The Order of Saint John and Canon Law

The Sovereign Order of Saint John of Jerusalem - Knights Hospitaller, a religious-military order and sovereign state, existed centuries before the creation of the Codex Juris Canonici (Code of Canon Law) which was promulgated by Pope Benedict XV on May 27, 1917.

Prior to this date the Church was governed by the Corpus Juris Canonici (Body of Canon Law) which had been gradually established over the centuries. By the 20th Century this Corpus was composed of numerous volumes.

From its establishment in 1048 A.D. until 1917 (some 869 years) the Sovereign Order functioned well under the Corpus Juris Canonici. Indeed the Order was exempt from many of the rules, regulations, and laws which pertained to other religious orders of the Church, and everyone recognized that these unique exemptions, sacred rights and special immunities existed and were perpetual as had been proclaimed by Papal Bulls and consistently recognized by a long succession of Pontiffs.

The Order was unique, independent, military and sovereign; and, as with other military orders which arose in the Middle Ages, the Order made its own rules regarding membership, function, discipline, and rule of life. The Popes did not simply accept this status, they encouraged it and heaped praise and honors on this noble order of warrior monks

The Code of 1917, the first of its kind, was designed to codify, simplify and make more accessible the law of the Church. By the time the Code became binding on May 19, 1918, the Bolshevik Revolution was in full force, and the Order of Saint John, headquartered in St. Petersburg, had already been suppressed by the Communists and its members had been executed or had escaped Russia.

In the decades that followed, the holy Order of Saint John was a sovereign state in exile. Small and fragmented, it existed primarily in its individual members or in small groups until it could be fully reorganized in the last half of the 20th Century.

Competent canonists state that neither the Order’s continuity, nor its validity, nor its sovereignty were compromised by the 1917 Code of Canon Law, or by the 1983 Code which succeeded it. A valid argument can be made that the Sovereign Order in St. Petersburg enjoyed a lawful status prior to 1917, and likely still falls under the Corpus Juris Canonici. Any issues that may be related thereto will surely be resolved in future negotiation between the Sovereign Order and the Sovereign Vatican — between the Sovereign Pontiff and Head of the Holy Mother Church, and the Prince Grand Master, Head of the Sovereign Order.

However, today, with society in moral and cultural chaos, and the Church inflicted with modernism and in open violation of many historical norms, many traditionalist chapels have sprung up. Moreover, with the church hierarchy often liberal and sometimes in heresy, the credibility of the bishops has never been lower. with the shepherds asleep or themselves lost, the sheep have no one to guide them. Consequently, we find in every traditionalist chapel those self-appointed "experts" (priests and laity alike) expounding on theology, the liturgy, rubrics, church music, church history (i.e. the way they remember things "back when"), and even canon law. These "experts" range from young, inadequately trained priests (some with little or no seminary training), to housewives, salesmen, tree-trimmers, farmers, and just about anyone who has an opinion to advance or an axe to grind.

Soon these so-called traditionalists become self-appointed "authorities" on the validity or invalidity of everything and everyone. They even decide who is and who is not the pope. Who dares to argue with them, after all they have read an article or two, or have surfed the internet and found some wannabe scholar who with the aid of spell-check and punctuation software programs, almost appears to know what he or she is talking about.

Over the years these "authorities" have created serious problems in the traditionalist community, often resulting in the undermining and/or destruction of the chapel they attend. In the last two decades this disease has manifested itself in those who have attacked the Order of Saint John. Some who wish to nullify the Order by their interpretation of the 1917 Code of Canon Law, are typical "Cafeteria Catholics" who pick and choose what they desire. For example, in many cases they reject the 1983 Code of Canon Law, but use the 1917 Code if and when it suits their purposes.

In stating the following position regarding the validity of the Sovereign Order of Saint John and its relationship to Canon Law, let it be known that the Grand Master of the Order has never presented himself as an authority on Canon Law or any other discipline of the Catholic Church, in spite of his extensive education at a fine Catholic University, which included studies in logic, religion, philosophy and theology. Rather, the Grand Master relies on competent advisors who are scholars in Canon Law, Theology and Catholic history.

