摘要
很多人不知道天主教會有一部法典，縱使一位天主教徒也許聽過有這部法典，但對於其內容大多是陌生的。若用最簡單的詞句介紹《天主教法典》，我會說：「《天主教法典》是一部法律書，內容綜合了聖經、聖傳、教義的信仰意涵，用法條的方式將天主的旨意曉諭天主子民，並且指示其子民在日常生活中努力按法律規定生活，如此，不僅自己在人格上成長，更促使大家一起走上修德成聖之路。」《天主教法典》共有1752條，分屬七卷書：總則、天主子民、教會訓導職、教會聖化職、教會刑法、教會財產及訴訟法。法典的結構與一般世俗法典大同小異，然而這部法典畢竟是天主教會的法律書，故此，信仰的內涵、教義的教導、福音的精神、人靈的照顧、普世的價值與概念等就成為《天主教法典》的特色。
並列摘要
Many people are not aware of the Code of Canon Law of the Roman Catholic Church, and even Catholics who have heard of it may still be unfamiliar with its content. As a brief introduction to canon law, I would say: ＂The Code of Canon Law is a book about laws. It integrates the connotation of faith conveyed by Sacred Scripture, Tradition and doctrine, and uses the canons to help the people of God comprehend God's will, and guide them to strive to live out their daily lives by laws. Therefore, it matures not only a person's personality, but also prompts everyone to move on the way of sanctification.＂ The legislation consists of 1752 canons, organized in seven books: general norms, the people of God, the teaching function of the church, the sanctifying function of the church, the function of the church, sanctions in the church, the temporal goods of the church, and legal processes. The structure of the canon law is much the same as the common law, however it is the statute book of the Catholic Church, thus the connotation of faith, the teaching of doctrine, the spirit of the gospel, the care of souls, universal values and concepts…become chief characteristics of canon law.