Garaldina Boni, a professor of canon law at the University of Bologna, along with a group of canonists, has developed two legislative proposals addressing the issues of papal resignation and the situation of a pope’s total impediment. These proposals were presented at a conference in Turin in October 2022 and are available on the website www.progettocanonicosederomana.it. Both resignation and impediment require urgent regulation, as acknowledged by undisputed authorities in canon law, such as Cardinal Gianfranco Ghirlanda. We asked Professor Boni to explain the proposals and situate them within the legal, ecclesiastical, and personal contexts of the figures involved.
Note: These legislative proposals emerge at a time when Pope Francis’s health is a source of significant concern. We join our readers in wishing the pontiff a swift recovery and a renewed exercise of his precious and highly valued ministry. However, his current hospitalization underscores new considerations raised by Ludwig Ring-Eifel on the German Church’s website (Katholisch.de) on March 9. Contrary to the inclination to avoid medical intervention, Francis must now be closely monitored by top specialists. His falls, hospitalizations, and potentially life-threatening crises necessitate this. It is conceivable that advanced medical equipment will be installed near the papal study for timely interventions. Long and exhausting trips, which he has undertaken until now, will become difficult, while shorter trips may still be possible. It is also likely that the practice of “shared” speeches (started by him and continued by others) will become more frequent. Additionally, it seems appropriate for greater responsibility to be assumed by the pontiff’s personal secretariat, particularly the Secretariat of State (Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Archbishop Paul Gallagher) and certain heads of dicasteries. The conclusions of the synod working groups and oversight of the financial situation are urgent. The dramatic escalation of global emergencies fueled by wars, the new American administration, and the crisis of multilateral institutions require the pope’s voice and moral guidance. Never before has the word of the successor of the apostles been so urgent and precious (Lorenzo Prezzi).
The Salvation of Souls in Emergency Conditions
- Two canons of canon law concerning the Roman pontiff provide for both resignation (Can. 332 §2) and total impediment (Can. 335). You, along with a group of canonists, have prepared two legislative proposals to regulate these scenarios. Why did you do this?
“We believed that these two regulatory gaps needed to be addressed. Regarding the totally impeded see, what drove us was the realization that medical, scientific, and technological progress now allows for the indefinite prolongation of human life, albeit sometimes in precarious and significantly compromised conditions, with highly disabling or even completely incapacitating pathologies. This could affect the pope, just as it could any person, rendering him unable to exercise his office or even to express the will to resign. The prolonged, perhaps even years-long, total impediment of the Roman see would cause serious harm to the Church, damaging the salus animarum (salvation of souls). Therefore, it is necessary to establish norms both to govern the Church during a total but temporary and reversible impediment, and, more delicately, in the case of a total, permanent, and incurable incapacity of the pope, to establish a procedure facilitating an orderly and prudent transition to the vacant see and the conclave for the election of a new successor of Peter. As for the proposal on the canonical situation of the Bishop of Rome who has resigned from his office, it arises from the gradual consolidation—whether willingly or not—of the institution of the ‘pope emeritus.’ Indeed, although he rejects this title—preferring ‘emeritus Bishop of Rome’—Francis has repeatedly and unequivocally stated that he does not rule out following the path set by Benedict XVI. Moreover, as some issues we have witnessed in recent years have shown, the coexistence of two ‘popes’ can generate more or less evident criticalities: it is up to the law to address the inevitable human imperfections and establish norms to avoid conflicts or even mere inconveniences, always to safeguard the unity of the Church.”
Health, Not Physical Strength
- Pope Francis’s return from Gemelli Hospital to his usual work at the Santa Marta residence is conditioned by increasingly precarious health. Will he be able—as we all hope—to fully carry out the Petrine ministry? If not, resignation is foreseeable. But it is also possible that his compromised health could persist. What is foreseen in the first and second cases?
“We all hope that Francis regains his strength, as he surely will. Our project, however, was initiated several years ago, when no health issues were apparent for him: if anything, we proposers were mindful of the final months of St. John Paul II’s ‘governance.’ Undoubtedly, the exercise of the Petrine ministry requires sufficient health, which is not solely absent when the pope is totally impeded: certainly not when he is simply elderly and thus afflicted by the normal ailments of age. Extraordinary physical strength is not required. Indeed, we must guard against promoting an efficiency-driven conception of power in the Church, and even more so of the Petrine office, which is absolutely deviant and harmful: such as the notion of a time-limited papacy or the idea that papal resignation should become ‘normal,’ to be resorted to in every case of difficulty. It must be reiterated that our proposal refers to the extreme situation of a totally impeded pope: this cannot be managed through the mere application of the principle of Nihil innovetur (Can. 335), as it severely limits any activity and can only be invoked for limited periods. Moreover, there are acts of magisterium and governance that belong personally to the Roman pontiff and cannot be delegated to collaborators. To answer your questions specifically, if Francis were to freely resign, his decision would result in the vacancy of the apostolic see and the subsequent conclave: an act that depends on his autonomous decision made before God alone and for the common good. The issue would arise if, in the future, a pope were no longer able to govern the Church in any way or to issue an act of resignation: in this case, lacking specific norms, any action taken by human authorities risks being seen as a removal or deposition, violating the fundamental principle of prima sedes a nemine iudicatur (the first see is judged by no one).”
