Defect of birth was, under former
Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
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 canonical impediment to
ordination
Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...
as a result of
illegitimacy
Legitimacy, in traditional Western common law, is the status of a child born to parents who are legally married to each other, and of a child conceived before the parents obtain a legal divorce.
Conversely, ''illegitimacy'', also known as ''b ...
. Defect of birth inhibited the exercise of the functions of orders already received. The prohibition did not touch the validity of orders, but made the reception thereof illicit.
The defect of illegitimate birth could be remedied in four ways: (1) by the subsequent marriage of the parents, if they were capable of contracting a marriage at the time of birth; (2) by a
rescript
A rescript is a public government document. More formally, it is a document issued not on the initiative of the author, but in response to a question (usually legal) posed to the author. The word originates from replies issued by Roman emperors t ...
of the pope; (3) by
religious profession
In the Catholic Church, a religious profession is the solemn admission of men or women into consecrated life by means of the pronouncement of religious vows, typically the evangelical counsels.
Usage
The 1983 Code of Canon Law defines the ter ...
; (4) by a
dispensation.
Current law
Under the current
1983 Code of Canon Law
The 1983 ''Code of Canon Law'' (abbreviated 1983 CIC from its Latin title ''Codex Iuris Canonici''), also called the Johanno-Pauline Code, is the "fundamental body of Ecclesiastical Law, ecclesiastical laws for the Latin Church". It is the sec ...
, illegitimacy has no canonical implications or consequences.
See also
*
Illegitimacy
Legitimacy, in traditional Western common law, is the status of a child born to parents who are legally married to each other, and of a child conceived before the parents obtain a legal divorce.
Conversely, ''illegitimacy'', also known as ''b ...
External links
Catholic canon law of persons
Sacramental law
Impediments (Catholic canon law)
Catholic Church legal terminology
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