FACULTIES FOR PRIESTS

FACULTIES FOR PRIESTS

PREACHING

1.      To preach the Word of God everywhere in the world, with at least the presumed permission of the pastor of the church, unless the faculty has been restricted or removed by the competent authority. (Canon 764) When preaching to religious in their churches or oratories the permission of the proper superior is necessary. (Canon 765)

BAPTISM

2.      To baptize all persons, including those who have completed their 14^th year. (Canon 863)

3.      To use the rite of “Christian Initiation of Adults in Exceptional Circumstances” when a person cannot participate in all the usual rites of the catechumenate. (Canon 851, 1°)

4.      Other than the case of an emergency, baptism is not to be conferred outside of a church edifice without the permission of the local Ordinary. (Canon 860 §1)

CONFIRMATION

5.      To administer the Sacrament of Confirmation to:

a.                   adults on the occasion and within the rite of their baptism. (Canon 883, 2°)

b.                  adults previously baptized in another church or ecclesial communion who are admitted into the full communion of the Catholic Church within the rite of admission. (Canon 883, 2°)

c.                   baptized Catholics who have been instructed in or adhered to a non-Catholic religion, without fault of their own or those who have apostasized from faith upon their readmission to full communion after any censure has been lifted.

d.                  baptized Catholics who are in danger of death. (Canon 883, 3°)

e.                   A special mandate must be obtained for a priest to confirm a person who was baptized previously in the Catholic Church but who was not catechized or simply not confirmed. (Canon 884, 1°) Please consult the commentary.

f.                   An unbaptized child who has reached catechetical age, upon completion of the process of initiation as outlined in the RCIA, on the occasion of his or her baptism. (Canon 852, 1°)

EUCHARIST

6.      To celebrate Mass twice on weekdays and three times on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation, provided that a genuine pastoral necessity so demands. (Canon 905, §2)

7.      Priests who celebrate Mass more than once on the same day may apply the individual Masses for the intention for which the offering is made, but, following the discipline of the Church, except on Christmas, they may retain the offering for only one Mass, giving the other offerings to purposes prescribed by the ordinary. (Canon 951, §1-2) These offerings are to be forwarded to the Office of the Vicar General.

8.      Priests who binate and trinate may eat something before the second and third celebration, even if a period of one hour of fasting does not intervene. (Canon 919, §2)

RECONCILIATION

9.      To hear the confessions of the faithful. This faculty authorizes the priest to hear confessions validly and licitly throughout the world, unless prohibited from doing so in a particular diocese by the local ordinary. (Canon 969, §1; 967, §2)

Please Note: A priest from outside the Diocese who does not have the faculty to hear confessions from his own local ordinary must contact Office of the Vicar General in order to celebrate the sacrament validly.

10.  To remit in the internal or external forum any automatic censure of excommunication or interdict that is not reserved to the Apostolic See and has not been judicially declared. (Canon 1357)

By this faculty one may remit the excommunication attached to the procurement of an abortion (Canon 1398) or that attached to apostasy, heresy, or schism. (Canon 1364, §1) This faculty may be exercised anywhere in the world on behalf of those who are members of the Diocese or who incurred the penalty in the Diocese, and it may be exercised within the Diocese on behalf of anyone present here. (Canon 1355, §2) A salutary penance should be imposed.

The following excommunications are reserved to the Apostolic See:

      -desecration of the Sacred Species (Canon 1367)

      -violence against the Roman Pontiff (Canon 1370)

      -attempted absolution of one’s accomplice (Canon 1378)

      -consecration of a bishop without pontifical mandate (Canon 1382)

      -direct violation of the seal of Confession (Canon 1388)

SACRAMENT OF THE SICK

11.  To keep the Oil of the Sick in a safe and suitable place at home, or carry it when travelling. (Canon 847, §2)

MARRIAGE

12.  To witness marriages within the parish to which you are canonically assigned as pastor or parochial vicar. (Canons 1109-1111) General delegations to witness marriage in any parish within the boundaries of the Diocese of Alaminos is given to all priests who enjoy faculties of the Diocese with at least the presumed permission of the pastor.

