power of the spirit tooke vpon them power aboue the Ciuill Magistrate practising wholly coactiue power which they called Spirituall when they had forsaken the power of the spirit and reiected it from them 5. The Iurisdiction which the Apostles practised was partly from the commission of Christ spirituall partly from the law of Nature and from the example of that gouernment which was established in the Church of the Iewes The things which belonged to Apostolicall Iurisdiction either concerned the gouernment of the ministery or of the whole Church Touching the gouernement of the ministery these things belonged to the Apostles so long as they liued and afterward to Bishops their successours First a power to ordaine ministers Thus did Paul and Barnabas when they called Churches through Lycaonia Pisidia and Pamphylia They ordained Elders in euery Church Elders that is Pastors Preachers to preserue the Doctrine continually which the Apostles had once planted And this charge to ordaine Elders or Priests did the Apostles leaue also to them that succeeded in the gouernement of the Church This commission Saint Paul gaue to Titus For this cause I left thee in Crete that thou shouldest continue to redresse the things that remaine and ordaine Elders in euery city as I appointed thee which ordaining signifieth also institution in the place or cure they ministred in 6. The Apostles had also in themselues and left to their successours power and Iurisdiction to command those Pastors which thus they had ordained to preach the truth without mixture of false doctrines This power as Saint Paul had in himselfe so he left the same to Timothie and consequently to others As I besought thee to abide still in Ephesus when I departed to Macedonia so doe that thou maist command some that they teach no other doctrine These were the principall parts of Iurisdiction which the Apostles left to their successors to continue in the Church for euer For the end and vse of this gouernment is perpetuall as to ordaine Preachers and to see that they so ordained should teach the truth without heresie It followeth certainely that such gouernours as the Apostles themselues ordained in the Church for these perpetuall vses are to remaine perpetuall gouernours in the Church Thus was the gouernement of Bishops placed by the Apostles to stand and continue till the end of the world because the Apostles placed such for the ordination of ministers and the preseruation of true Doctrines For they who aunswere that these offices and places wherin the Apostles placed Timothie and Titus were either extraordinarie or to indure for a short time do not consider the end and vse of these places which end and vse is neither extraordinary nor temporary but ordinary and perpetuall For ministers must be ordained commanded to preserue the truth without heresie as long as the Church standeth Then the necessitie and vse of the ends will prooue the like necessitie and vse of these gouernours which by the Apostles were placed for these endes 7. Another part of this Iurisdiction and depending vpon the last was that which the Apostle leaueth in commission to Titus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to stoppe their mouthes For which cause the Angell of the Church of Thyatira is reprooued by Christ because he suffered a false Prophetesse to teach and to deceiue the people and to make them commit fornication and to eate meat sacrificed to idols If Titus be commaunded to put some to silence and the other reprooued for suffering a false teacher to teach then the gouernours of the Church haue authoritie and Iurisdiction in these things but how farre it is extended we shall consider hereafter But because it may be questioned whether 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 be to silence ministers or to conuince them by argument To this wee ' aunswere that albe it wee denie not conuiction by reason to be also included in the word yet there is a further meaning of iudiciall proceeding by authoritie heere vnderstood which thing will appeare by conference of this and other places For Saint Paul hauing first declared that he left Titus at Crete to ordaine Elders describeth what manner of men they must be that are so to be ordained For a ' Bishop must be vnreproueable c. Then he declareth that many be otherwise for there are many disobedient and vaine talkers and deceiuers c. If the question be demaunded what shall be done to these deceiuers the wordes immediatly following containe an aunswere whose mouthes must be stopped So that the sense of these words is the same with that which hee saith to Timothie charging him to command some that they teach no other Doctrine Then the word containeth not only conuiction by argument but Iurisdiction also For conuiction by argument onely would not haue serued to suppresse the false Prophetesse of Thyatyra And if a minister be accused of heresie or such like he was to be iudged by such as were set in chiefe authoritie in the Clergie For that there was a consistory and iudiciall proceedings set vp it is euident and no lesse euident that the Bishop was iudge Against an Elder saith S. Paul to Timothie receiue none accusation but vnder two or three witnesses Now he that is appointed to heare accusations to receiue the testimonies of witnesses is placed in a place of iudgement with Iurisdiction and therefore hath authoritie not onely to conuince by argument but also to proceed iudicially against false teachers and to put them to silence 8. Thus farre was Iurisdiction practised ouer ministers the things which follow touched the whole Church Another part of Iurisdiction practised by the Apostles touching the Church in generall was to call Councels for the determination of such controuersies as were raised vp by them that troubled the doctrines of the truth and peace of the Church Such was the Councell gathered by the Apostles Act 15. Consisting of Apostles and Elders that is of persons Ecclesiasticall wherin sentence proceeded after good deliberation and great disputation This is the greatest power or Iurisdiction of the Church because the whole or many chiefe parts together is greater then any one part 9. Further concerning the extension of this Iurisdiction it cannot be denied but that there is a power in the Church not only internall but also of externall Iurisdiction of internall power there is no question made Externall Iurisdiction being vnderstood all that is practised in externall Courts or consistories is either definitiue or mulctatiue Authority definitiue in matters of faith and religion belongeth to the Church Mulctatiue power may be vnderstood either as it is referred to spirituall censures or as it is with coaction as it standeth in spirituall censures it is the right of the Church and was practised by the Church when the Church was without a Christian Magistrate and since But coactiue Iurisdiction was neuer practised by the Church when the Church was without
IVRISDICTION REGALL EPISCOPALL PAPALL WHEREIN IS DECLARED HOW THE POPE HATH INTRVDED Vpon the Iurisdiction of Temporall Princes and of the Church The intrusion is discouered and the peculiar and distinct Iurisdiction to each properly belonging recouered Written by GEORGE CARLETON IOHN 18. 36. My kingdome is not of this world if my kingdome were of this world my seruants would surely fight LONDINI Impensis Iohannis Norton 1610. THE CONTENTS OF THE SEVERAL Chapters of this Booke THe state of the question CHAP. I. That Kings in the time of the law of nature had all Ecclesiasticall power both of Order and Iurisdiction II. Externall coactiue Iurisdiction is a right belonging to Soueraigne Princes vnder the law III. Externall coactiue Iurisdiction was not left by Christ to his Church nor practised by the Church all that while that the Church was without Christian Magistrates IIII. Of the estate and Iurisdiction of the Church from the end of the first three hundred yeares vntill the yeare of Christ 600. V. Of the estate and Iurisdiction of the Church from the yeare of Christ 600. vntill the conquest of England VI. How the Papall Iurisdiction was aduanced from the time of the conquest and somewhat before vntill the yeare of Christ 1300. conteyning the meanes of raising that Iurisdiction by forgery Friars Oathes and the parts of the pretended Iurisdiction Inuestitures Exemptions lawes imposed Appellation deposing of Kings and absoluing their subiects from faith and Alleageance VII How this Iurisdiction after it was thus declared by the Popes Clerks was refuted by the learned men of the Church of Rome and repressed by Councels VIII TO THT MOST REVEREND FATHER IN GOD MY VERY GOOD LORD THE Lord Archbishop of CANTERBVRIE his Grace Metropolitan and Primate of al England and one of his Maiesties most Honourable Priuie Counsell IOb the man of God most Reuerend Father in God entring into the meditation of the care labor danger and deliuerance that we find in this present life compareth it for danger to a warfare for care and trauell to the dayes of an hireling which estate as euery member of the Church findeth in this life so the same is much more apparant in the whole Church which for the time of her warfare here as she is so is called militant As this assured and expected warfare from the beginning hath kept the Church in continuall exercise and watch against many and strong aduersaries so toward the end of this warfare that is toward the end of this world the aduersaries growing more skilfull more bòld and desperate then before the warfare must of necessitie bee made more daungerous The greatnesse of which daunger may draw the gouernours of the Church to a more sensible apprehension of their duties who according to the daunger of the Church cannot but vnderstand that their care industry vigilancy and courage must be increased for the preseruation of the peace and good of the Church of God which they gouern so that the malice industrie and desperate attempts of the aduersaries are to them so many prouocations stirring theÌ„ vp more carefully to watch Which care hath singularly appeared in your Grace who as a Generall in this warfare haue giuen no rest to your selfe but by preuenting the purposes of the enemies by espying their secrets by answering their present incounters by incouraging inferiours haue declared your carefull seruice in this warfare setting the battel in order and incouraging euery souldier in his proper standing and place vnder this conduct haue I vndertaken this peece of seruice for the opening the truth of â—…urisdiction of late so much oppugned defaced and confounded by the aduersaries Wherein as I can not promise any worth of my seruice so I shall bee able with a good conscience to challenge the reward of faithfull and sincere dealing The question I confesse requireth a man as skilful in distinguishing this confused masse of Iurisdiction which they now haue cast vpon the Pope as Archimedes was in examining the gouldsmithes fraude who hauing receiued a certaine Weight of gould of Hiero King of Sicily to make a goulden crowne which he would offer to his Gods stoale away much of the gold and put siluer in the place thereof rendring to Hiero his true weight againe To examine this fraud without melting of the crowne was a worke to exercise the great wit of Archimedes himselfe such is this masse of Iurisdiction wherin fraudulent workmen as they who confound gold siluer coper and brasse together haue taken the Iurisdiction of the Church and of kings and mingling both together adding much of their owne drosse thereto haue made it as a deceiptfull crowne to offer to their great God to set it vpon his hâ—…ad To distinguâ—…sh this confused maâ—…se to giue to each his own right was a thing wherin I fouÌ„d the greater difficulty because none of late yeeres hath troden this path before me whose footsteppes might haue directed me For the question of the Supremacy is handled learnedly worthithily by others who though they haue giuen some light to this question of Iurisdiction yet they doe it but in some passages not handling the question fully and purposely but by occasion sometimes falling into some parts thereof Wherefore I thought it would be a necessary seruice to the Church if this thing might be truely brought to knowledge and the fraudulent confusion of tâ—…is crowne of Iurisdiction standing vpon the proud head of the Pope examined distinguished the siluer seuered from the gold and the drosse from both As Iurisdiction lay thus confounded by those false workemen of Rome so at the first triall of it when it was examined by vnskilfull and deceitfull triars who fet the rules of their triall not from the truth but from ambition and adulation they taking vpon them to be triars of truth made things as bad or farre worse by their handling then they were before and so wrapped this question in newe difficulties For when Henrie the eight tooke this title of supreme head of the Church of England though the sounder and more iudicious part of the Church then vnderstood the words of that title so as no offence might iustly rise by it yet they that were suddenly brought from their olde opinion of perie not to the loue of the truth but to the obseruance of the Kings religion retained a grosse and impure sense of those words as most coÌ„monly by such is retained to this day For when Stephen Gardiner Bishop of Winchester was at Ratisbon in Germanie vpon the Kings affaires he there taking occasion to declare the meaning of that title supreme head of the Church giuen to king Henrie the eight taught that the King had such a power that hee might appoint and prescribe new ordinances of the Church euen matters concerning faith and doctrine and abolish old as namely that the King might forbid the marriage of Priests and might take away the vse of the cup in the Sacrament of the
successe for fire shall come downe from God out of heauen and deuoure the enemies Vnto which seruice there is nothing so effectuall to animate the princes of Christendome as is this new and strange claime of the popes Iurisdiction ouer princes which thing because it is so much pursued by the Popes and their flatterers and onely by them as the great marke whereunto they addresse all their attempts and the very summe of all their Religion therfore I haue endeuoured to open the whole to distinguish the parts and to set this question in such a light as I could if not to satisfie all yet at least to giue an occasion to the iudicious I was desirous to leaue no part vntouched that all might come to a triall and am ready also withall to bring my selfe to the triall willing to learne and to amend any error after that it shall be manifested by the truth to bee an errour for which cause I submit all to the iudicious and godly censure of the Church My care was also after my seruice to God to performe herein a true seruice to his Maiesty by opening the Iurisdiction of Kings which I haue done not as they vse to doe who serue the Pope respecting no other rules of that seruice then his pleasure and their adulation but I haue disputed the Kings right with a good conscience from the rules of Gods word knowing that the noble disposition of his Maiesty will admit of no seruice whereby God or the truth is preiudiced All which as I commend to your Graces fauour and protection to whom God hath committed the care of his Church here so with my hearty prayers I commend your Grace to the faâ—…our and protection of God who inrich your heart with his plentifull graces that as for your proper comfort and direction you may enioy them so you may vse them to the glory of God and the comfort of his Church through Iesus Christ. Your Graces to be commanded in all duety GEORGE CARLETON An Admonition to the Reader IT may bee thought strange that so many are found to write in this contradicting age one contrary to another the trueth cannot bee on both sides and therefore there is a great fault on the one side the Reader that is desirous to trie where the fault is may be intreated to marke with aduised obseruation some things wherein our aduersaries wanting either knowledge or sinceritie haue broken all the rules of right writing to deceiue such as cannot iudge of which sort the greatest part consisteth I doe therefore intreat the Readers especially such as reade my Booke with a purpose to answere it to consider these things wherein we challeng our aduersaries for euil dealing in this particular Controuersie First In setting downe our opinion they make it not that which we hold but another thing and then make large discourses in vaine they should vnderstand our cause as we deliuer it for we deuise not their opinion but take it out of their owne bookes especially from the Popes Canons Secondly when they would refute vs they bring their owne Canon law which was deuised in preiudice of the freedome of Princes and is our aduersarie and therefore cannot bee our Iudge Thirdly When they produce the testimonies of ancient fathers the abuse for which we challenge them is that they will not vnderstand the question for the fathers write for the spirituall Iurisdiction of the Church aboue Princes which thing we neuer denied But against the coactiue Iurisdiction of Prinees in matters Ecclesiasticall which thing we hold the Fathers neuer wâ—…ote but they are for it If these things were faithfully obserued as they are all peruerted in this cause by one that termeth himself the Catholick Diuine and if the truth were sought with conscience and not preiudice maintained with resolution men would neuer presume so much vpon the simplicitie of the Readers nor in the confidence of their wit and learning would they suffer themselues to be set to the maintenance of any cause whatsoeuer Let me farther intreate him that would aunswere me to enter into this short and serious meditation with himselfe thus Either my purpose is to serue God for the truth and then I may looke for a blessing vpon my labours or else to serue man though against the truth and then I may looke for a curse vpon my selfe and my labours let this Meditation rule thy pen and heart I aske no more Last of all let me intreate thee of curtesie to amend the faults escaped in printing with thy pen thus P. 2. Lin. 10. Or some others superfluous p. 13. l. 2. as superfluous p. 14. l. 29 for more read meer p. 22. l. 28. the superfluous p. 30. l. 15 for teached r. touched p. 52. marg r. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 p. 73. l. 28 r. against the infringers of the priuiledges of the Sea Apostolick p. 85. l. 19. therto superfluous p. 98. l. 27. full superfluous p. 105. l. 8. r. M. Luther p. 107. l. 2. r. M. Luther p. 108. l. 16. r. M. Bucer p. 108. l. 20. r. M. Antonius Flam. p. 109. l. 10. r. M. Chemnicius p. 195. l. 19. Deposed by Pope Stephen r. deposed or his deposition allowed by the consent of Pope Stephen p. 198. l. 4. for the Bishops r. some Bishops p. 211. l. 11. for opportunelyr opportunity p. 228. l. r2 some report the poyson to haue beene giuen in the bread and some in the cup. p. 229. l. 31. for great r. greatest p. 234 l. 15. for Frederic r. Lodouic p. 234. l. 22. for Rhenes r. Rense p. 234. l. 27. for Rhenes r. Rense p. 236. l 19. generall superfluous p. 250. l. 28. r. adhaerentium adhaerere volentium p. 262. l. 21. for ver r. viri p. 272. l. 18. for chusing r. choosen p. 272. l. 22. for to r. in p. 279. l. 30. no supeâ—…fluous p. 294. l. 16. for cultus r. cultu OF THE IVRISDICTION OF PRINCES IN Causes and ouer Persons Ecclesiasticall CHAP. I. The state of the Question THe lawfull authoritie and Iurisdiction of Kings in matters Ecclesiasticall is now and hath beene for some ages heeretofore much impugned by such who by vsurpation hauing incroached vpon the right of Kings seeke by all subtill and colourable deuises to maintaine that by skill and some shew of learning which they haue gotten by fraud All this mischiefe proceedeth from the Bishop of Rome who vsurping powre and taking to himselfe that honour whereunto God hath not called him hath brought all authoritie Ecclesiasticall and Ciuill into great confusion by vsurping the right both of the Church and of States Now our desire being to open the truth and to declare the lawfull right of Princes and power of the Church it seemeth needfull first to set downe what power is giuen to the Pope by them that flatter him so shall the right of the King and of the Church better appeare 2 They yeeld to the Pope a fulnesse of power as they
Iurisdiction 6. From this consideration of persons and causes arise two great questions First concerning the exemption of all causes Ecclesiasticall from the Kings Iurisdiction secondly concerning the exemption of Ecclesiasticall persons from temporall audience and iudicature For the better vnderstanding hereof we may proceede by some distinctions for when our aduersaries teach that the Pope is the head of the Church and we that the King is the supreame gouernor of the Church though in some sound of wordes these things seeme not much to differ yet in truth there is great difference betweene their meaning and ours For they calling the Pope the head to distinguish him from Christ whom the Apostle calleth the head of the Church say that the Pope is the ministeriall head which deuise was first brought in by the Schoolemen for among the auncients it was not knowne but all that speake of the head of the Church before acknowledge none but Christ. Concerning this deuise of the ministeriall head we say with the ancient Fathers that the Catholike Church is but one and hath one head Christ Iesus because to one bodie there can bee but one head from whom grace is infused to the whole body This Catholike Church is as that head is both perfectly known to God not to man this then is but one in all times and places But the visible Churches or particular are many at many times in many places and therefore must haue heads or gouernours aunswerable to themselues for many Churches many gouernours These are either Spirituall gouernours or Temporall The spirituall gouernment of the Church is committed to spirituall gouernours as first from Christ to his twelue Apostles of whom none was aboue the rest in this spirituall gouernment or kingdome of Christ as the Lord doth often expresly declare to them from them to Bishops and Pastors their successors Temporall gouernours are such as haue the custody of externall coactiue Iurisdiction both in Temporall and Ecclesiasticall causes for the power of the Church with all her spirituall Iurisdiction neuer reached to coaction This was by God first giuen to Magistrates and neuer reuoked in all times practised but when the Church and Kings were oppressed by the great power of Antichrist When wee call the King the supreame gouernour of the Church our meaning is that hee is appointed by God to be a Father and preseruer of religion a keeper of Ecclesiasticall discipline and as the Prophet Isaiah calleth him a nourcing father of the Church he is the soueraigne in all affaires of coactiue Iurisdiction Likewise this word Church is not taken in the same sense by them and vs for our aduersaries saying that the Pope is the head of the Church vnderstand thereby the. Catholike Church spread ouer the whole world but we vnderstand a particular Church yeelding the King to bee gouernour next and immediatly vnder God of his own dominions and consequently of persons and causes within his owne dominions so that there is much difference betweene their meaning and ours Then we must come to such an issue wherein without equiuocating the question betweene vs is set for wee shall otherwise run into that fault which is so rife with the Popes Clarks that Bellarmine himselfe confesseth it Notandum est saith he multos ex nostris tempus terere dum probant quod Caluinus caeteri haeretici concedunt This is most common among them to bee large in disputing that which is not in question betweene vs and it is a signe of some ingenuitie to confesse it but neither doth himselfe for all his confession auoid it neither doe they that write since and depend vpon his learning shunne it after so faire warning neither in truth can a false cause be maintained in so many bookes and large volumes as now they set out vnlesse they tooke this libertie to themselues to be large in disputing things which are not in question The question then is concerning the lawfull authoritie of Kings in their owne dominions touching this part of Iurisdiction which is called Ecclesiasticall coactiue Iurisdiction 7. For better proceeding let the distinction be remembred which is vsually receiued of Ecclesiasticall power for all power Ecclesiasticall is commonly deuided into power of order and of Iurisdiction The power of order by all writers that I could see euen of the Church of Rome is vnderstood to be immediatly from Christ giuen to all Bishops and Priests alike by their consecration wherein the Pope hath no priuiledge aboue other Thus teach Bonauentuâ—…e in 4. sent d. 17. q 1. August Triumphus lib. de potest eccles qu. 1. ar 1. Ioh. Gerson li. de potest eccles consid 1. Cardinal Cusanus lib. de cathol concord 2. cap. 13. Cardinal Contarenus tract de eccles potest pontificis Bellarm. lib. 4. de Rom. Pont. cap. 22. This then being the common confession of all that the Pope hath no more power herein then any other Bishop or Pastor we moue no contradiction in this As they confesse that in this power the Pope hath no praeeminence but that it is giuen from Christto all Bishops and pastors equally so wee confesse that in this power the prince hath no part and that Bishops and pastors haue this power onely from the diuine ordinance and not from earthly princes then our question is onely of the power of Iurisdiction 8. This power of Iurisdiction is diuersly vnderstood by the writers of the Church of Rome Augustinus Triumphus doth deliuer it thus The power of Iurisdiction is Temporall or Spirituall and this power considered in generall is threefold immediate deriued or giuen to execute some seruice the power of Iurisdiction immediate of all things Spirituall and Temporall is onely in the Pope The power of Iurisdiction deriued is in Bishops to them deriued from the Pope the power of Temporall Iurisdiction giuen to execute some seruice for the helpe of the Church is in Emperours Kings and secular princes this power is not immediat from God but is giuen first to the Pope and so to Kings for the vse of the Church and â—…elpe of Pope and Prelates I haue deliuered this in the â—…ery words of Triumphus whom in this thing others followe though of late some of the finer Iesuits who hold the same are growen more cunning in the manner of deliuering it Bellarmine loath to leaue the opinion and ashamed so grossely to propose it deuiseth a mollification of it thus Asserimus Pontiâ—…icem vt pontiâ—…icem et si non habeat vllam meré temporalem potestatem tamen habere in ordine ad spirituale bonum summam potestatem disponendi de temporalibus rebus omnium Christianorum That is We auer that the Pope albeit he hath not any power merely Temporall as Pope yet hath power supreame in respect of Spirituall good to dispose of all the Temporalties of all Christians And in the next Chapter concludeth that the Pope hath authoritie to depose hereticall kings and princes
and answereth to an obiection which I will set downe in his own words Quod si Christiani non deposuerunt olim Neronem Diocletianum Iulianum Valentem similes iâ—…suerat quia deerant vires temporales Christianis That is If Christians of old deposed not Nero Diocletian Iulian Valens and the like this was because Christians then wanted Temporall forces They will shortly without blushing tell vs that Iesus Christ also submitted himselfe to the heathen Emperours and to their deputies because he wanted power to resist them for this they may say with some sophisticall shew of reason aswell as that which they doe say Then his opinion is that the Pope as Pope hath not any Temporall power but yet the Pope and onely the Pope hath Temporall power aboue all Kings and Emperours This is one of the greatest points wherein the Pope hath incroached vpon the right of Kings 9. Besides this Temporall Iurisdiction there is another part of Iurisdiction called spirituall which the writers of the Church of Rome deuide into internall and externall internall they referre to the Sacraments onely Gerson de potest ecclesi consid 1. Bellar. de Rom. pont lib. 4. cap. 22. Bellarmine in the place last cited disputing of Iurisdiction saith there is a triple power in the Bishop of Rome first of order secondly of internall Iurisdiction thirdly of externall Iurisdiction the first is referred to the Sacraments the second to inward gouernment which is in the court of conscience the third to that externall gouernment which is practised in externall courts and confesseth that of the first and second there is no question betweene vs but onely of the third De primâ secundâ non est questio sed solum de tertiâ saith he Then of this wee are agreed that the question betweene vs and them is onely of Iurisdiction in the third sense and therein especially of Iurisdiction coactiue in externall courts binding and compelling by force of law and other externall mulcts and punishments beside excommunication as for Spirituall Iurisdiction of the Church standing in examinations of controuersies of faith iudging of heresies deposing of heretickes excommunication of notorious and stubborne offenders ordination of Priests and Deacons institution and collation of benefices and spirituall cures c. This we reserue intire to the Church which Princes cannot giue or take from the Church This power hath bene practised by the Church without coactiue Iurisdiction other then of excommunication But when the matters handled in the Ecclesiasticall consistorie are not matters of faith and religion but of a ciuill nature which yet are called Ecclesiasticall as being giuen by Princes and appointed to be within the cognisance of that consistorie and when the censures are not spirituall but carnall compulsiue coactiue here appeareth the power of the ciuill magistrate This power we yeeld to the magistrate and here is the question whether the magistrate hath right to this power or Iurisdiction which is thus described by the Romanists Externall Iurisdiction Ecclesiasticall is a power coactiue giuen to gouerne Christian people in contentious courts this is the principal question which we haue here to search Our English flatterers of the Pope that write now and of late haue written vndertake to prooue that this Iurisdiction is first and principally in the Pope and from him deriued to Bishops and that Kings haue not this power at all or any part of it vnlesse by commission from the Pope our assertion is contrary that this power of Ecclesiasticall Iurisdiction externall and coactiue beâ—…ongs to Kings only not to Ecclesiasticall persons but as they â—…aue commission from their Princes And because we would â—…ot be mistaken in the question we will set down the words of the best of that side for better euidence and assurance who take the question thus and not otherwise Iohn Gerson saith Potestas Ecclesiastica Iurisdictionis in foro exteriori est potestas Ecclâ—…siastica coactiua quae valet exerceri in alterum etiam iâ—…uitum Bellarmine speaking of the same power saith it is ad regendum populum Christianum iâ—… foro exteriori 10. Then this is the thing which wee are to prooue that Ecclesiasticall coactiue power by force of lawe and corporall punishments by which Christian people are to be gouerned in externall and contentious courts is a power which of right belongeth to Christian Princes Concerning the power of orders and institutions of excommunication and deposition and of internall Iurisdiction in the court of Conscience in administration of Sacraments absolution by power of the keyes this we giue not to Princes but Princes as they are preseruers of Religion and nurcing fathers of the Church are to see that Bishops and all inferiour ministers performe their faithfull duties in their seuerall places and if they be found faulty to punish them because that belongeth to external Iurisdiction coactiue Thus much may suffice for the state of the question For the manner of handling I purpose to search the right of Kinges first in the law of nature secondly in the written law giuen by Moses continued vntill the comming of our Lord Iesus Christ thirdly to declare the confirmation of the same right by Christ and his Apostles and the Church succeeding vntill that time that the Pope drew a newe estate and Iurisdiction to himselfe After which time I purpose to obserue how the Pope hath incroached first vpon the Bishops then vpon the right of kings and last vpon the right of the Church and generall Councels By all which will appeare how late how new and strange that Iurisdiction is which the flatterers of the court of Rome now yeeld to the Pope CHAP. II. Kings in the time of the Law of nature had all power Ecclesiasticall both of order and Iurisdiction IN the Law of nature we haue not many examples of Kings that gouerned a people where the Church of God was planted there is onely mention of Melchisedecke King of Salem of him it is said Gen. 14. Melchisedecke King of Salem was a priest of the high God In his person these two offices the kingdom the priesthood were ioyned both which offices followed the prerogatiue of the birthright for that this Melchisedeck was Sem is the receiued opinion of many interpretours wherein is some difference Some take Sem to be the eldest sonne of Noah but others from a probable collation of Scriptures hold him to be the second sonne but whether hee were eldest or not it is apparant and out of doubt by that blessing Gen. 9. that he had the birthright for Canaan is made his seruant which is the auncient stile and euidence of the birth-right as is expressed in the birthright of Iacob Iaphet is perswaded to dwell in the tents of Sem. Whereas therefore hee hath that honor aboue both his brethren the birthright is euidently confirmed vnto him Canaan being made his seruant and Iaâ—…het being directed to repaire to his
