decretals
decretals (di-kree-t[schwa]lz), n. Eccles. law. Canonical epistles written either by the Pope or by the Pope and his cardinals to settle controversial matters; esp., the second part of the Corpus Juris Canonici, canonical epistles consisting mainly of: (1) Decretales Gregorii Noni, a collection by Raymundus Barcinius, chaplain to Gregory IX, dating from about 1227; (2) Decretales Bonifacii Octavi, a collection by Boniface VIII in the year 1298; (3) Clementinae, a collection of Clement V, published in the year 1308; and (4) the Extravagantes, a collection by John XXII and other bishops. — Also (in Law Latin) Decretales. See CANON LAW.
