Canon 5 Clergy may not put away their wives for piety

Ἱεροὶ Κανόνες τῶν Ἁγίων καὶ Πανσέπτων Ἀποστόλων

The Apostolic Canons · compiled in Syria in the later fourth century · The Apostolic Canons on the map

Let not a bishop, or presbyter, or deacon put away his own wife under pretext of piety; and if he puts her away, let him be excommunicated; and if he persists, let him be deposed.

Ἐπίσκοπος, ἢ πρεσβύτερος, ἢ διάκονος, τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γυναῖκα μὴ ἐκβαλλέτω προφάσει εὐλαβείας· ἐὰν δὲ ἐκβάλῃ, ἀφοριζέσθω· ἐπιμένων δέ, καθαιρείσθω.

The Apostolic Canons, the canons

English: this site's translation of the Greek beside it. Greek: the text of the Pedalion, as transcribed at users.uoa.gr/~nektar and corrected here. About these texts.