distinctly set in two persons Moses keeping the ciuill gouernment and Aaron the Priesthood The gouernment of Moses and his successours being more ciuil The Priesthood of Aaron his successors ceremoniall it followeth that this ancient ordinance of the law of nature was altered by such positiue lawes of God which were either ciuil or ceremoniall and consequently that this alteration taketh not away the auncient right 6. If I might therefore in a matter of this nature declare my poore opinion leauing the censure hereof to the learned that are able to iudge I take it that as it is not simply vnlawfull that a King may be a Priest and neuerthelesse keepe his kingdome so I suppose this thing cannot be done without not only a lawfull but also an ordinarie calling from God and from the Church For no man taketh this honour to himselfe but he that was called thereto as was Aaron And this cannot bee done without an ordinary calling for when Kings were Priests and the first borne sacrificers as in the law of nature then they had an ordinary calling therto for that was then the ordinance of God ordinarie in the Church which now is not But if a man were first ◅ Priest and afterward aduanced to a kingdome by some Temporal right in this case it were assuredly vnlawfull for him to shake off his holy estate and betake himselfe wholly and only to his Temporall gouerment as some Cardinals haue done Then by the law of nature the King had both the power of order and Iurisdiction and howsoeuer this is altered by a positiue ordinance of God yet all is not taken away there remaineth still that part of Iurisdiction so farre as it standeth in power coactiue in respect wherof the common law of this land saith the King is persona mixta because he hath both Ecclesiasticall and Temporall Iurisdiction 7. This example of Melchisedeck both King and Priest hath much lifted vp the Pope and his flatterers for of this they take especiall hold and thinke hereby to prooue the Pope to be King of the Church because Melchisedeck was both King and Priest But to this we aunswere Melchisedeck had both these honours by a lawfull and ordinarie calling but so hath not the Pope for his Priesthood we graunt he had once thereto a lawfull calling both by locall and doctrinall succession which doctrinall succession Irenaeus calleth successionem principalem Tertullian doctrinae cōsanguinitatē cum Apostolica Ecclesia but now haue they forsaken that principall succession and haue nothing left to glory in but bare personall and locall succession Then to the office of a Bishop the Pope may shew some colour though the colour be now worne thredbare but to the princely office which he claimeth ouer the Church he can shew neither calling nor colour so that the example of Melchisedek which the Popes parasites drawe with such violence to him doth helpe him nothing but rather helpeth the cause of Christian Kings against him for it is certaine that Kings were Priests by an ordinary calling before these two offices were distinguished but it can neuer be prooued that Priests were Kings by such an ordinary calling after that these two offices were set in distinct persons If any man suppose that we haue stretched the example of Melchisedeck too farre because he was a type of Christ I aunswere this is nothing against my purpose that Melchisedeck was a type of Christ. For many men in their ordinary standing and executing ordinary functions did also beare some type extraordinarie thus did Moses Ioshua Dauid Solomon and others I speake of Melchisedeck as I finde him in his ordinary place a King and a Priest 8. By all which we conclude that vnder the law of Nature Kings were in the beginning inuested with all power Ecclesiasticall both of orders and Iurisdiction and therefore these things are not incompatible by nature All this time which lasted about the space of two thousand and fiue hundred yeeres Kings had Ecclesiasticall Iurisdiction without question And therefore this Iurisdiction of Princes which we haue vndertaken to examine is found aunswerable to the first gouernment of the world vntill the time of the law giuen by Moses CHAP. III. All externall Iurisdiction coactiue was a right belonging to Kings vnder the Law NOw let vs search what Iurisdiction in matters Ecclesiasticall was found due and acknowledged to belong to the Kings right all that time vnder the Law Then we find by an especiall commaundement of God these two offices of King and Priest were distinguished and set in two seuerall persons the one in Moses the other in Aaron And the tribe of Leui was taken to the seruice of God in stead of the first borne by an expresse commaundement and the first borne which in number exceeded the number of the Louites were redeemed by fiue shekels a man for the number of the first borne was taken 22273. the number of the Leuites 22000. so that the number of the first borne exceeded the number of the Leuites by 273. These were redeemed and after that redemption the first borne of other tribes were discharged from the attendance of the seruice of God the Leuites tooke vp their place Now the Kings office and the Priests being thus distinguished we must consider what things did properly belong to each office 2. First we find that Moses who had the place of a King in gouernement as he is also called a King doth consecrate Aaron the Priest Moses is commaunded to consecrate him and his son s Exod. 28. and performeth it Leuit. 8. therefore it is repeated Num. 3. These are the names of the sonnes of Aaron the anointed Priests whom Moses did consecrate to minister in the Priests office Heere then appeareth some Iurisdiction of Moses ouer Aaron But this I meane not to vrge for it may bee thought extraordinailry to belong to Moses as Gods Apostle or Ambassadour and lawgiuer vnto Israel for in such great chaunges as was from the law of Nature to the written law somewhat must bee admitted extraordinary and this I could be well content to vnderstand so though many doubts arise for the princes right against the Priests For first it may be obiected seeing there was a Prince and a Priest set vp distinct one from the other why should the Prince consecrate the Priest and not the Priest the Prince But here we finde that Aaron doth not consecrate Moses to be Prince but Moses doth consecrate Aaron to be Priest Another doubt may be moued why Moses should consecrate not onely Aaron but his sonnes also For though we should admit the consecration of Aaron to be done by Moses of necessitie as a thing extraordinary at the first beginning of this Priesthood yet this necessitie appeareth not so much in Aarons sonnes for they might haue beene consecrated by Aaron after that himselfe had bene once consecrated by Moses And yet we find that the
this power coactiue though they had vsurped many parts thereof 18. A third reason to prooue this authoritie to bee in the Ciuill Magistrate is as I teached before confirmed by the right of Appellations For in matters of coactiue Iurisdiction a man might appeale from the high Priest to the King as Saint Paul did to Caesar which was vtterly vnlawfull for him to doe vnlesse he might as lawfully haue appealed to a King if that state of Israel had then beene ruled by a King as at other times it was For that right which Saint Paul giueth to Nero to heare Appellations he would vndoubtedly yeeld to Dauid or Ezekâ—…as or any other godly King in his owne Dominions Wherefore it followeth that either Saint Paul must be condemned for yeelding an vnlawful power to Emperors or Kings must haue the same priuiledge which thing being admitted in matters Ecclesiasticall doth inuincibly prooue the Kings Iurisdiction in such matters The same thing is also confirmed from those words of the Apostle he is the minister of God and he beareth the sword If the Magistrate be the minister of God then he hath full authoritie and Iurisdiction from God whose minister and vicegerent he is if he beare the sword hee hath all power coactiue for coactiue power doth alwayes follow tâ—… sword which God hath giuen to the Ciuill Magistrate to beare Therefore Ioh. Chrysostoâ—… saith Regi corpâ—…ra commissa sunt sacerdoti animâ—… reâ—… maculas corporum remittit sacerdos maculas peccatorum illâ—… cogit hic exhâ—…rtatur ille habet arma sensibilia hic arma spiritualia Hâ—…m 4. de verb. Esa. vidi dom Then the true difference betweene the Magistrate and the Priest concerning this point is Ille cogit hic exhâ—…rtatur so that coactiue power is left wholy to the Magistrate Ambrosâ—… likewise speaking of the authoritie of the Church and of Bishops saith Coactus 〈◊〉 nâ—…n noui arma enim nostra preces sunt 〈◊〉 â—…at iâ—… Auxâ—…t where he declareth the difference betweene these two powers leauing nothing to the Church but preces 〈◊〉 wherin there is no coaction In which sense Thomas Aquinâ—…s faith vindicta quae fit authâ—…ritate publicae potestatâ—… sâ—…cundum 〈◊〉 iudicis pertieet ad iusticiam commutatiuam 2. 2. qu. 8. art 1. Therefore vindicatiue power or coaction belonges not to the Church but the Magistrate that exerciseth coâ—…utatiue iustice 19. In regard of which high power Princes are called Gods I haue said you are Gods And because an aduersarie of late hath told vs that this name is giuen aswell to Ecclesiasticall gouernours as to Kings we reply that it cannot be shewed that this name is giuen to Ecclesiasticall gouernours but either where such gouernours haue receiued authoritie from the Ciuill Magistrate or where themselues are the chiefe Magistrates so that it is a name giuen in respect of Soueraigne power For to manifest the Soueraigne emmency of the Prince compare the Prince and Priest togâ—…ther and by this comparison wee shall euidently know the truth for we find the Prince called a God not onely in respect of the people but in respect of the Priest also Where the Lord himselfe speaketh to Moses of Aaron comparing their power and offices together he saith thus He shall be thy spokesman vnto the people and he shall be as thy mouth and thou shalt be to him in stead of God In this comparing of these two great offices Moses is the directour Aaron the interpretour and preacher Where the Prince or Soueraign Magistrate is called a God not onely in respect of the people as in diuers other Scriptures but in respect of the Priest thou shalt be to him euen to Aaron as a God We find then that the Prince is called a God in respect of the Priest but we can neuer find that the Priest is called a God in respect of the Prince This declareth a Soueraigne authoritie of the Prince in matters of God and of Gods true Religion For he who by his office is to establish true Religion in his dominions doth heerein represent a liuely exâ—…mple both of the goodnesse and power of God and therefore Magistrates are called Gods as being Gods Vicegerents for establishing of true Religion 20. And this our Sauiour Christ confirmeth for whereas Psal. 82. They are called Gods I haue said you are Gods Our Lord expoundeth that place declaring in what sense they are so called For he saith If he called them Gods vnto whom the word of God was giuen and the Scripture cannot be broken c. Then the Magistrates who are here called Gods are such to whom the word of God is giuen For further declaration of the truth let this question be demaunded to whom is the word of God principally giuen to whose Soueraigne custodie is the word of God committed The words of our Sauiour Christ containe an aunswere to the Ciuill Magistrate For it is certaine that all that Psalme whence Christ taketh those words is wholly and intirely vnderstood of the Ciuill Magistrates and not of Priests or Ecclesiasticall gouernours Why then and is not the word of God giuen to Ecclesiasticall gouernours aswell as to Kings Yes verily but diuersly for to Ecclesiasticall gouernours the knowledge of the word is giuen to publish by preaching For the Priests lippes shall preserue knowledge and they shall seeke the law at his mouth for hee is the messenger of the Lord of hostes Then if the question be asked to whom is the word giuen by the way of knowledge to preach and publish it The answere is to the Priest but Christ speaketh not here of that manner of giuing the word but he toucheth that Commission which is giuen to Magistrates For to Magistrates it is not giuen by way of especiall knowledge to preach it but by way of an especiall commission to keepe it to establih it by authoritie to command obedience vnto it and to punish the violatours of it This is the authority of a Christian Prince for he hath called them Gods to whom the word was giuen Whom hath hee called Gods Ciuill Princes for of such onely of such that Psalme speaketh Why are they called Gods Because they are Gods vicegerents by their authority to establish Gods word Therefore they are acknowledged to bee custodes vtâ—…insque tabulae for which cause it was an ancient ceremony in the Church of Israel that at the Kings Coronation the Booke of God should be giuen into the hand of the King as we read in the Coronation of Ioash Which thing is confirmed by a commaundemant in the Law why was this thing so solemnly commanded so religiously preached but to shew that God hath committed the care of Religion principally to the King that by the vtmost of his power and authority it might be established in his Dominions 21. This doth proue that Moses was a Prince and not a Priest and Aaron a Priest but not a Prince because Moses
extraordinary example that wee see rather that Salomon doth mitigate the ordinary punishment of that crime which Abiathar had committed Moreouer to punish or to release the punishment of treason belongeth not to the office of a Prophet but of the King but Salomon in this action punishing the treason of Abiathar releaseth some part of it All which proue the distorted shift of Tortus to be so vaine and shamelesse that the blushing Hat of a Cardinall is not broad enough to couer the shame In these things and in supreame appellation standeth Ecclesiasticall iurisdiction which by diuine right was placed in these Kings and by them practised CHAP. IIII. Externall Coactiue Iurisdiction was not left by Christ to his Church nor practised by the Church all that while that the Church was without Christian Magistrates wherein is declared the Iurisdiction of the Church and of Bishops that the power of excommunication proceeded not to Coaction NOw let vs make search in the Church of Christians wherein we will consider first the state of the Church after it was called by Christ and his Apostles and gouerned by the Fathers for the space of the first three hundred yeeres in all which time no Christian was the Soueraigne Magistrate In this time it will be to good purpose to search the Iurisdiction of the Church for this is the time wherein it will most cleerely appeare And Christ that appointeth all times states for his Church appointed that all this time she should be without Princes for her nourcing Fathers that by wanting it so long we might vnderstand the greatnesse of this blessing But when the Church of Rome grew insolent by abusing this blessing taking the right of Princes from them and thereby remouing the ancient bounds of the Ordinances which God had set of old then it was not to bee marueiled that such iudgements followed of blindnesse and ignorance among the people of confusion and contempt vpon Princes and Kings which iudgements haue beene so famously apparant in the sight of the world But let vs proceed to the examination of the Churches Iurisdiction for if we consider what Iurisdiction Iesus Christ left to his Church it will consequently appeare what Iurisdiction is in Ciuill Princes for all that Christ gaue not to his Church remaineth with Princes 2. The places from which they would prooue Iurisdiction are these Mat. 18. Whatsoeuer you shall binde on earth shall be bound in heauen And whosoeuers sinnes you retaine shall be retained Now these places make no proofe of this Iurisdiction which is in question For all Popish writers that I could see vpon this question acknowledg these Scripturs not to be meant of externall Iurisdiction coactiue which is our question but of the inward power of remitting of sinnes practised within the court of conscience by the power of Gods spirit and declared by the Priest and ordinarily practised in excommunication or otherwise The greater condemnation deserueth that Catholike Diuine who to disprooue the Iurisdiction of Princes and to proue the Popes pretended Iurisdiction bringeth these places of Scripture which speake of neither Other places they cite as that Thou art Peter and vpon this rocke will I build my Church and I will giue to thee the keyes of the kingdome of heauen And Simon louest thou mee feede my Lambes c. These and such like places they bring to proue the Popes Iurisdiction All of this sort are throughly handled with exact iudgement and learning in that worthy conference written by Doctor Raynolds of blessed memory which booke as a gantlet of one of the worthies of our Church hath lien long betweene vs and the host of the Philistims and none of our adueâ—…saries hath had the courage to take it vp and to aunswere it 3. It is sufficient for vs to pleade that none of the auncient Fathers did euer expound these Scriptures thus or did euer dreame of such senses as they haue found of late out of their owne decretall Epistles It is sufficient that some of their owne best learned writers yea some of their most learned Popes before they were Popes haue with such learning and iudgement refuted their new deuised expositions of these Scriptures as that from themselues and out of their owne mouthes God hath drawen testimonies to ouerthrow these carnall and absurd expositions of Scriptures Iohn Gerson saith that these texts thus by the Popes flatterers applied to prooue his Iurisdiction are vnderstood by them Grossé non secundum regulam Euangelicam And Aenaeas Siluius hath with great life and learning ouerthrowen these grosse and corrupt expositions of whom we shall speake hereafter in due place where it will fully appeare that these expositions of Scripture are by the learned free and iudicious men of that side acknowledged to bee inuented by flatterers as the same Pope Pius the second witnesseth to be new and straunge and to be vrged by miserable and wretched soules which will not vnderstand that these challenges of their Iurisdiction are nothing but either the words of the Popes themselues that would inlarge their fringes without measure or of their flatterers who being blinded by ambition and caried with the winde of vaineglory doe flatter the Popes in hope of reward Though now those flatterers haue gotâ—… the vpper hand in the Councell of Trent and haue vsurped the name of the Church who before were alwayes esteemed a base company standing for the Popes Iurisdiction against the graue and learned men of that Church 4. Then for the places of Scripture which they bring for this Iurisdiction we say with their owne best learned men that they are in that sense wherein they vse them new deuises drawen of late by strange and absurd contortions into this new flattering sense by the Popes flatterers against the auncient expositions of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church Concerning the Iurisdiction which Christ left to his Church let all the Scriptures be searched and there will nothing be found of externall Iurisdiction consisting in power coactiue but all that Christ left was partly yea principally inward and spirituall power partly externall for establishing doctrines of faith and good order in the Church by Councels determinations iudicature spirituall censures excommunication deposing and dispatching of the disobedient so farre as the Church could proceede without coactiue power For by this spirituall power without coaction the Church was called faith was planted diuils were subdued the nations were taken out of the power of darkenesse the world was reduced to the obedience of Christ by this power the Church was gouerned for three hundred yeeres together without any coactiue Iurisdiction But what coactiue power may worke in the Church without this we haue a lamentable experience in the present court of Rome falling away from the truth and from the comfort of the spirit and therefore from the true vse of the power of the spirit of God when the Popes being destitute of this
Christian Magistrates but was alwayes vnderstoode to belong to the ciuill Magistrate whether he were Christian or heathen We denie not but that the Apostles did sometimes take vengeance vpon the disobedient but that was not by the materiall sword in the power whereof we place coaction but by the spirituall sword which alwayes shewed it selfe in their Ministery sometimes in an extraordinary manner as in the striking of Ananias and Saphira with present death in the striking of Elimas the Sorcerer with blindnesse and such like These were signes of extraordinary power but wee seeke heere the ordinary Iurisdiction of the Apostles which they left to their successours 10 Vpon these grounds ioyned with the assured knowledge of the History of those times the auncient Fathers deliuer it as a truth neuer questioned nor doubted that in the gouernment of the Church the Bishops are the vndoubted successours of the Apostles Irenaeus speaking of heretikes saith Omnes hi posteriorâ—…s sunâ—… episcopis quibus apostoli tradiderunt ecclesias If Bishops were before any heretikes they were questionlesse in the Apostles time and by the Apostles instituted because some heretikes were euen in the Apostles time Irenaeus saith also Habemus annumer are eos qui ab Apostolis instituti sunt episcopi in Ecclesiis And a little after Quibus etiam ipsas Ecclesias committebant And againe in the same place Quos successo es reliquerunt suum ipsorum locum magisterij tradentes Cyprian saith Potestas peccatorum remittendorum Apostolis data est Ecclesiis quas illi à Christo missi constuuerunt et episcopis qui eis ordinatioâ—…e 〈◊〉 successerunt The same hee hath also Epist. 69. Hierome saith Potentia diuitiarum paupertatis humilitas vel sublimiorem vel inferiorem Episcopum non facit Caeterum omnes Apostolorum successores sunt It were hard to kicke against all these pricks Against so euident grounds of Scripture so expresse testimonies of Fathers to deuise a new gouernment of the Church Leauing the auncient and knowne gouernment which hath the testimonie of those that liued in the first age and heard and sawe those that were endued with miraculous gifts as Irenaeus testifieth of himselfe that hee heard those which spake by the spirit in all languages and sawe them who often raised the dead to life againe Leauing I say the testimonie of these whose name and authority is so reuerend in the Church and striuing for a gouernment which came but of late to the knowledge of men seemeth to proceede from affections too much blinded with the loue of innouation 11 But though this be true that Bishops in the gouernment of the Church succeede the Apostles yet we are cautelously to distinguish betweene the things wherein they succeede the Apostles and those things which since the Apostles times haue beene added to their gouernment by godly Princes For the preseruation of true doctrine in the Church the Bishops are the great watch-men Herein they are authorized by God If Princes withstand them in these things they haue warrant not to obey Princes because with these things Christ hath put them in trust Therefore S. Paul saith not that it is the Kings office but the Bishops to commaund that they teach no other doctriâ—…e Vpon which ground S. Ambrose was bolde to withstand Valentinian Emperour For Ambrose as the watch-man of the Church of Millaine would not suffer Auxentius an Arian Bishop to haue any place to teach in his Diocesse Auxentius complained to the Emperour as the contention grew thus betweene them the one like a vigilant watch-man seeking to remoue all dangers from his flocke the other like a Wolfe seeking to spoile at the earnest entreaty of Auxentius the Emperour willed that the cause betweene these two might be heard in the Ecclesiasticall consistorie and that the Emperour might sit as Iudge in the cause This thing Ambrose vtterly denied and of this hee writeth thus to the Emperour Quando audisti clemeÌ„tissime imperator in causasidei Laicos de Episcopo iudicasse And againe Sivel Scripturarum seriem diuinarum vel catera tempora retractemus quis est qui abnuat in causa fidei in causa inquamsidei Episcopos solere de imperatoribus Christianis non imperatores de Episcopo iudicare And in another place Volens nunquam ius deseram coactus repugnare non nout arma enim nostra preces sunt lachrymae This example of Ambrose his courage is worthily commended by all posterity wherein this worthy man seemeth to direct a true rule of obedience For Iustina the Emperours mother seeing she could not draw Ambrose to fauour the Arians purposed to put him from the gouernment of the Church Which thing would haue beene effected if he had not refused to appeare in the Court where the Emperour was to sit as Iudge There appeared in him courage godlinesse and exact obedience all truly tempered He denieth the Emperour to be a sufficient Iudge in a cause of faith and religion In causafidei in causa inquam fidei For this hee repeateth precisely desirous to be rightly vnderstood he would rather die then admit such an example as to betray the trueth and that commission and charge wherein GOD had set him And yet if the Emperour would by force doe any thing he denieth that there is any power in him or in the Church to resist by force The faith and right of the Church was not in his iudgement to be maintained by force and armes but by prayers and teares Thus resolute is this godly man in the cause of faith against the Emperour but in other causes he claimeth no priuiledge no immunities and therefore in the same place hee faith Si tributum petit imperator non negamus agri Ecclesiae tributum soluunt Athanasius ad solitar vitam agentes speaking to Constans the Emperour saith Let religious Bishops perswade the Emperor that he corrupt not the Church nor mingle the Romane Empire with Ecclesiasticall constitutions And Hillarie writing to Constantius saith to the same purpose Prouideat decernat clementia tua c. Let your clemency prouide and establish that all Iudges to whom the care of publike businesse belongeth may abstaine from religious constitutions Thus did the auncient Bishops gouerne the Church not suffering any King or Emperour to meddle with the determinations of matters of faith For of such matters are these testimonies to be vnderstood and onely of such In like manner Chrysostome resisted Gaina generall of the forces of Arcadius Emperour Who would haue had a Church within Constantinople for himselfe and the Arians The Emperour was willing to gratifie him or not willing to displease him for his greatnesse but Iohn Chrysostome did vtterly denie it as a thing vnlawfull Thus by the warrant of Scriptures and examples of Fathers we giue to Caesar all coactiue power which is due to him but spirituall gouernment we giue not to him this is that
gouernment which is reserued to Bishops as the Apostles successours After which example Gregorie the first writeth thus Serenissimi domini animum non ignoro quod se in causis sacerdotalibus miscere non soleat Gregorie calleth those causes with which the Emperours medled not causas sacerdotales meaning therby the same which Ambrose calleth causes of faith 12. Besides this Spirituall gouernment which is peculiar to Bishops there is also another part of gouernment giuen to Bishops which commeth from Princes which Constantine first gaue as hereafter we shall declare Of this Chrysostome saith I am vero pars illa quam Episcopum tractare in iudicijs conuenâ—…t infinita odia infinitas offensiones parit quae ipsa praetâ—…r quam quod negâ—…tijs quamplurimis plena est tam multas etiam difficultaies affert quam multas ne forenses quidem iudices sustinent and much more to the same purpose Augustine complaineth that he was too much troubled with these matters of iudic ture And Synosius professeth that he can not attend both businesses Antiquum tempus saith he tulit eosdem sacerdoâ—…es iudices eâ—…nim Aegyptij Hebraeorumque gens multum temporis â saceraotibus gubernata est and a little after Non condemno Episcopos qui versantur in negotiis c. Si qui vero sunt qui à rerum diuersarum aggressione non laeduntur illi for sitan possunt simul â—… fungi ciuâ—…tatibus praeesse In all these parts of Episcopal Iurisdiction which either by Apostolicall right or institution or by the fauour of Princes haue beene giuen to them the Pope hath intruded like a Foxe and maintaineth his intrusion like a Lion For as Christ left an equalitie and paritie among his Apostles often affirming and confirming that one of them should not be greater then another and yet the Apostles were in gouernement aboue other Ministers and that by the institution of Christ himselfe For the Lord after that he had chosen his twelue Apostles did chuse also seuentie Disciples and sent them two and two bâ—…fore him into euery citie where he himselfe should come saith S. Luke then Christ himselfe is the authour of this order in the Church which the Church hath since that time euer held the Bishops succeeding the Apostles as the inferiour Pastors succeeded the seuentie Disciples So the Apostles after them left the like equality among Bishops that one of them should not bee aboue another and yet Bishops in gouernment aboue other Ministers for Iurisdiction was neuer in the multitude but in gouernours the Bishops theÌ„ being the gouernors after the Apostles the like IurisdictioÌ„ was in all As Cypr. saith Episcopatus vnus est cuius à singulis pars in solidum tenetur And Hierom saith Vbicunque fuerit Episcopus siue Romae siue Eugubij c eiusdem meriti eiusdâ—…m est sacerdotij Which power in Bishops the Pope hath by surreption drawen to himselfe and now out of his fulnesse imparteth to Bishops at his pleasure as if hee were the fountaine of Iurisdiction 13. As thus he hath drawen their auncient right from Bishops so hath he drawen from Temporall Princes that which of auncient right was theirs we shall better vnderstand what he hath taken from Temporall Princes if we consider the true limits beâ—…weene the power of Princes and the power of the Church We say therefore that the Iurisdiction of the Church was neuer extended to coactiue power because God hath giuen all coactiue power to the Ciuill Magistrate to whom hee hath committed the sword And as coactiue power belongeth not to the Church so neither dooth it belong to the power of the Church to erect or establish to dissanull or dissolue this coactiue power as the Pope pretendeth to doe by excommunication deposing Kings and freeing their subiects from their faith and allegeance This dissolution of coactiue power cannot belong to the Church because this is both Temporall and coactiue the power of the Church being Spirituall cannot bee called either Temporall or coactiue Now that the power exercised by the Pope in excommunication is Temporall and coactiue is the graunt of Bellarmine for hee saith that the Church of old did not depose Nero Diocletian Iulian â—… c. Quia deerant vires temporales then he graunteth that in this present practise of the Popes there are vires temporales what is this but temporall coaction The Church in old time had all that power which Christ committed to his Church but then by the confession of Bellarmine the Church had no coactiue power therefore this coactiue power which the Pope vseth by Temporall force in deposing of Kings was not by Christ graunted to his Church And if we should yeeld Temporall coaction to the Church what power is left to the Magistrate Thus we see the auncient hedge is plucked vp and the bounds are chaunged which of old stood betweene these two powers Ciuill and Spirituall 14. Against this disordering of the auncient bounds wee haue the words of our Sauiour Christ. My kingdome is not of this world i f my kingdome were of this world my seruaunts would surely fight that I should not bee deliuered c. But because when these wordes are vrged against our aduersaries they looke ascant vpon them as if they touched them not Let vs consider how the kingdome of the Pope and his pretended Iurisdiction in deposing of Kings is vtterly ouerthrowen by these words which declare the power properly belonging to Christs kingdome that is to his Church Christ aunswereth heere to Pilats question Verse 33. Art thou the King of the Iewes By which question it appeareth there was some suspition and feares that Christ pretending for a kingdome might conspire against the state and worke the trouble and dissolution of the gouernment established For as Herod when he heard that Iesus was borne the King of the Iewes was troubled and all Ierusalem with him and entred into such feares and suspition that mooued him to kill all the young children from two yeeres old and vnder so the high Priests suggested the same suspitions to Pilate From this ground riseth this question of Pilate Art thou the King of the Iewes To this he aunswereth my kingdome is not of this world From which aunswere applied to such a question these positions issue It is against the nature of the kingdome of Christ to worke any trouble to the kingdomes of the world And that kingdome which worketh trouble to the kingdomes of this world is not the kingdome of Christ. Christs kingdome which is not of this world is his Church which is in this world but not of this world as himselfe saith If you were of this world the world would loue her owne but because you are not of this world but I haue taken you out of this world therefore this world hateth you Then we reason thus The gouernment of Christs Church breedeth no trouble