13.  Pastors, and only Pastors, have the faculty to grant permission for a mixed religion marriage for their parishioners.

Please Note: Pastor includes those equivalent by law such as administrators.

FUNERAL RITES

14.  To allow church funeral rites for an unbaptized child, if the parents intended to have the child baptized. (Canon 1183, §2)

15.  To allow church funeral rites for a baptized person belonging to a non-Catholic church or ecclesial community, provided this is not clearly contrary to the wishes of the deceased and provided a minister of the faith of the deceased is not available. (Canon 1183, §3)

DISPENSATIONS

16.  To dispense, suspend, or commute a private vow or promissory oath on behalf of a member of the diocese or anyone visiting it, provided that there is a just reason and that this action will do no injury to the acquired rights of others, nor prejudices others who refuse to remit the obligation. (Canons 1191-1204, especially Canons 1195, 1196 and 1203)

17.  To dispense persons in individual cases and for a just cause, from the obligation of observing a feast day or a day of penance, or to commute such obligations into other religious acts. (Canon 1245)

COMMENTARY ON FACULTIES

PREACHING

1.      The faculty to preach is given by the law itself. The general law of the Church gives priests this faculty in virtue of their ordination.

There are 4 possible limitations on the preaching faculty:

a.                   The competent ordinary can restrict or remove the faculty. The competent ordinary could include the ordinary of incardination or the major superior of the            religious in whose territory the priest proposes to preach.

b.                  Particular legislation may require a permission to preach in addition to the general faculty

c.                   The refusal of the rector of the Church whose presumed consent is necessary to     preach.

d.                  The necessary permission of the religious superior, mentioned in Canon 765,           when it is a question of preaching to religious in their own churches or oratories.

BAPTISM

2.      Canon 863 requires that the baptism of persons 14 years of age and older be referred to the diocesan bishop. This faculty allows pastors and parochial vicars to baptize a person without previous recourse to the diocesan bishop.

3.      This faculty would allow the priest to determine if an extraordinary circumstance exists which would prohibit an adult from participating in the usual rites of the catechumenate. If he judges that person is sincere in his or her conversion and is religiously mature, the priest may baptize the person without delay. Please refer to the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, nn. 331-369.

CONFIRMATION

5.      Letters a and b are given by the law itself to priests who by virtue of office or episcopal mandate baptize an adult or admit a baptized adult into full communion with the Church.

Letter c is granted by two interpretations of the Commission for the Interpretation of the Decrees of Vatican II issued on December 21, 1979 and April 25, 1975.

Letter d is given by the law itself to all priests.

Please Note: In order to confirm an adult baptized Catholic who has not been catechized or previously admitted to Confirmation and the Eucharist, a mandate to confirm must be obtained from the Regional Bishop, Regional Vicar or the Vicar General. This mandate ordinarily is restricted to cases where the individual has participated in the RCIA and will be confirmed during the Easter Season.

RECONCILIATION

11. This faculty gives to priests within the Diocese the habitual faculty to hear confessions      within its territory. For priests incardinated into the Diocese of Alaminos or legitimately     domiciled here, this faculty allows them to hear confessions throughout the world.

10.  This faculty gives to confessors the ability to remit latae sententiae penalties established by law but not yet declared, provided these are not reserved to the Holy See. By reason of this faculty, no recourse to a competent superior is required, before or after the remission of the penalty including the excommunication attached to a procured abortion. The formula for “Absolution from Censures” can be found in the Rite of Penance, Appendix I.

DISPENSATIONS

17.  Canon 1245 gives pastors the ability, for a just cause and according to the prescriptions of the diocesan bishop, to dispense from the obligation of observing a day of precepts or a day of penance, or to commute the obligation into some other work. This power can be exercised on behalf of the pastor’s parishioners and those visiting within the confines of the parish. This faculty now gives parochial vicars the same ability to dispense or commute for parishioners or those visiting within the confines of the parish.