In the history of

canon law Canon law (from , , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical jurisdiction, ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its membe ...

, a decretist was a student and interpreter of the . Like

Gratian Gratian (; ; 18 April 359 – 25 August 383) was emperor of the Western Roman Empire from 367 to 383. The eldest son of Valentinian I, Gratian was raised to the rank of ''Augustus'' as a child and inherited the West after his father's death in ...

, the decretists sought to provide "a harmony of discordant canons" (''concordia discordantium canonum''), and they worked towards this through glosses (''glossae'') and summaries (''summae'') on Gratian.Rhidian Jones, ''The Canon Law of the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England: A Handbook'' (T&T Clark, 2000), 45–46. They are contrasted with the

decretalists In the history of canon law, the decretalists of the thirteenth century formed a school of interpretation that emphasised the decretals, those letters issued by the Popes ruling on matters of church discipline (''epistolae decretales''), in prefer ...

, whose work primarily focused on papal

decretals Decretals () are letters of a pope that formulate decisions in ecclesiastical law of the Catholic Church.McGurk. ''Dictionary of Medieval Terms''. p. 10 They are generally given in answer to consultations but are sometimes given due to the initia ...

. Early decretists of the Italian school include

Paucapalea Paucapalea was a canon lawyer of the twelfth century. He produced the first commentary on the '' Decretum'' of Gratian Gratian (; ; 18 April 359 – 25 August 383) was emperor of the Western Roman Empire from 367 to 383. The eldest son of Vale ...

, a pupil of Gratian's; Rufinus, who wrote the ''Summa Decretorum''; and

Huguccio Huguccio (Hugh of Pisa, Uguccio) (died 1210) was an Italian canon lawyer. Biography Huguccio studied at Bologna, probably under Gandolphus, and taught canon law in the same city, perhaps in the school connected with the monastery of SS. Nabor ...

, who wrote the ''Summa super Decreta'', the most extensive decretist work. There was also a French school of decretists starting with

Stephen of Tournai Stephen of Tournai (18 March 1128 - 11 September 1203) was a Canon regular of Sainte-Geneviève (Paris), and Roman Catholic canonist who became bishop of Tournai in 1192. Biography He was born at Orléans in 1128; died at Tournai in Septembe ...

.Weigand, Rudolf. "The Transmontane Decretists." In ''The History of Medieval Canon Law in the Classical period,1140-1234: From Gratian to the Decretals of Pope GregoryIX'', edited by Wilfried Hartmann and Kenneth Pennington, 174–210. History of Medieval Canon Law. Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America Press, 2008.

References

{{Reflist Medieval law Canon law history Canon law jurists Canon law codifications