not be extended to these practises What can be denied heere For neither can they denie but that the censures of the Church should bee of greatest power there where they were first instituted neither can they denie that excommunication was first instituted in that Church of the Iewes neither can they shew vs that any King of that Nation was at any time deposed for pretended heresie or for knowne and professed idolatry though the Kings there were often great idolaters though the Priests were bolde and couragious in Gods cause yet we neuer finde that any Priest did by excommunication depose the King or destroy the bond of allegeance This thing then being neither practised by the Iewes where these censures were in first and chiefe force nor by Christ and his Apostles nor by the Fathers of the Primitiue Church nor known in the Church for the space of almost a thousand yeares as hereafter wee shall declare wee haue great reason to conclude that excommunication as it is an Ecclesiasticall censure hath no power coactine to alter any temporall authority to depose Kings to destroy and dissolue allegeance or to trouble any lawfull authority established in this world 18 This will no lesse appeare if wee consider the power which the Church hath alwaies practised for coactiue power was a thing which the Chnrch yeelded alwayes to the â—…iuill Magistrate And if the Bishops of Rome did sometimes breake out beyond their bounds yet were they in those ancient times alwayes repressed by the authority of the Church For that we may take a short suruay of the Iurisdiction of the Church during the first three hundred yeres so long as the Apostles liued no man doubteth but that they ruled all and that the greatest Iurisdiction of the Church was in them if we speake of spirituall Iurisdiction And if any one Apostle liued after the rest there was more power acknowledged to be in him then in any one that liued in the Church in his time Now it is for an assured historicall truth recorded by Eusebius and before him by Irenaeus whom the full consent of the auncients follow heerein that S. Iohn liued after all the other Apostles were dead that he continued in the gouernment of the Church vntill the times of Traian Emperour In which time the Bishops of Rome after Peter are recorded to be these Linus Anacletus Clemens Eâ—…aristus Alexander If the Bishop of Rome had then been the head of the Church the chiefe Pastor the Monarch the fountaine of all Iurisdiction as his flatterers now make him it must be confessed that Alexander in his time and Euaristus before him was S. Iohns head and before him Clemens and before him Anaclet and before him Linus Did these rule and gouerne S. Iohn or S. Iohn them shall we say that they had Iurisdiction ouer S. Iohn or S. Iohn ouer them If these Bishops each in his time had Iurisdiction ouer S. Iohn then there was an authority in the Church aboue the authority of the Apostles If they were gouerned by him then the Bishop of Rome was not the head of the Church There is no sober spirit that can doubt of these things or can thinke that in those dayes any liued in the Church who was not vnder the Iurisdiction of an Apostle 19 After Saint Iohns death who was liuing in the yeare of Christ 100. and after in the Church of Rome were Sixtus Telesphorus Hyginus Pius Anicetus Soter Eleutherius Victor These gouerned the Church of Rome in succession by the space of one hundred yeares together In which times they seemed willing to put to their helping hands to aduance the Church of Rome For Sathan hauing a purpose thence to raise Antichrist began betime to worke and to abuse those good men as it was not hard for him to beguile better men then they were though we admit them to be good men and holy Martyres Then were they drawne into a loue to aduance their seate and Iurisdiction yet so as neither in them is proued pernicious neither was it thought by the church to be very dangerous seeing they yeelded and submitted themselues in the end to the graue and godly aduise of the Church 20 The things wherein the Bishops of Rome sought first to aduance their power was by imposing ceremonies vpon other Churches Thus did Anicet contend for the celebration of Easter but was quieted by Polycarp who for the peace of the Church made a iourney to Rome and pacified Anicetus And was so much honoured of Anicetus that there he practised the function of a Bishop as Eusebius reporteth taking the storie from Irenaeus Thus was peace and loue then maintained on all sides whilest the Bishops of Rome were content to be ruled by others 21 A little after Victor grewe more violent in the fame quarrell and excommunicated the Easterne Churches which did not obserue Easter after the maner of the Church of Rome But Uictor was resisted and sharply reproued by Polycrates Bishop of Ephesus and the rost of the Easterne Bishops as also by Irenaeus Bishop of Lions in Fraunce These did freely reproue Victor for that he regarded not the peace of the Church they declare that in ceremonies there was great difference of olde and yet the Bishops liued in loue and peace together that the differences in ceremonies did not breake the consent in faith that these differences were before the time of Victor and that hee was therein to followe the examples of his auncients who preserued loue and peace and the doctrines of faith sincere with some diuersity in outward ceremonies This was all that the Bishops of Rome attempted in those dayes wherein there appeareth no Iurisdiction ouer others but rather the contrary For the godly Bishops of Asia reproued them and made them see and acknowledge their owne rashnesse and caused them to desist therefore the Church did not then acknowledge the Popes Iurisdiction 22 Betweene Victor and Syluester the first succeeded 18. Bishops of Rome in the space of 100 yeares next In which time there was no great attempt made for superiority or Iurisdiction onely the Bishops of other Churches did honour the Bishop of Rome following the Apostles rule In giuing honor goe one before another Which honour if they could haue remembred as well to giue to others as they did to receiue from others there could haue risen no question of Iurisdiction but that which began in loue and courtesie was afterward drawne to Iurisdiction We denie not but some of the auncients haue yeelded to S. Peter a Priority among the rest of the Apostles because of his great zeale and loue to Christ and to his trueth and for his excellent vertâ—…es and to the Bishops of Rome wee finde likewise that the auncients yeelded great and honourable titles but this was in respect of their vertue learning and integrity For the auncients knewe no other rule of fauouring men but vertue he was in the Church most honourable and
accounted chiefe in succeeding the Apostles whose life and conuersation was most Apostolicall Wherefore as the auncients gaue this honour to the Bishops of Rome for their godly liues to call them the Apostles successours so when they found other Bishops who in vertue excelled they gaue these titles in as great honour to them as euer was giuen to the Romane Bishop For we finde these titles as much or more giuen to others then wee can finde giuen to the Romane Bishops Basill writing to S. Ambrose saith of him that he doth hold the sterne of that great and famous ship the Church of God and that God had placed him in the primary and chiefe seat of the Apostles Of the Bishop of Rome it is hard to finde in all antiquity a more honourable title then this is of Ambrose Now if S. Ambrose helde the sterne of that ship the Church of God and if hee sate in the chiefe and highest seat of the Apostles it must follow that an inferiour seat was reserued for the Bishop of Rome as long as Ambrose liued and that hee was esteemed the chiefest in Apostolicall succession who came neerest the Apostolicall vertues or that they were 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 presidents alike in Christs Church And throughout all the Epistles of Basil wee obserue that albeit hee wrote often to the Westerne Church wee finde no such honourable mention of the Bishop of Rome but somewhat sounding to the contrary For in the tenth Epistle he noteth the pride and ambition which then began to be espied in the Bishops of Rome complaining to Eusebius Bishop of Samosata that the Church could haue no help from the pride and ambition of the West Then concerning this title to be called the successour of the Apostles it was somtimes giuen to the Bishops of Rome onely in regard of their vertue godlinesse and faith which once appeared in those Bishops And so it is giuen to Ambrose and to other Bishops In this sense we vnderstand those titles giuen by Sidonius Appollinaris Bishop of Aruern to diuers Bishops in France in his time For writing to Pope Lupus as he calleth him a Bishop in France he testifieth that hee had liued 45 yeares in the sea Apostolicall Insede Apostolica nouem iam decursa quinquennia And againe to the same man he saith Pater officium quod incomparabiliter eminenti Apostolatuituo sine fine debetur c. The same title he giueth also to Fontellus another Bishop in France declaring that therein he greatly reioyced Quod Apostolatus vestri patrocinium copiosissimum conferre vos comperi And writing to the same Fontellus Ego quoque saith he ad Apostolatus tui noticiam accedâ—… 23. Then by this Title Apostolicall no Iurisdiction will rise to the Bishops of Rome seeing the same is giuen to others as well as to them Neither was there then in the Bishop of Rome any power aboue others neither in the whole Church was câ—…actiue power found To prooue this Eusebius reporteth a Storie which we wish to bee well obserued because it maketh an euident proofe of the Iurisdiction of the Church which thing wee seeke The Storie is thus Paulus Samosatenus Bishop of Antioche taught that Christ was a meere man To represse this wicked heresie a Councell was gathered at Antioche The Church was then without the helpe of a Christian Magistrate In chiefe accompt among them that liued in the Church at that time was Dionysius Bishop of Alexandria a man for his great learning and godlinesse much renowned in the Church then and alwayes since he was so aged and weake at that time that he could not be present in the Councell but by writing confirmed the truth against Paulus the Hereticke Among them that were assembled there was Gregorius Bishop of Caesaria who had the gift of working miracles in which respect Basil maketh honourable mention of him in diuers places Dionysius was then Bishop of Rome The famous Bishops of the East had diuers meetings against Paulus the last meeting was in the time of Aurelianus Emperour about the yeere of Christ two hundred seuentie and fiue At what time Paulus was fully refuted and repressed especially by the labour industry and learning of Malchion hee was condemned saith Eusebius of all the Churches of Christ which are vnder heauen After the conuiction of this Heresie the Councell wrote to Dionysius Bishop of Rome and to Maximus Bishop of Alexandria for Dionysius died before this Councell ended and Maximus succeeded him in Alexandria and to all the Church of Christ vnder heauen The Epistle is extant in Eusebius and was directed to these Bishops that by them other Churches might haue knowledge of this thing 24. After all this Paulus Samosatenus held the Church of Antioche and gaue no place to Domnus whom the Councell excommunicating and deposing Paulus had decreed should take his place The Bishops in this case were driuen to seeke the aide of the heathen Emperour Aurelian at the suit of the Councell the Emperour commaunded that the Church of Antioche should be deliuered to him to whom the Church of Italie and the Bishop of Rome would write By this it appeareth that the Church had no Iurisdiction coactiue for when the Bishops of this Councell had proceeded as farre as they could by Ecclesiasticall censures against all which censures Paulus held the Church by force finding that without coactiue power Paulus could not be repressed and finding no such power in themselues they were forced to seeke the Emperours helpe acknowledging thereby that all coactiue power rested in the Emperor Moreouer by this we obserue the beginning of that practise which afterward drew the opinion of Iurisdiction after it For the Bishop of Rome had no authoritie then ouer other Bishops neither did he challenge any And when some fewe of that Sea did seeme to pretend some authoritie in matters of conformitie and ceremonies as Anicetus Victor and some few other they were quickly repressed by the Church were content to be ruled by the Church But because the heathen and persecuting Emperours were content for the glory of Italy to giue this honour to the Church there and especially to the Bishop of Rome that other Bishops should find fauour for his sake as appeareth euidently by this Story wherein it is recorded that the Bishops of that Councell had no meanes to helpe themselues but by the Emperour and the Emperour not regarding the cause onely to honour the Bishop of Rome referred the matter to him hence as reason was the Churches were compelled to make much of the Bishop of Rome and to seeke his fauour without which they sawe the heathen Emperours would not be drawen to doe them iustice 25. About this time Stephanus Bishop of Rome threatned likewise to Excommunicate some Bishops for rebaptising of heretickes but he was repressed by Dionysius Bishop of Alexandria Some also that were excommunicate in Africa came to Rome
to seeke the fauour of Cornelius who without examination of the cause receiued them to the Communion Of which thing Cyprian complaineth much they saile to Rome saith he cum merce mendaciorum Against this hee declareth that it was ordained that neither the Bishop of Rome nor any straunger should be iudge of the causes of their Church And to Cornelius he writeth thus Quum statutum sit ab omnibus aquum sit pariter ac iustum vt vniuscuiusque causa illic audiatur vbi est crimen admissum singulis pastoribus portio gregis sit ascripta quam regat vnusquisque gubernet c. Opoâ—…tet vtiqueâ—…os quibus praesumus non circumcursare episcoporum concordiam cohaerentem sua subdola fallaci temeritate collidere sed agere illic causam vbi accusatores habere testes sui criminis possunt That is Seeing it is decreed by all and it is a thing both equall and iust that euery mans cause should be heard there where the crime was committed and a part of the flocke is appointed to each Pastor which each in seuerall must rule and guide c Verily it behooueth that they whom we gouerne should not gad and run about to others nor by their crafty and fallatious rashnesse breake in sunder the coherent concord of Bishops but there ought they to plead their cause where they may haue accusers and witnesses of their crime 26. Thus albeit the Bishops of Rome did seeke some inlarging of their authoritie sometimes by giuing countenance and patronage to criminous and scandalous men yet they were repressed and brought into order by the godly and learned Bishops that then liued in the Church Who would not suffer the priuiledges of the Church to be lost or any title of Iurisdiction to grow where there was no right Thus for the first three hundred yeeres the Church of Rome had no Iurisdiction ouer other Churches but the Bishops there were reuerenced by other partly for their wisedome learning and godlinesse partly because the Emperours fauoured them aboue other and because they were Bishops of the chiefe citie and seat of the Empire For as they had some fauour aboue the rest with heathen Emperours so they found much more fauour from Christian Emperours which thing caused them to be regarded by other Bishops but no Iurisdiction was as yet acknowledged CHAP. V. Of the estate and Iurisdiction of the Church from the end of the first three hundred yeeres vntill the yeere of Christ sixe hundred Wherein is declared that coactiue power was in the Christian Emperors from whom the Church receiued some parts of coactiue Iurisdiction The Popes began to seeke Iurisdiction by forgerie NOwe let vs consider the times that followed when the Church had peace from persecution and found the fauour of Christian Emperours In which time no Iurisdiction will be found in the Church of Rome aboue other and all coactiue Iurisdiction was acknowledged without question to bee in the Christian Emperours from whom the Church receiued some part thereof 2. Constantine who did as much honour the Church and was as much honoured of the Church as euer any Christian Emperour leauing therein an example which standeth as yet alone without a match did notwithstanding take all that to himselfe which is now called Ecclesiasticall Iurisdiction coactiue without any let or contradiction nay by the generall approbation of all that then liued When Caecilianus Bishop of Carthage was accused by Donatus and some other of that faction for deliuering the holy Scriptures to the enemies of Religion to be burned Constantine commaunded Caecilianus to come to Rome with a certaine number of Bishops which accused him and other that might heare and vnderstand the cause And commaunded the Bishop of Rome then Milciades with certaine Bishops of Fraunce to the number saith Optatus of nineteene to heare and end the matter the Bishops condemned Donaâ—…us who appealed from the sentence and albeit the Emperour was much offended at his appellation yet hee could not choose but receiue it In all this processe the Emperours Soueraigne Iurisdiction appeared the cause was a pretended crime of a Bishop the Emperour appointeth iudges and receiued the appellation which things declared Iurisdiction 3. Likewise after he had banished Eusebius Bishop of Nicomedia and Theognis Bishop of Nice he wrote an Epistle to the people of Nicomedia declaring the iust causes of their banishment and signifieth that his especiall pleasure and desire is to haue Bishops castos orthodoâ—…os humanos and shutting vp his speech he saith Quoasi quis audacter inconsulteque ad memoriam pestium illarum exarserit illius statim audaeia ministri dei hoc est mea exequutione coercebitur Where we see Constantine vseth coactiue Iurisdiction ouer Bishops he punisheth them he declareth the true ground of his Iurisdiction from the word of God by which warrant he is placed the Minister of God This is that coactiue Iurisdiction ouer Ecclesiasticall persons which did alwayes belong to the Soueraigne Magistrate and was neuer by God giuen to any other 4. It was alwayes held by all sober writers of the Church of Rome as hereafter shall be further declared that in the Church there is no power aboue the power of a Councell And yet this authoritie of a Councell so much and so worthily reuerenced could not restraine Constantine but he vpon good and iust causes brought the rash proceedings of some Councels to a newe examination For when Athanasius was wronged by a Councell of Arians he complained to Constantine The Emperour sent for all the Bishops of that Councell to render an accompt of their proceedings before him which declareth that his Iurisdiction coactiue was aboue the power coactiue of the Councell For heere we consider onely Iurisdiction coactiue and not the matter or subiect for otherwise wee acknowledge as before is declared that the determinations of generall Councels are matters of an higher truth and authoritie then the Statutes or decrees of any Emperour But wee speake heere of that Soueraigne Iurisdiction coactiue which hath alwayes appeared in the power of the ciuill Magistrate and wherein the Church had no more part then that she receiued from the liberalitie of godly Emperours for as Kings receiue the knowledge of faith and Religion from the Church and not the Church from Kings so coactiue Iurisdiction the Church receiueth from Kings and not Kings from the Church 5. There was no Councell held in Constantines time whether of Orthodoxe or heretikes but either by the expresse commaundement or license of the Emperour Ruffinus saith he called the Councel of Nice at the request of the Bishops Ex sacer dotum sententia apud vrbem Nicaeam concilium Episcopale conuocat Epiphanius saith that Councell was obtained of the Emperour at the suit of Alexander Bishop of Alexandria So the Bishops who then liued in the Church held it to be of the Emperours right and Iurisdiction to call Councels
conclude directly against the Emperours purposes Thus doth Socrates report the calling of that councell but Sozomen saith it was not obtained of Valens but of Valentinian 9. Besides these publique and generall Synods there were also some more priuate and particular in calling whereof the Bishops had power The Bishop of the Diocesse vsed to call a Synod of his Clergy but could proceed no farther Prouinciall Synodes were called by Metropolitanes but in a generall Synod of many Nations the Emperour had alwayes the right of calling it as a King hath the onely right of calling a Synod of those Nations that are vnder his gouernment For as the counsell of Nice was called by Constantine so were all the counsels of these next three hundred yeares called by the Emperours that gouerned at such times Theodosius gathered the councell of Constantinople against the heresie of Macedonius in the third yeare of his raigne which was the yeare of Christ 383. saith Prosper The councell of Ephesus against Nestorius was gathered by the authority of Theodosius the younger and the fourth generall councell at Chalcedon by the authority of Martianus and Valentinianus Emperours Leo the first was a great man in these affaires and hee is the fittest to certifie vs of the truth against whose witnesse our aduersaries haue no reason to except This Pope then writing to the Emperour Theodosius saith Pietas vestra apud Ephesum constituit Synodale concilium And afterward declaring his obedience and conformity thereto saith Meum studium commodaui vt Clementiae vestrae studijs pareatur And againe Ne autem pijssimi Principis dispositioni nostra videatur praesentia defuisse fratres meos misi c. he hath the same also Epist. 23. ad Theodosium Againe hee writeth to Pulcheria to moue the Emperour to command a councell to be holden within Italy declaring that he wrote to the Emperour to intreat the same Which thing hee moueth also in other Epistles And though he much desired this that the Emperour would haue beene intreated to hold a councell within Italy yet could he not obtaine it and therefore was ready to obey the Emperour attending his pleasure therein who appointed it in another place 10 Which thing we obserue the rather because our aduersaries oflate haue yeelded this as a proper right to the Pope to call councels Catholici munus conâ—…andi concilia generalia saith Bellarmine ad Romanum pontificem propriè pertinere volunt And when they are driuen by these open and euident testimonies they shift it thus as to say another may doe it by the Popes consent but if the Pope neither appoint the place nor no other by his commaundement or consent then it is no councell but a conciliable These bee vaine and friuolous shifts of Friars For it is true that the Popes consent was to these auncient councels but no otherwise then as the consent of all other Bishops They consented because they could not chuse because they were resolued to be obedient but they could not appoint either place or time For Leo could not haue it where hee would but it was where and when the Emperour appointed 11 Before the councell of Chalcedon there is the Writ of the Emperours Valentinian and Martian called Sacra to call Bishops to Nicaea But another Sacra is sent to reuoke that and to call them to Chalcedon So that all this while the Emperors rule as those that haue Ecclesiasticall Iurisdiction They call councels they punish offenders of the Clergy they establish Ecclesiasticall Courts they are acknowledged the nourcing Fathers of Religion the keepers and preseruers of both Tables and of the discipline of the Church And therefore Leo writing to Constantinus Emperour who called the sixt Synod saith thus Cognouimus quod sancta vniuersalis maxima sexta Synodus quae per Dei gratiam imperiali decreto in regia vrbe congregata est c Wee know that the holy and vniuersall great sixt Synod which by the grace of God is called and gathered by the imperiall decree in the imperiall City c. And a little after Pietas vestra fructus misericordiae potestas custos disciplinae Your godlinesse is the fruit of Gods mercy your power is the keeper of discipline And againe Nec enim minor regnantium cura est praua corrigere quam de aduersarijs triumphare quia einimirum potestatem suam seruiendo subijciunt cuius munere imperare noscuntur c. Vnde diuinitus praordinata vestra Christianissima pietas c. Caput Ecclesia Dominum Iesum Christum veram pietatis regulam amplectendo c. For Gouernours ought to haue no lesse care to correct vngodly things then to triumph ouer their aduersaries for they submit their power to his seruice by whofe power they are knowne to rule c. Therefore your most Christian zeale preordained of God c. acknowledging our Lord Iesus Christ the true rule of godlinesse to bee the head of the Church Wherein the Bishop of Rome doth acknowledge first that the generall councell is to be called onely by the authority of the Emperour imperiali decreto Secondly that the Emperours power is such a power as is custos disciplinae Hee speaketh here in an Ecclesiasticall cause and of Ecclesiasticall affaires Now that power which is custos disciplinae Ecclesiae what is it but Ecclesiasticall Iurisdiction This word Iurisdiction was not then worne in such vse as now it is but we see the auncients vse words counteruailing it The Bishop of Rome acknowledgeth Ecclesiasticall power and Iurisdiction to be in the Emperour when hee yeeldeth him such a power as is preseruer of the discipline Ecclesiasticall Thirdly he confesseth that the care of the Church Church-gouernment for establishing the truth doth no lesse belong to the office of a Prince then to triumph ouer his foes in warre Fourthly the Bishop of Rome as then acknowledgeth no other head of the Church then Iesus Christ as appeareth by his words To the same purpose Saint Augustine saith Diuinitus praecipi regibus vt in regno suo bona iubeant mala prohibeant non solum quae pertinent ad humanam societatem verum etiam quae ad diuinam religionem Contra Crescentium li. 3. cap. 51. That is Kings are commaunded to estalish good things and prohibite euill in their Kingdomes not onely in things belonging to Ciuill societie but in such things also that belong to diuine Religion Gregorie the great following the footsteppes of his Fathers yeeldeth the fame authoritie to the King For writing to Theodoricus King of France he saith Iterata vos per vestram mercedem adhortatione pulsamus vt congregari Synodum iubeatis This part of Iurisdiction for calling of Councels is so fully confirmed to be the Emperours right by the Aunceants that Cardinall Cusanus sure no Lutheran disputing of this priuiledge concludeth from the confessed testimonies of the Aunceants these two things First That Emperours
and Kings by their office must call Councâ—…ls Secondly that their office is likewise by coactiue power to see the things maintained and obserued which are defined in general Councels 12. Hitherto then haue we found the Soueraigne Iurisdiction alwayes in Christian Magistrates and neuer in the Bishop of Rome How then commeth the Bishop of Rome to this practise of Iurisdiction which now he claimeth Let vs here consider one Pageant of theirs which will declare the first claime and beginning of Iurisdiction which they haue so much increased since The first attempt was to winne Iurisdiction ouer Bishops the second was to get the same power ouer Kings and by that meanes ouer all These we meane to open with as much breuitie as we can and the matter will beare First then to bring Bishops of other Nations vnder their power a shamelesse deuise was plotted by the Bishop of Rome discried and reiected by the auncient Fathers that then liued but yet so closely followed afterward by the Popes that in the end it preuailed I will declare the storie as it is deliuered by their owne writers who haue collected the tomes of the Councels 13. The sixt Councell of Carthage was gathered in the yeere of our Lord foure hundred and twentie against the heresie of Pelagius it lasted sixe yeeres and more In it were gathered two hundred and seuenteene Bishops among whom was that worthy Father Saint Augustine and others of famous note as Prosper Orosius and diuers other of great vertue and learning Aurelius Bishop of Carthage Metropolitan of Affrica was chiefe In the time of this Councell three Bishops of Rome succeeding one another mooued great contention and quarell with the Fathers of this Councell for Iurisdiction which the Popes then began to claime affirming that they had Iurisdiction ouer the Church of Affrica which thing these Fathers of this Councell vtterly denied the contention began vpon this occasion 14. Apiarius a Priest of the Church of Sicca in Affrica was for his infamous and scandalous life excommunicated not onely by Vrbanus Bishop of Sicca but by a whole Synode of Bishops met together This fellow thus censured in Affrica fled to Zozimus Bishop of Rome to him he complained of wrong that the Bishops of Affrica had done him as he said Zozâ—…mus without examination of the cause vndertooke to maintaine him and admitted him to the Communion After this vnderstanding that the Bishops of Affrica were gathered in their Synode he sendeth to them Faustinus Bishop of Potentia and with him two Priests Philip and Asellus Them hee chargeth to defend the cause of Apiarius to cause the Synode of Affrica to recciue him to their Communion to excoÌ„municate Vrbanus Bishop of Sicca or else to call him to Rome vnlesse hee will reforme that is vndoe all that he had done against Apiarius Further he commaundeth them to draw the Councell to yeeld to the Iurisdiction of the Bishop of Rome and to acknowledge it lawfull for any Bishop or Priest to appeale from the sentence of their Metropolitan to Rome he commaundeth them also to signifie that he sent his Legate into Affrica who might vnderstand the causes of appellants that were grieued To effect this thing the better he chargeth them to declare that the Nicen Councell hath giuen this Iurisdiction to the Bishops of Rome for proofe hereof he deliuereth vnto them in writing a counterfeited Canon of the Nicen Councell 15. Faustinus comming to Affrica with these instructions and being admitted into the Councell declared that he had from Zozimus a Commission which he called Commonitorium and withall he declared the Iurisdiction of the Bishop of Rome confirmed by a Canon of the Nicen Councell Aurelius Prosident of the Councel answered let this Commission first be read which our brethren haue brought hereupon Daniel the notary reade and recited the Commission thus Zozimus Bishop of Rome to our brother Faustinus Bishop to our fons Philip Asellus Priests this businesse you know you are to doe all things as if our presence were with you nay because it is with you and the rather seeing you haue both our expresse commaund and the words of the Canons which for more full assurance we haue added to this Commission For thus most beloued brethren it is decreed in the Councell of Nice concerning the appellation of Bishops And then forsooth the forged Canon os the Councell of Nice followeth thus Placuit autem vt si Episcopus accusatus fuerit iudicauerint congregati Episcopi regionis ipsius de gradu suo deiecerint eum appellasse Episcopus videatur confugerit ad beatissimum Ecclesiae Romanae Episcopum valuerit audiri iustum putauerit vt reuocetur examen sâ—…ribere his Episcopis dignetur qui infinitima propinqua prouincia sunt vt ipsi diligentur omnia requirant iuxta fideÌ„ veritatis definiant Quoâ—… si is qui râ—…gat causam suam iterum audiri deprecatione sua mouerit Episcopum Romaâ—…uÌ„ vt è Latere suo presbyterum mittat erit in potestate Episcopi Romani quid velit quid existimet si decreuerit mittendos esse qui presentes cum Episcopis iudicent habentes authoritatem eius à quo destinati sunt erit in suo arbitrio Si vero crediderit sufficere Episcopos vt neggtio terminum imponant faciot quod sapientissimo consilio suo iudicauerit That is We thought good that if a Bishop be accused and the Bishops of that Prouince haue giuen sentence and deposed him if this Bishop seeme to appeale and flie to the most blessed Bishop of Rome and desire to be heard â—…f he thinke good to reuoke the sentence it may please him to write to those Bishops which are in that Prouince that they may diligently search the matter and iudge it truely But if he that moueth his cause may be heard againe shall by his petition intreat the Bishop of Rome to send a Legat from his side it shall be in the power of the Bishop of Rome to doe what hee thinketh best And if he decree to send some who with the Bishops of the Prouince may be present to iudge hauing authoritie from him from whom they are sent it shall be in his pleasure And if he thinke that the Bishops of that Prouince may suffice to end the businesse let him doe whatsoeuer in his most wise Councell he iudgeth best Before I proceed in this narration let some things of note bee obserued First the Bishops of Rome were now growen from the honest and godly conuersation of their Auncestours to admirable impudency that durst suborne a Canon of the Nicen Councell and publish their owne shame in the sight of the Church then and leaue an eternall monument thereof to the world for euer extant in publike Councels Secondly the ground of the Iurisdiction of the Bishop of Rome is forgerie famously attempted and famously conâ—…icted at that present time And yet this practise
the bright day of humilitie to such as desire to see God Thus write the Fathers of that Councell to Pope Caelestinus intimating by what meanes that smoke did begin to rise to darken the Church which is prophesied in the Reuelation which came out of the bottomlesse piâ—…t like the smoke of a great furnace Vpon these reasons they make a decree to preuent his ambitious desires by which decree they forbid all appellations to Rome or to any other place from Affrica it is extant in the Affrican Councell and this it is Item placuit vt presby teri Diaconi vel caeteri inferiores Clerici causis quas habuerint si de iudicijs Episcoporum suorum questi fuerint vicini Episcopi eos audiant Moreouer it was thought good that Priests Deacons or other inferiour Clarkes if in their causes they complaine of the iudgements of their Bishops they shall bee iudged by the next adioyning Bishops c. And a little after Quod si ab ijs prouocandum putauerint non prouocent nisi ad Affricana Concilia vel ad primates Prouinciarum suarum Ad transmarina autem qui putauerit appellandum â nullointer Affricam in Communionem suscipiatur And if they appeale from them they shall not appeale but to the Affrican Councels or to the Primates of their Prouinces Whosoeuer appealeth to outlandish places shall be admitted to the Communion by none within Affrica This was not so much a new decree as the maintaining of that auncient decreed right which Cyprian doth mention testifying that it was decreed euen in his time by all the Bishops of Affrica Statutum est ab omnibus that the cause should bee there heard and examined where the fault was committed This Canon which was thus established in the Affrican Councell is for clearing of the truth and preuenting of these ambitious courses and claimes of Rome repeated and confirmed also in the Mileuitan Councell where Saint Augustine was also present For it must be obserued that the sixt Carthaginian the seuenth Carthaginian the Affrican and Meleuitan Councels were held all about this time by the same men so great was the care and diligence of the Fathers that by many Councels as it were by so many lights they might dispell the smoake of the darkenesse which they saw then rising out of the Church of Rome which smoake after those times quenched the light and couered the sight of the Church as a mist couereth the heauens 20 Thus did these worthy Fathers dispell this smoke for that time and reiect the yoake of the Popes Iurisdiction In all this businesse S. Augustine had an especiall hand and head And as long as he liued the Popes could neuer preuaile But the Bishops of Rome hauing thus once cast off all regard of truth and modesty were resolued to proceed on in this wretched course and neuer gaue ouer till at last they obtained their purpose There is an Epistle of Boniface the second written after these times extant in the Tomes of councels which whether it bee true or counterfait as much other stuffe is of this argument we are to obserue something out of it because it concerneth this question This Epistle is intituled De reconciliationae Carthaginensis Ecclesiae written to Eulalius Bishop of Alexandria he certifieth the Bishop of Alexandria of great ioy for as much as the Church of Carthage is now returned saith hee ad communionem nostram and receiueth all our mandates which by our Legates wee send them Hee signifieth that supplications must be made to GOD that other Churches may likewise be brought home to the same obedience That the Bishop of Alexandria must giue notice heereof to all the brethren about him that they cease not to giue thanks for such benefites of the heauenly fauour For saith he Aurelius praefatae Carthaginensis Ecclesiaeolim Episcopus cum collegis suis instigante diabolo superbire temporibus praedecessorum nostrorum Bonifacij atque Coelestini contra Romanam Ecclesiam coepit c. That is Aurelius once Bishop of Carthage began with his colleagues by the instigation of the diuell to wax proud against the Romane Church in the dayes of our predecessours Boniface and Coelestinus But Eulalius at this time Bishop of Carthage finding himselfe for the sins of Aurelius cut off from the coÌ„munion of the Church of Rome hath humbled himselfe and sought peace and the communion of the Church of Rome by his subscription and together with his colleagues hath by Apostolicall authority vtterly condemned all Scriptures and Writings which by any wit haue beene framed against the priuiledges of the Church of Rome 21 Whether this Epistle be forged or not it commeth all to one reckoning For if it be forged let the Bishop of Rome take the shame of the fórgery If it be the true writing of the Bish of Rome then he auoucheth that the holy worthy maÌ„ of God S. Augustine with Aurelius and the rest of his colleagues were stirred vp by the instigation of the diuell to withsâ—…and this Romane Iurisdiction We may the better beare the reproaches of the Romish Sinagogue when they sharpen their tongues and pennes against the seruants of GOD in our times seeing they laue done as much against the auncient godly Fathers For what can the late Popes say more against M. Luther Iohn Caluin or any other of the worthies of the reformed Churches then this Boniface the second saith against holy S. Augustine that he with the rest of his company were stirred and instigated by the diuell to stand against the Iurisdiction of the Romish Church Then when we denie their Iurisdiction wee denie it with the Fathers when wee are therefore condemned by the Pope and his Court we are condemned with the auncient Fathers with them we suffer with them we are reuiled and condemned The goodnesse of our cause the fellowship of the auncient Saints the warrant of the truth is able to support vs against the impotent malice and fury of these men that haue no other cause to be offended at vs then their Fathers had against S. Augustine and the rest of the auncient and holy Fathers who haue resisted the Romish Iurisdiction and therein haue left a worthy example to vs to follow their foot-steps Thus we see the Popes Iurisdiction was first attempted by forgery and afterward by falshood and tyrannie effected 22 Other Churches were afterward in time drawne to the obedience of this Iurisdiction The Churches of Rauenna Aquileia and Millane were long after this brought vnder the same yoake by Pope Stephen the third saith Sabellicus But Platina saith that Millaine was drawne to this obedience by Stephen the ninth If this be true then Millain stoode out till the yeare of Christ nine hundred and fourty And thus the quarrell for Iurisdiction was begun by Zozimus maintained by Boniface and Caelestinus but reiected by these Affrican Councels The cause was much helped by some that succeeded as Leo and
