根據天主教會的制度，領洗後成為「天主子民」，是基督信徒。在這些基督信徒中有一些人又以特別的方式答覆了天主的召叫，他們不婚、不嫁，以一個獻身生活的方式事奉天主，服務教會。這些人通稱為獻身生活者，包括：神職人員、修女及平信徒。天主教會對於度獻身生活者是非常支持的，也鼓勵根據特有的神恩而建立這樣的團體。對於這樣的團體的建立，是有一定的法律權限。根據《天主教法典》579條，1這個權限歸教區主教所有，教區主教在審慎考量後，只須向聖座請示後，就可以在自己轄區內以正式法令設立獻身生活會。然而當今方濟各教宗於2020年11月1日諸聖瞻禮頒布了一份《宗座自動詔書》，將以上的權限做了更改，將原先的「批准權限」收回，也就是說，各教區主教對於任何一個新的獻身生活會的設立，必須有聖座的批准才能合法成立。至於教宗為何要有這樣的改變，為何需要提升到最高的層級，從法典的角度如何詮釋及說明，將是本文探討之處，也是這份《宗座自動詔書》的要點。

According to the system of the Catholic Church, after being baptized, one become God’s people and believers in Christ. Some of these Christians have responded to God’s call in a special way. They do not marry nor are they given in marriage and they serve God and the Church in consecrated life. These people become consecrated persons, which includes the clergy, nuns and lay believers. The Catholic Church is very supportive of consecrated persons, and encourages the establishment of such groups based on a unique charism. There are certain legal powers for the establishment of such groups. According to Article 57921 of the Code of Canon Law, this authority belongs to the bishop of diocese. After careful consideration, the bishop of the diocese only needs to consult the Holy See to erect institutes of consecrated life by formal decree in his own territory. However, Pope Francis issued an “Apostolic Decree” on November 1, 2020 on All Saints’ Day, changing the above authority and revoking the original “authorization authority”, that is, Diocesan bishops must have the approval of the Holy See for the establishment of any new institute of consecrated life to be legally established. As for why the Pope wants such a change, why it needs to be elevated to the highest level, how to interpret and explain it from the perspective of the Code of Canon Law will be the subject of this article; and it is also the main point of the “Apostolic Decree”.