IRREGULARITY. - Irregularity is a perpetual canonical impediment which, for the decorum of the sacred ministry, forbids in the first place the lawful reception of Orders, including the tonsure, and consequently the exercise of them. It is not a medicinal or vindictive penalty, but a simple physical or moral defect.
Irregularities are very ancient in the Church; already the Apostle Paul enumerated two of them: one perpetual (successive bigamy: 1 Tim. 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6), the other temporary (recent conversion: 1 Tim. 3:6). The ancient canonists called the prescriptions of St. Paul the "apostolic rule" and called "irregular" those who departed from it. St. Augustine, in Epistle 60 (PL 33, 288), already speaks of the integrity of a regular person, fit for the clerical state; the word irregularity was first used by Rufinus (d. ca. 1190); Goffredo da Trani (d. 1245), on the other hand, introduced the division of irregularities into ex defectu and ex delicto. Finally Innocent IV (1243-54) expressly treated of irregularities, the first of all to do so.
Since the laws on irregularities did not originate solely from written law and moreover the Corpus iuris canonici lacked a special title enumerating them, jurists disagreed greatly on their nature and division.
The CIC, in order to eliminate the aforesaid doubts and to avoid new possible difficulties, orders the entire matter of irregularities integrally and decrees that the sole source of them is the universal law contained in it (can. 983). The question is nevertheless asked whether the irregularities listed by the CIC (cans. 984-85) can be modified, suppressed, or increased by universal customary law; the affirmative opinion is more reliable, because in current law such customs are not reproved (can. 27).
Far more clearly than before it, the CIC distinguishes irregularities only into ex defectu and ex delicto. The former originate from a necessary fact or from a fault extraneous to the irregular person; the latter, from a delict of one's own (cf. can. 2195 § 1). The latter, however, are not contracted if the delict was not a grave sin, committed after Baptism (except the reception of Baptism from non-Catholics), external, public or occult (can. 986).
I. ex defectu (can. 984). The following are thus irregular:
1) "The illegitimate, whether the illegitimacy be public or occult, except those who have been legitimized or have taken solemn vows." Illegitimate are all those who are not born of a valid or putative marriage or who were conceived by parents to whom, by reason of solemn profession or of Sacred Order, the use of a marriage previously contracted was forbidden at the time of conception (can. 1114). Illegitimacy and consequently the irregularity can be removed: a) by the subsequent marriage of the parents in accordance with cans. 1116-17 (cf. cans. 232 § 2, 1; 331 § 1, 1; 320 § 2; reply of the Pontifical Commission, 10 July 1930); b) by a rescript of the Holy See; c) by solemn religious profession.
2) "Those defective in body who cannot serve at the altar either safely, through weakness, or decently, through deformity. However, to impede the exercise of an Order lawfully received, a more grave defect is required, and not even on account of this defect are those acts forbidden which can be performed conveniently." The CIC does not at all say which physical defects render one irregular. While the ancient question of the canonical eye is abolished, those held to be irregular are the completely blind, deaf, mute, the notably lame or deformed, the hunchbacked, those lacking the thumb or the index finger, especially on the right hand, etc. In doubt, it is for the bishop to decide the matter.
3) "Those who are or who have been epileptics, lunatics, possessed by the devil; but if they became such after having received Orders and it is established with certainty that they are now free, the Ordinary may again permit his subjects the exercise of Orders." The CIC does not admit reasons that excuse such defects when it is a question of acceding to Orders; but if one or more of the aforesaid obstacles should occur after Orders have been received, the judgment concerning the exercise of them is remitted to the Ordinary (can. 198).
4) "The bigamists, that is, those who have successively contracted two or more valid marriages." This is called true bigamy, the only kind that causes the irregularity. It is not required for the irregularity that the two or more marriages have been consummated.
5) "Those struck by infamia iuris," a vindictive penalty (can. 2291, 4) with which certain delicts are punished; it does not originate immediately from the delict, but from the defect of good repute, which the condemnatory sentence or the knowledge of the delict itself causes.
6) "The judge who pronounced a sentence of death." The word judge means both the single person and the collegiate tribunal, that is, the persons composing it. The sentence is presumed just, otherwise the judge would become irregular ex delicto (can. 985, n. 4). Those called "jurors" do not fall under this irregularity, unless, according to the laws of their nation, they are true judges and pronounced the sentence of death. Nor does the judge who pronounced the aforesaid sentence before receiving Baptism incur this irregularity, called, like the following, ex defectu lenitatis christianae. It does not appear that for incurring the irregularity the execution of the sentence itself is necessary.
7) "Those who have assumed the office of executioner and their voluntary and immediate collaborators in the execution of the capital sentence." An executioner is he who is deputed to kill in the name of public authority those condemned to death following a sentence. The mere spontaneous assumption of such an office produces the irregularity. For his voluntary and immediate collaborators, the execution of the capital sentence is required. The aforesaid offices, if exercised before receiving Baptism, do not produce the irregularity.
