Divine Law in Canonical Judicial Practice

Abstract

This study explores the significance of divine law – in both its natural and positive expressions – in shaping the procedural framework of canonical justice. Divine law does not merely function as an external normative constraint ; rather, it serves as a constitutive source and hermeneutical principle of canonical procedural law, which is inherently directed toward the salus animarum and the pursuit of objective truth (veritas vera). The principles of due process – such as the right to be  heard, the adversarial principle, and the right of access to evidence and information – derive from the precepts of natural law, insofar as they safeguard the
fundamental dignity of the human person. The analysis further considers how the judicial discernment of divine law operates concretely within matrimonial nullity trials and within penal processes. It also examines the role of divine law in the Judicial protection of the human rights of the faithful.