others Who though in some things they were deceiued and by the sleighty and subtill worke of Sathan drawne to doe it vpon this so much fancied Iurisdiction of Rome Yet as in charity we are to iudge they were preserued by the mercie of God from that shamelesse impudency of some of their predecessours and were content to leaue things as they found them And so the Church of Rome stoode vntill the time of Gregorie the first CHAP. VI. Of the state and Iurisdiction of the Church from the yeare of Christ 600. vntill the conquest of England Wherein is declared how this Iurisdiction was first refuted by the Popes and after obtained by the succeeding Popes How the Popes resisted the Emperour and surprised the Emperours Iurisdiction and lands and how some Emperours recouer Iurisdiction againe NOw we enter into those fatall times of our captiuity For wee confesse that our Fathers were by a iust iudgement of God brought into a captiuity farre greater then the Babilonian Our Kings our Bishops our people our Church and all were oppressed And they that led vs captiues aske vs where was our Church then Wee answere in captiuity For though the greatest number then followed the pleasures and delights of Babilon yet among them the true Israel of God remained And we are able by the grace of God to proue a true Church to haue continued in the doctrines of the trueth vntill God sent in his wonderfull mercy a deliuerance from this captiuity But this belongeth to another question 2 After these times the Iurisdiction of Princes and of the Church was oppressed by the Pope But before they came into that great oppression and captiuity it pleased God for better testification of his truth to all ages and for the confusion of this tyrannie gotten and maintained by forgerie to cause one of the Popes to dispute this question with such zeale and courage that it remaineth an euerlasting testimonie against this Iurisdiction and against all his successours For when Iohn Bishop of Constantinople would haue had this title of Oecumenicall Bishop confirmed to him Gregory the first questionlesse the best Pope that hath beene since his time vseth such reasons against Iohn as are sufficient to proue that no Bishop hath right to that Iurisdiction which now the Popes claime and that hee who vsurpeth that place aboue his brethren is Antichrist And if the iudgement of Gregory be sufficient to determine this controuersie it will follow that Antichrist hath beene raised vp in the Church of Rome presently after Gregory and hath in the succession of those Bishops sit there euer since because since the time of Gregory they haue taken and claimed this title and thereby so much increased in pride ambition and enormous practises against the Church and against states that he that cōpareth these times with the former shall finde it another state then it was in the time of Gregory 3 And because the Pope now glorieth in this title of vniuersall Bishop from which title he would draw a Iurisdiction ouer all Bishops Gregory herein is peremptory that whosoeuer taketh that title robbeth Christ of his place and glory For saith he Sub vno capite omnes membra sunt Ecclesiae sancti ante legem sub lege sancti sub gratia et nemo se vnquam vniuersalem vocari voluit All the Saints as members of the Church are vnder one head the Saints before the Law vnder the Law and vnder grace and no man would euer suffer himselfe to be called an vniuersall Bishop This was then the learning of the Church of Rome that because Christ was the onely head of the vniuersall Church therefore no man may be For the deuise which after this the Friars brought in of caput ministeriale was then vnknowne The reason of Gregory is well to be obserued because euery man is a member of the vniuersall Church no man can be both head and member of the same And therefore hee vrgeth this thing often as namely where he saith Vniuersa sibi tentat ascribers omnia quae soli vni capiti cohaereut videlicet Christo per elationem Pompatici sermonis eiusdem Christi sibi studet membra subiugare That is he seeketh to ascribe all to himselfe and whosoeuer as members are knit to one onely head that is Christ he deuiseth by the pride of this Pompaticall title to subdue to himselfe Thus saith Gregory of him that sought this title of vniuersall Bishop In many other places he proueth the same that Christ is the onely and sole head of the Church and therefore no man can challenge this title of vniuersall Bishoppe or head of the vniuersall Church Whosoeuer doth it must bec that Antichrist that thrusteth Christ out of his place For it is well to bee obserued that the reasons of Gregorie against the claime of vniuersall Bishoppe or head of the vniuersall Church doe as well and truely refute all these names of pride now chalenged by the Popes as this which then was chalenged by Iohn of Constantinople For now these titles are giuen to the Pope as his due stile Princeps Sacerdotum Uicarius Christi caput Ecclesiae fundamentum Ecclesiae pater doctor omnium fidelium sponsus Ecclesiae Episcopu◅ vniuersalis All these being titles of the like pride and pompe are alike condemned by Gregory Of this title of vniuersall Bishop Gregory saith so much as might iustly deterre all his successours from that or any of the like nature For he calleth it Vocabulum profanum vanum nomen vanitatis vocabulum peruersum vocabulum elationis scelestum superstitiosum superbum Thus in diuers places he setteth out that title and farther saith that it is Appellatio nefan◅inominis profani nominis superbia appellatio friuoli nominis vanitas stulti nominis nomen Pompaticum By all which termes dispersed in diuers parts of his workes hee hath declared his zeale against the pride of them that take such names vpon them declaring that the blasphemy of this name was a proofe that Antichrist was rising in the Church For he saith that hee that taketh this name of vniuersall Bishop is the fore-runner of Antichrist For that Antichrist must be Lord of the Clergy Gregory witnesseth saying Sacerdotum ei praeparatur exercitus 4. Now seeing that from these names of pride they would proue the Popes Iurisdiction We answer this proofe is founded vpon a rotten and ruinous ground-worke seeing their auncient Popes haue vpon the same reasons grounded the proofe of Antichrist After the death of Gregory Sabinian succeeded who sate but fiue moneths and nineteene dayes And then came Boniface the third who obtained of the Emperour Phocas that title which Gregory had so condemned Then and neuer before was the Church of Rome made the head and Mistresse of all other Churches and the Pope the chiefe Bishop of all Bishops This was done in the yeare of Christ sixe hundred and sixe And this Boniface is accounted the threescore
and sixe Pope from Peter as Caranza noteth Then we say that whatsoeuer Gregorâ—…e hath written against Iohn Bishop of Constantinople all standeth strong against Boniface the third and all the Popes after him For he first obtained this Antichâ—…istian name and all the rest haue enioyed it much encreased both titles of pride and power answerable to those ticles 5. But because Bellarmine would salue vp the wound that Gregory hath giuen to all Popâ—… after Boniface let vs briefly consider his shifts and so proceede First he saith that by Gregory his words the Pope should not be Antichrist but onely praecursor Antichristâ—… the fore-runner of Antichrist Nam praecursor saith he non debet esse idem cum eo quem praecurrit sed longe minor Si ergopraecursor Antichristi est ille qui se facit Episâ—…pum vniuersalem ipse Antichristus verus non hoâ—…se faciet sed aliquid maius We answer Boniface the third who first obtained this title in the Church of Rome was the fore runner of Antichrist and began to his successours but his successours encreased that dominion which Boniface began For they were not onely vniuersall Bishops that is Lords of Bishops but they were also Lords of Kings that is more then Boniface was and therefore wee yeeld that the fore-runner is lesse then Antichrist in his height and yet we say that Gregory his words stand both against the one and the other vnanswered by Bellarminâ—… Another testimony of Gregory he would shift thus Pariratione saith Bellarmine cum ait Gregorius Sacerdotum ei praeparâ—…tur exercitus non vult dicere Sacerdotes vt Sacerdotes ad exercitum Antichristi pertinere sic enim seipsum etiam in illo exercitu collocasset sed Sacerdotes vt superbos Antichristo exercitum praeparare Graunting all true that Bellarmine saith the wound is not cured which Gregory hath giuen to the proud Popes and to their proud and luxurious Priests these falues of Bellarmine are so farre from curing of the sore that they make it much worse Moreouer Bellarmine sometimes would shift it thus as if Iohn Bishop of Conftantinople when hee sought to be Occumenicall Bishop did not meane to be the chiefe of all Bifhops as the Pope is but to be the onely Bishop that there should be no other Bishop in the world but himselfe so that he would inferre that the thing which 〈◊〉 obtained was not the very thing which Gregory so lately before and so hainously had condemned Wee will therefore out of approued Histories briefly shew that the honour which Boniface obtained was no other thing then that dishonorable title which Iohn Bishop of Constantinople sought to get and which Gregory so much reproued abhorred 6 And certaine it is that the thing which Gregory so sharply reproued was that which Iohn 〈◊〉 Now that Boniface obtained the same thing they who write thereof beare sufficient witnesse Paulus Diaconus saith thus Hic Phocaâ—… roganâ—…e Papa Bonifacâ—…o statuit sedem Romanae Ecclesiae vt capâ—…t esseâ—… omnium Ecclestarâ—…m quia Ecclesia Constantinopolitana primam se omnium Ecclesiarum scribebat That is This man at the suit of Boniface ordained that the sea of Rome should be head of all Churches because the Church of Constantinople wrote her selfe the chiefe of all Churches Then by this testimony wee finde that Boniface obtained no other thing of Phocas then that which Iohn Bishop of Constantinople had sought before Abbas Vspergensis saith Post â—…abinianum Bonifacius cligitur ad Pontisicatum cuius rogatu Phocas constituit se dcm Romanae et Apostolicâ—… Ecclesia caput esse omnium Ecclesiarum nam antea Constantinopolitana â—…e scrit â—…bat primam omnium That is After Sabmian Bonifau was chosen Pope at whose suit Phocas ordained that the sea of thâ—… Romane Apostolike Church should be thâ—… head of all Churches for before this the Church of Constantinople had writ her selfe the chiefe of all Then this thing was graunted by Phocâ—…s at the suit of Boniface and what was granted no other thing then Iohn of Constantinople had sought before Platina witnesseth the same thing Boâ—…ifacius à Phoca imperatore obtinuit magna tamen contentione vt sedes beati Petri Apostoli quae caput est omnium Ecclesiarum ita diceretur haberetur abomâ—…bus quem quidem locum Ecclesia Constantinopolitana sibi vendicare conabatur That is Boniface obtained of Phocaâ—… but with great suit that S. Peters sea which is the head of all Churches so should be called and accounted of all Which place the Church of Constantinople sought to take to her selfe Then this was gotten by the importunate suit of Boniface and he obtained nothing but that which Iohn Bishop of Constantinople had sought before And thus the Writers that make any mention of this thing witnesse without question that Boniface by importune suit and great contention obtained no other thing then that which the Bishop of Constantinople had so lately sought and which Gregory the first Pope had so peremptorily condemned as a thing blasphemous 〈◊〉 preiudiciall to the gouernment of Christes Church 〈◊〉 Christ downe and raising Antichrist vp and therfore vtterly vnlawfull for any Bishop to seeke or to hold For that herein was included that principality ouer Bishops which Gregory also so much condemned no man maketh question Blondus saith ad huius Bonifacij petitionem Phocas antistitem Rom. principem Episcoporum omnium dixit That is At the suit of Boniface Phoâ—…as appointed the Bishop of Rome to be the Prince of all Bishops And Nauclerus saith Bonifacius insolentiam Patriarchae Constantinopolitani 〈◊〉 se appellantis compescuit Phocas enim Pontisicis suasione publica ac ad â—…niuersum orbem dimissa sanctione constituit vt Rom. Ecclesiae Romanoque Pontisici omnes orbis Ecclesiae obedrent That is Boniface repressed the insolence of the Patriark of Constantinople calling himselfe Oecumenicall For Phocas at the suit of the Pope ordained by a publique decree published ouer he world that all that Churches in the world should obey the Church of Rome and the Bishop of Rome Then this matter is sâ—… euident the no shift can help it no cloake can hide the shame so that either Gregories workes should haue beene burned for Heresie or this title of Oecumenicall Bishop should not haue beene taken vp by the Popes 7. And hence is the originall of the Popes Iurisdiction ouer all Bishops he had once as much Iurisdiction ouer Bishops as Phocas could giue him But who gaue him Iurisdiction ouer Princes That part of Iurisdiction was not then knowen in the world But after this it crept in the occasion thereof grewe thus When the Empire was vtterly decayed in the West and so weake in the East as not able to keepe Italy in obedience though for a time rather by the bare name and opinion of auncient gouernement then by any present strength they kept some commaund in Italie by their Exarches abiding at Rauenna Grâ—…gorie
Catholike 10. If this kinde of proofe please them to prooue the Popes Soueraigne supreame authoritie â—…hey may haue ynough thereof For as Pope Zaâ—…harie dispensed with the oath of Pipin and all the French Barons and subiects so doe the Popes since practise this part of Iurisdiction with great feruency or rather surie they dispense with the oathes of subiects they raise vp rebellions against true natural and lawfull Kings they aduance vsurpers This Iurisdiction wee graunt Popes haue practised but with shame ynough heere is the difference betweene them and vs betweene an euill cause and a good betweene impudencie and confidence in the truth both they and we bring the same examples but to contrary ends they bring these examples of the Popes practises to prooue Iurisdiction wee vrge the same examples to shame the Pope with his Iurisdiction Let the indifferent and ingenuous reader iudge whether applie them to the true right and proper end For let them aunswere vs if they can whence the Popes haue authoritie to execute such a Iurisdiction as they haue neither from Christ nor from the Princes of this world For certaine it is that to dispense with oathes to stirre vp subiects against their naturall Princes to mooue rebellions is a power which the Pope hath not receiued from Christ nor from the Princes of this world From whence then hath he it let them tell vs who make it a part of his Iurisdiction 11. After this Charles the great sonne to Pipin was made Emperour by Leo the third Pope At this time it appeareth that the Iurisdiction which by the Emperour before this was vsually practised vpon the Bishop of Rome and other Bishops began to be taken out of the hand of the Magistrate For when Charles hearing many complaints against this Leo concerning his life and conuersation called him to an examination in a great meeting of Bishops it was aunswered by a great acclamation Sedem Apostolicam omnium Ecclesiarum caput à nemine laico praesertim iudicari debere That is It is not meet that the Apostolicke Sea the head of all Churches should be iudged of any man especiall a Lay-man This moued Châ—…rles to omit the matter so soone had they learned to turne this power against the Emperor which they had some two hundred yeres before receiued from the Emperor This Iurisdiction then by this time had receiued a great change for in former times as the inquisition of false doctrines belonged to the care of Bishops so the examination of the life and manners of Bishops belonged alwayes to the Magistrate So Solomon deposed Abiathar So Constantine banished diuers Bishops and reformed the Clergie The godly Popes and Bishops in former times yeelded this power to the Magistrate which God hath giuen him knowing that euery soule is subiect to them euen Bishops euen Popes yea Apostles themselues But now by the fall of the Empire Papacy rising and a newe straunge image of the Empire rising vp in the Papacy this Iurisdiction was then in hatching which afterward was brought foorth by a monstrous birth 12. My purpose is to note the occasions of alteration of Iurisdiction in the Church of Rome and how the Popes hauing cast off the Iurisdiction of the Ciuill Magistrate did in time draw to themselues a new forme of Iurisdiction increasing the same by degrees For wheras at the beginning as we haue shewed the Bishops of Rome with others were vnder the coactiue Iurisdiction of the Ciuill Magistrate the absence and fall of the Empire gaue opportunity to the Bishops of Rome to raise theÌ„selues The first beginning of their Iurisdiction was by getting appeales to be made to them the enlarging aduancing of it was by obtaining the title of caput Ecclesiae vniuersall B. The Pope was not called caput Ecclesiae but the Church of Rome got that title vnder Phocas the Pope got it by his flatterers long after And in the time of Charles the great they had gotten in one foote farther into this Iurisdiction for then they began to refuse the coactiue Iurisdiction of the ciuill Magistrate All this while they were not come to the height and top of thei Iurisdiction to practise coactiue power ouer and against the ciuill Magistrate to depose Princes to raise vp rebellions to absolue subiects from their faith and alleageance though some of these things were a new founding yet they were not come to their perfection till after this time as we purpose in order to declare And as we note their practises so we must no lesse haue an eye to the men and meanes which withstood them in these ambitious courses 13 These attempts of Iurisdiction were then most famously withstood when they were brought to their full hight For after that the Popes had begun to stretch their Iurisdiction to the preiudice of Kings and Princes then began the opposition most to appeare learned men being stirred vp to write and throughly to examine this question Whereof my purpose is to speake farther in the last Chapter of this Treatise Here we will onely note what resistance it found at the beginning before it was growne vp to that hight whereunto it came in time First wee finde that both Charles the great himselfe and other Princes and Bishops haue withstood the Bishop of Rome heerein and seeking to giue euery one his right haue giuen many parts of that Iurisdiction which now the Pope claimeth to the ciuill Magistrate For after that Charles had subdued the Lumbards as his father Pipin had done before him and besieging Desiderius King of the Lumbards came to Rome from the siege to know what hee should haue for his trauaile for recouering S. Peters Patrimonie as the late Patrimonie of the Emperour faling to the Pope then began to be called for the Pope had promised to Charles for oppressing the Lumbards and recouering this new Patrimonie so much desired so hotely pursued so dearely bought that hee should be made Emperour of the West and the auncient authority and Iurisdiction of the Empire should be restored to him For the better effecting of these affaires Charles hauing set a strong siege about Pauy and taken order with his Captaines for that seruice left the siege came to Rome bringing with him a great number of Bishops Abbots to holde a Synod with Pope Hadrian and therein by all their industry and knowledge to finde out what were the true and auncient priuiledges of the Empire and what was the Emperours Iurisdiction confessed Pope Hadrian receiued Charles honourably and at his pleasure called a councell Wherein questionlesse some parts of the auncient Iurisdiction were restored to Charles For that Synod gaue him power to choose the Bishop of Rome and in all Prouinces of his gouernment to inuest all Archbishops and Bishops Thus much is acknowledged by as many witnesses in a manner as are Writers of the Story of this time But of late some haue quarrelled against this Story denying it to be true which
quarrell I purpose to handle and discusse in the next Chapter in his proper place Theodoricus de Niem writing of this councell and of the end and purpose of those that held it saith that this Synod was gathered purposely to search out the auncient vses lawes and customes of the Empire and Church that each power knowing their owne limits the one might not encroach vpon the other Celebrata est saith he ab 153. viris religiosis Episcopis Abbatibus c. ab vniuersis regionibus et oramibus almae vrbis à cuncto etiâ—…m Clero huius sanctae Rom. Ecclesiae ex quirentibus vsus leges mores eiusdem Ecclesiae et imperij That is It was celebrated by one hundred and fifty three religious men Bishops Abbots c. by all the regions and degrees of the City of Rome by all the Clergy of this holy Church of Rome making search and inquisition for the vses lawes and customes both of this Church and of the Empire Then we see that Charles recouered some part of the auncient Iurisdiction of the Empire Which notwithstanding since his time the Popes by inuincible contentions wrested from the Emperours chalenging it to be a part of their owne Iurisdiction and charging the Emperours with Heresie and Schisme for practising that right which other Popes before them acknowledged to bee the auncient right of the Empire 14 And because to the Iurisdiction of Princes it belonged of olde both to call councels and to confirme them therefore Charles did not omit this part of Iurisdiction though as the euent declared it was much against the Popes pleasure He called a Synod at Frankford wherein was condemned the doctrine of worshipping of images which doctrine the Pope had late before confirmed The occasion hereof grew thus Leo Isaurus Emperour being much offended that the Saracines had that great and iust exception against Christians that they worshipped images called a Synod at Constantinople wherein the worship of images was condemned and the images burned He sent also to the Bishop of Rome as then Gregory the second commaunding him to doe the like if he would haue his fauour saith Paulus Diaconus Gregory the second tooke this in suâ—…h indignation that he rebelled against the Emperour and raised all Italy into a rebellion by which meanes the Emperour lost all that then was left in Italy Gregory the second in the middes of these stirres died and Gregory the third succeeded who prosecuting the purpose of his predecessour called a Synod at Rome in the yeare seuen hundred thirty three by Sigebert seuen hundred thirty nine by Palmerius In this Synod the doctrine of worshipping images was confirmed Leo the Emperor was excommunicated and depriued Thus began the Pope to practise a new Iurisdiction in deposing Emperours After this Constantine sirnamed or rather nick-named Copronimus in the yeare of Christ saith Sigebert seuen hundred fifty fiue called a Synod at CoÌ„stantinople wherein the worship of images was againe condemned But another Synod was held at Rome by Pope Stephen the third in the yeare of Christ seuen hundred threescore and eight wherein the worshipping of images was againe approued Which was more famously confirmed in the yeare of Christ seuen hundred foure score and eight by another Constanstine and his mother Irene who called the second Nycen Synod wherein Imagerie preuailed much by the helpe of Pope Hadrian 15. Vpon these stirres Charles the great was moued to call a Synod at Franckford Thither sent Pope Hadrian the acts of the second Nicen Synod to be approued there and to direct this Synod at Frankford if they would take any direction from the Pope But the Fathers of this Synode not regarding the Popes direction tooke a meane course betweene the Greekes who destroyed and defaced images and the Church of Rome which maintained the worship thereof For they decreed that it was not impious to set vp images but to giue any worship to them this they held to be vtterly against Christian faith and to be a thing receiued from the superstition of the Gentiles This Synod was called and confirmed by Charles the great Then belike the Pope had not gotten all Iurisdiction ouer Kings which now he claimeth For the Emperour called Synods not the Pope Neither as then had hee gotten Iurisdiction ouer all Bishops because we see many Bishops were found in Germany France Aquitany and England for all these Nations Charles nameth in his letter to Elepandus Metropolitane of Tolet as fauouring and maintaining the trueth against the worship of images which resisted the Pope in this matter so that his great and soueraigne Iurisdiction was not then established 16. About this time that most worthy most religious and learned King Alfred raigned in England Aser Meneuensis writing his life entituleth him Omnium Britanniae insulae Christianorum rectorem Which title doth not much differ from that which is now in part giuen to the King supreame Gouernour of all persons Ecclesiasticall For whereas at this day the discipline of the Court of Rome exempteth Clerkes from the Kings Courts and consequently from the Kings gouernment it appeareth that in King Alfreds time this thing was vtterly vnknowne to the world therefore this King is called and acknowledged to bee the Gouernour of all Christians within his dominions Now because Bishops and Clerks were Christians he was hereby questionlesse vnderstood the gouernour of Clerkes aswell as of others As then all forraine gouernement and Iurisdiction was excluded by that title so nowe there is no other thing sought but in like sort to exclude all forraine power and Iurisdiction whether the Popes or any other At this time whe n King Alsred liued and raigned the sense iudgement and vnderstanding of the world was no other but that Kings were supreme gouernours of all persons and caufes Ecclesiasticall and Temporall within their owne Dominions Ivnderstand gouernment here as throughout this question I haue often admonished gouernment or power coactiue for this exemption of criminous Clarkes from their Kings Courts was a thing vnknowen in the world in those dayes And therfore whereas it is commonly taken by our aduersaries who vse to begge such principles as they cannot prooue that the religion sense and iudgement of the world ranne wholly for the Iurisdiction which now is practised in the Court of Rome this wee vtterly denie For we are able to shew when the sense iudgement and religion of the Church was against them in euery part of their pretended Iurisdiction For first whereas the Pope claimeth Iurisdiction ouer Bishops this is one part of his Iurisdiction and is now the sense and iudgement of the Court of Rome but in the times of the sixt and seuenth Carthaginian Councels of the Affrican and Mileuitan Synodes at this time I say and alwayes before the religion sense and iudgement of the whole world ran contrary If any obiect that these were not generall Councels but prouinciall I
aunswere wee vrge not their Canons onely to rule the Pope but their testimonies to know the truth of those times and before For they made an exact and diligent search through all the famous Churches of Christendome for the Popes Iurisdiction ouer Bishops and hauing once so famously refuted that Iurisdiction we take and reuerence their testimonies which will for euer be held honorable in the Church Before these times the religion sense and iudgement of the world was not that any Bishop or Clarke of forraine Prouinces might appeale to Rome which now is the sense and iudgement of the Court of Rome The Pope claimeth now this Iurisdiction likewise to depose Princes to dissolue and vndoe the obedience of subiects this is now the sense and iudgement of the Court of Rome but before the time of King Pipin the sense and iudgement of the world ran alwayes contrary That the Pope is vniuersall Bishop and the Church of Rome the head of other Churches yea the Pope the head of the vniuersall Church is now the sense and iudgement of the Court of Rome but this was not the sense iudgement and religion of the Church of Rome before the time of Gregorie the first as the same Gregorie doth sufficiently witnesse That criminous Clarkes should be exempted from the Courts of their Kings is now the practise and iudgement sense and religion of the Court of Rome but before the yeere one thousand this was not the sense and iudgement of the world That the Pope is aboue a generall Councell is now the sense and religion of the present Court of Rome but it was not the sense and religion of the Church of Rome before the time of the Councell of Trent In like sort of any part of their Iurisdiction whereof here we speake we are able to point to the time when it was not the sense and iudgement of the Church of Rome 17. About the time wherein Alfred raigned who began his raigne in the yeere of Christ eight hundred seuenty two died in the yeere nine hundred The Popes hauing already intruded vpon the Iurisdiction of Bishops and Archbishops beganne to make many desperate attempts vpon the Iurisdiction of Kings also but they were repressed where the Emperours had any power to resist and though they assumed Iurisdiction ouer Emperours yet they brought not all to an effect Cranâ—…zius speaking of those times saith The Emperour placed a Bishop in Monster and maruaile not that a Bishop was appointed by the Emperour for this was the Custome of those times when Emperours had power to place and displace Popes for there was no free election of Chapters as now the Apostolicall confirmation was not then necessary for whomsoeuer the Prince did nominate that man was to be consecrated a Bishop by the next adioyning Bishops Concerning this Iurisdiction there was a long contention between the Papacie and the Empire this was the Iurisdiction which the two Henries the father and the sonne which the two Frederickes likewise the Grand-father and the Grand-child sought long to defend and maintaine but the sword of the Church preuailed and forced the Emperours to relinquish their right to the Churches By this it may appeare that before the yeere one thousand the Popes entred into no great contention with the Germane Emperours concerning this Iurisdiction But as the contentions betweene the two Henrics and the two Fredericks and others did fully open and reueale to the world the Popes purpose for Iurisdiction so when it was once reuealed and fully knowen to the world it was denied and oppugned by the men of the best learning that then liued in the Church of Rome which thing we are more fully to declare hereafter CHAP. VII How the Papall Iurisdiction was aduanced from the time of the conquest and somewhat before vntill the yeere of Christ one thousand three hundred The meanes raising that Iurisdiction is declared to be by Forgeries Friars Oathes and the parts of the Iurisdiction inuestitures exemptions lawes imposed appellation deposing of Kings and absoluing their subiects from faith and Allegeance IN the time of William the Conquerer about the seuenth yeere of his raigne Hildebrand was chosen Pope named Gregorie the seuenth This man aduaunced the Popes Iurisdiction to an higher pitch then euer it was before Now all that power which was extorted from Princes by such violent practises as Hildebrand vsed was afterward supposed to belong to the Popes Iurisdiction And these late Iesuits make no doubt to tell vs that all came from Christ and his Apostles and that it was a thing neuer heard that Temporall Princes should meddle in such matters and that the Religion deuotion sense and iudgement of all men ranne wholly for it Wee are therefore to obserue how the Popes wrested Iurisdiction from temporall Princes This thing will appeare better if we take a suruay of these times and of the meanes and parts of that Iurisdiction which wee finde chalenged by the Popes in these ages 2. At this time the Popes began first of all to striue for inuestitures Pope Gregory the seuenth began this contention with Henry the fourth Emperour which was the occasion of great warres and blood-shed through Christendome especially in Germany I will for the better vnderstanding of these proceedings with breuity and fidelity report out of the stories of this time in what state the Church of Rome then stoode In the time of Henry the third Emperour the Court of Rome was pestered with a sort of men infamous prodigious who taught Necromancy practised poisoning set vp as it were a schoole of vnlawfull Arts abominable to God and pernicious to men One chiefe of this profession was Theophilactus which was afterward Pope Benedictus the eight called Benedictus the ninth This Theophilact was Master to Hildebrand in his Art Magick who for his better furtherance in that knowledge was also instructed by Laurentius the Malfilan Archbishop and by Iohn the Archpriest of S. Iohn de porta latina This Theophilact gaue himselfe wholly to the sacrifices of deuils with his complices and schollers as he had beene iâ—…structed by Gerbertus which was Pope Syluester the second By these Masters and meanes Hildebrand aspiring to the Papacy ioyned himselfe in a strict league with one Brazutus who poisoned sixe Popes in the space of thirteene yeres their names mine Author setteth down in order thus Clemens this was Clemens the second Damasus 2 Leo 9 Victor 2 Stephaâ—…us 10. Benedictus this Pope escaped the poison but was cast out by force and cunning of Hildebrand Nicholaus 2. Thus he practised to make way for himselfe to the Papacy by poisoning all that stood in his way 3. For redressing of these enormities Henry the third Emperour was entreated by the religious sort of Cardinalls to purge the Church of this hellish rabble that thus pestered it The Emperor being drawne to seeke some reformation of these disorders because many Popes vsurped the Papacie at once he
