CANON XVI.

NEITHER presbyters, nor deacons, nor any others enrolled among the 

clergy, who, not having the fear of God before their eyes, nor 

regarding the ecclesiastical Canon, shall recklessly remove from their 

own church, ought by any means to be received by another church; but 

every constraint should be applied to restore them to their own 

parishes; and, if they will not go, they must be excommunicated. And 

if anyone shah dare surreptitiously to carry off and in his own Church 

ordain a man belonging to another, without the consent of his own 

proper bishop, from whom although he was enrolled in the clergy list 

he has seceded, let the ordination be void.

NOTES.

ANCIENT EPITOME OF CANON XVI.

Such presbyters or deacons as desert their own Church are not to be 

admitted into another, but are to be sent back to their own diocese. But 

if any bishop should ordain one who belongs to another Church 

without the consent of his own bishop, the ordination shall be 

cancelled.

"Parish" in this canon, as so often elsewhere, means "diocese."

BALSAMON.

It seemed right that the clergy should have no power to move from city 

to city and to change their canonical residence without letters 

dimissory from the bishop who ordained them. But such clerics as are 

called by the bishops who ordained them and cannot be persuaded to 

return, are to be separated from communion, that is to say, not to be 

allowed to concelebrate  sunierourgein   with them, for 

this is the meaning of "excommunicated" in this place, and not that 

they should not enter the church nor receive the sacraments. This 

decree agrees with canon xv. of the Apostolical canons, which 

provides that such shall not celebrate the liturgy. Canon xvj. of the 

same Apostolical canons further provides that if a bishop receive a 

cleric coming to him from another diocese without his bishop's letters 

dimissory, and shall ordain him, such a bishop shall be separated. 

From all this it is evident that the Chartophylax of the Great Church 

for the time does rightly in refusing to allow priests ordained in other 

dioceses to offer the sacrifice unless they bring with them letters 

commendatory and dimissory from those who ordained them.

Zonaras had also in his Scholion given the same explanation of the 

canon.

This canon is found in the Corpus Juris Canonici, divided into two. 

Decretum. Pars II, Causa VII. Quaest. I. c. xxiij.; and Pars I. Dist. 

LXXI., c. iij.

CANON XVII.

FORASMUCH as many enrolled among the Clergy, following 

covetousness and lust of gain, have forgotten the divine Scripture, 

which says, "He hath not given his money upon usury," and in lending 

money ask the hundredth of the sum[as monthly interest], the holy and 

great Synod thinks it just that if after this decree any one be found to 

receive usury, whether he accomplish it by secret transaction or 

otherwise, as by demanding the whole and one half, or by using any 

other contrivance whatever for filthy lucre's sake, he shall be deposed 

from the clergy and his name stricken from the list.

NOTES.

ANCIENT EPITOME OF CANON XVII.

If anyone shall receive usury or  per cent. he shall be cast forth and 

deposed, according to this decree of the Church.

VAN ESPEN.

Although the canon expresses only these two species of usury, if we 

bear in mind the grounds on which the prohibition was made, it will 

be manifest that every kind of usury is forbidden to clerics and under 

any circumstances, and therefore the translation of this canon sent by 

the Orientals to the Sixth Council of Carthage is in no respect alien to 

the true intent of the canon; for in this version no mention is made of 

any particular kind of usury, but generally the penalty is assigned to 

any clerics who "shall be found after this decree taking usury" or 

thinking out any other scheme for the sake of filthy lucre.

This Canon is found in the Corpus Juris Canonici, in the first part of 

the Decretum, in Dionysius's version. Dist. xlvii, c. ii, and again in 

Isidore's version in Pars II, Causa xiv. Quaes. iv., c. viii.