That being said, let it be re-stated and re-affirmed that:

1. The ancient military-religious orders of the Roman Catholic Church were never under the same rules and regulations as other religious orders of the Church.

2. The military orders set down their own qualifications, rules, constitutions and statutes. This was with the full approval of the Popes. Other religious orders have had some leeway in this regard, but nothing like the latitude given the military orders.

3. The Order of Saint John, the only surviving military order from the middle ages, was never in conflict with the Papacy, nor was it ever considered to be in violation of canon law, i.e., the Corpus Juris Canonici. To the contrary, the Sovereign Order (almost universally referred to as "The Religion") was highly favored by the Popes, and was given many sacred rights, unique privileges and extraordinary immunities never given to any other Order.

4. The very recognition by Pope Pius VI of the election, in 1798, of Emperor Paul I of Russia as Grand Master of the Sovereign Order is clear evidence of the aforesaid facts.

Prior to the 20th Century, the Church operated under the Body of Canon Law (Corpus Juris Canonici). There was no Code of Canon Law (Codex Juris Canonici) prior to that of 1917. The second Code of Canon Law was promulgated by the Vatican in 1983.

The 1917 Code was promulgated on May 27, 1917 and became binding on May 19, 1918. Between these dates the Order of Saint John was nearly eradicated by the Judeo-Bolsheviks (Communist Revolutionaries) in Russia. The goal of the Bolsheviks was the destruction of all nobility, the Imperial Family, the educated, the land owners, both the Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches, and all religion. Those Knights who survived the executions and purges went into exile. Because of the Order’s antiquity, nature, exemptions and sovereignty, it was not necessary that it reconstitute itself according to the new 1917 Code, but even had it wished to do so it would have been impossible due to its flight from the anti-Christian forces which sought to exterminate "The Religion" along with Christian Russia herself.

Another point worthy of mention: Neither the 1917 Code nor the 1983 Code suppressed pre-codal religious orders. Just as in the Papal Bull Quo Primum of Pope St. Pius V (1570) where the rites of the Mass more than 200 years old were not suppressed, Holy Mother Church is very reluctant to abolish good things of antiquity. Bear in mind that the Sovereign Order is more than nine and one-half centuries old, even if some of its critics do not realize that fact, or, for whatever reason, refuse to accept it.

Some post-Vatican II religious groups have chosen to remain "non-canonical," that is, not fully formed as juridic persons in the Church (not religious entities in the full and lawful sense) so as to escape the authority and direction of bishops who are liberals and modernists. However, this status does not apply to the Order of Saint John which claims to be historical, valid, canonical, loyal to the Church, devoted to the Faith, and militant in its defense of Christ and Christendom. The Order also is an historic Sovereign State with all the qualities and/or potentials a Sovereign Catholic State can claim and command. The fact that the Order is presently without sovereign territory, and is misunderstood, poor, frequently attacked, sometimes despised, and mostly ignored, does not make it illicit or illegitimate. Neither does it justify the attacks, calumny and invective of our detractors, most of whom are uninformed, misinformed, and themselves illicit and irregular.

The vast majority of the people in the Western World know little or nothing about the Sovereign Order of Saint John of Jerusalem. This includes Catholics and their clergy. The majority are simply deficient in knowledge of both secular and Christian history. Were these people to be given this information honestly, objectively and without bias, and were it to be received in good will, the membership in the Order would increase dramatically. The other small percent fall into two categories: (1) Those who simply cannot believe that such a noble, privileged, valiant Order could and does exist. (2) Those who are hateful and envious of anyone or any group which is good and idealistic, and to which they themselves cannot measure up. Therefore they attack it. Generally the Order ignores these problem people, and simply concentrates on its positive agenda.

In the meantime, the Sovereign Order, truly one of the great orders of the Church and its greatest defender, and one of the most noble and remarkable entities in all of history, continues its holy mission to defend Christ’s Church and restore Christendom. This great Order of dedicated, intrepid Knights will continue to hold fast to its character and identity, tenaciously defend its rights and privileges, slowly grow, and be ready to fulfill its holy mission, when God once again calls upon it to do so.

H.H. Sir John Grady, M.D., O.S.J

Grand Master of the Sovereign Order