Personal Union (CIC)
The personal union regulates the cooperation of particular churches .
description
In the law of the Roman Catholic Church (see Codex Iuris Canonici ) there are two forms of closer cooperation between two or more particular churches below the merger into a single particular church. Personnel unions were and are a rarity in the Roman Catholic Church worldwide and can only but do not have to be concluded within the same ecclesiastical province .
In persona episcopi
Unio in persona episcopi (union in the person of the bishop) is the Latin expression that denotes a form of union of two or more particular churches. These particular churches are led by a single Ordinary , but do not experience any change in their internal structure (e.g. seminaries , cathedrals , canons ). This personal union is the loosest form of union, which can be temporary, but can also be an intermediate step on the way to a complete union.
- Examples
- Diocese of Fossano united in persona episcopi with the Diocese of Cuneo
- Diocese of Santorini united in persona episcopi with the Diocese of Syros
- Diocese of Huesca united in persona episcopi with the Diocese of Jaca
Aeque principaliter
Unio aeque principaliter (union with equal rights) is a technical term used to denote a union of two or more particular churches. In order to avoid questions about the position of power, the partners are to be regarded as "equally important". Such a union often followed a unio in persona episcopi (personal union in the person of the bishop).
- Examples
- Diocese of Prato unites aeque principaliter with the Diocese of Pistoia (September 22, 1653 - January 25, 1954)
- Bishopric Bitonto unites aeque principaliter with the Bishopric Ruvo (June 27, 1818 - September 30, 1982)
- Diocese of Zacapa united aeque principaliter with the territorial prelature of Santo Cristo de Esquipulas (since June 24, 1986)