I. ex delicto (can. 985). The following are thus irregular:
1) "Apostates from the faith, heretics, schismatics." The Pontifical Commission for the authentic interpretation of the CIC declared on 30 July 1940 that those incur this irregularity as apostates who are or were enrolled in an atheistic sect. To those enrolled in good faith in a heretical or schismatic sect, dispensation ad cautelam must be granted so that they may accede to Orders.
2) "Those who, outside the case of extreme necessity, permitted in any way that Baptism be administered to them by non-Catholics." By non-Catholics are meant only baptized apostates (and those who are or were enrolled in an atheistic sect), heretics, schismatics.
3) "Those who, bound by marriage or by Sacred Order or by religious vows even simple and temporary, dared to attempt marriage or even merely to place the civil act; or who, being free, attempted it with a woman bound by the same vows or by a valid marriage."
4) "Those who committed a voluntary homicide or an abortion, which was followed by its effect, and those who cooperated in it." Both for homicide and for abortion the cause is understood as voluntary and direct. Among those cooperating in either delict, only the positive are included, the negative always excluded (cans. 2209-31). If, for whatever reason, the effect did not follow (cf. cans. 2212-13), none of the aforesaid incurs the irregularity.
5) "Those who mutilated themselves or others or who attempted to take their own life." Mutilation is the amputation of a part of the body that has a proper function distinct from that of the other members; for example, the eyes, arms, hands, feet. The attempt at mutilation does not suffice; the attempt at suicide, on the other hand, does suffice.
6) "Clerics who exercise the medical or surgical art forbidden to them, if death follows from it." It is necessary, however, that death follow praeter intentionem, because otherwise one would fall under the irregularity of voluntary homicide (n. 4).
7) "Those who perform an act of Order reserved to clerics constituted in Sacred Order, either because they lack that Order or because they are prevented from exercising it by a canonical penalty, whether personal, medicinal or vindictive, or local."
The laws concerning irregularities, being "odious," must be given a strict interpretation. Therefore, irregularities must be certain, that is, the fact from which they originate must exist in a certain manner. And even though the CIC is silent on the matter, in case of doubt of law or of fact, the irregularity or impediment must be considered as not contracted. Irregularities and impediments, having their origin only in ecclesiastical law or in a consuetudo iuris, can be contracted only by the baptized; nevertheless, a fact occurring before Baptism can, after it, become a cause of impediment; for example, a double legitimate and consummated marriage. The legislator expressly decrees (cf. can. 988) that ignorance, even inculpable (as well as error, inadvertence, etc.) of irregularities and impediments, does not excuse one from incurring them, except as was said for irregularities ex delicto.
An individual can incur several irregularities and impediments, which are multiplied only if their cause is completely different, as, for example, illegitimacy and homicide. With the repetition of the same cause, they are never multiplied, except in the case of voluntary homicide. And this single exception cannot be extended to abortion. It is indeed a law of strict interpretation.
Except for what is established in can. 984, nn. 1, 3 and what concerns the irregularity ex vitio corporis (can. 984, n. 2), which ceases if such defect comes to cease completely, in whatever way this occurs, all the other irregularities cease only either insofar as the law or custom that constitutes them ceases or through legitimate dispensation: they are indeed impediments perpetual by their nature.
The Supreme Pontiff, by his own authority, can dispense from all irregularities and is accustomed to grant such dispensations through the SS. Congregations, according to their respective competences (can. 246 ff.). Ordinaries (can. 198 § 1) can dispense, for themselves or for their own subjects, from all irregularities that arise from an occult crime (can. 2197 nn. 1, 4), excluding that which has its origin in a homicide or in a voluntary procured abortion (can. 985, n. 4) and any other brought to the judicial forum according to can. 1725 (can. 990 § 1). The identical faculty belongs to any confessor in occult cases, in which due to urgency the Ordinary cannot be approached and the danger of grave harm or infamy is imminent, but exclusively so that the penitent may licitly exercise the Orders already received (can. 990 § 2).
In the petitions for dispensation, all irregularities and all impediments must be indicated; otherwise, the general dispensation will be valid for those concealed in good faith, except for the cases excluded by can. 990 § 1, not for those concealed in bad faith. For the validity of the dispensation, it is not required that the number of crimes of the same species be indicated, because the repetition of the same cause, as said, does not multiply the irregularities (can. 989). However, if it is a question of an irregularity arising from voluntary homicide, under penalty of nullity of the dispensation, the number of crimes must be indicated (can. 991 §§ 1-2). The general dispensation to receive Orders is also valid for the major Orders; and one who has obtained such a dispensation can obtain non-concistorial benefices even with care of souls, but cannot be appointed cardinal, bishop, abbot, prelate nullius, major superior in an exempt clerical religious institute (can. 991 § 3). If the dispensation is granted in the external forum, it must be given in writing; something that absolutely cannot be done if it is granted in the internal sacramental forum. If instead it is granted in the internal non-sacramental forum, it must be delivered in writing and must be noted in the secret book of the Curia (can. 991 § 4).