No clergyman shall undertake a journey without canonical letters or unless he is ordered to do so.
Van Espen.
(On Canon xli.)
It is well known that according to the true discipline of the Church no one should be ordained unless he be attached to some church, which as an ecclesiastical soldier he shall fight for and preserve. As, then, a secular soldier cannot without his prefect's bidding leave his post and go to another, so the canons decree that no one in the ranks of the ecclesiastical military can travel about except at the bidding of the bishop who is in command of the army. A slight trace of this discipline is observed even to-day in the fact that priests of other dioceses are not allowed to celebrate unless they are provided with Canonical letters or testimonials from their own bishops. (On Canon xlii.)
The whole subject of Commendatory and other letters is treated of in the note to Canon VIII. of the Council of Antioch.
Canon xlj. is found in the Corpus Juris Canonici , Gratian's Decretum , Pars III., Dist. V., De Consecrat, can. xxxvj.
Canon xlij. is appended to the preceding, but, curiously enough, limited to laymen, reading as follows: "a layman also without canonical letters," that is "formed letters," should not travel anywhere. The Roman Correctors remark that in the Greek order this last is canon xli., and the former part of Gratian's canon, canon xlij. of the Greek, but such is not the order of the Greek in Zonaras nor in Balsamon. The correctors add that in neither canon is there any mention made of laymen, nor in Dionysius's version; the Prisca , however, read for canon xlj., "It is not right for a minister of the altar, even for a layman, to travel, etc."
Canon XLIII.
The subdeacons may not leave the doors to engage in the prayer, even for a short time.
Notes.
Ancient Epitome of Canon XLIII.
A subdeacon should not leave the gates, even for a short time, to pray.
On this canon the commentators find nothing to say in addition to their remarks on Canons xxj., and xxij., except that the"prayer" is not their own private prayer, but the prayer of the Liturgy. It has struck me that possibly when there was no deacon to sing the litany outside the Holy Gates while the priest was going on with the holy action within, subdeacons may have left their places at the doors, assumed the deacon's stole and done his part of the office, and that it was to prevent this abuse that this canon was enacted, the "prayer" being the litany. But as this is purely my own suggestion it is probably valueless.
Canon XLIV.
Women may not go to the altar.
Notes.
Ancient Epitome of Canon XLIV.
The altar must not be approached by women.
Van Espen.
The discipline of this canon was often renewed even in the Latin Church, and therefore Balsamon unjustly attacks the Latins when he says; "Among the Latins women go without any shame up to the altar whenever they wish," For the Latins have forbidden and do forbid this approach of women to the altar no less than the Greeks; and look upon the contrary custom as an abuse sprung of the insolence of the women and of the negligence of bishops and pastors.
Zonaras.
If it is prohibited to laymen to enter the Sanctuary by the lxixth canon of the Sixth synod [i.e. Quinisext], much more are women forbidden to do so who are unwillingly indeed, but yet truly, polluted by the monthly flux of blood.
Canon XLV.
[Candidates] for baptism are not to be received after the second week in Lent.
Notes.