Canons
The canons
189 canons from six councils, printed in a public-domain translation, each with its historical setting kept separate from any modern application.
How to read a canon
The canons are received and interpreted within the living, pastoral and conciliar life of the Church. They are not a legal code a reader applies to themselves or to anyone else. A canon's direct historical application may have changed without the canon becoming meaningless, and an ancient penalty is not thereby mechanically in force today.
On every canon page the ancient text and this project's plain-language summary sit in visually different containers, so the two can never be confused. Questions about your own situation belong with your priest and bishop.
- The Council of Chalcedon 30 canons — 451
- The First Council of Constantinople 7 canons — 381
- The Council of Ephesus 8 canons — 431
- The First Council of Nicaea 20 canons — 325
- The Second Council of Nicaea 22 canons — 787
- The Council in Trullo 102 canons — 692
Studied canon by canon
The twenty canons of the First Council of Nicaea each have a full study page: the verified text, a clearly labelled summary, the fourth-century problem being addressed, the vocabulary, related canons, later reception, and a cautious note on the present day.