Canon 915: The Spirit and Letter of the Law

This article examines Canon 915 of the Code of Canon Law, which prohibits ministers from admitting to Holy Communion those who are excommunicated, interdicted, or who obstinately persist in manifest grave sin. Reviewing commentaries by canonists such as Dacanay, Woestman, and Peters, the author clarifies the three conditions—objectively grave, manifest, and obstinately persevered-in sin—required before communion may licitly be refused, and surveys examples such as persons in irregular unions. Weighing the letter of the law against its pastoral spirit, and illustrating the tension with a personal account of a cohabiting Catholic publicly denied communion, the article argues, following Pope Francis, that public denial should be a last resort and that ministers should favor discreet dialogue and mercy over scandal-avoidance.