Canon lawyer Adam Storey joins guest host Sam Halligan to demystify canon law and reveal its deep connection to Catholic theology. He describes canon law as "applied theology" — a tool that orders the life of the Church around its threefold mission of teaching, governing, and sanctifying — and grounds it in an ecclesiology that sees the Church as a visible, communal, and wounded Body of Christ. Storey explains why "rules without relationship breed rebellion" and how the Church's guardrails are a means to flourishing rather than an obstacle to faith.
In this conversation on The Catholic Morning Show, guest host Sam Halligan welcomes canon lawyer Adam Storey to explore a subject many Catholics associate only with annulments or parish governance.
Storey offers a big-picture view of canon law as a tool the Church uses to serve justice and order the community so it can respond to Christ's call to mission. He frames canon law as "applied theology" — taking what the Church believes about Jesus and the Body of Christ and living it out — rooted specifically in ecclesiology: the conviction that the Church is a visible body, a communal family of faith, and a people who, being wounded, need guardrails and direction. Drawing on the triple munera of teaching, governing, and sanctifying, he shows how canon law shapes the sacraments, parish ministry, and the bishop's governance of his diocese. Responding to the idea that "rules without relationship breed rebellion," Storey emphasizes that the law is a means to an end — keep the end in focus, and the guardrails reveal themselves as paths to genuine flourishing.
Listen to The Catholic Morning Show weekdays at 7:00 a.m. Central on the Iowa Catholic Radio Network, at IowaCatholicRadio.com, or on the Iowa Catholic Radio app.
#CanonLaw #CatholicTheology #CatholicMorningShow #IowaCatholicRadio #CatholicChurch #Ecclesiology #CatholicPodcast #AppliedTheology #CatholicFaith #CatholicEducation