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22. Persons Concerned in Excommunication

1. The right of excommunicating is lawfully exercised onlyby those who hold the greater and more general judicial power inthe Church, that is, bishops and major prelates.

2. It can happen that the major jurisdiction required forexcommunicating should exist in one who is not a bishop, or even apriest, as, for example, in a papal legate who is a layman, or in adesignated bishop-elect who has not yet been ordained to thepriesthood.

3. A person who is himself excommunicated, or one who is acleric suspended from ecclesiastical office, cannot excommunicate.Such persons, being deprived of jurisdiction by the penalty imposedon themselves, cannot exercise that jurisdiction over others.

4. Excommunication is a penalty imposed by a superior.Therefore, a person cannot excommunicate himself, his equal, or hissuperior.

5. Excommunication is never imposed on a group as such,although each member of a group may be excommunicated individuallyat the same time.

6. A person may labor under multiple excommunication, forthis penalty may be imposed as often as serious reasons demand it.The effect of a second, third, and fourth excommunication is toremovethe excommunicated person further and further from thespiritual helps which the Church gives her children in her generalprayers and good works.

"Though the path is plain and smooth for people of good will, those who walk it will not travel far, and will do so only with difficulty if they do not have good feet, courage, and tenacity of spirit. "
St John of the Cross, OCD - Doctor of the Church

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"The greatest glory we can give to God is to do his will in everything."
St Alphonsus de Liguori

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"There is nothing which gives greater security to our actions, or more effectually cuts the snares the devil lays for us, than to follow another person’s will, rather than our own, in doing good."
St Philip Neri

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