Coriden argues that church law is primarily a ministry within the church, a ministry that ought to serve freedom first and good order second. He views "church" as a local community situated within specific cultural, economic and political circumstances. And a law that serves global order while ignoring the needs of the local church runs the risk of trampling on freedom and undermining the peace of the church.
This informed and passionate argument for canon law as a ministry rather than as an instrument of control in today's church will be food for thought for: canon lawyers and those who shape church law, all persons, inside and outside the church who are concerned about the role of law and institutional reform as well as interested persons in the pew.