The nature of marriage as proposed in the codex iuris canonici and in the codex canonum ecclesiarum orientalium.

When one quickly glances at the new 1990 Oriental Code, one gets the impression that the marriage legislation is substantially the same as that found in the 1983 Latin Code. This cannot be surprising since the canon law on Christian marriage concerns a sacrament of the Church and therefore one would expect that it should be much the same throughout the Catholic Church, in the Western and in the Eastern Churches. However, because of the diversity of traditions, there are differences in theological approach and matters of discipline in respect of marriage. One such difference concerns the description of the nature of marriage in each Code. This comparative study addresses a number of questions regarding the nature of marriage as proposed in the two legislations. What are the common elements in both Codes' descriptions of marriage's nature? Do both legislations fully reflect the teaching of Vatican II's Gaudium et spes? What precisely are the differences between the two Codes? What is the origin and significance of these differences? Is the Oriental legislation faithful to the tradition of the Eastern Churches? The dissertation begins by attempting a synthesis of the historical and theological background of the Church's thinking on marriage in East and West, which will help explain the different approaches found in the two Codes, and which will also assist in assessing to what extent the new Oriental Code is indeed faithful to authentic Eastern traditions. The thesis goes to thoroughly elucidate the contribution of the Second Vatican Council and to survey the post-conciliar magisterial documents and the jurisprudence of the Roman Rota. This is essential in order to evaluate the ways that the two new legislations reflect the teaching of the Council. There is then a detailed examination of the two Code Commissions' work in drafting the Church's new legislations on marriage, to try to ascertain the reasoning behind their choices of formulations. All of this enables the final part of the work to investigate the common and different approaches by the two Codes in describing marriage's nature; this involves an in-depth comparison and analysis of the relevant canons