impropriations turning tithes first from their true and auncient vse persecution for preaching the Gospell exemptions the vse of Legends in the Church and reading of fables to the people Symonie flattery pardons indulgences the heresie of an accident without a subiect singular and blind obedience the vse of commutation of penance into money they were instruments of warres and bloodshed they inuented works of supererogation the doctrin that reprobates are members of the Catholike Church to robbe the land of money These are the things in part which are obserued by Wiclife to haue beene first inuented by Friars Now whereas Iohn Wiclife was reputed an hereticke wee finde that this imputation was laid vpon him especially by Friars For he was a professed enemie to them and to their innouations holding with the Church of Rome and maintaining no other doctrine then that which he found publikely maintained and receiued in the world before Friars altered it Still he pleadeth the cause of the Priests against Friars which sheweth that he taught no otherwise then those Priests did teach And albeit the Friars did marueilouslly disorder the Church in his time yet hee witnesseth that the third part of the Clergie of England defended the truth against Friars Then the Friars being set vp to alter the auncient doctrine and Iurisdiction and to induce new did labour herein throughly imploying their best skill and power for the aduancement of the Pope and suppressing of the truth Heerein the Iesuites succeed their forefathes in this inheritance of innouation daily adding some new monsters to those which these old Friars left to their hands 24. The Vniuersitie of Paris hath likewise declared their iudgement against Friars somewhat before this time wherein Wiclife liued They gathered seuen Articles against Friars which because they proue Friars to be the authors introducers of innouation in the Church I will here set them downe First we say that Friars are not to be admitted into our Scholasticall societie except by our consent because the society ought not to be coact but voluntarie Secondly because wee haue found by experience that their fellowship hath beene many wayes hurtfull and dangerous to vs. Thirdly seeing they are of a diuerse profession from ours for they are regulars and wee schollers we ought not to be ioined or mingled together in one scholasticall office For the Spanish Councell saith Thou shalt not plow with an Oxe an Asse thatis thou shalt not associate men of diuers professions together in one office for how can they agree together whose studies vowes and purposes are diuers Fourthly because they raise dissentions offences but the Apostle saith we beseech you brethren that you obserue them that is that you discerne such as make dissentions for the doctrine which you haue learned of the Apostles and eschewe them for they serue not the Lord but their belly Gloss. for they flatter some they backbite others that they may fill their bellies and by glosing words and their benedictions they beguile the hearts of the simple Fiftly because we feare least they bee such as enter into houses because they thrust themselues into euery mans house they search and sift the consciences of men seduce such as they find like women ready to be seduced And whō they haue once seduced them they draw from the Councels of their owne Prelates to their Councels for they bind them by oath to their Councels such the Apostle commaundeth to eschew Sixtly because we feare they are false Prophets for they are not Bishops nor Parish-priests nor their Vicars nor by them inuited yet they preach being not sent against the Apostle saying Rom. 10. How shall they preach except they be sent For they worke no miracles thereby to witnesse that they may preach the Church then ought to auoid such men being so dangerous Seuenthly because they are curious and hauing no lawfull calling in the Church they busie themselues with other mens businesse thrust themselues into other mens callings and yet they are neither Apostles nor their successours that is Bishops neither are they of the seuenty and two Disciples of the Lord neither their helpers or Vicars as before is said Now the Apostle commaundeth vs to eschewe such as will liue so saying 2. Thess. vlt. We declare brethren to you in the name of the Lord Iesus Christ that you withdraw your selues from euery brother that walketh inordinately and not according to that tradition which they haue receiued of vs c. 25. Thus haue we set downe the sincere iudgement of that Vniuersitie before it was corrupted and infected with Friars They haue prooued that Friars haue no lawfull calling in the Church to preach or administer the Sacraments because they haue no institution of Christ or his Apostles And howsoeuer since those times the iudgement of that Vniuersitie was chaunged after they had once receiued these serpents into their bosomes yet the reasons which they haue brought against Friars are vnchaungeably true and will alwayes prooue that which then they prooued that neither the old Friars nor the new Iesuits haue any lawfull calling in the Church As thus they haue beene the bane of the Church in chaunging the old bounds so they haue beene the ruine of Princes and the cause of great warres and bloodshed yea of all the persecutions that haue bene since For before that time that the orders of Friars were brought foorth by a new and monstrous birth in the Church there was no bloodshed nor persecution offered by the Pope nor the Church of Rome for matters of Religion Berengarius was forced to a Recantation before but no blood was shed But after that Dominicke had instituted the order of the Iacobites or preaching Friars and Francis the order of the Minorites professed beggars then began great bloodshed and persecution to be practised vpon men that did not allow the Popes Iurisdiction in blood was it first founded and so it hath beene euer since maintained 26. The first persecution began against them that were called Albingenses whose opinions are made hainous by some that write affectionately since that time but by the writers of that time there appeareth no other thing wherewith they were charged but onely that they withstood the Popes pride and Iurisdiction for which they were persecuted The Earle of Tholouse who fauoured them was depriued of his Earledome his landes were giuen to Simon Monford the forces of the French and the Pope were raised against him when they were not able to vanquish him by force by fraud and falshood of the Friars and Popish Bishops they ouerthrew him In this ouerthrow of the Earle the industry and valour of Dominicke is much celebrated by the stories of this time Insomuch as the whole praise is attributed to him of him Platina witnesseth thus much Quos Albingenses Dominicus mira celeritate compescuit adiuuante etiā Simone Monteforti non enim disputationibus verum armis opus fuit adeo
nation of the Iewes did take sauing o◅ely the Pharises And therefore these Pharises he describeth to be seditious and intollerable stirrers in States euen such as the Friars prooued afterward The words of Iosephus though they be long yet I will set downe because they open the practise of this Oath of Allegance the consent of the auncient Church of the Iewes and the seditious and pestiferous practise of the Pharises that the Iesuites the broode of these Vipers may the better be knowen his words are these There was a sort of men among the Iewes glorying in the scrupulositie and subtiltie of the law by hypocrisie and simulation counterfeiting the holy worship of God by whom women were much moued and drawen c. These were called Pharises who had great power either to helpe or to hurt the kings State For they were troublesome seditious the stirrers of wars iniurious and immoderate prouokers of trouble without cause or ground For when the whole nation of the Iewes bound themselues by an Oath to be faithfull and true to Caesar and to obey him only these Pharises did not sweare these were in number somewhat aboue sixe thousand whom the King punished with a mulct pecuniarie which summe of money the wife of Pherora disbursed for them But they to recompence this her great liberalitie tooke vpon them the foretelling of things to come as men forsooth indued with diuine inspiration they prophesied that K. Herods end was at hand decreed by the diuine Maiestie and the end of all his issue and kinred and that this woman their Benefactour with her husband Pherora and the children descending of them should be Kings When this practise of the Pharises came to the Kings knowledge he killed them as stirrers of sedition and traitours to the State Thus fa◅re Iosephus Whereby we vnderstand that this Oath of Allegeance was well approoued of the Church of the Iewes and onely denied by the seditious Pharises who then inueigled women and weake men and by such meanes stirred rebellions as now their successors the Iesuites doe In like manner was this Oath practised in the Church of Christians as appeareth by the testimonies before cited and by these that followe The second Synode of Rhemes was gathered about the yeere nine hundred and ninetie against Arnulphus Archbishop of Rhemes where it was witnessed of that Archbishop that in the presence of the Kings and Bishops and Clergie and people he was of his owne consent bound by an Oath that to the vtmost of his skill and power he would be true and faithfull in Councell and aide to his Prince the manner and forme of his Oath is set downe thus Ego Arnulphus gratia Dei praeueniente Rhemorum Archiepiscopus promitto regibus Francorum Hugoni Rotberto me sidem purissimam seruaturum consilium auxi lium secundum meum scire posse in omnibus negotijs praebiturum inimicos ◅orū nec consilio nec auxilio ad eorum infidelitatem scienter adiuturum And so it proceedeth with a long execration vpon the breaker 30. Nauclerus doth likewise obserue that Fredericke Barbarossa Emperour perceiuing that the Pope by his excommunications practised secret conspiracies drawing subiects from Allegeance from faith and obedience to preuent these new and subtill practises did exact an Oath of Allegeance of all Bishops vnder his Dominions commaunding the Popes Agents to bee excluded from Germany vnlesse hee sent for them The same exclusion of the Papall Legats was often vsed by the Kings of England and France after that these Princes perceiued that the end of such Legacies was to strengthen the Popes excommunications and to stirre the people to rebellions or to robbe the land of tr◅asure The same Fredericke did also forbid his subiects to appeale to Rome and to goe thither By this iniunction of Fredericke the Popes Legate being forced to trudge home returning to Pope Hadrian made a grieuous complaint the Pope hereupon wrote a letter to the Emperour which because it openeth the Popes meaning concerning the Oath of Allegeance I will here set it downe Hadrian the fourth seruant of Gods seruants to Fredericke Emperour of Romanes health and Apostolicall blessing 31. THe law of God promiseth a long life to them that honour their parents and threatneth the sentence of death to such as curse their Father or Mother And we are taught by the voice of the truth it selfe that hee that exalteth himselfe shall be brought lowe Wherfore my sonne beloued in the Lord we maruaile not a little at your wisedome for that you seeme not to yeeld so much reuerence to S. Peter and the Church of Rome as you ought to doe for in the letters which you wrote to vs you set your name before curs wherein you doe incurre the note of insolency that I may not say arrogancie What shall I say of the Allegeance by you promised and sworne to S. Peter and to vs How can you keepe that Allegeance seeing that you your selfe require homage Allegeance of those that are Gods That are the sons of the most high that is Bishops and you haue held their hallowed hands in your hands manifestly declaring your selfe contrary to vs you shut out our Cardinals not onely out of your Churches but euen out of your Cities Repent therfore repentwe aduise you for whilst you seeke the Crown and Consecration at our hands we feare that seeking more you will loose that which you haue 32. By this wee perceiue the Popes meaning in denying that Kings ought to exact an Oath of Allegeance of Clarkes especially of Bishops for they finding that the Oath of Allegeance draweth subiects to the obedience of Princes resist it by all possible meanes because the Popes seeke Soueraigne Allegeance which cannot be performed both to the Pope and to Princes so that if the Popes purposes stand ciuill obedience to Princes cannot stand And howsoeuer the Iesuites cauill at the late Oath of Allegeance by Parliament enacted quarrelling against it as if it were not a meere Ciuill Oath yet this is but their friuoulous exception for it is euident by this Epistle of the Pope that an Oath of meere Ciuill Allegeance standeth against the Popes purposes For this Oath which Fredericke exacteth was for meere Ciuill Allegeance and yet the Pope denieth that the Emperour ought to take such an Oath of Bishops the reason was that which Iohn Wiolife descried because Bishops must be the Popes subiects not the Kings This was also a part of that quarrell wherewith Thomas Becket troubled the State in his time for he hauing first taken the Oath of Allegeance to King Henrie the second afterward repenting sought to be absolued of the Pope 33. Then this Oath of Allegeance to Kings was in vse before we finde it exacted by the Pope the Pope did first exact it of Archbishops The first that I can find to binde himselfe in an Oath to the Pope was Boniface tearmed the Germane
partes of this Iurisdiction as wee finde the same practised at this time when it was at his height The partes of this Iurisdiction so much pursued by Popes we gather to be these power ouer Bishops power ouer generall Councels Inuestitures exemption of criminous Clerkes the Popes power in giuing lawes appellation and last of all a power to depose and depriue Kings In all which the Pope hath proceeded dâ—… facto to practise that power whereunto hee neuer had right The two first we purpose not to speake of here because of the first we haue spoken already Chapt. 5. Of the second we purpose to speake in the last Chapter the rest are here to be handled in Order and first of Inuestitures 44. The first Pope that claimed Inuestitures was Hildebrand William Malmsbury saith Hic Hildebranduâ—… quod alij iâ—…usitauerant palam eâ—…tulit excommunicans electos qui Inuestituras 〈◊〉 de manu Laici per annulum bacuâ—…m accipereâ—… That is He openly by excommunication thrust out them that had taken Inuestitures of Churches from a Lay hand by a Ring and a Staffe which thing before Hildâ—…bi and other Popes had not done Whereunto all the Histories of this time giue consent declaring that the first claime that the Popes made for Inuestitures was begunne by Hildebrand And because that the Popes were so peremptorie herein raising and continuing so great and so long a contention about this thing therefore it is thought by many that this right of Inuestitures was the Churches right and consequently the Popes And that Emperours and Kings did vsurpe it by inuasion and intrusion first priuately and then more publiquely We are therfore to seeke out this point to whose right Inuestitures did auncieâ—…tly belong whether to Kings or to Popes Now that they were a part of the auncient right of Emperours and Kings it is witnessed by Gratian for he bringeth an ancient testimonie which doth witnesse That Pope Hadrian did intreat Charles the great to come to Rome and defend the affaires of the Church and that there the Emperour held a Synode in which this auncient right was confirmed to him by Pope Hadrian Hâ—…drianus autem Papa cum vniuersa Synodo Carolo ius potâ—…statem eligendi pontificem ordinandi Apostolicam sedem dignitatem quoque patritiatus ei concesserunt Et Episcopos per singulas prouinciaâ—… ab eo Inuestituram accipere defiâ—…iuit vt nisi à rege laudetâ—…r Iâ—…uestiatur Episcopus à nemine consecretur That is Pope Hadrian with the whole Synode graunted to Charles the right and power of choosing the Pope and ordaining the Sea Apostolike and the priuiledge of the Romane Nobility and defined that Bishoppes through all Prouinces should take Inuestitures from him that a Bishoppe should be consecrated by none vnlesse he were first inuested by the Emperour Thus much is also testified by Sigebert and many moe The same is confirmed by Pope Leo who graunteth this to be the right of Otho the first as Hadrian did to Charles for thus saith Leo Othoni primo Teâ—…tonicorum Regi eiusque sâ—…ccessoribus c. perpetuam facultatem â—…ligendi successorem summae sedis Apostolicae Pontificem ac per hoc Archiepisâ—…opos seâ—… Episcopos vt ipsi ab eo Inuestituram accipiant To Otho the first Germane Emperour and to his Successours c. We grant the chusing our successour the Bishop of the chiefe Apostolicke Sea and by this to chuse Archbishoppes and Bishoppes that they may receiue Inuestitures from him 45. In both these Decrees as wel of Hadrian as of Leo there is Anathema denounced to the violators thereof Now Hildebrand was the first violator of them The things which the Popes decree in their Consistory in a full Synode vnder Anathema are things which must be vnchangeably kept or els there may be errours and vncertainty in the Decrees of his Holines which the Iesuites will not confesse But some of late presume that the Popes first graunted these Inuestitures to temporall Princes and that they haue no greater right or Title to them then from the Popes gift and the same authority say they which gaue them may reuoke this gift We answere this was yeelded to Charles when he was first made Emperour as the auncient right of the Empire This is proued first because in the same Distinction of Grâ—…tian this is often called antiqua consuetudo and prisca conâ—…uetudo and cap. 18. Pope Stephen answereth that he deferred the consecration of a Bishoppe Quod imperialem nobis vt mos est absolutionis minimè detulit Epistolam And a little after Uestrâ—… solertia imperialâ—… vt prisca dictat consuetudo percepta licentia nobis quem â—…dmodum vos scire credmus imperiali directa Epistola tunc voluntati vâ—…strae de hoc parebimuâ—… And againe Non debet ordinari qui electus fuerit nisi prius deâ—…retum generale introducatur in regiam vrbem secundum antiquam consuetudinem vt cum â—…ius scientiâ iussionâ—… debeat ordinaâ—…io prouenire Then the Bishops of Rome themselues graunt that this was the auncient vse and custome of the Empire The same is also confirmed from the reason that drew Charles then from the siege of Ticinum to that Synod it was to haue the auncient rights of the Empire confirmed to him Which thing is declared by diuers Histories especially by Theodoricus de Niem who testifieth that the reason which drew Charles to Rome at that time was to haue the right and auncient vses of the Empire clearely knowne There was saith he a Synod holden by Pope Hadrian and one hundred fifty three Bishops Abbats exquirentibâ—…s vsus leges mores eiusdem Ecclesiâ—… Imperij That is Making search of the vses lawes and customes of the same Church and of the Empire For all that could bee proued to be the auncient priuiledges of the Empire was Charles to haue then to be confirmed to him but then were Inuestitures confirmed to him therefore they were part of the auncient priuiledges of the Empire 46. Hincmâ—…rus Archbishop of Rhemes liued and wrote about the yeare eight hundred sixtie At what time without any question the auncient practise was continued of choosing Bishops by the consent of the King For he writing to the Bishops of France saith of the manner of choosing Bishops Consensu principis terrae qui res Ecclesiasticas diuino iudicio ad 〈◊〉 defendendas suscepit electione cleri atque plebis quisque ad Ecelesiasticum regimeâ—… absque vlla venalitate â—…rouehi debet That is By the consent of the Prince of the land who by the Diuine ordinance hath vndertaken the defence and preseruation of Ecclesiasticall causes and by the election of the Clergy and people ought euery one to be promoted to the Ecclesiasticall gouernment without Simony This then is the auncient right of euery Prince within his owne dominions As the same Hincmarus saith afterward Principi terrae
magnoperè prouidendum est â—…e in his Deus offendatur per quos religio Christiâ—…na consistere debet Marsilius Patauin hath a testimony which if it were of doubtlesse authority might moue some doubt For hee saith that Pope Simplicius did forbid Inuestitures to bee taken at a lay hand albeit saith he by that decree it is manifest that his predecessours exhibiting all due and humble reuerence to Princes did vse to take Inuestitures from Lay-men It is manifest by this that Marsilius had seene a decree of Simplicius to this purpose Which if it were the true decree of Simplicius then were Inuestitures acknowledged the Princes right long before Charles but if that decree were forged as doubtlesse it was with many moe Let the Romane forgery be acknowledged and the Masters of that mint knowne Howsoeuer it is out of question that Inuestitures were acknowledged the auncient right of the Empire by Haâ—…rian yeelded to Charles graunted also by diuers Popes as is apparant by their expresse confessions of whome some were more auncient then Charles the great and some since 47. The reason why it should belong to temporal Princes is so great that it moued Popes Emperours and Kings to enter into the greatest and hottest contentions the one to purchase a new title the other to retaine their auncient right For vntill the time of Constantine wee finde little or no mention at all of these things because the Iurisdiction was then vnmixt this power coactiue was not then practised by the gouernours of the Church But when Constantine had enriched the Church giuen place and authority to Bishops adding vnto that power which they had a new part of Iurisdiction which they had not before as we haue declared And by this example of Constantine other Emperours and Kings adding thereto so that a temporall Lordship was added in the end to a Bishoprick which thing was first instituted by Otho the second Emperour in the opinion of Cardinall Cusanus For writing of this Otho hee saith Câ—…edidit perpetuis temporibus imperio subiectis pâ—…cem darâ—… posse si temporalia dominia â—…am Rom. Ecclesiae quam alijs adiungerentur cum certi seruiâ—…ij obseruatione tunc enim cultus diuinus augmentaretur religionem in magnam reuerentiam exaltandam credidit quando sanctissimi Episcopi magnae potentiae alijs Principibus intermiscerentur A mixt Iurisdiction thus being committed to Bishops Then was it good reason that Bishops hauiâ—…g receiued such an externall coactiue power from temporall Princes that these Princes should bee well secured of their fidelity to them for so much of their authoritie as they receiued from such Princes 48. This example of gouernment the first Christian Princes set vp in the Church drawne from the gouernement of the Church of Iewes as we haue said so that Christian Kings haue the same power ouer Bishops which the godly Kings of Israell had ouer the Priests in that state From this ground riseth Ecclesiasticall Iurisdiction which being taken by the first Christian Emperours from the example of the state of Israell was continued by them and their successours without question or contradiction till the time of Hildebrand For Gregory the first speaking of this auncient right which Emperours had in his time and before declareth that this right of theirs in placing of Bishops was an order so auncient so established that the contrary thereof was neuer knowne or heard of in the Church And therefore writing to Constantia Augustâ—… he saith Salonitâ—… ciuitatis Episcopus me ac responsali meo nesciente ordinatus est Eâ—… facta res est quae sub nullis anterioribus principibus eâ—…nit Quod egâ—… audiens ad eundem praeuaricaâ—…orem qui 〈◊〉 ordinatus est protinus misi vt omnâ—…no missarum 〈◊〉 celebrarâ—… nullo 〈◊〉 praesumeret nisi 〈◊〉 à serenissimis Dominis 〈◊〉 si hâ—… fieri ipsi iuâ—…sissent That is The Bishop of Sâ—…lone was ordained without the knowledge of my selfe and my Chaplaine And that thing is done which neâ—…er hapned vnder any of the former Princes Which when I vnderstoode I sent presently to that 〈◊〉 which was inordinately ordained that he should not in any case presume to celebrate Masse vnlesse first I might vnderstand of my most serene Lords the Emperours whither they commaunded this Which testimonie â—…is also cited Desâ—… 63. to proue that the Emperors ought to chuse Bishops as Hadrian acknowledged the right to Charles and Lâ—…o to Otho Gregory saith that the Bishop who iâ—…truded vpon that Church not onely without his knowledge but also without the consent of the Emperour should not be suffered to exercise his function before that he might vnderstand whether the Bishoppe had the Emperoâ—…s consent herein he saith also that this practise of intruding without the Emperours consent was a thing neuer practised vnder any Prince before that time Facta res est quae sub nullis anterioribus principibus euenit For tâ—…at these wordes are referred to that intrusion without the Emperours knowledge it is euident because he saith not that this was neuer practised vnder any Pope but not practised vnder any Prince and that he will send to the Prince to know whether the Prince commanded this thing and therefore hee calleth him a Praeuaricator that presumed to crosse this auncient right of Princes Then he condemneth a number of his successours for Prâ—…uaricators Gregory knew well what he wrote hauing the perfect Register of things of this kinde done betweene the time of Constantine and his time therefore his testimonie maketh faire and full euidence that this was the right of Christian Magistrates long before Pope Hadrian did yeeld it to Charles The same thing is also witnessed by the twelfth Toletan Counsell which was hâ—…ld in the time of Pope Agatho in the yeare sixe hundred and eightie that is long before that time wherein Hadrian yeelded this right to Charles as the olde right of the Empire 49. But Cardinall Baroniuâ—… striken with a strange fury in this question of Inuestitures ventureth vpon a new and desperat course denieth all Antiquities and bringeth a more shamelesse handling to these things then euer was brought by any man before him He denieth the whole with all the parts of it that is reported of Hadrian yeelding this to Charles but most of all he breaketh all rules of patience and moderation against Sigebert because among many he also hath reported this Storie Sigeâ—…ert saith he like an Impostor first deuised and forged this tale that Pope Hadrian yeelded Inuestitures to Charles and this he wrote in the fauour of a sâ—…hismaticall Emperour Why Baronius should put vpon Sigeâ—…ert Imposture and subornation we see no reason vnlesse it be that he thinketh that if 〈◊〉 could be put to silence herein there could no proofe appeare in all Antiquity for Inuestitures If this beâ—… his meaning he is much decâ—…iued for before this word Inuestiture was in vse the Princes right was alwaies acknowledged Long before
of his auncetours Saluo in omnibus or dine suo honore dei saâ—…cta ecclesiâ—… This clause was thought new scrupulous and offensiue The King would haue him yeeld without exception but the Archbishop would not In this contention Philippus a Legat from the Popes side came into England by him the Pope and all the Cardinals commanded the Archbishop to yeeld to the King without exception whereupon hee did so but afterward reuolted from that promise Hence a new contention began but being againe perswaded hee promised obedience to the Kings Lawes The King to hold fast this slippery Merchant required all the Bishops to fet to their approbation and seales to those Lawes Hereunto when other assented the Archbishop swore that hee would neuer set his seale to them nor allowe them Afterward the Archbishop suspended himselfe from celebrating Masse and desired to goe to Rome but the King denied him The Bishop of London accused him of Magick The King perceiuing his rebellious disposition required the Barons to giue iudgement of him that being his subiect would not be ruled by his Lawes Cito facite mihi iusticiâ—…m de illo qui homo meus ligius est stare iuri in curia mea recusat As the Barons were attending this seruice and now ready to giue sentence I prohibite you quoth the Archbishop in the behalfe of Almighty God to giue sentence vpon me for I haue appealed to the Pope And so he departed Omnibus clamantibus saith mine Author quo progrederis prodiâ—…er exspecta â—… iudicium tuum The Archbishop after this stole away out of the land changing his apparrell and name for hee called himselfe Deerman The Archbishop thus conueying himselfe out of the land came to the Pope and shewed him a Copy of these Lawes which the King called his Grandfathers Lawes When the Pope heard them reade in the presence of his Cardinals and diuers others he condemned the Lawes and excommunicated all that maintained them Condemnauit illas in perpâ—…tuum anaâ—…hematizauit omnes qui eaâ—… tenerent alâ—…quo modo fauerent saith Houeden 80. Thus did the Popes then stirre to aduance their spirituall Iurisdiction as they called it to such an height that the Kings of the earth who are set vp by God to iudge the world could not execute iustice and iudgement vpon offenders might not be suffered according to the commaundements of God to take vengeance of murtherers robbers incendiaries traytors might not execute that office for which onely they beare the sword Now because the deuotion sense and iudgement of all ages is pretended to be for the Popes Iurisdiction and against the Kings let vs obserue the iudgement of the men that liued at this time We shall finde in all this question of Iurisdiction and of these exemptions in particular that the king was iustified and the Archbishop condemned The Kings auncient Iurisdiction acknowledged the Popes new Iurisdiction and the Archbishops disobedience disallowed and abhorred of all For all the Bishops of the Prouince of Canterbury wrote a letter to the Archbishop the letter is extant in Houeden Therein they entreat him to yeeld to the King they commend the Kings care and zeale for the Church They testifie that the king requireth no more of him then the due honour which his ancestours haue alwaies had Rex a Domino constitutus pacem prouidet subiectorum per omnia vt haâ—…c conserâ—…et Ecclesijs commissis sibi populis dignitates regibus ante se debitas exhibitas sibi vult exhiberi exigit The King ordained by God prouideth his subiects peace by all meanes that he may preserue this in the Churches and people vnder him hee requireth and exacteth that Iurisdiction which was due and exhibited to the Kings which were before him They charge him with rashnesse and furious anger for suspending and condemning the Bishop of Salisbury and the Deane before any question of their fault was moued Ordo iudiciorum nouus say they hic est huc vsque legibus eanonibus vt speramus incognitus damnare primum dâ—… culpa postremo cognoscere This is a new proceeding of iudgements and as wee hope vnknowne in Lawes and Canons to this day first to condemne a man and last of all to know the fault 81. And that the iustification of the King in this cause and the condemnation of the Archbishoppe might be made more euident to all the world the same Suffraganes that is all the Bishops of the Prouince of Canterbury wrote to Pope Alexander the third to whom they giue a worthy famous testimonie of the Kings iustice temperance and chastitie declaring that the King could not be suffred to execute his Princely office nor effect his good and godly purposes in execution of Iustice for the filthinesse of some of the Clergie Rex say they fide Christian ssimus in copula â—…oiugalis castimonij honestissimus pacis iusticiae coÌ„seâ—…uator dilataâ—…or incoÌ„parabiliter strenuissimus hoc voâ—… is agit totis in his feruet desiderijs vt de regno suo tollantur scandala cuÌ„spurciâ—…ijs suis eliminentur peccata pax totum obtineat atque iustitia c. Qui cum pacem regnisui enormi insolentium quorundam Clericorum excessu non medioâ—…riter turbari cognosceret c. That is The King in faith most Christian in the bond of matrimoniall chastity most honest for preseruation and dilatation of peace and iustice without comparison the stoutest doeth with great zeale and affections desire this that scandals may be remoued out of his Kingdome that sinnes with their filth may be banished c. and finding the peace of his Kingdome not a little troubled with the enormous excesse of some insolent Clerks c. And thus they proceede declaring wherein those strange exemptions stood which then began first to bee knowne in the world For say they if a Clerke should commit murder c. the Archbishoppe would haue him punished onely by degrading but the King thought that punishment not sufficient for establishing of peace and order and for execution of iustice Hiâ—… non dominationis ambitâ—… non opprimendae Ecclesia libertatis intuitâ—… sed solummodo pacis affectu eò Rex progressus est vt regni sui consuetudines regibus ante se in regno Angliae à personis Ecclesiasticis obseruatas pacificè reuerenter exhibitas Dominus noster Rex deduci vellet in medium That is Hereupon not through ambition of Domination not with any purpose to oppresse the liberties of the Church but onely in a zeale of peace the King proceedeth thus farre as that hee will haue the customes of his Kingdome now brought to open knowledge which Ecclesiasticall persons haue obserued and peaceably and reuerently exhibited vnto the Kings of the kingdome of England before him And a little after Haec est Domini nostri regis in Ecclesiam Dei toto orbe declamata crudelitas hac ab eo persecutio That is
