Simony

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(FromSimon Magus;Acts 8:18-24)

Simony is usually defined "a deliberate intention of buying or selling for a temporal price such things as are spiritual or annexed unto spirituals". While this definition only speaks of purchase and sale, any exchange of spiritual for temporal things is simoniacal. Nor is the giving of the temporal as the price of the spiritual required for the existence of simony; according to a proposition condemned byInnocent XI (Denzinger-Bannwart, no. 1195) it suffices that the determining motive of the action of one party be the obtaining of compensation from the other.

The various temporal advantages which may be offered for a spiritual favour are, afterGregory the Great, usually divided in three classes. These are: (1) themunus a manu (material advantage), which comprises money, all movable and immovableproperty, and allrights appreciable in pecuniary value; (2) themunus a lingua (oral advantage) which includes oral commendation, public expressions of approval, moral support in high places; (3) themunus ab obsequio (homage) which consists in subserviency, the rendering of undue services, etc.

The spiritual object includes whatever is conducive to the eternal welfare of thesoul, i.e. allsupernatural things:sanctifying grace, thesacraments,sacramentals, etc. While according to the natural and Divinelaws the termsimony is applicable only to the exchange ofsupernatural treasures for temporal advantages, its meaning has been further extended throughecclesiastical legislation. In order to preclude all danger of simony theChurch has forbidden certain dealings which did not fall under Divine prohibition. It is thus unlawful to exchangeecclesiastical benefices by private authority, to accept any payment whatever forholy oils, to sell blessedrosaries or crucifixes. Such objects lose, if sold, all theindulgences previously attached to them (S. Cong. Of Indulg., 12 July, 1847). Simony of ecclesiastical law is, of course a variable element, since the prohibitions of theChurch may be abrogated or fall into disuse. Simony whether it be ofecclesiastical orDivine law, may be divided intomental, conventional, and real (simonia mentalis, conventionalis, et realis). Inmental simony there is lacking the outward manifestation, or, according to others, the approval on the part of theperson to whom a proposal is made. In conventional simony an expressed or tacit agreement is entered upon. It is subdivided into merely conventional, when neither party has fulfilled any of the terms of the agreement, and mixed conventional, when one of the parties has at least partly complied with the assumedobligations. To the latter subdivision may be referred what has been aptly termed "confidential simony", in which anecclesiastical benefice is procured for a certainperson with the understanding that later he will either resign in favour of the one through whom he obtained the position or divide with him the revenues. Simony is called real when the stipulations of the mutual agreement have been either partly or completely carried out by both parties.

To estimate accurately the gravity of simony, which somemedievalecclesiastical writers denounced as the most abominable of crimes, a distinction must be made between the violations of theDivine law, and the dealings contrary toecclesiastical legislation. Any transgression of thelaw of God in this matter is, objectively considered, grievous in every instance (mortalis ex toto genere suo). For this kind of simony places on a par thingssupernatural and things natural, things eternal and things temporal, and constitutes a sacrilegious depreciation of Divine treasures. Thesin can become venial only through the absence of the subjective dispositions required for the commission of a grievous offense. The merelyecclesiastical prohibitions, however, do not all and under all circumstances impose a graveobligation. The presumption is that the church authority, which, in this connection, sometimes prohibits actions in themselves indifferent, did not intend thelaw to be grievously binding in minor details. As he who preaches the gospel "should live by the gospel" (1 Corinthians 9:14) but should also avoid even the appearance of receiving temporal payment for spiritual services, difficulties may arise concerning the propriety or sinfulness of remuneration in certain circumstances. The ecclesiastic may certainly receive what is offered to him on the occasion of spiritual ministrations, but he cannot accept any payment for the same. The celebration of Mass for money would, consequently, besinful; but it is perfectly legitimate to accept a stipend offered on such occasion for the support of the celebrant. The amount of the stipend, varying for different times and countries, is usually fixed byecclesiastical authority (seeSTIPEND). It is allowed to accept it even should thepriest be otherwise well-to-do; for he has aright to live from the altar and should avoid becoming obnoxious to other members of theclergy. It is simoniacal to accept payment for the exercise ofecclesiastical jurisdiction, e.g., the granting ofdispensations; but there is nothing improper in demanding from the applicants for matrimonialdispensations a contribution intended partly as a chancery fee and partly as a salutary fine calculated to prevent the too frequent recurrence of such requests. It is likewise simony to accept temporal compensation for admission into areligious order; but contributions made by candidates to defray the expenses of theirnovitiate as well as the dowry required by somefemale orders are not included in this prohibition.

In regard to theparishclergy, the poorer the church, the more urgent is theobligation incumbent upon thefaithful to support them. In the fulfilment of thisduty local law and custom ought to be observed. TheSecond Plenary Council of Baltimore has framed the following decrees for theUnited States: (1) Thepriest may accept what is freely offered after the administration ofbaptism or matrimony, but should refrain from asking anything (no. 221). (2) The confessor is never allowed to apply to his own use pecuniary penances, nor may he ask or accept anything from the penitent in compensation of his services. Evenvoluntary gifts must be refused, and the offering of Mass stipends in the sacred tribunal cannot be permitted (no. 289). (3) The poor who cannot be buried at their own expense should receive free burial (no. 393). The Second and Third action of a compulsory contribution at the church entrance from the faithful who wish to hear Mass onSundays and Holy Days (Conc. Plen. Balt. II, no 397; Conc. Plen. Balt. III, no 288). As this practice continued in existence in manychurches until very recently, a circular letter addressed 29 Sept., 1911, by theApostolic Delegate to thearchbishops andbishops of theUnited States, again condemns the custom and requests the ordinaries to suppress it wherever found in existence.

To uproot theevil of simony so prevalent during theMiddle Ages, theChurch decreed the severest penalties against its perpetrators.Pope Julius II declared simoniacal papal elections invalid, an enactment which has since been rescinded, however, byPope Pius X (Constitution "Vacante Sede", 25 Dec., 1904, tit. II, cap. Vi, in "Canoniste Contemp.", XXXII, 1909, 291). The collation of abenefice is void if, in obtaining it, the appointee either committed simony himself, or at least tacitly approved of its commission by a third party. Should he have taken possession, he is bound to resign and restore all the revenues received during his tenure.Excommunication simply reserved to theApostolic See is pronounced in the Constitution"Apostolicae Sedis" (12 Oct., 1869): (1) againstpersons guilty of real simony in anybenefices and against their accomplices; (2) against anypersons, whatsoever their dignity, guilty of confidential simony in anybenefices; (3) against such as are guilty of simony by purchasing or selling admission into areligious order; (4) against allpersons inferior to thebishops, who derive gain (quaestum facientes) fromindulgences and other spiritualgraces; (5) against those who, collecting stipends for Masses, realize a profit on them by having the Masses celebrated in places where smaller stipends are usually given. The last-mentioned provision was supplemented by subsequent decrees of the Sacred Congregation of the Council. TheDecree "Vigilanti" (25 May, 1893) forbade the practice indulged in by some booksellers of receiving stipends and offering exclusively books and subscriptions to periodicals to the celebrant of the Masses. TheDecree "Ut Debita" (11 May, 1904) condemned the arrangements according to which the guardians of shrines sometimes devoted the offerings originally intended for Masses partly to otherpious purposes. The offenders against the two decrees just mentioned incur suspensionipso facto from their functions if they are insacred orders; inability to receive higher orders if they areclerics inferior to the priests;excommunication of pronounced sentence (latae sententiae) if they belong to thelaity.

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