[Daruhuw]

Mr Katich makes a very strong point. The canons aren't laws that get applied to all and sundry as laymen see fit. They are guidelines for Bishops to use in their pastoral care of us (not necessarily so) rational sheep. So, unless you're a Bishop, put away your copy of the Pedalion, and stop applying it to other people.

Have you ever read through the criminal laws of your country (or state, if you're American)? I've read a bit through the Criminal Code of Canada. It's a definite cure for insomnia, let me tell you, but it does make an odd impression on the reader. It's full of statements like "anyone who does X, is liable for punishment Y". Seems pretty straight forward doesn't it? Then when you read the news, especially the stuff that follows court proceedings, very few convicted people seem to be getting "punishment Y". Are the judges not following the law? If you don't understand how the law works, it would seem so.

But there's the trick! Understanding how the law works! All the "punishment Y's" that we've been reading about are maximum sentences - not minimum! Sometimes they'll specify a maximum and minimum punishment, but often they just list the maximum and leave the minimum up to the presiding Justice. Just as the canons list punishments for this, that, and the other thing, but what they list are the maximum penalty, not minimum.

And perhaps most importantly, the laws of any nation are for Judges to interpret. If the average citizen were to run about interpreting and applying his interpretation of the laws, entirely independant of the police, judicial and penal systems of the country he's in, that would be called vigilantism, which is, interestingly, a crime in and of itself.

So keep that in mind when you get the impulse to be a canonical vigilante. It's not a good thing.