The Status of Societies of Apostolic Life, A Canonical Overview

This article is the second in a series on societies of apostolic life published in Landas. While the first article1 provided a historiographical account of the history of societies of apostolic life, that is, the fundamental circumstances and reasons underlying the creation of such societies, in this second article, the topic is addressed from the canonical aspect. It examines the canonical status of societies of apostolic life, beginning with the drafting process that led to canon 673 of the 1917 Code. It then explores the characteristics of these societies as outlined in that Code and in subsequent magisterial teachings up to the Second Vatican Council.