Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol I).djvu/98

82 mighty inundation of voluminous comments, with which this ytem of law, more than any other, is now loaded.

canon law is a body of Roman eccleiatical law, relative to uch matters as that church either has, or pretends to have, the proper juridiction over. This is compiled from the opinions of the antient Latin fathers, the decrees of general councils, the decretal epitles and bulles of the holy ee. All which lay in the ame diorder and confuion as the Roman civil law, till about the year 1151 one Gratian an Italian monk, animated by the dicovery of Jutinian’s pandects, reduced the eccleiatical contitutions alo into ome method in three books, which he entitled, but which are generally known by the name of. Thee reached as low as the time of pope Alexander. The ubequent papal decrees, to the pontificate of Gregory, were publihed in much the ame method under the aupices of that pope, about the year 1230, in five books entitled. A ixth book was added by Boniface, about the year 1298, which is called. The Clementine contitutions, or decrees of Clement, were in like manner authenticated in 1317 by his ucceor John ; who alo publihed twenty contitutions of his own, called the : all which in ome meaure anwer to the novels of the civil law. To thee have been ince added ome decrees of later popes in five books, called. And all thee together, Gratian’s decree, Gregory’s decretals, the ixth decretal, the Clementine contitutions, and the extravagants of John and his ucceors, form the , or body of the Roman canon law.

thee pontificial collections, which during the times of popery were received as authentic in this iland, as well as in other parts of chritendom, there is alo a kind of national canon law, compoed of legatine and provincial contitutions, and adapted only to the exigencies of this church and kingdom. The legatine contitutions were eccleiatical laws, enacted in national ynods, held