis
are numbered so that the sixth commandment is "Thou shalt not commit adultery". The Catholic Church's interpretation of the sixth commandment is much broader than just adultery, and concerns a set of offences against chastity. The revised provisions on sexual offences are derived from this broad interpretation of the sixth commandment. The provisions in canon 1395 §3 are coercion-based, as they require evidence of the use of 'force, threats or abuse of his authority'. Canon 1398 §1 describes sexual offences in which the victim was deemed incapable of consenting. There is no freely given sexual consent for people deemed capable of consenting.Examples of changes
Before the December 2021 reform, the canon 1398 of the 1983 Code of Canon Law of the Catholic Church stated: "A person who procures a completed abortion incurs a latae sententiae excommunication". Due to the reform, the legislation was renumbered as canon 1397 §2 and its wording was changed.Canon 1395 §3 states:
Canon 1398 §1 states: