The General Secretariat of the Synod creates a new Commission tasked with developing ideas for the revision of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches “in light of the synodal journey.”
Vatican News
The General Secretariat of the Synod has created a new body dedicated to developing proposals for the revision of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches (CCEO) in the context of the synodal journey. Called the Eastern Canonical Commission, it met for the first time on February 20 at the General Secretariat of the Synod’s headquarters.
A dedicated Commission
This new Commission builds on the work of the Canonical Commission that had been formed in December 2023. That commission had already put some proposals forward for a reform of the CCEO, though its main focus was on the Latin Church’s Canon Law.
The 2026 Eastern Canonical Commission is also responding to a number of requests made by leaders of the sui iuris Churches. These are the 24 individual autonomous Churches within the Catholic Catholic Church that are in full communion with the Pope but maintain their own specific traditions, liturgies, laws, and governance.
Aimed at fostering interdicasterial cooperation to serve the local Churches, the new Commission is made up of Eastern canon law experts who have been chosen from consultants of the Dicastery for Legislative Texts and the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches.
Cardinal Mario Grech, General Secretary of the Synod, explained that “it was deemed appropriate to establish a dedicated commission that could work in close connection with Study Group no. 1 on Certain Aspects of Relations Between the Eastern Catholic Churches and the Latin Church” while “taking into account the specificity of Eastern Canon Law”.
This Study Gorup is one of the ten established by Pope Francis in 2024, following the First Session of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops. During that Assembly, a number of important topics regarding the life and mission of the Church in a synodal context emerged.
In the spirit of synodality “that characterizes this implementation phase,” Cardinal Grech invites “the sui iuris Churches, episcopal conferences, Catholic universities, institutions, and individuals interested to submit their contributions to the General Secretariat of the Synod by April 15, 2026.”
Mandate
In the short term, this new Commission is tasked with preparing “draft normative texts in order to give effect to the juridical proposals advanced during the 2021-2024 synodal journey, , in particular those enumerated in the Synthesis Report (2023) and in the Final Document (2024).”
The Secretary of the Dicastery for Legislative Texts, which is the responsible Curial body, will coordinate the Commission’s work, including updating the current Eastern legislation.