Now this is the crueltie of our Lord the King that is so much spoken of through the world against the Church this is that persecution that he raiseth Then it is an auncient complaint of these Romish Catholickes to call the iust lawfull godly and necessary execution of iustice crueltie and persecution this complaint hath beene euer since continued by them and most of all where there is least cause euen in the milde and mercifull gouernement of the late Queene of famous memory What crueltie did they impute to her What persecution to her Gouernement When they are not able to proue that one man was executed for Religion but for treason Which was so much the more dangerous because it was masked with the visard of Religion but Religion is not nor euer was the cause why our Kings punished the Popes Clerkes but onely Iurisdiction For when the Pope will stretch his Iurisdiction so farre as to include coactiue power and to exclude Kings from the gouernement of their Subiects drawing the Clergie from the obedience of their Kings to the obedience and subiection of the Pope drawing the subiects of other Kings vnder his subiection by an Oath of Allegiance and hereupon perswading al that will hearken to him that they may not yeelde an Oath of Alleageance to their owne Princes the Popes Iurisdiction being drawne to these points as now by the confession of themselues they are the question betweene the Pope and Christian Princes is not of Religion but of Iurisdiction of ciuill and coactiue Iurisdiction and the summe of all is this Whether the Princes of Christendome shall be free Princes or the Popes Vassals 82. By this which we haue declared we see the cause of our Kings iustified against the Archbishoppe and the exemption of Clerkes for which the Archbishoppe stroue and which since that time is claimed to be an especiall priuilege of that Church to be condemned by the chiefe of the Clergy by all the Bishops of that Prouince and that euen to the Pope himselfe Which thing the Bishoppes of the English Church would neuer haue done vnlesse they had beene well assured that the Kings cause was good and that the contrary opinion was a pernicious nouelty a late vpstart deuice in the Church But howsoeuer the Popes Clerkes pretended their new forged priuiledges yet the Kings of this land held still their olde course in the auncient manner of execution of iustice against them that offended And therefore Henry the second by law commaunded as Houeden saith that the Bishoppes of London and Norwich should be summoned that they might be before the Kings Iustices to answere for that they against the statutes of the kingdome did interdict the land of the Earle Hugh 83. This exemption of Clarks was a new practise in the time of Marsilius of Padua and not so new as pestiferous occasioning the ruine of States and being as a furie sent abroad from hell to disorder all gouernment For thus he complaineth of it Quibus non contenti sed saecularium contra Christi Apostolorum praeceptum appetentes fastigia in legum Lationes seorsum ab ijs quae Ciuium vniuersitatis sunt proruperuut Omnem clerum ab his decernentes exemptum ciuile sâ—…hisma principatuum supremoruÌ„ pluralitatâ—…m inducentes ex ipsis c. Haec pestilentiae Italici regni radix est origo ex qua cuncta scandala germinauerunt prodeunt qua stante nunquaÌ„ ciuiles ibidem cessabunt discordiae c. That is Not content herewith they the Popes seeking the honour of secular gouernement against the commandement of Christ and his Apostles haue taken vpon them the ordaining of Lawes and Canons other then such as serue for the common good They decree that all the Clergie are exempt from temporall Princes heereby inducing a pluralitie of Soueraignties c. This is the roote and spring of the pestilence of the Empire from whence all scandals grow and which standing ciuill discord shall neuer haue an end c. Thus were these exemptions then found and acknowledged to be the pestilence and ruine of all states especially of the Empire And his reason is well to be obserued because saith he it bringeth in Pluralitatem supremorum principatuum quam velut impossibilem humanae quieti demonstrauimus he proueth the plurality of Soueraignty a thing impossible to stand with the quiet and peaceable Gouernement of the world Now this exemption must eyther induce a plurality of Soueraignties when the Pope is one Soueraigne and the Prince another which is impossible in nature saith Marsilius or else it denieth the Kings Soueraignty to establish the Popes which thing can neuer bee indured by any Prince §. VI. Of the Popes power in giuing lawes 84. ANother thing whereby this new Iurisdiction of the Pope was so highly aduanced was giuing of Lawes to Princes and their subiects whereas before Princes had giuen lawes to him Marsilius in the wordes last cyted in the end of the last Paragraffe speaking of these laws saith They now break out into a practise of Iurisdiction taking vpon them to make lawes separat and distinct from such lawes as are for the common and publique good of all meaning the Canon lawes which because they intend onely the priuate aduancement of the Pope and not the publique good of the Church being also made onely by the authority of the Pope and not by the publique consent of the Church therefore he doth not account them lawes but Oligarchicall and tyrannicall Decrees these lawes are to be considered because they make so great a shew of the Popes Iurisdiction 85. The Church before was gouerned by Bishoppes and Metropolitanes in such order that the affaires of euery particular Diocesse were ordered by the Bishoppe or by a Synode of his calling the affaires of the Prouince were determined by the Metropolitane or by a Prouinciall Synode of his calling from an Episcopall Synode a man might appeale to a prouinciall Synode and from a Prouinciall Synode to a nationall but from a prouinciall or from a nationall Synode none might appeale to the Bishoppe of Rome for which thing diuers Decrees were made in prouinciall Synodes as we haue before declared As the Bishoppes were Gouernours so the lawes whereby they did then gouerne the Church were the Canons of auncient Councels especially of those foure most famous Councels of Nice Constantinople Ephesus and Chalcedon For that the Canons of these Councels were held for the lawes of the Church it appeareth by a Constitution of Iustinian extant in the fift Synode held at Constantinople wherein Iustinian the Emperour declareth that Aâ—…thimus was deposed from the Bishoprike of Constantinople by Pope Agapetus and a whole Synode with him consenting for that he had departed from the doctrines of those foure holy Synodes the Nicen the Constantinopolitan the Ephesian and the Chalcedonian The Emperor also declareth that he being deposed by the Church should be banished by him ioyning his
coactiue power to the spirituall Iurisdiction of the Church This is the meaning of the imperiall Constitutions that are in this manner set forth by Emperors of religions and doctrinall matters For the Emperours neuer tooke vpon them by their authority to define matters of faith and Religion that they left to the Church but when the Church had defined such truthes against Heretiques and had deposed those Heretiques then the Emperours concurring with the Church by their imperiall Constitutions Sicque Diuina 〈◊〉 â—…umana concurrentia saith Iustinian in the same place vnam consonantiam rectis sententijs fecere did by their coactiue power giue strength to the Canons of the Church Aâ—…d thus was the Church then gouerned by the Canons of auncient approued Synodes for matters of faith and doctrine and by the Constitutions of Christian Princes for matters of externall coactiue Iurisdiction That Constantine by whose authority the sixt Synod was held at Constantinople declareth that the Canons of the fiue generall Councels adding this second Constantinopolitan to the other â—…ouce were the rules or Canons of the Church 86. So long as those Canons of auncient Councels stood for Church lawes executed by the Bishoppes who were the Gouernours so long the Gouernement of the Church stood vp in peace order and Godlinesse one Bishoppe incroached not vpon the Iurisdiction of another But after that the Pope had intruded vpon the Iurisdiction of the Church and was growen so great as that by coactiue power hee was able to maintaine his intrusion then began hee to giue lawes such as are comprised in the Decretals of Gregory the ninth who was Pope in the yeare one thousand two hundred and thirty the first publisher of those lawes which were continued by 〈◊〉 the eight 〈◊〉 fift Iohn the two and twentieth 〈◊〉 by some other Popes vnto the yeare one thousand foure hundred and eightie for then liued Sixtus the fourth whose Decrees are published in that part that is called extraâ—… Commun since which times those lawes haue beene in some force in diuers nations where they did not crosse the imperiall lawes of those nations nor the Iurisdiction of the Kings thereof Now seeing that the Popes Iurisdiction is so much set forth and aduanced by these Canon lawes let vs in few wordes examine how he came to this Iurisdiction to giue lawes and by what right he maintaineth it If any man haue right to make and giue lawes this right must either be from God giuen him or from men who haue had this right before in themselues for euery man cannot giue this right but onely such as haue it and haue power to giue it But the Pope receiued not this right of giuing lawes to all Churches from God for God hath no where giuen any such Commission to him The ancient Bishops of Rome either did not claime any such Iurisdiction or if any were carried by leuity and ambition out of their bounds they were presently recalled and repressed by the godly Bishoppes of that age As Anicet was by Polycâ—…rp Victor by 〈◊〉 Polyâ—…rates and the other Bishoppes of Asia Zozimus Boniface and 〈◊〉 by S. Augustine and the Affrican Bishoppes so that the Bishoppes of Rome could neuer be suffered to make lawes to the Church for one thousand or twelue hundred yeares after Christ therefore this right was not from Christ. 87. For if it had beene from Christ then should the Pope haue beene suffered to haue practised the same before twelue hundreth yeares were expired For the godly auncient Fathers did neuer withstand the Bishop of Rome in any Iurisdiction which hee could claime from Christ. But in this thing it is knowne that they withstoode him therefore this Iurisdiction whereunto after so many hundreth yeares hee intruded himselfe against the iudgement of the auncient Fathers who resisted him heerein is not from God Neither can this right bee claimed from man because they who chalenge it will haue it to be a diuine right not humane And they quarrell vs for that we admit that temporall Princes may haue such Iurisdiction so that they vtterly denie that this Iurisdiction is deriued from any humane power Now he 〈◊〉 to execute Iurisdiction which is neither giuen him from God nor man must needs be conuinced to be an intruder and to come in his owne name and consequently to fulfill that Scripture I came in my Fathers name and you receiue mee not If another shall come in his owne name him you will receiue Which the auntient Fathers expound of the comming of Antichrist in his owne name And what more pregnant proofe can be brought of this his comming in his owne name then is this intruding himselfe into a Iurisdiction which he had neither from God nor from the Princes of this world And because the Pope after one thousand and two hundred yeares had no more right to giue Lawes to the Church then in former ages he had therefore this Iurisdiction is vnlawfull which by these Lawes hee practiseth Wherein onely defacto he is found to doe that whereunto he neuer had right 88. Moreouer if Bellarmine haue declared the true conditions of iust and lawfull Lawes it will followe that the Canon Lawes are no iust Lawes Bellarmine confesseth that foure conditions are required in a Law to make it iust the first is drawne from the end for it must be referred to the common good for herein saith Aristotle a King differeth from a tyrant because a King respecteth the common good of his subiects but a tyrant looketh onely vpon his owne priuate profit and thus saith Bellarmine doth a iust Law differ from a tyrannicall Law Then are the Popes Canon Lawes proued tyrannicall and vniust because they respect not the common good but the priuate wealth of the Pope as all those doe that draw all appellations to him The second condition which in Bellarmines iudgement maketh a Law iust is drawne from the efficient For it must be from a man that hath full authority Nemo enim potest legem imponere â—…nsibi subdiâ—…o saith he By this it will likewise follow that the Popes Canons are no iust Lawes because the Pope hath no authority to make such Canons binding them that are not his subiects as we haue declared before The third condition that maketh a Law iust is drawne from the matter saith 〈◊〉 for it must not forbid vertue nor commaund vice but the Canon Lawes are such as forbid vertue and commaund vice as appeareth by all those Canons that proceede with their non obstante I will note one example of many There is a Canon that runneth thus Quum aliquibus recipiendi aliquem in Canonicum alicuius Ecclesiae non obstantibus ciusdem Ecclesiae priuilegijs consuetudinibus vel statutis â—…uramento confirmatione Apostolica vel quacunque firmitate alia roboratis per nostras literas concedimus facultatem c. That is When wee graunt power to any by our letters to receiue any to be
a Canon in some Church notwithstanding the priuiledges of that Church the customes to the contrary or statutes confirmed either by Oath or by Apostolicall confirmation or by any other strength c. By this Lawe as by many other it appeareth that the Popes Canons allowe that men should goe against their owne Oathes when the Popes letters doe commaund them so to doe Which is a forbidding of things honest iust and godly and commanding thinges euill and vnlawfull Therefore these Lawes forbid vertue and commaund vice and are consequently no iust Lawes in the iudgement of Bellarmine 89. The last condition that in Bellarmines opinion is required to make a Law iust is drawne from the forme Because saith hee the Law must keepe that proportion in distributing honours which the Subiects haue in the Common-wealth For example saith he if the Pope should make a Law that onely rich and noble men should be made Bishoppes and not poore and meane men otherwise more learned and more worthy this Law were simply vniust but it is certaine that the Popes Lawes are such I speake not here of their corrupt practise which since the Canon lawes came in was neuer found without strong and strange Simonie but I speake of their Lawes which command it For who made that Law which saith Pallium non datur nisi fortiter postulaâ—…i The Pall is not giuen to any man vnlesse he make a strong suit What is meant by a strong suit they know best that haue purchased Palls at the Popes hand But it is certaine that a poore man did neuer purchase a Pall therefore poore men though more learned then the rich purchaser are excluded from this honour by the Law that alloweth none to make suit but such as can make strong suit then the Law is vniust by Bellarmines confession It is also an vniust and an vngodly Law which saith Though the Pope should draw innumerable soules with himselfe downe into hell yet no mortall man may presume to say to him Sir why do you so It is an vncleane Law which so strictly denying the mariage of Priests yet doth allow them to haue Concubines Many other Lawes there be of this forme So that by all those conditions which Bellarmine will haue to be requisite in all Lawes that bee iust the Popes Lawâ—…s are found to be vniust By all which is euinced that the Pope commeth in his owne name maketh Lawes to rule those Subiects ouer whom he hath no authority respecteth therein his owne ends taketh vp a new Iurisdiction which hath beene denied by the auncient Bishops and which was vnknowne in the world all the while that the Popes liued vnder the obedience of the Emperours as other Bishoppes did vnder seuerall Princes § 7. Of Appellation 90. ANother part of this pretended Iurisdiction stoode in appellation to the Pope This they haue chalenged but it hath alwayes beene denied by the Kings of this land as being a thing preiudiciall to the auncient Lawes and customes of the Kingdome The first question about appeales in this land that I can finde began by Anselme Archbishop of Canterburie in the time of William Rufus For after that some breach was made betweene the King and the Archbishop the Archbishoppe Anselme desired leaue to depart the land to goe to Rome for his Pall. The King perceiuing that hee had a purpose to appeale to the Pope Aunswered That if hee should appeale to Pope Vrban or any other for at that time two stroue for the Papacy without his leaue then should he falsifie his alleageance The King reasoned thus saith Malmsbury Consuetudo Regâ—…imes est à Patre meo instituta vt nullus praeter licentiam Regis appelletur Papa Qui consuetuâ—…ines Regnitollit potestatem quoque toronam Regni violat qui coronam mihi aufert inimicitias infidelitatem in me agit For there was contention betweene the King the Archbishop First because the Archbishop would nominate a Pope without the Kings leaue Secondly because he would appeale to the Pope Concerning this matter of appeale the same Author a little after declareth that there grew an hot contention betweene them Anselme his answere was Tues Petrus super hanc Petram c. And therfore quoth he to the King the obedience which I offer to S. Peters Vicar is not against mine alleageance to the King Thus had the Popes with a strong kind of poyson as it were so enchaunted those words of holy Scripture as to make them serue for a cloake of disobedience and breach of alleageance to temporall Princes Anselme being further vrged by the King that he had promised to keepe all the customes of his kingdome and hee was bound to performe alleageance aunswereth thus What doe you tell me that I breake mine alleageance to the King by appealing to the Sea Apostolique I grant I promised but conditionally that I would keepe those customes which are agreeable to the lawes of God and honesty And therfore where you tell me that I haue broken mine alleageance by preuaricating your laws in appealing to the Sea Apostolique sauing your honour it is not true if another had spoken it For the faith which Iowe to the King I haue it from the faith of God whose Vicar is S. Peter to whose Sea I appeale with much stirre and strife to this effect Anselme held his resolution stiffely 91. Nowe let the Reader bee entreated to compare these times with the times of the Affrican Councell and Anselme Archbishop of Canterburie with Augustine Bishop of Hippo. S. Augustine with the rest of the Affrican Councell condemned appellations to Rome as standing against godlinesse order the freedome of the Church as quenching the light of simplicitie as inducing darkenesse pride and ambition into the Church Now that which in Saint Augustines time was vngodly can it be made godly and lawfull in Anselmes time Yet Anselme we see maketh this thing the cause of God Augustine condemned appellations to Rome simply without consideration of disobedience to Princes What then would he haue done if thereunto had beene added the commaundement of his Prince against such Appellations Anselme standing for Appellation to Rome which Augustine denied and withstanding the iust and 〈◊〉 commaundement of his Soueraigne hath no other coâ—… to cast ouer the matter then the pretence of God and Saint Peters Vicar If this obedience had beene required of God to Saint Peters Vicar in Anselmes time Why was not the same required and yeelded in Saint Augustines time This is the difference betweene the opinions brought in by men and the truths of God that the one standeth alwayes the same in the Church without chaunge the other hath his times of rising and falling as this opinion of Appellation to the Pope which was so strongly reiected by Augustine found a time to rise vp betweene the pride of the Popes and the seruile flattery of some Bishoppes And what greater signe of pride in the Pope and
flatterie in his seruants then to resume these old condemned priuiledges and therewithall to patch yp a Iurisdiction standing so directly against the iudgement and practise of the ancient godly Fathers 92. And yet was Anselme as resolute in this as Augustine was in the contrarie But heerein a great difference appeared which might much sway the iudgement of indifferent readers if there were no other meanes to informe them that Saint Augustine standing against appellations to Rome had heerein the full consent of all his fellow Bishoppes not one dissenting But Anselme standing for appellations to Rome stood alone without the consent of so much as one Bishoppe which thing I report for the honour of the Church of England and of all the Bishoppes of England at this time who heerein resisted their Archbishoppe standing for the ancient liberties of the Church William Malmsburie witnesseth thus much In his exequendis saith he omnes Episcopi Angliae Primati suo suffragium negarunt That is In the execution of these things all the Bishops of England denied their consent to their Primate This sheweth that Archbishoppes were made the Popes seruants before Bishoppes were the reason was because the Archbishoppes vsed to purchase a Pall from the Pope which Pall Anselme had not yet at this time of his variance with the King obtained for Malmsbury saith he first asked leaue to goe to Rome for the Pall. Now the Pope in graunting the Pall conueyed an Oath of Alleageance with it as before we haue obserued which was the reason that moued our Archbishopps to stirre such rebellious tumults against the Kings of this land Such was this faction which Anselme maintained for the Pope against the King wherein he was condemned by all the Bishops of England in the question of Appellation as Thomas Becket was after this time condemned by all the Bishoppes in like sort in the question of Inuestitures 93. And therefore Henry the second had iust cause to publish that law which Roger Houeden calleth graue edictum execrabile against the Pope beginning Si quis inuentus fuerit literas vel mandatū ferens Domini Papae c. capiatur de eo sicut de regis traditore regui siue dilatione fiat iusticia That is If any be found bringing in the Popes Letters or Mandat c. let him be apprehended and let iustice be executed without delay vpon him as vpon a traytor to the King and Kingdome In the same law it is said Item generaliter interdictum est ne quis appellet ad Dominum Papam That is It is simply by law prohibited that no man appeale to the Pope This was not a new law now inuented by Henry the second but an auncient law now renued and vpon a iust occasion put in execution for William Rufus as before we haue declared vrged this law against Anselme proouing it to be one of his Fathers lawes and auerring that such appeales did stand against the auncient lawes and customes of his Kingdome so that the Kings Iurisdiction in such matters was maintained by the auncient lawes of this land 94. But because the antiquity of the lawes of our land is questioned by our aduersaries though this thing belong not to my profession yet let me in a few wordes declare what I haue met with in Stories concerning this point that it may appeare that the lawes of this land are much more auncient then that Religion which now is called the Religion of the Church of Rome King William Rufus the Conquerours sonne declareth as Malmsbury witnesseth that it was a custome of this kingdome confirmed by his father that without the Kings licence no man might appeale to the Pope Now these lawes and customes which William the Conquerour did publish and confirme were the auncient lawes and customes of the Saxons before him not first inuented by the Conquerour though enacted and established by him For Roger Houeden writing of these lawes which the Conquerour enacted saith that the King being once in minde to establish the lawes of the Danes was after much and earnest intreaty of the Barons perswaded to yeelde that the lawes of King Edward the Confessour should be retained still The Barons saith Houeden vrged the King Pro anima regis Eduardi qui et post diem suum concesserat coronam regnum cuius erant Leges Unde Concilio habito praecatui Baronum tandem acquieuit ex illa ergo die visa authoritate veneratae per vniuersam Angliam corroboratae confirmatae sunt prae caeteris patriae legibus leges Eduardiregis quae prius inuentae Constitutae erant in tempore Adgari aui sui For King Edwards soule who bequeathed him his Crowne and Kingdome after his death and whose lawes they were whereupon holding a Parliament he yeelded at last to the Barons request from that day forward the lawes of King Edward were by his authority honoured established and confirmed through all England which lawes were before found out and enacted in the time of Edgar Grandfather to King Edward After this Houeden entreth into a large discourse to proue that the lawes which the Conquerour established were King Edwards lawes which lawes saith he were called King Edwards lawes not because hee inuented them first but because after they had beene buried in some neglect lying vnregarded and not put in due execution for the space of three score and eight yeares after Edgars death for so many yeares are betweene King Edgars death and S. Edwards Coronation he reuiued them And thus much he confirmeth that the lawes established by the Conquerour were S. Edwards lawes and the same which were in vse here in the daies of that peaceable King Edgar And it is not without good reason collected that the same lawes proceeded from King Alphred for he like another Iustinian is reported to haue compiled certaine volumes of lawes not onely from the lawes of the Britaines Saxons and Danes but also of the ancient Grecians and other Besides that he translated into the Saxon tongue those lawes which were called the Molmucin lawes and also the Martia◅ lawes the one of Dunwallo Molmucius an auncient Brittish King the other so named of Martia Proba an auncient Brittish Queene And that William the Conquerour established the Saxon lawes it is likewise testified by Henry Huntingdon who saith thus Saxones pro viribus paulatim terram bello capessentes captam obtiuebant obtentam aedificabant aedificatam legibus regebant Nee non Normanici cito breuiter terram subdentes sibi victis vitam libertatem legesque antiquas regni iure concesserunt The Saxons by a strong hand ouercame the land in time by war built as they ouer came and as they built gouerned it by lawes The Normans also quickly subduing the land vnder them yet graunted by the right of the Kingdome lise and libertie and the auncient lawes to them whom they subdued 95. Then whereas William Rufus
Persians and that of the Persians by the Macedonians and that of the Macedonians by the Romanes so shal that of the Romanes be destroyed by Antichrist and that of Antichrist by our Lord Iesus Christ. 101. By all which wee findè by the consenting iudgement of the Fathers that Antichrist must rise vp vpon the ruine of the Romane Empire And finding the power and gouernement of the auncient Romane Emperours to be vtterly ruinated by Gregory the second the title of the Empire to be taken away from those Emperours by Gregory the third the rule of the City of Rome which was the auncient seate of the Empire taken vp and surprised by the Pope the Cities of the Empire neere adioyning to Rome to bee brought vnder the subiection of the Pope by conferring the Prophesies of Scripture interpreted by the Fathers with these euents which by History are truly recorded laying one thing to another the conclusion is euident My purpose is not to speake of Antichrist but onely passing through these Stories of the Popes temporall exaltation I thought it a small labour for the Reader to compare the Prophesies of Scripture and the iudgement of auncient Fathers with the euent which fell out in the time of the two Gregories the second and third Before which time the Popes neuer entred into such furious attempts against their Soueraigne Lords the Emperours For they yeelded exact obedience to Emperours from the time of the first Christian Emperour vntill the time of Gregory the first All which while they refused not to be ruled commaunded directed by the Emperours as by their Soueraignes not onely in ciuill affaires but euen in matters concerning the externall Discipline of the Church as calling of Councels and confirming them punishing and censuring disorderous Clarkes and Bishops that offended the Imperiall Lawes and such like In such things the Emperours ruled the Popes obeyed no striuing no threatning no casting off of the yoake appeared all this while But after that Phocas had granted to Beniface the third Pope the title of Oecumenicall Bishop and that the Church of Rome should be head of all other Churches then began that starre to fall from heauen falling from the simplicity of truth from sincerity of obedience into pride ambition and noysome lusts and neuer ceased rolling downwards till at last it fell into the deepe practises of the bottomlesse pit Thus when they began to fall they had one fall after another They fell not into the practise of deposing Princes vntill the time of Gregory the third Childeric or Chilperic 102. THe Popes hauing proceeded thus farre in deposing the Emperour thought all their labour lost vnlesse they might haue those Territories made subiect to themselues from which they had expulsed the Emperor Their feare was that either the seuerall Cities would procure their owne Freedome or that some that were strongest would surprise all the rest and so a small part might come to the Popes share The Lumbards were then strongest in Italy and had soone gotten the rest vnder their Dominion To preuent their rising and to inrich S. Peter with a new Patrimonie the Popes after they had vsed the power of the Lumbards against the Emperour so now against the Lumbards begin to call new aides into Italie drawing first Pipin and then Charles against the Lumbards by whose meanes they obteyned their purpose Pipin was made King of Fraunce for this seruice and Childeric the right King was deposed by Pope Stephen saith Harmannus Contractus other attribute this to Pope Zachary Childeric was shauen and thrust into a Monastery After all this there stuck a scruple in the conscience of Pipin for he had taken an Oath of Allegeance to Childeric his Soueraigne this scruple the Pope vndertooke to remoue For saith Vspergensis Pope Stephen absolued him of his Oath which in former times he had taken to his Soueraigne Childeric Thus were these great affaires ordered and disordered the Emperour deposed his subiects raised in rebellion against him the Pope exalted and inriched by the spoiles of the Empire the French king deposed his subiects absolued from their Oathes and Alleageance another set vp in the kingdome These were practises which before this time were neuer attempted by Popes From these beginnings and examples the succeeding Popes tooke light and made rules of their Gouernement and therefore after this the world could take no rest for the Popes Moreouer after these examples of Pipin and Charles they who through ambition aspired without right or Title to kingdomes haue deuoted their seruice wholly to the Pope And what holdeth the Spaniard so stiffe in Popery but onely an hope that by the Popes authority he may inlarge his Dominions in the same sort It is to be noted also that they who thus offer their seruice to the Pope are honoured by him as the onely defenders of the Church whereas none haue spoiled the Church more then these for Paulus Aemylius recordeth that Carolus Martellus father to Pipin being then Constable of France robbed the Churches and Monasteries of France at his pleasure promising that if he should obtain victorie against the Sarracins he would bountifully repay all But after most great and rich victories he not onely repayed nothing but thrust also the Bishpppes from their Seas held the Seas empty to pay souldiers which thing brought a foule confusion vpon the Church of Fraunce yet this man for his seruice to the Pope was accounted a great defendor of the Church Henry the fourth Emperour 103. THe auncient manner of choosing Popes was by the Emperours consent after that Emperours became Christian This was practised from the time of Constantine till Hadrian the third saith Platina who maketh this Hadrian the first who altred this auncient manner he tooke the opportunity of the absense of Charles the grosse then Emperor who was so incumbred with the warres of the Normanes that he could not attend this businesse But Onuphrius in his Chronicle of Popes setteth Iohn the fift to be the first Pope that was chosen without the Emperours commaundemâ—…nt and appointing both may be well reconciled for Onuphrius speaketh of the Popes vnder the auncient Emperours Platina of the Popes vnder the French and Germane Emperours for from Constantine till Iohn the fift Pope no Pope was chosen without the Emperours consent from Iohn the fift Pope till Charles the first no Pope was chosen by the Emperours consent Charles the first recouered the auncient rights of the Empire as before we declared from his time till Hadrian the third no Pope was chosen without the Emperours consent from Hadrian the third the consent of the Emperour was not required if Plaâ—…ina say true others witnesse that the Popes were alwaies chosen by the consent of the Emperor till Hildebrand The Popes thus striuing to cast off the ancient yoake when Gregory the seuenth was chosen Pope he added vnto this practise of reiecting the Emperours consent many moe practises by blood
