Franciscan Studies

BOOK REVIEWS Commentarium in Codicem Iuris Canonici, by Heribert Jone, O.F.M. Cap. Vol. I (Canons 1-726). (Paderborn, F. Schoeningh, 1950. Pp. 627. 24 marks (cloth); 20 marks (paper).) Ever since 1918 the Catholic world has been surfeited with commentaries on the Code of Canon Law. Some of these works have already been consigned to an early and deserved oblivion. Others are still being weighed in the balance. The latest commentary to appear, however, exhibits more enduring qualities. It is the Commentarium in Codicem Iuris Canonici, by Heribert Jone, the German Capuchin, whose Moral Theology has secured world-wide acceptance during the past two decades. Fr. Jone's Commentarium is not entirely new. It was originally published in three volumes in 1939-1940 as Gesetzbuch des Kanonischen Rechtes. This German edition displayed a number of superior qualities. Its text followed the order of the Code, and presented the law in a paraphrastic rather than a literal translation, often a boon to clarity. The commentary and the discussion which accompanied the law were compact , but adequate. The law, the commentary and the discussion were differentiated from each other by methodical divisions of the work, and by varying sizes of neat typography. Reference work was most simple. Finally, the opinions of the author on disputed points manifested a healthy conservatism together with a determined opposition to opinions of others when reason or authority so demanded. The work was well-documented, but was not overburdened with technical apparatus. The Latin edition retains all the good qualities of the German edition and displays several more. The 1950 volume is less a latinization than a complete redaction of the 1939 edition. A goodly part of the text, it is true, remains unchanged—a tribute to its canonical soundness. But a comparison between the two editions shows that intervenient decrees and decisions of the Holy See, as well as respective developments in canonical literature have been embodied in the 1950 volume. These additions are not merely interpolated into the text, or into the footnotes, as so often occurs in "new editions of other commentators," but are assimilated into the text itself. Despite the fact that much recent material has been thus incorporated, the bulk of the two editions remains almost identical. Fr. Jone is particularly adept in his treatment of the law concerning religious. But his outstanding characteristic is his over-all ability to form opinion on disputed points. He has covered opinions expressed in recent canonical literature (books and periodicals), and usually takes a stand of his own. Due to the scope of the commentary , it was impossible for Fr. Jone to elaborate his position on every issue, but when he does, it is well founded. One who disagrees with Fr. Jone's opinions will find that they cannot be dismissed lightly. It was this characteristic that helped make Fr. Jone's Moral Theology so valuable, and bids fair to make his Commentarium equally well-received. One real defect in the volume is the disregard of canonical literature in English, due, no doubt, to the inability to acquire books during the war. Just as no English author may disregard continental canonical literature, so, at the present state of development, no continental commentator can claim to have covered the field until he takes cognizance of developments of equal merit in the English language. It is good to know that Fr. Jone is making attempts to procure English works. 232 Boo\ Reviews233 Seminarians will find this volume most convenient for study, for it is admirably designed to suit their needs. However, they will be handicapped by the lack of a general introduction to canon law (history, sources, etc.), and, regrettably, by the lack of an index. Priests will welcome this work because of its fine treatment of the more practical problems of the ministry. Canonists will welcome it, for, despite the fact that this first volume does not contain a bibliography, they will find in it a commentary that is marked by exceptional clarity, compactness and soundness—so much so as to make it rank among the best in its field. Nathaniel Sonntag, O.F.M.Cap. St. Anthony Priory Marathon, Wis. "Dominus autem Spiritus...