Canonical age

The canonical age originally referred to any definition of a number of life years to obtain certain rights and obligations according to canon law.

In particular, one understands, however, under the canonical age, the rule that a candidate for obtaining the sacrament of priestly must have reached the age of 25 ( canon 1031 CIC). A dispensation from this rule is possible. For the perception of the episcopate an age of 35 years is prescribed ( canon 378 CIC). Previously ( since the Third Lateran Council ) was the 30th year here.

Other rules include admission to the novitiate ( canon 643: 17 years ), the passing of time ( canon 656: 18 years) and perpetual profession ( canon 658: 21 years); admission in secular institutes ( canon 721: age of majority ) or a society of apostolic life ( canons 643, 735 § 2: 17 years); the minimum age to acquire a baptismal sponsorship ( canon 874: 16 years, " except by the diocesan Bishop is a different age limit set or the priest or the minister of baptism seems to just cause an exception allowed" ) or Firm sponsorship ( canon 893: ditto ) and for valid and allowed sacramental marriage ( canon 1083: male 16, female 14 years).

In the Protestant church law, there is a comparable age requirement for ordination.

Popularly called the unspecified age requirement for non-related parish housekeepers ( provectior aetas, usually 40-45 years ) canonical age.

Today the term is used in a figurative sense, to people who have some degree of reason as a result of their age.