fraud diuelish pride and Necromancy aspiring to the Papacy and was at last made Pope not onely without the consent of the Emperor but without the consent of the Cardinals also onely a company of armed men with some few of the Clergie gaue out that Hildebrand was chosen Pope by S. Peter he was much furthered by one Maude a Gentlewoman of great riches then in Italy with whom he had great familiarity 104. Henry the fourth Emperour called a Councell at Wormes to represse Hildebrand The Bishops of that Councell condemned Hildebrand for intruding into the Papacy for his infamous prodigious conuersation adiudgedhim to be deposed Hildebrand vpon the knowledg of these news excommunicated the Emperor depriued him of Gouernement absolued his subiects from their Oath of Alleageance The Emperor of a sudden being robbed of his friends subiects by the practise of them whom HildebraÌ„d had set to negotiate this matter was driuen to the greatest debasement of himselfe that hath bin heard of bare-foot in a sharp Frost in deepe Winter three daies attending at Canusium with his wife child before he was admitted to the Popes presence when he was admitted and had craued pardon his censure was to stand at the mercy of Hildebrand Which when he had confirmed by an Oath the Pope absolued him but afterward set vp Rodolph Duke of Sueuia in warre against him Rodolph being thus stirred vp to Rebellion against his Soueraigne was so wounded in a battell that being carried to Merseburge without hope of life called the Nobles and Bishoppes that had fauoured him and in their presence beholding his right hand which was smitten off in the battell This quoth he is that hand by which I confirmed an Oath of mine Alleageance to my Master Henry this haue I gotten by following your Councell returne you to your Master and keep your first faith as for me I goe to my Fathers 105. The Emperour after this gathered a Synode at Brixia The Bishoppes of Italy Lumbardy Germany meeting there condemned Hildebrand for a disturber of Christendome a disorderer of the Church a periurous sacrilegious Incendiary a Witch and Necromancer The Emperour besieged him in the Castle of S. Peter but Hildebrand vnderstanding that the Emperour vsed to resort to S. Maries Church to pray set a knaue aboue the place where he vsed to pray to throw downe a great stone vpon him and to kill him VVhilst the varlet was setting the stone for that purpose downe comes the stone and the traytor with it who was crushed to peeces therewith After that Hildebrand had set vp many such practises against the Emperour without effect he betooke himselfe to flight And â—…andring like a Vagabond without comfort without helpe without hope though brought to a most pitifull estate yet pitied of no man trauelling vnder the vnsupportable burden of a restlesse conscience he died for griefe at Salernum By all which we see that this new and monstrous practise of deposing Kings was resisted by the Emperour as pestiferous against his estate disclaimed by Bishoppes as a thing strangely disordering the Church and ciuill States and iustly reuenged by God as a thing abhominable The Chronicles obserue as it is noted in Vspergensis Fol. 226. that this Henry the fourth had fought three score and two pitched battels in number surpassing M. Marcellus and Iulius Caesar of whom the one fought thirty the other fiftie Henry the fift 106. WHen Hildebrand and Rodolph both conspiring against Henry the fourth were both ouerthrowne the succeeding Popes maintaining the same pollicy and practise for it were pittie but that these Apostolicall practises were well knowne raised Henry the fift in armes against his father Henry the fourth this old Emperour being wearie of troubles and desirous to haue some repose made his purpose knowne that hee would resigne all gouernment to his sonne and goe himselfe in person to visite the Sepulcher of Christ but the sonne was stirred vp by the Popes to rebell against his Father before hee had vndertaken that iourney To colour his rebellion hee protested that hee sought not his Fathers Throne for desire of dominion neither wished he the deprination of his Lord and Father but if his Father would bee subiect to Saint Peter and his Successours then would he yeeld him the Empire The end of this contention was this The old Emperour was surprised imprisoned by his sonne and so died There is an Epistle of this Emperour extant in Naucler wherein he complaineth that he was betrayed against all humane and diuine Lawes being inuited by his sonne to a Treaty of peace after faith and assurance giuen for his life and honour comming peaceably to Mentz was surprised treacherously After all this Henry the fift comming to Rome found no more fauour then his Father had done For Paschalis the second contended with him so earnestly for Inuestitures which was the quarrell for which his Father felt so much the Popes anger that thereupon a tuâ—…ult was raised in that tumult Pope Paschalis was taken Who being in the Emperours power confirmed the Emperors Iurisdictión and disclaimed the right of Inuestitures yeelding it to the Emperour in that sort as his auncestours had vsed the same in former times 107. At this time the Cities of Italy tooke an Oath of aleageance to the same Emperour But after all this grant of Pope Paschalis no bond being sufficient to hold fast a Pope he called a Councell at Rome wherein he condemned all that himselfe had done in yeelding Inuestitures to the Emperour and excommunicated the Emperour The Emperor to preuent the dangers that might ensue came again into Italy and sent Ambassadors to the Pope to try if these matters might be brought to a peaceable end The Pope in the mean time calleth a Councell at the Lateran In this Councell Pope Paschalis excusing that fact of his for yeelding Inuestitures to the Emperour desired all that were present to pray for him that God would forgiue him For saith he that writing which I made which is called a priuiledge I doe heere condemne vnder an euerlasting curse and pray that all you will doe the same There followed a generall acclamation Fiat fiat that is be it so Then Bruno Bishop of Signinum faid We haue cause to thanke God that we haue heard the Pope from his owne mouth condemne this priuiledge Which is not a priuiledge but rather a prauiledge because it containeth prauity and heresie Whereupon another stood vp and said If that priuiledge containe heresie then hee who made it is an heretique Caietan being moued with the sharpnesse of that speach answered What dost thou in this Councell in the hearing of vs all call the Pope an heretique that writing was not heresie but it was euill Nay quoth another it was not euill c. Paschalis by his hand commaunding silence appeased the clamour and tolde them that heresie neuer entred into the Church of Rome This I haue
they whom he had banished from Parma were returned thither by the Popes practise and taking the Towne by force had giuen a great ouerthrow to the other Citizens fearing least this example might draw other Cities to the like reuolt he gaue ouer the iourney to Lions and wrote Letters to the French King and all Prelates refuting the Popes friuolous obiections declaring the iustice of his cause and his innocency Innocentius regarding neither iustice nor innocency pursued him by violence malice open warres secret conspiracies seeking all meanes that his vnholy head could inuent to take away the life of Fredericke As he was taking his recreation in hauking at Grossetum by the Sea shore neare to Sien the Pope drew his owne seruants to a conspiracy the conspiracy was detected and the traytors had the reward of their treason Innocentius who could not rest till he had done some Pontificall exploit against the life of this Prince stirred vp the Princes of Germany to thrust downe Fredericke and to set vp another first was set vp Henry Lantgraue of Thuringia this man besieging Vâ—…mes was wounded by the shot of an Arrow and shortly after resigned both his life and the Empire After this was William Earle of Holland set vp this man was slaine in the warres which he had gaged against the Frisians neither of these saith Naucler were numbred among the Emperours At last after so many secret traps laid for the life of this Prince behold the end of the Popes malice where strength faileth the Emperour was destroyed by poison King Iohn of England 124. THe King of England sped no better then others for by this vnbridled power of vsurped Iurisdiction King Iohn with the whole Kingdome was brought into great trouble and perplexity these troubles grew vpon a quarrell of Election betweene the Monkes of Canterbury and the Suffraganes in the seuenth yeare of King Iohn for after the death of Hubert Archbishoppe of Canterbury the Monkes without the knowledge of the King or respect of the Suffraganes chose Reynold the Subpriour of the house to be Archbishoppe who secretly went to Rome to haue this his election confirmed by the Pope but stay was made at Rome because he shewed not Letters commendatory from the King The Monkes perceiuing that without those letters commendatory they could not proceede made request to the King that they might chuse another whom the King might commend this the King liked well and commended Iohn Gray the Bishoppe of Norwich being his Chaplaine and President of his Counsell as Hollinshed saith but Mat. Paris whom he cyteth hath not so much The Monkes gladly obeyed the Kings request and madâ—… choise of this man but the Pope refusing both thrust vpon them Stephen Langton commanding and compelling so many of those Monkes of that Couent as were then at Rome to chuse him the King was herewith much moued because Stephen Langton was brought vp vnder the French King and bound to him betweene whom and King Iohn there was at that time much warre and dissention wherefore the King banished the Monkes that had chosen Stephen and wrote to the Pope that he had no reason to admit Stephen to such a place in his Kingdome a man promoted by the French King and at his commaund This contention continuing the Pope sent to the Bishoppes of England commaunding them to put the King and his land vnder the sentence of interdiction denouncing him and his land accursed The Bishoppes to whom the Pope wrote being by this time become the Popes subiects and sâ—…ruants and not the Kings which is the end which the Pope seeketh by his Iurisdiction denounced the interdiction and then fledde to Rome King Iohn seeing many fall from his obedience to the obedience of the Pope drewe his people to an Oath of Alleageance After this came Paâ—…dulph Legat from the Pope who after that he had beene here a while was commaunded by the Pope to repaire to the French King there with Stephen Langton to take Councell and to stirre vp the French to make warres vpon King Iohn Thus King Iohn was depriuâ—…d of his Gouernement his subiects absolued from their Alleageance by which practise many reuolted from him so that he was left weake and when the Popâ—… had thus weakned him then he set vp the French King in armes against him The issue was this The King circumuented by these practises of the Pope and oppressed being also bereaued of all helpe was forced to deliuer his Crowne to Pandulph and receiued it from him againe as from the Popes hands And thus was Stephen Langton made Archbishoppe this was done in the fifteenth yeare of King Iohn An. Dom. 1213. The Earle of Tholous 125. WHen Frederick the second liued so persecuted by the Pope as we haue declared a new and strange generation rose vp of a suddaine neuer seene in the world before starting vp like those armed Souldiers which the Poets faine to haue sprung vp suddenly of the Serpents teeth being sowed by Cadmus Such a serpentine generation of Friars were newly hatched at this time the first founders of them were Francis and Doâ—…inick For the Popes hauing a purpose to raise themselues aboue the Church and aboue Kings and Emperours as both by their profession and claime in the Canon Law and by their practise was apparant and for this purpose thundring out their excommunications vpon euery occasion practising this power in deposing Princes found themselues much crossed in these courses by Bishops and especially by the Bishops of Germany who stood out for a long time faithfull in the Church and couragious against the Popes tyranny Auentiâ—…us giueth many testimonies of the courage of the German Bishops as else-where also we haue obserued of the English Bishops for he writing of the times of Frederick the second the Bishops then saith he were not as now they are addict to the seruice of the Pope giuen to idlenesse and pleasure but learned industrious louing Christ and declaring their loue by feeding their flockes diligently These were not for the Popes purpose For in diuers Synodes they censured the Popes folly and ambition freely and withstood his tyrannie Then was the Church so gouerned by Bishops all matters so iudged and determined that the Pope might aduise but hee could not by authority attempt any thing in the Prouince of any Bishop thinges being guided by truth law the iudgement of the wisest and best learned in the Prouince and by the Councel and common consent of the Clergy of that Prouince Who had reason to know the estate of their Church and Prouince better then the Pope or any stranger could doe This godly order in the Church the Pope had a purpose to confound to oppâ—…esse the Bishops authority and to draw all power to himselfe Hoc iâ—…stitutum to vse the words of Aueâ—…tinus tollere antiquare Episcoporum autoruatem Labefactare ad vnius cuâ—…cta potestatem redigere complacitum est 126. This being the purpose of Popes
his Kingdome to such as would inuade it absolued his Subâ—…ects from their faith alleageance drew those that had taken the Crosse for the warres of Ierusalem to fight against Peter And when Martiâ—… was dead Hoâ—…orius the fourth did redouble his curses vpon Peter After all these curses and so much bloud and warres procured by the Popes to the vexation of Christendome yet Peter maintained his chalenge and held those Kingdomes Philip the French King 136. BOnâ—…face the eight pretending to aduance the holy warres for this was not the least pollicy of that Sea to send Princes abroad that in the meane time they might suck their Kingdomes and draw the sinewes thereof to Rome for this purpose sent the Bishop of Ariminum to Philip the faire the French King The Bishop hauing vsed all perswasions hee could by faire meanes and finding the King nothing mooued with all that he alleadged from perswasions hee fell to threatnings The King being much offended at his threatnings and because as some adde the Bishoppe had rauished an ingenuous maid threw the Bishoppe in prison Others say he apprehended the Bishoppe Quod esset paterinus 〈◊〉 Whatsoeuer the cause was of the Kings offence Boniface was highly displeased and sent the Archdeacon of Narbon to command the King to acknowledge that he held his Kingdome of the Church of Rome or else to denounce the Anathema against him and obsolue all French men from their Oath of Alleageance When the Archdeacon arriued at Paris the King would not permit his Bulles to be published The Popes letters were taken from him and burned with fire The King also vnderstanding the end of the Popes earnest motion for his iourney to Ierusalem to be that in his absence he might draw great treasures out of France to Rome published an Edict wherein it was made vnlawfull for any to depart out of France to Rome or thither to carry money Whereupon Boniface cursed Philip to the fourth generation absolued his Nobles and gaue his Kingdome to Albert the Emperour inuesting Albert by his letters into the Kingdome of France but Albert protested that he would not stirre against the King vnlesse hee might haue thaâ—… Kingdome confirmed to him and to his heyres No quoth the Pope that may not be as long as Iezebell liueth meaning Elizabeth wife to Albert a woman of great fame and honour whom he hated for no other cause but for that her brethren and auncestors had done valiantly against the Sea of Rome 137. Against this furious attempt of Boniface Philip the French King in an Assembly at Paris appealed from the Pope to a generall Councell this appeale is diuersly reported All agreâ—… that he appealed from the Pope Platina confoundeth the Narration thus Adsedeâ—… Apostolicam tum vt ipse dicebat 〈◊〉 futuruâ—… que Concilium appellauit That is He appealed to the Sea Apostolicke then vacant as he said and to a Councâ—…ll which should after this be held Naucler deliuereth it thus Rex 〈◊〉 congregari fâ—…cit Paritijs omnâ—…s Praelatos Franciâ—… nec non Barones facto Concilio pro sui iustificatione appellauit ab illa senteÌ„â—…a se excusando contra Bonifacium inuehendo c. That is The French King gathered a Councell at Paris of Prelates and Barons and for his owne iustification hee appealed from that sentence excusing himself inueighing against Boniface This man then hath nothing of any appellation to the emptie Sea but the appellation was as diuers were about these times from the Pope to a generall Councell this appeale was sent by Sarra Columna a Nobleman of Rome and one Nogarelius a French Knight a man faithfull to the King The pretence was diuulged that they should goe to publish the Kings appeale against the Popes Decree but Sarra hauing another secret purpose came into Italy in the habite of a seruant gathered closely by the helpe of his friends a band of souldiers and with great secresie and silence came to Anagnia where the Pope lodged then in his fathers house Sarra breaking vp the doores tooke Boniface in bed bound him and brought him to Rome where after a few daies in great sorrow and desperation he ended his wretched life Ranulphus saith that he was set vpon an Horse vnbridled with his face turned to the horse taile and so running to and fro was famished with hunger and died like a Dogge as the common saying was of him that he entred like a Foxe raigned like a Lion and died like a Dogge It may be truely said of all the Popes that liued since the yeare of Christ one thousand which Naucler obserueth of this Pope Imperatoribus Regibus Principibus nationibusque torrorem potius quam religionem inij cere conabâ—…tur dare regna auferre pro arbitrio c. He sought not so much to plaâ—… Religion as terrour in Emperours Kings Princes and nations to giue and take away kingdomes at his pleasure Where hee doth truely describe the fruite of the Popes excommunications it is not for planting of Religion but for striking a terrour in Princes and breeding a confusion in the world and therfore it is no censure of Christs Church because all these censures plant Religion without confusion of Princes and disordering of the world 138. Finding in Story two Epistles one from Boniface to this Philip the other from Philip to Boniface I thought good to set them downe they are but short Boniface seruant of Gods seruants to Philip the French King feare God and keepe his commandements VVEe will haue you to vnderstand that you are subiect to vs both in spirituall and temporall affaires No collation of Benefices or Prebends belongeth to you and if you haue the vacation of any reserue the fruits thereof to the successours if you haue made any collation we iudge that such shall be of no validity that are to come and those that are past we reuoke reputing all Hereticks that thinke otherwise Dated at Later an c. The answere was thus returned Philip by the grace of God King of France to Boniface bearing himselfe as Pope health little or none at all YOur singular fooleship may vnderstand that in temporall affaires we are subiect to none that the collation of Churches and Prebends perteineth to vs by royall prerogatiue and the fruits thereof during the Vacation that the collation already made or hereafter to bee made are of iust force and validity and thatwe will defend the possessours thereof against all men reputing all foolish and madde men that thinke otherwise Henry the seuenth 139. HEnry the seuenth Emperor was much fauoured at the first by Clement 5. Pope for that Clement was highly offended with Philip the French King who then sought the Empire the hatred of Philip drew fauour to Henry but as passion ruled the Pope so pride ouer-ruled the passion and turned this fauour into greater hatred for when Henry came to order the State of Italy at that
great learning and iudgement I will record heere some obseâ—…uations of his for it seemeth that he had a purpose to reâ—…ute that former worke of Triumpâ—…us though the truth is hee nameth not Triumphâ—…s throughout all his booke concerning this point of Iurisdiction one especiall ground which hee layeth is this Ab â—…fficio principatâ—…s siâ—…e 〈◊〉 iurisdiction is 〈◊〉 soâ—… coactiuâ—… 〈◊〉 cuiuslibet in hoc sâ—…lo Christâ—…s seipsum Apostâ—…los exclusit 〈◊〉 vâ—…luit That is Christ hath excluded and purposed to exclude hiâ—…selfe and his Apostles from principalitie or contentious iurisdiction or regiment or any coactiue iudgment in this world Which thing he prouâ—…th at large both by Scriptures Fathers because Christ â—…aith his kingdome is not of this world by which words coactiue Iurisdiction is excluded as was the doctrine of Christ such was his example of obedience for he was alwayes subiect to the coactiue power of the Magistrate Thus by the â—…ound and cleere Scriptures with the expositions and iudgement of the ancient Fathers he resuâ—…eth that noueltiâ—… which had no other ground then the Popes decretals 8. Therefore he examineth the authority of the Popes deâ—…retals and giueth a learned and iuditious distinction declaring thereby how the Pope may bee obeyed or not obeyed commaunding against the Emperour for saith he if the Emperour commaund any thing against the law of God and the Pope commaund things agreeable to that law thou must ouâ—… of doubt obey the Pope and not the Emperour But if the Emperour commaund something according to his imperial law the Pope command somthing according to his decretals against the imperiall lawes no man subiect to the Emperour ought in such things to obey the Pope Which thing he proueth at large because the ciuill Magistrate beareth the sword because he is the Minister of God the reuenger of disobedience because euery soule is subiect to him Which things saith hee are not spoken of any spiritual Gouernour but of the Temporall Magistrate For the Goueâ—…nours to whom in coactiue Iuâ—…isdiction we must obey are such as by armed power defend their Countries and people which in no case can agree to a Bishop or Priest 9. By such reasons he proceedeth and proueth infallibly his purpose and conclusion that no spirituall Gouernour hath from Christ any Iurisdiction coactiue but this power is left wholly in the hands of the ciuill Magistrate And thus doth cut in sunder the sinewes of their disputations who plead for the Popes Iurisdiction which Iurisdiction they make to consist in power coactiue Of the Popes decretals which then were lately deuised Lawes against the auncient Iurisdiction of the Church as also against the Iurisdiction of Princes he saith Vt ipsi fabulantur in sâ—…is decretalibus quâ—… secundum veritatem nihil aliud sunt quà m ordinationes quaedam Oligarchicae quibus in nullo obedire tenentur Chrsti fideles in quuntum hâ—…smodi That is As they bable in their decretals which in truth are nothing but certaine Oligarchicall ordinations to which Christians are in no case bound to obey as they proceed from the Pope Wherein he deliuereth thus much that these Canon lawes or decretals ought to haue no force among Christians vnlesse they be confirmed by the lawes of the land and by Princes in their Dominions so many as Princes shall thinke fit for the gouernment of the Church in their proper Dominions may be established being established ought to be obeyed but not as the Popes laws vse but as the laws of those Princes for that is it which Marsilius saith the decretals are not to be obeyed in quaÌ„tuÌ„huiusmodi Now that all coactiue power is by God deliuered to the Temporall Magistrate hee prooueth solidly from these words he is the Minister of God to take vengeance by vengeance all coactiue power is vnderstood Neither doth he denie but that the Church gouernours may execute coactiue power but then they must haue it from Princes and from such Temporall powers which haue the same Which being expresly and distinctly written by him three hundred yeres agoe is no other thing then that which we now maintaine at which our aduersaries seeme to wonder as at some new doctrine neuer heard before when the same truth after the saâ—… manner beene maintained by the learned men that haue handled this question before vs. Nec in quenquam presbyterum saith he aut non pres byterum conâ—…enit coactiâ—…am in hoc saeculo Iurisdictionem habere quenquam Episcopum siâ—…e Papam â—…isi eadem siâ—…i per humanum legisâ—…atorem concessa fuerit in cuiâ—…s potestate semper est hanc ab ipsis reuocare That is No man Priest or not Priest can haue Iurisdiction coactiue in this world Bishop or Pope vnlesse it be granted to them by the humane law-maker in whose power it is at his pleasure to recall it from them 10. Concerning the right of calling Councels his determination is this If a cause of religion rise in question the Pope saith he may signifie the same to the chiefe Temporall Gouernour but the authority of gathering and calling the Councell belongeth to him that hath coactiue Iurisdiction and ought to bee gathered by his coactiue precept When it is gathered he leaueth the first and chiefe seat therein to the Bishop of Rome hee giâ—…eth him the honour to propose the matter to collect all together that is spoken to communicate the things determined to others and to excommunicate the transgressors And all this to doe not at his owne pleasure or vpon his owne head sed ex concilij sententia onely by the direction of the Councell This principality he yeeldeth to the Bishop of Rome and to that Church so long as thus it standeth and so long as it doth nothing to the contrary whereby this honour may be iustly withdrawen Secundum quâ—…m modum saith hee Romanae vrbis quamdiâ—… extiterit obicemque ad hoc non apposuerit populus ille c. poterit licitè ac debebit iâ—…m â—…ict a principalitas in Episcopo Eccleâ—…a continue reseruari That is According to which maner this principality may lawfully and ought to be reserued alwayes for that Bishop and that Church as long as it thus standeth and doth nothing to the contrary This honour if the Pope would haue held himselfe contented therewith might long time enough beene reserued vnto him But when this could not content him but he must haue all Iurisdiction ouer the Church and ouer secular Princes if he finde not that honour yeelded to him which hee expecteth he may thanke himselfe because he hath procured his owne contempt and by vsurpation of vndue honour he hath lost that which though it was not due to him yet from some custome was giuen might haue beene continued to this day if himselfe had not caused the Church to withdraw it For saith mine Author Licet circa 〈◊〉 Ecclâ—…sia 〈◊〉 Episcopi Ecclesiae fidelium neque diuina neque
〈◊〉 legâ—… aliqâ—… obligarentur 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is aut institutis Ecclesia vel 〈◊〉 Râ—…manorum plusquam â—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—…e 〈◊〉 rationabili 〈◊〉 qua fideles in vnitate amplius seruabantur eo quod tune fideli 〈◊〉 legislatore ipsos in ordine reducente 〈◊〉 in vâ—…itate seruante c. That is Albeit about the beginning of the Church other Bishops and Churches of beleeuers were not bound by any diuine or humane law to obey the mandates of the Church or Bishop of Rome rather then the contrary yet this profitable and reasonable custome preuailing by which beleeuers were better kept in vnitie because they wanted then a Christian Magistrate to reduce them to order and preferue them in vnitie therefore they were afterward bound as by a diuine law to this obedience in things honest and lawfull 11. But because the Popes and their flatterers did couer all their practiseâ—… with plâ—…nitudo 〈◊〉 as with a mist therfore he doth with great light of learning and truth dispell that mist This saith hâ—… is Loâ—…us 〈◊〉 â—…nde etiaÌ„ paralâ—…gismus quâ—… reges principantes â—…o singâ—…los coactiua 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 subiectos 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 trâ—…xit origineâ—… That is This is a Sophisme whence that Paralogisme drew his beginning by which they striue to draw Kings and Princes and all other vnder their subiection by coactiue Iurisdiction And therfore iâ—… he belaboreth exâ—…ctly and at full to open this fallacion of fulnesse of power the suâ—…e whereof is this By a pretended fulneâ—…e of power the Pope wiâ—…hout ground or reason onely led thereto by pride and ambition intruded vpon the right of Iesus Christ and vpon the right of the Church and vpon the right of Temporall Princes wresting all authority to himselfe this he calleth fulnes of power â—…or iâ—…by fulnes of power be vnderstood tâ—…at power wherby all men and all creatures are commanded and directed to what end the commauâ—…der will this power is giuen onely to Iesus Christ and to no other man according to that Scripture all power is giueâ—… vnto me in heauen and in â—…arth But if by fulnesse of power be vnderstood power to preach to excommunicate to binde to loose to interpret Scripture to determine controuersies this power is in the Church partly in Bishops partly in doctors partly in Councels and not more in the Pope then in another Bishop Last of all if by this fulnesse of power be vnderstood Soueraigne Iurisdiction coactiue then it is in Temporall Princes Marsiliuâ—… maketh moe parts hereof bâ—…t I draw him summarily and presume that to these three heads all that he saith may be reduced 12. And therefore whereas the Pope claimeth such â—… power intruding vpon the right of each of these he saith Ex vnâ—… 〈◊〉 in 〈◊〉 â—…ransiuit Romanâ—…s 〈◊〉 Thâ—…t is The Pope hath from one presumption passed into another The same Author declareth how the Popes proceeded in these their incroachings vpon Iurisdiction First saith he they made some constitutions to gouerne the Clergie then they proceeded by way of exhortâ—…tion intreaty to perswade the laitie to keepe fastes to abstaine from meats When they saw that laymen did willingly receiue suâ—…h obseruations theÌ„ they proceeded to ordaine the same things as laws to denounce excoÌ„municatioÌ„ against the transgrâ—…ssours thereof And all this was done saith he Suâ—… 〈◊〉 diuinâ—… culâ—…us speciâ—… That is Vnder a shewe of godlinâ—…sse and the worship of God The same Author addeâ—…h Cresâ—…ente autem 〈◊〉 ipsis appâ—… 〈◊〉 ampliâ—… domiâ—…di attendentibâ—…s deuotoâ—… fideliâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ignauiaâ—… diuinâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 qui ad â—…a 〈◊〉 sacerdoteâ—… indicebantur obligari credebanâ—… 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 aeternâ—… praesumpseruâ—…t 〈◊〉 Episcopâ—… Romaâ—…i cum suo clericoruâ—… coetu â—…ligarchica quaedam edicta 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 actus 〈◊〉 c. That is But as the appetite of ruling farther continually increased in them when they sawe that deâ—…ote Christians were kept in feare with such proceedings through slothfulnesse and ignorance of Gods worship which Christians ignorant thought themselues bound vnder the paine of eternall damnation to all that was inioyned them of the Priests then the Bishops of Rome with their Clergie presuming further made certaine Oligarchicall Edicts concerning ciuill actions Thus saith hee the Bishoppe of Rome began first to practise expemptions And that hee might draw a number of the Laiety into the loue of those practises he extended these exemptions to diuers companies of Lay persons and so defrauded the Magistrate of due honour and obedience and brought in that confusion whereof the same Authour complaineth thus Hâ—…c est pestilentiae Italici regniradix origo ex qua cuncta scandala germinauerunt prodeunt c. Qua stante nunquamciuiles ibidem cessaâ—… discordiae pâ—…testatem enim hanc ad quam paulatim latenti prâ—…aricatione subintrauit ex consuetudine aut abusione verius dudum detinuit Rom. Episcopus eandem sibi per principem reuocari formidans merito propter commissos excessus creationeâ—… atque 〈◊〉 Rom. Principis omni maligna sollicitudiâ—… vitat That is This is the roote and fountaine of the pestilence which troubleth the Empire from whence all scandals growe and proceede and which standing ciuill discords shall neuer cease in Italy for the Pope fearing that this power may be reuoked by the Emperor and that deseruedly for the excesse committed therein into which power he hath by little and little stolne by secret preuarication of custome or to say more truely of abuse hauing holden it some while he hindreth the creation and promotion of the Emperor by all malice and spite Wherupon saith he some Popes haue broken out into such impudency as in their Decretals is to be seene that they aâ—…ouch that the Emperor is bound to them in an Oath of Alleageance as if the Emperour were vnder them subiected by coactiue Iurisdiction 13. Then Marsiliuâ—… hath discouered the reason why the Popes haue so much opposed themselues against the Emperors to be because they were affraid least the Emperours should call them to a reckoning for their Exemptions for the abuse of their excommunications for intruding themselues into the office of the ciuill Magistrate and taking a newe authority vpon themselues from themselues without warrant of the Emperour This is that thing which caused them to stirre so much against Emperours and at last to procure the decay of the Empire so much as at this day they haue made it so weake that now they are out of the feare thereof Other things for breuities sake I omit this is sufficient to vnderstand what reason learned men had then to withstand the Popes Iurisdiction This booke of Marsilius was neuer answered and hereafter is not like to be But Iohn the two and twentieth against whom this booke was intended did in stead of aunswering condemne this worthy Writer which thing was much more easie for him to doe §. II. William Occham and Michael Cezena 14. BVT the truth could not be suppâ—…ssed
