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Why did the Council of Trent ban the appointment of relatives to church offices?

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Painting by Nicolo Dorigati showing the opening session of the Council of Trent, with clergy in white robes seated in a grand cathedral and an altar at the center. — Council of Trent Opening session of the Council of Trent in 1545, depicted by Nicolò Dorigati, 1711; in the Museo Diocesano Tridentino, Trento, Italy.

The Council of Trent banned the appointment of relatives to church offices as part of a broader effort to reform the internal life and discipline of the Roman Catholic Church during the Counter-Reformation.

This measure was intended to combat corruption and address flagrant financial abuses that had plagued the church at all levels. By prohibiting the practice of nepotism—favoritism based on kinship—the council sought to eliminate the worldly attitudes and policies that had drawn significant criticism from reformers. These disciplinary reforms, which also included condemning pluralism and requiring bishops to reside in their dioceses, were essential to the council's goal of creating a more consolidated and disciplined church structure.123