This month marks the 100th anniversary of one of the most important innovations in recent Catholic history. But this centenary is unlikely to be marked with much enthusiasm in Rome, because it concerns a currently unfashionable topic: canon law.
On May 27, 1917, Benedict XV promulgated the Code of Canon Law, the first official comprehensive account of Church law. This was a revolutionary step because, until then, canon law had grown organically, with law added to law with little regard for overall harmony or structure.
