Changes in canonical law made by Pope Francis during the first ten years of his pontificate

Abstract

Ten years of Pope Francis’ pontificate have passed. One of the areas of action of the Roman Pontiff was canonical law. Pope Francis initiated an open project, based on synodality, which resulted in the promulgation of canonical norms capable of responding to pastoral needs and fostering in the Church a decentralized responsibility to protect the life, human and spiritual dignity of all people. This article aims to present  the main norms promulgated by Pope Francis, not limited to the Code of Canon Law, in order to prove that the legislative innovation carried out during his pontificate is grounded in synodality and the pastoral dimension of canon law. The text is divided into three parts. The first part reflects on the synodal and pastoral path promoted by Pope Francis, which directly impacts on the legislative production of the Roman Pontiff. The second part intends to: a) list the main norms and highlight the growing and constant concern about some topics, such as the reform of the Roman Curia; b) obtain a general overview of the way of promulgation of the norms and the topics addressed during the first decade of Pope Francis’ pontificate. Finally, in the third part, the theme of sexual abuse is deepened as a concrete example to demonstrate the normative evolution promoted by Pope Francis and to prove the effort of this pontificate to build safe spaces in all ecclesial communities and in society in general. Therefore, the problem is to understand the way Pope Francis has governed the Church during his first ten years from the point of view of the legislative munus.