MS 9A:5 Introduction
The Canon law summa are a body of laws established within a church congregation. Canon law concerns the governance of the church and its members. The Schism of 1054 created two Christian denominations, the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox faiths. Following the division, the Eastern Orthodox church developed its own canon law in Constantinople. The monk Gratian, who was both a lawyer and teacher, published the first complete collection of Roman Catholic canon law c. 1140. The Decretum Gratiani (“Gratian’s Decree”) drew from Roman civil law and regulations made by church authority. The expanded Corpus juris canonici (“Body of Canon Law”) was published in 1500.
