Information on Canonical Statements
Attention Bishops and Presbyters of the Council of Nicaea,
As you all know, we will be moving on to the discussion of church canons as soon as possible. So as to improve your understanding of canons and facilitate the debate in the coming sessions, I have attached below a description of what you should expect of a canonical statement and how you may go about forming your ideas of what they should say.
I look forward to hearing your thoughts tomorrow.
Canons tend to be short and to the point. They do not tend to include arguments for the rule but just the rule itself. So, for instance, Canon 1 from the synod in Elvira reads:
“It is decided that anyone of a mature age, who, after the faith of saving baptism, approaches a temple as an idolater and commits this major crime, because it is an enormity of the highest order, is not to receive communion even at the end.”
Canon 18 of the same synod reads: “Bishops, presbyters, and deacons, if—once placed in the ministry—they are discovered to be sexual offenders, shall not receive communion, not even at the end, because of the scandal and the heinousness of the crime.”