Della successione «in divino ministerio» dei figli dei «sacerdotes Domini» in un antico canone nel ‘Ms. Parm. 3777 ’ e della sua risalenza alla Tarda Antichità

ABSTRACT: One of the oldest manuscripts of the Decretum of Burcard of Worms, dating back to the first half of the 11th century and currently preserved in the Palatine Library in Parma (Ms. Parm. 3777), contains an ancient canon according to which the transmission by succession in divino ministerio of the filii of the sacerdotes Domini was forbidden and sanctioned by the condemnation of the procreatores to the penalty of degradation and the reduction of the sons to the condition of servants of the bishops. The canon in question raises interest because of the inscriptio indicating its origin: Ex concilio affricano, cap. X ubi interfuerunt et Valentinus et Valentinianus et Theodosius imperatores, cum Leo papa et pluribus episcopis. The study aims to evaluate the reliability of the aforementioned testimony.