This paper explores the potential of digital methods for addressing normative complexity through the case of canon law sources, approached as a structured dataset rather than as a mere textual corpus. Focusing on the Corpus Iuris Canonici, the contribution examines how a foundational body of religious law—composed of heterogeneous sources such as Gratian's Decretum, official collections of papal decretals, and later normative collections—poses specific challenges to current digital research practices. The Corpus Iuris Canonici embodies multiple layers of complexity: the coexistence of different normative authorities, the stratification of legal time, the interaction between texts and norms, and the central role of interpretation through glosses and commentaries. When transformed into data, these features raise methodological questions concerning data modeling, semantic annotation, temporal versioning, and the representation of legal relationships within digital workflows. By analyzing canon law sources as datasets, the paper argues that normative complexity is not an obstacle to digital research, but a productive framework for exploring the limits and capabilities of digital methods in the study of religions. The case of the Corpus Iuris Canonici demonstrates how historically grounded legal-religious materials can inform the development of more robust digital approaches, with implications for other normative, institutional, and religious domains.