Marriage and elements of law of succession in the legislation of the Eastern Church

Abstract

The paper relies on an understanding of the family as a sociological reality in which converge various elements of juridical, religious and philosophical character. Starting from this point, the author approaches marriage from a double perspective: as a Holy Mystery of the Church and as a legal contract. From a theological point of view, Marriage is a Mystery generating a plenary unity of the human being, while from the legal point of view, marriage is mainly a contract conditioned by different criteria and with numerous consequences. Thus, the paper explores the manner of blending legal and ecclesial principles in a unique legislation regarding marriage and family life.