Temporary or Permanent Impediment
- In the case of disabling pathologies, the legislative proposal envisions either a temporary or permanent suspension. How are such eventualities regulated?
“In the proposal on the totally impeded Roman see, it is provided that, in cases of total but temporary impediment, the Church would be temporarily governed by the College of Cardinals and, for ordinary affairs, by a restricted group of seven members (four ex officio and three elected), while the institutions of the Roman Curia would continue to exercise their respective functions. The College of Cardinals, which would constantly oversee the restricted group’s actions according to predetermined modalities, could end this provisional regime by declaring, for example, that the pope’s personal incapacity has ceased based on precise clinical findings. It is also provided that the College of Cardinals could declare, based on a medical report prepared by a team of specialists and following carefully regulated procedures, the existence of a total, certain, permanent, and irreversible incapacity preventing the Roman pontiff from leading the Church, resulting in the vacancy of the apostolic see for the election of a new pope. The cessation of the Petrine office operates ipso iure based on a law promulgated by the supreme authority of the Church, linking specific legal effects to a factual situation: these effects arise when the College of Cardinals certifies the situation through a declarative ‘certification.’ This aims to reconcile the principle of prima sedes a nemine iudicatur with the need to ensure the continuity of governance of the universal Church for the common good and the salvation of souls.”
A New Role for the College
- The College of Cardinals would assume a decisive role. Is this compatible with current canon law?
“Currently, the College of Cardinals does not have these powers: a pontifical law would need to authorize it to proceed in this manner. However, it seems inevitable that the College of Cardinals, which comprises the pope’s closest collaborators, would play a leading role in such contingencies and thus assume the grave responsibility of ascertaining and declaring the Roman see totally impeded due to objective or subjective circumstances. After all, since 1059, the cardinals have been tasked with electing a new successor of Peter when the apostolic see is vacant due to the pope’s death or resignation.”
Mobilizing Expertise
- Canon law, particularly regarding the Petrine ministry, originates from the pope and the Dicastery for Legislative Texts. You, however, call for the mobilization of legal expertise from academia and public discussion. Is this the first time, or are there precedents in Church history?
“Our goal was not and is not to ‘expropriate’ the pope of legislative power. On the contrary, we intended to offer an example of synodality in normative activity: alerting and encouraging a mobilization of canonical science, called to serve the supreme legislative authority diaconally. Canonists, by engaging with one another, would formulate a proposal resulting from a thoughtful and shared process, offering concrete and fruitful suggestions to the pope. Moreover, the collaboration of the People of God in the legislative function, particularly those with knowledge and experience in the legal field, struggles to take off: even today, laws are drafted in small, highly confidential circles. And, unfortunately, often with results that are, to put it mildly, less than inspiring. On such crucial junctures in the life of the Church, a shared effort would be important: analogous to and following the example of what occurred during the revision of the Pio-Benedictine Code after the Second Vatican Council.”
The Hypothesis and Emergencies
- What reactions have you received from cardinals and ecclesiastical circles?
“There has been no direct feedback from the College of Cardinals as such. High-level ecclesiastical authorities have not been involved nor have they wished to be: the topics addressed, especially a few years ago, were deemed too controversial, if not inflammatory. Indeed, members of the group were initially criticized for excessive ‘audacity’: I myself, due to the opposition I received, resigned from the board of the international association of canonists. However, the proposals have since garnered widespread appreciation: the website hosting them (in Italian, Spanish, English, and German)—www.progettocanonicosederomana.it—has received thousands of visits from all continents and numerous comments; the projects have been presented to international canonical science, including at a conference held in Turin on October 3-4, 2022 (the proceedings are collected in a substantial open-access volume available for free download on the site). This has contributed to the strengthening of doctrinal reflection and the spread of the conviction that this unfortunate situation of the Roman see must be precisely regulated. Even Cardinal Gianfranco Ghirlanda, who, as is known, is among Pope Francis’s most listened-to advisors, in a recent writing highlighted the need for ad hoc legislation on the matter, proposing solutions very similar to ours to overcome the impasse arising from an impediment, especially if it is certain, permanent, and incurable: we do not know if the pope will act (or has already acted) in this regard.”
