THEL627 - Special Study in Canon Law

Year

Credit points

Campus offering

Prerequisites

Nil

Teaching organisation

This unit involves 150 hours of focused learning, or the equivalent of 10 hours per week for 15 weeks. The total includes formally structured learning activities such as lectures, tutorials, online learning, video-conferencing, or supervision. The remaining hours typically involve reading, research and the preparation of tasks for assessment.

Underlying the teaching and learning strategy will be constructivist and andragogical principles which emphasise that students are active, adult learners who engage best when what they are learning is relevant to them and they are responsible for their own learning. The focus, therefore, will be on student-centred learning, with consideration given to how the learning content applies to the students themselves and their contemporary context.

Unit rationale, description and aim

The Canon Law of the Roman Catholic Church applies to ministry, liturgy and sacraments in the Catholic Church and also to education in Catholic schools.  This unit will focus on the current Code of Canon Law (promulgated in 1983) in relation to one or more of these aspects of Church life, including what is says about the roles and responsibilities of parish leaders and/or educators in Catholic schools. 

It will normally be offered to meet the specific needs of a cohort of students, at the request of a diocese, seminary or Catholic Education Office. 

Overall, this unit will broaden students' juridical horizons, presenting the Law of the Church and its legal structures as a model of universal government able to face the challenges of this pluralistic and complex modern society.

Learning outcomes

To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.

Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.

Explore the graduate capabilities.

On successful completion of this unit, students should be able to:

LO1 - Describe and critically evaluate the law that governs the Roman Catholic Church (GA4, GA5, GA8, GA9)

LO2 - Describe and critically evaluate the importance of Canon Law with other juridical subjects (GA4, GA5, GA6, GA8, GA9)

LO3 - Demonstrate a critical understanding of how contemporary Canon Law impacts upon the roles and responsibilities of leaders in Catholic organisations (GA4, GA5, GA8)

Graduate attributes

GA4 - think critically and reflectively 

GA5 - demonstrate values, knowledge, skills and attitudes appropriate to the discipline and/or profession 

GA6 - solve problems in a variety of settings taking local and international perspectives into account

GA8 - locate, organise, analyse, synthesise and evaluate information 

GA9 - demonstrate effective communication in oral and written English language and visual media 

Content

Topic(s) will be chosen from a particular area of expertise of the member of staff or visiting lecturer in consultation with the Head of School.

Learning and teaching strategy and rationale

This unit involves 150 hours of focused learning, or the equivalent of 10 hours per week for 15 weeks. The total includes formally structured learning activities such as lectures, tutorials, online learning, video-conferencing, or supervision. The remaining hours typically involve reading, research and the preparation of tasks for assessment.

Underlying the teaching and learning strategy will be constructivist and andragogical principles which emphasise that students are active, adult learners who engage best when what they are learning is relevant to them and they are responsible for their own learning. The focus, therefore, will be on student-centred learning, with consideration given to how the learning content applies to the students themselves and their contemporary context.

Assessment strategy and rationale

A range of assessment procedures will be used to meet the unit learning outcomes and develop graduate attributes consistent with University assessment requirements. Such procedures may include, but are not limited to: essays, reports, examinations student presentations or case studies.

The assessment tasks will provide students with the opportunity to engage in further exploration of a variety of aspects of the unit content, to demonstrate an understanding of key concepts and theories, and to engage critically with some key texts in the field.

Overview of assessments

Representative texts and references

Arroba Conde, M. J. & Riondino M., Introduction to Canon Law. Milano: Mondadori, 2019.

Abbo, J. and J.D. Hannon. The Sacred Canons, 2 Vols., rev. ed. St Louis, MO: B Herder Book Co. 1957.

Beal.J., J. Coriden, and T. Green. New Commentary on the Code of Canon Law. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press, 2000.

Canon Law Society of Great Britain and Ireland. The Canon Law Letter and Spirit: A Practical Guide to the Code of Canon Law. Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, 1995.

Code of Canon Law: Latin-English Edition. Washington, DC: The Canon Law Society of America, 1998.

Huels J. More Disputed Questions in the Liturgy. Chicago: Liturgical Training Publications, 1996.

Huels, John M., The Teaching Office of the Catholic Church: A Commentary on Book III of the Code of Canon Law, 2017.

McKenna, Kevin E. The Ministry of Law in the Church Today. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1998.

Morrisey, F. Papal and Curial Pronouncements: Their Canonical Significance in the Light of the Code of Canon Law. Ottawa: Faculty of Canon Law, St Paul University, 1995.

Renken, John A., The Penal Law of the Roman Catholic Church: Commentary on Canons 1311-1399 and 1717-1731 and Other Sources of Penal Law, 2015.

Woestman, W. Sacraments, Initiation, Penance, Anointing of the Sick: Commentary on Canons 840-1007. Ottawa: St Paul University, 2004.