magno maturo consilio ab ipso Domino Iohanne à dicta eius assertione arrestationâ—… infratempus Legitimum meo nomine omnium fratrum mihi adhâ—…rentium Uolentium ac dictâ—… ordinis secundum quod tradunt Canonicâ—… sanctiones ad sanctam Romanam Ecclesiam Catholicam Apostolicam appello That is After great and mature deliberation first had I appeale from the same Pope Iohn and from his said assertion and arrest within lawfull time for my selfe and for all my brethren that do adhaere or will hereafter adhaere to me and for the said Order according as the Canonicall Constitutions doe allow vnto the holy Romane Catholicke and Apostolicke Church In which place he professeth that he doth this by the example of diuers other who had done the like before 18. From whence I would obserue some things declaring the sense iudgement and religion of the men that then liued And first where he saith that he doth this by great and mature deliberation and that herein he hath the approbation of diuers learned men of diuers Vniuersities and that hee doth it by the examples of such as were before him we note that this is not the iudgement of one man but of the most famous learned men of this age For farther confirmation hereof we obserue also that Naucler speaking of this particular and of the cause of Lodouicke Emperour saith that many learned and godly men of Christendome held that Pope Iohn the two and twentieth was an Hereticke conuict of assured errours Iohannem Papam saith he magni multi theologi scientia vita probatidogmatizabant esse haereticum propter cersos errores And speaking of the learned men that wrote against the same Pope he nameth Dante 's and Occhaâ—… among other This agreeth with that which OcchaÌ„ witnesseth of this Pope that his own conscience accusing himselfe of his errors he durst not come to the iudgement of a generall Councell Then I note not here onely the iudgement of these learned men but the sense and iudgement of Christendome of a generall Councell of the Church of Rome For Cezena and Occham who was combined with Cezena in this cause would neuer haue appealed to the Church of Rome or to a generall Councell then representing that Church vnlesse they had been fully secured herein that the Church to which they appealed had condemned the errours of the Pope from whom they appealed They then knowing the sense and iudgement of that Church appealed from the Pope to it â—… which thing is further also confirmed by that which he saith in his appeale Secundum quod tradunt Canonicâ—… sanctiones as the Canonicall Constitutions deliuer then the Canons of the Church allow and approue such an appeale howsoeuer since this time the Popes haue alteâ—…ed the Canons and discipline of the Church yet then this discipline was in force and acknowledged through Christendome that the Pope might be censured in a generall Councell 19. Another thing which we obserue in this appeale is a remarkeable distinction famously obserued in the sense iudgement and religion of the men of this age betweene the Church of Rome and the Court of Rome For Cezeâ—…a after that hee hath appealed from the Pope to the Church of Rome complaineth much of the Court of Rome as being wholly gouerned by the Pope from whence he appealing to the Church of Rome declareth euidently that by the Church of Rome he vnderstood another thing then that which our aduersaries now cal by that name an assembly whereof the Pope is the heade which are wholly to be guided gouerned and directed by the Pope This is now commonly called the â—…hurch of Rome but at this time wherein Cezeâ—… liued the Church of Rome was vnderstood to be a free lawfull holy generall Councell assembled of the Churches of these Westerne parts of Christendome This is the Church of Rome which our forefathers haue so much honoured The sentence of this Câ—…urch they reuerence 〈◊〉 authority of this Church they acknowledge appealing from the Popes sentence as vniust reâ—…ecting his authority as vnlawfull still resting in the iudgement of the Church of Rome This declareth that the Pope may bee separated from the Church of Rome though not from the Court of Rome Now separate once the Pope from the Church of Rome as by these appeales it must so be vnderstood and then it followeth by infallible â—…nference that the Church of Rome as now it is commonly knowne by that name is no other thing then that which â—…se learned men called the Court of Rome and that this prâ—…ent Church of Rome is not that which our fathers called the Church of Rome It is not the same thing for from that Church of Rome the Pope might be separated from this he cannot From the Pope to that Church a Christian might appealâ—… which sentence was iustified by the most learned that then liued From the Pope to this Church there is no appeale Thus much I obserue from this appeale and from the appeale of Lodouâ—… the fourth Emperour which before we haue declared being to the same end and agreeing in the same forme with this being from the Pope to a generall Councell which also he calleth the holy Church of Rome In which same manner did Philip King of Fraunce appeale from Pope Boniface besides diuers other who vsed the same course as Michael Cizena witnesseth 20. Hence riseth this Corollary that the reformed Churches haue made no separation from the Church of Rome but onely from the Court of Rome And that the Pope and his Court that is Friars and Canonists who depend wholly vpon him terming themselues now the Church of Rome haue made the separation and haue altred the auncient bounds of the Church and plucked vp the old hedge which was the partition between the Church and Court of Rome Thus they reteyning onely the name haue chaunged all things and turned them vpside down So that albeit that which I shall say may seeme a strange Paradox yet it is a truth which will euery day bee more and more knowne and confessed The auncient Church of Rome yâ—… euen that Church of Rome which stood in the world before the Councell of Trent can now bee found no where in the world but among Protestants Marsilius Pâ—… obserued the beginning of this alteration thus Apud Mâ—…rnos Ecelesiâ—… 〈◊〉 importat ministros Presbyteros Episcâ—… c. 〈◊〉 Ecclesiâ—… Rom â—…rbis hoâ—… 〈◊〉 obtinuit cuius ministri praâ—…identes sunt Paâ—…a Râ—… Cardinâ—… ipsius qui 〈◊〉 ex usu quodâ—…â—…runt dici 〈◊〉 The Church importeth as much as Ministers Priests Bishoppes in late vse c. as the Church of the Citie of Rome hath now obtained this name whose Ministers and Gouernours are the Pope and his Cardinals who now from a certaine vse are called the Church But that vse was but late brought in especially by Friars for the auncient vse of this which was also long continued
liued 30. But was not Bishoppe Grosthead of the same faith and Religion with the Church of Rome Yes verily and so will I be if you grant me his conditions exceptions for he putteth two clauses very memorable by which he will condition with the Church of Rome or any other particular Church whatsoeuer First That the doctrines of that Church be the doctrines of Christ and his Apostles Secondly That so wee may regard the Church of Rome that wee be sure to hold vnity with the true Church the body of Christ. These excellent and famous men that haue heretofore liued in the vnity of the Church of Rome haue beene willing wee confesse to yeelde so much to the Pope and that particular Church as they might doe holding vnity with the true body of Christ. But if the vnity with the Romane Church doe draw them away from the vnity with Christs body then haue they alwaies beene resolued to giue ouer the vnity with that particular Church This confirmeth that which before I obserued in the Distinction betweene the Church of Rome and the Court of Rome because we see many learned and worthy men of our forefathers were of the Church of Rome that is held the bond of vnity with it who were professed enemies to the Court of Rome Now the Pope and his flatterers haue forsaken that vnity with the Church of Rome which stood in Apostolicall doctrines and vnity with the true body of Christ howsoeuer they boast of the name and haue nothing now to shew for themselues but the pride and faction of the Court of Rome 31. Now come we to the time wherein liued Iohn Wiclif another of the worthies of Merton Colledge in Oxford his aduersaries would blot him with the name of an Hereticke some things are vntrue wherewith they iniuriously charge him some things are true which they vniustly call Heresie In this question of Iurisdiction as he receiued the truth from Occham his Senior in Merton Colledge so he deliuered the same faithfully Speaking of the Kings Iurisdiction as well ouer the Clergie as Laity he saith The chiefe Lordshippe in this land of all temporalties both of secular men and religious pertaine to the King of his generall Gouernement for else hee were not King of all England but of a little part thereof Therefore the men that busien them to take away this Lordshippe from the King as don Friars and their sautors in this point beene snarper enemies and Traytors then Frenchmen and all other nations Wiclif labored worthily to descry refute the errors concerning Iurisdiction that in his time came creeping in introduced by Friars For he witnesseth that the Friars taught thus Rex Angliae non est rex totius Angliae sed regulus paruae partis super residiâ—…um vero mortificatum est Papa Dominus Veruntamen non est disp utandum inquiunt de hac materia quousque fuerit in effectu potentius stabilita sed tolerandae sunt iniuriae dominorum saeculâ—…rium quousque arriserit opportunit as temporis That is The King of England is not King of all England but Lord of a little part ouer the residue in a dead hand the Pope is Lord but say they there is no disputing of this matter vntill it be powerfully brought in effect In the meane time they say the iniuries of temporall Lords must be borne vntill an opportunity fauo ur them This is plaine dealing The Friars declare what is that thing at which they haue long aimed For what other meaning haue their pretended exemptions then by making a reuolt from the obedience of their soueraigns to become wholly the Popes seruants and creatures 32. But this late generation of Friars I meane the Iesuites exceeding these olde Friars in admirable practises in the blood and destruction of Princes and states are yet so confident in their wit and eloquence that they thinke themselues able to perswade the Kings of the earth to account them among good and loyall subiects The old Friars dealt more plainely they professed not obedience to Princes these professe more and would colour their deepe deuises in destruction of Princes with impudency and dissimulation as if they meant not the same things which daily they practise Now that which Wiclif taught against these wicked and prophane opinions of these olde Friars was no other thing then the iudgement of the learned Diuines which liued before and in his time for he brought in no nouelties but the Friars introduced the nouelties in Religion and Iurisdiction And that Distinction which before we obserued betweene the Church of Rome and the Court of Rome he confirmeth as a thing notoriâ—…usly marked in his time for of the Church of Rome he saith thus Protestor publice quod amando venerando Romanam Ecclesiam matrem meam desidero procuro defensionem omnium priuilegiorum suorum That is I protest publiquely that louing and honouring the Church of Rome Ireuerence my mother and procure the defence of all her priuiledges But of the Court of Rome or that particular Church of Rome which was gouerned by the Pope hee saith much otherwise not doubting but that the iudgement of the particular Church of England might in many things be preferred before that particular Church of Rome guided by the Pope Fieripotest saith he quod Dominus Papa foret ignarus legis scripturae quod Anglicana Ecclesia foret longe praestantior in iudicio veritatis Catholica quam tota ista Romana Ecclesia collecta de istis Papa Cardinalibus That is It may come to passe that the Lord Pope may be ignorant of the law of Scripture and that the Church of England may be more excellent in the iudgment of the Catholicke truth then all this Romane Church collected of the Pope and Cardinals Then in those dayes there was not much attributed to the Popes not erring iudgement or to the authority of that Church which was wholly gouerned by the Pope seeing the Pope might be ignorant of the lawe of God and the Church of England might haue a more excellent iudgement in the truth then that particular Church of Rome That which Wiclif saith might come to passe the world seeth and acknowledgeth that since that time it is come to passe That Friars were the introducers of Nouelties we haue already shewed out of Iohn Wiclifes obseruations In this sorte things stood vntill the time of the Councell of Pisa which was helde some twentie yeares after Iohn Wiclifes death §. IIII. The Popes Iurisdiction ouerthrowne by Councels 33. THus haue we heard the iudgement of learned men against the Popes Iurisdiction after that the same Iurisdiction began to be practised these haue refuted especially that part of his claime which was in temporalibus Now we will consider another part of his pretended Iurisdiction which was in spiritualibus in this we finde his feathers as well pulled as in the former so that when both temporall and spirituall Iurisdiction is
personis id intelligendum est non de vniuersali Ecclesia quae saepe obedientiam iustis de causis Romanis Pontificibus subiraxit vt Marcellino Anastasio Liberio Ioha 12. Benedict 9. Benedicto 13. Iohanni 23. That is That is to be vnderstood of particular Churches persons not of the Vniuersall Church which many times vpon iust occasions hath withdrawen obedience from the Bishops of Rome as for example from Marcellinus Anastasius Liberius Iohn the twelfth Benedict the ninth Benedict the thirteenth Iohn the twentie three They haue in like sort concluded that the Popes Gouernment in the Church is to be admitted not that he rule at his pleasure but according to the doctrine of Saint Peter Ut ipse Ecclesiam Dei salubriter regat non quidem vt pro libito voluntatis suae cuncta peragere velit spreâ—…is canonibus sacrorum conciliorum sed iuxta beatiss Petrâ—… doctrinam sic regat non vt dominans in clero sed vt formafactus gregis Romanus enim Pontifex est vniuersalis Ecclesiae minister non Dominus That is That he may soundly rule the Church of God not that he should doe all things according to the lust of his owne will reiecting the Canons of holy Councels but according to the doctrine of Saint Peter let him so rule not as a lord ouer the Lords inheritance but as examples to their flockes for the Bishop of Rome is the Minister of the Vniuersall Church and not the Lord. They haue concluded that if this Iurisdiction bee graunted to the Pope which he claimeth aâ—…d which his flatterers pretend for him that by this meanes the way is laid wide open for Antichrist Aperite oculos videte qualis ex hoc daretur ingressus Antichristo That is Open your eyes and behold what an entrance by this meanes would be made for Antichrist So that they who yeeld any authoritie and reuerence to these Councels must needs acknowledge that the Popes Iurisdiction is laid downe in the dust 47. Now let Bellarmine come with his fine distinctions and tell vs that these Councels are partly confirmed partly reiocted partim confirmata partim reprobata these be pleasant heads that can take of these Councels what pleaseth them and reiect all that is against them but let them collude with their owne consciences as they list they are not able to answere that which we vrge or any way to shift vs off for wee doe not vrge these conclusions as decrees of Councels though against them they may iustly stand for such but wee doe not produce them to that end but onely to declare the religion sense and iudgement of Christendome what it was at this time and before what was the doctrine of the Church concerning Iurisdiction What the wisest the most learned and best men in Christendome then taught What was the iudgement of the Church of Rome then This is euidently declared by these Councels and that we may vrge no more but this by this wee haue enough to proue that the Church of Rome then stood fully against the Popes Iurisdiction If they tell vs that Eugenius and they who followed him was the Church and not these that were gathered in Basil I aunswere this doth more and more confirme that which I haue obserued betweene the Church of Rome on the one side and the Pope with his flatterers on the other side who albeit they haue gotten the vpper hand by force and fraud yet let them know the basenesse of their birth and progeny they are but a late vpstart generation beginning when Friars began lifted vp by the winde which themselues did raise for increasing the Popes pride crossed and contradicted yea refuted and condemned by the learned and godly that liued in the Church of Rome neuer fully preuailing before the Councell of Trent Then let them not demaund of vs such fâ—…iuolous questions where was our Church before M. Luther for we are able to shew both our Church and their Church the antiquitie and not interrupted continuance of the one and the base vpstart and late rising of the other §. V. Iohn Gerson 48. HAuing thus farre declared the iudgement of the Church of Rome assembled in diuers Councels now let vs consider how in particular the learned men of these ages stood affected in this question and who they were that tooke part with these Councels to aduance the authoritie of the Church aboue the Pope for they who followed the Pope in this faction were onely Friars and flatterers but on the other side were these as then the great lights of Christendome for learning that I may of many remember a few 49. First Iohn Gerson a man of great authoritie in the Councell of Constance who hath written diuers bookes wherein he preferreth the authority of a Councell before the Popes authoritie and speaketh much otherwise of Iurisdiction then the Court of Rome vseth now to speake His booke De potestate Ecclesiastica was pronounced and approued in the Councell of Constance in the yeere of Christ one thousand foure hundred and seuenteene as in the end thereof appeareth from whence I will obserue some things declaring his iudgement in our question of Iurisdiction First he describeth that spirituall power which Christ hath left to his Church thus Potestas Ecclesiastica est potestas quae à Christo supernatur aliter specialiter collata est suis Apostolis discipulis ac eoruÌ„ successoribus legitimis vsque ad fineÌ„ saeculâ—… â—…d aedificationeÌ„ Ecclesiae militantis secunduÌ„ leges Euangelicas pro 〈◊〉 faelicitatis aeternae That is Ecclesiasticall power is a power supernaturally especially giuen by Christ to his Apostles and Disciples and their lawfull successors vnto the end of the world for the edification of the Church Militant according to the Euangelicall lawes for the obteining of eternall life This power we acknowledge with Gerson nay with all the auncients who speake no otherwise of the power which Christ hath committed to his Church But then we wish that our aduersaries might vnderstand how they wander in ignorance and confusion confounding this power which is spirituall executed secundum leges Euangelicas with that power which is coactiue and executed secundum leges Canonicas It is their common manner to confound these things and thereby to perplexe themselues and their readers but of all that euer I read he surpasseth who calleth himselfe the Catholike diuine for confused vnlearned handling of these things Then the power which Christ left to his Church is practised secundum leges Euangelicas this is the true power of the Church But our question hath beene altogether of Iurisdiction coactiue executed not secundum leges Euangelicas therefore not giuen by Christ to his Church but belonging to such lawes to whom all coactâ—…ue power peculiarly belongeth 50. Of this coactiue power the same Gerson saith thus Potestas Ecclesiastica Iurisdictionis in foro exteriori est potest as Ecclesiastica
would haue imputed hereticall prauity to the Councell Thirdly and last of all the distinction betweene the Church of Rome and the Court of Rome wherof we haue so often spoken is here againe confirmed For these flatterers stood for the Popes Iurisdiction against the Church of Rome heere assembled in a Councell but howsoeuer they haue preuailed since wee see heere that by the Church of Rome they were accounted then but a base companie of flatterers These bee they who afterward preuailed in the Councell of Trent lifting vp the priuiledges of the Pope aboue the Church And this is that Church on the other side which then was in danger to be pronounced heretickes by the Pope and these who are marked and branded not by me but by Gerson Cusanus Aeneas Siluius and the rest of both these Councels of Constance and Basil to bee no better then a generation of base flatterers 54. Then there is no great thing done or at which the world may maruel when we see the reformed Churches at this day accounted heretickes by the Pope and his flatterers for this was a thing long looked for The Church did beare the pride of the Pope the ignorance and insolency of his flatterers as long as she could indure it And when there was no remedie made a separation indeede from the Pope and his flatterers holding on still in the auncient waies of our fathers who haue from time to time made resistance against the Pope and his seruants from which auncient way of our forefathers from their profession sense iudgement and religion the Councell of Trent hath made a famous defection hauing declined and turned aside from the ancient and constant profession of the truth in doctrine and Iurisdiction vnto these new and straunge deuises taken vp of late and inuented by Friars and flatterers of the Court of Rome This defection which the Pope hath made from the Church and the Church from him was long before looked for and diuers did speake of it before it came to passe as Mat. Paris declareth that some feared it might haue beene done by Bishop Grost head so Cardinall Cusanus declareth as hereafter we are to shew how the Church may depart from the Pope 55. The same Gerson saith also Concilium generale potestatem à Christo immediatè habet cui quilibet cuiuscunque status etiamsi Papalis existat obedire tenetur in his quae ad fidem extirpationem schismat is pertinent That is A generall Councell hath power immediatly from Christ whereunto euery man is bound to obey in things concerning faith and the extirpation of Schisme of what state soeuer he be though a Pope And he addeth thus much Saluberima haec determinatio lex fundamentalis velut infallibilis aduersus monstrosum horrendùque offendiculum quod positum erat per multos determinantes ex texibus grossè non ad regulam Euangelicam acceptis c. generale concilium totum â Papa robur immeditate sumere That is This most sound determination is a sundamentall law and as it were infallible against that monstrous and horrible offence which is giuen by many concluding from texts grossely vnderstood and not according to the Euangelicall rule c. That a generall Councell receiueth all strength immediatly from the Pope In which wordes hee obserueth that the Popes flatterers who brought in this Papall Iurisdiction aboue the Church Councels did induce hereby a monstrous and horrible offence in the Church This offence saith hee was giuen by such as would proue this Iurisdiction from certaine texts of Scripture as Tu es Petrus super hanc Petram aedisicubo Ecclesiam meam and oraui pro te Petre c. And such like which are wire-drawen to countenance this Papall Iurisdiction Which texts saith Gerson are grossely taken by these flatterers and not according to the rule of the Gospell And seeing we finde that the Iesuites at this day haue no other ground for the Popes Iurisdiction then the same texts by them and their forefathers distorted into a wrong sense as it is obserued by our forefathers against them let the Iesuites know themselues to be the generation of those that haue distorted the holy Scriptures and thereby brought a monstrous and damnable offence into the Church Gerson presenly after this declareth that against these flatterers the reuerend Cardinall Cameracensis whom he calleth his worthy master did write in defence of the truth Scripsit saith he super hanc materiam reuerendiss pater dominus Cardinalis Cameracensis praceptor meus inclytus which booke of Cameracensis if it be extant for I could not see it though I much desired I suppose might make these flatterers to be better knowen and the right of the Church more strongly confirmed 56. Gerson proceedeth and of that Iurisdiction which the Pope claimeth by imposing his Canon lawes vpon other Princes he saith Papa non debet 〈◊〉 vt Canones positi aut alienae traditiones humanaeâ—…nuariabiluer obseruentur per omnes nationes That is The Pope ought not to striue to impose his Canons or that other humane traditions bee kept inuariable of all nations Where he declareth that this imposing of the Popes Iurisdiction vpon other nations gaue occasion to the Greekes to make a separation from the Latins and daily ministreth occasions of contention through Christendome In the same Booke which he Intituleth De â—…uferibilitate Papae he holdeth positiuely that howsoeuer in some other respects there might be some vse of a Pope yet concerning this our question of Iurisdiction the Pope with all his pretensed Iurisdiction might be vtterly remoued from the Church his position is Auferibilis est Papa per generâ—…le concilium perpetuo 〈◊〉 adtempus quoad ea omnia quae sunt â—…urisdictionis That is The Pope may be remooued by a generall Councell either for euer or for a time in respect of all things pertaining to Iurisdiction Now if the Pope may be remoued from the Church in respect of Iurisdiction then the Canonists are quite put downe who hold that the very essence of the Papacy standeth in Iurifdiction Further concerning this question of Iurisdiction the same Iohn Gerson hath made a Treatise wherein he handâ—…eth this question An liceat in causis fidei a summo Poâ—…tifice appellare Wherein he determineth that a man may appeale from the Pope §. VI. Cardinall Cusanus 57. SOmewhat after this wrote Cardinall Cusanus who offered his Booke De concordantia Catholica to the Councell of Basil submitting himselfe and his labours to the iudgement of that Councell It appeareth that about this time there were some motions and consultations of a reuolt from the Pope and Court of Rome which consultations were moderated then for a time by such learned men as were in greatest estimation but afterward vpon the like reasons it brake foorth Cusanus disputeth this point in an Epistle written to Roderic de Treuino â—…rator to the King of Castile Wherein he seemeth first
reward that is reserued for you you will commaund that a Synode may bee gathered Another part of the office of a Prince is saith he Confirmare custodire in concilijs 〈◊〉 which thing hee proueth by diuerse auncient authorities and concludeth that Emperours haue euer had this authoritie Hee saith that in this thing hee had made diligent search and had found this practise continued in all generall Councels vntill the eight Synode inclusiuely In which search saith hee I finde by the acts of all generall Councels aswell in Chalceon as in Constantinople Nice Ephesus that either the Emperour was present in person or some iudges his Vicegerents and those not aboue twentie seldome fifteene but when the Emperour himselfe was present in person I finde saith he that hee was alwayes Presedent of the Councell no other secular Prince hath right to be present in the Councell sauing the Emperour Vnlesse the Emperour appoint some to be present but being present they haue no voice in the Councell but may sit onely to heare this he proueth by that testimony of Ambrose in the cause of faith Bishops are the iudges and not the Emperours 61. And whereas this auncient Iurisdiction of Princes was so disordered by the Pope that by Papall intrusions and incroachments the Princes had well-nigh lost their right and temporall Iurisdiction turned into spiritual Iurisdiction of this he much complaineth and openeth the true cause of all this disorder to be in the insatiable couetousnes of the Court of Rome for thus he saith Rabidus appetitus ad ipsa terrena Ecclesijs annexa Dominia Episcopis ambitiosis hodie inest c. de temporalibus omnis cura de spiritualibus nulla Non fuit ista intentio Impâ—…ratorum non volebant spiritualia à temporalibus absorberi c. dum vacant Ecclesiae semper in periculo schismat is existunt c. Si perelectionem prouidendum est ambitio procurat diâ—…isionem vâ—…torum Si per curiam facilius persuadetur pro plus offerente omnia illâ—… grauamina adueniunt pauperibus subditis curia attrahit quicquid pingue est id quod Imperium contulit pro Deicultus bono publico ordiâ—…auit sanctissime auaritia cupiditate exorta palleatis rationibus nouis adinuentionibus totaliter peruertitur Imperiale efficitur Papale spirituale temporale That is Such a rauenous appetite is in ambitious Bishoppes at this day toward the temporall Dominions annexed to Churches c. all their care is for the temporalties not for spirituall matters this was not the meaning of Princes they meant not that the spirituall labours should be deuoured by temporalties c. Whilst the Churches are vacant there is alwaies some danger of a schisme c. If they proceed by election ambition procureth a diuision of the voyces If by the Court he that bringeth most is best heard and soonest preuaileth And all these greeuances come vpon the poore subiects whatsoeueris fat and rich the Court of Rome draweth to her selfe and that which the Empire as well for the worship of God as for the publicke good hath conferred vpon the Church and ordeined to an holy end all is vtterly peruerted through filthy couetousnesse and certaine painted reasons and new inuentions are deuised to colour it And thus the Imperiall right is now made Papall and temporall right is made spirituall Then these be the obseruations of the learned men of the Church of Rome long before vs that the Pope had intruded vpon the Emperours right now what soeuer the Pope had once practised that must be called spirituall Thus the Iurisdiction of the Emperor being once by cunning or force wrested from the Emperour being found in the Popes hand it was presently called spirituall Iurisdiction as he doth most truely obserue Imperiale efficitur Papale spirituale temporale 62. By all which we find the iudgement of this man to be directly against the Popes pretensed Iurisdiction and for the right of temporall Magistrates when we finde the Cardinals of the Church of Rome to write thus before the time of the contention and before M. Luther was borne wee are not so much to consider their priuate iudgements in these things as the receiued iudgement of the Church wherein they liued that is the Church of Rome from the iudgement of that Church they departed not but in these things do faithfully deliuer vnto vs the iudgement of the same Church standing against the iudgement of the Pope and his Court consisting of Friars and flatterers Thus we see the cause of the Reformed Churches throughly iustified by this learned Cardinall their separation from the Pope and the Court of Rome warranted because the Pope hath first made the separation from the profession of Saint Peter and from the faith of holy Scriptures and the idugement of auncient fathers In which case he granteth that the Church may depart from the Pope and thereby doth iustifie the separation that is made §. VII Aeneas Siluius 63. AT this time wrote Aeneas Siluius afterward called Pope Pius the second he hath written a booke of the actes and proceedings of the Councell of Basil from which I will note some things wherein the iudgement of this man may appeare concurring with the iudgement of the Church of Rome in his time but repugnant to the Pope and his flatterers First handling that Text Tues Petrus super hane Petram c. he saith thus A quibus verbis ideó placuit exordiri quod aliqui verba hâ—…c ad extollendam Rom Pontificis authoritatem solent adducere sed vt statiâ—… patebit alius est vâ—…rborum Christi sensus That is With which words I thought good to begin because some vse to alledge these words to extoll the authoritie of the Bishop of Rome but as it shall soone appeare there is another sense of Christs words Who are they who in the iudgment of this man do peruert the words of Christ Let the Iesuites aunswere and let them giue vs some reason able to satisfie a man of reason why that cause should not bee helde damnable which is condemned by their owne writers their Bishoppes their Cardinals their Popes Let them not tell vs that this Pope Pius was of another mind afterward when he was Pope and before he was Pope he might erre but after he was once Pope he could not erre these bee plaine collusions of them who write such things and illusions of such as beleeue them For it is not possible that any man should write or speake or thinke such things from conscience Shall I thinke that any learned man can thinke in conscience this to bee true that the Pope cannot erre when I heare the testimonie of the Church so full against it When I heare such as come to be Popes refute it before they come to that place When I heare such as haue beene in the place exclaime in the extremitie of desperation that no man in
the world liueth more miserably then the Pope that to be a Pope is to succeed Romulus in Parricide not Peter in feeding that no Pope can bee saued when all this is proued by the Church of Rome confessed by Popes themselues after all this to say the Pope cannot erre is nothing but collusion No man can be drawen to such an opinion by conscience but by such worldly respects as doe binde and blinde and lay waste the conscience of them that will not loue the truth 64. 〈◊〉 Siluius proceedeth and out of S. Hierome expounding those word pâ—…rtas inferi the gates of hell he proueth that they are to be vnderstood of sinnes And declareth that great sinnes and malignant spirits cannot preuaile against the Church Quod de Rom. Pontisice saith he qui homo est nemo dixerit nec illis praestemus aures qui illa verba Christi â—…raui pro te Petre ne deficiat fides tua nolunt ad Ecclesiam referri That is Which thing no man can say of the B. of Rome who is a man neither are we to hearkeÌ„ to theÌ„ who will not haue those words of Christ vnderstood as spoken to the Church when he saith Peter I haue prayed for thee that thy faith failenot Where he proueth out of S. Augustine that those words are to be referred to the Church And that they cannot be vnderstood oâ—… the Bishops of Rome he is resolued giueth such reasons as may resolue any other that will not wilfully blindfold himselfe as many do that the blind doctrine of Iesuits may work more powerfully in them For saith he Romani Episcopi aut haeretici aut infecti vitijs sunt reperti That is The Bishops of Rome haue bin found either Hereticks or vicious men And concerning this Iurisdiction he saith Omnis anima potest atibus sublimioribus subdita sit nec excipit animam Papae That is The Apostle saith let euery soule be subiect to the higher powers hee excepteth not the soule of a Pope And again Maximè Rom. Pontisicem subiectuÌ„ Ecclesiae verba Christi ostendâ—…nt quum PetruÌ„ futurum Papam ad Ecclesiam remittat dic Ecclesiae And afterward Si haeretiâ—…us est qui Romanae Eocle siae primatum aufert c. quanto magis haereticus erit qui Ecclesiae detrahitâ—… qua Romana omnes aliae continentur In which words we find that by the Church of Rome he vnderstandeth not the Catholicke Church dispersed ouer the world but only a particular Church among many other hauing only in his iudgment this priuiledge that in respect of other Churches it had a Primacy This he saith not for the Pope but for the Church of Rome which Church he holdeth but a part of the Catholick Church For if we vnderstand the Church of Rome that particular Church which of old hath bin gouerned by the Romane Bishops this is but a particular Church of this particular the B. of Rome is the chiefe head inspirituall matters But if by the Church of Rome we vnderstand an aâ—…sembly or vnited consent of these westerne Churches among which the Church of Rome hath bin honored as a Mother Church in which respect all these Churches as they are vnited are sometimes called the Romane Church In which sense also I find that distinctioÌ„ obserued between the Church of Rome the court of Rome In this sense the particular Church of Rome is vnderstood a part and member of this and the Pope hath alwayes beene vnderstood as subiect to this Church and not aboue it 65. Now that distinction which before wee haue obserued betweene the Church of Rome on the one side and the Pope with his flatterers on the other side is noted also by the same Author For of the Church he saith thus Opiniâ—… omnium mortuorum est si opinio vocari debet quae idoneis confirmatur authoritatibus quia Rom. Pontifex vniuersali 〈◊〉 subiectus existâ—… That is It is the opinion of all that are dead before vs if it may be called an opinion which is confirmed by such pregnant authorities that the Pope is subiect to the vniuersall Church In which words he declareth the iudgement of the Church which was before his time But speaking of the Pope with his flatterers he saith Sunt aliqui siue auids gloriae fiue quod 〈◊〉 praemia exspectent qui perigrinas quasdam omnino nouas praedicare doctrinas caeperunt ipsumque summum Pontificem ex Iurisdictione sacri concily demere non vâ—…rentur excaecauit â—…os ambitio That is There be some who either because they are greedy of glorie or because by flatterie they hope for rewards begin to preach certaine straunge and altogether new doctrines they are not afraid to exempt the Pope out of the Iurisdiction of an holy Councell ambition hath blinded them This is the religion which the Iesuites would make so auncient heere is their high antiquitie In the time of Aenaeas 〈◊〉 who wrote in the yeere one thousand foure hundred and fiftie their religion is called an absurd a new and a straunge doctrine herein Siluius is a witnesse without exception for so much of their religion as concerneth the Papall Iurisdiction which is in summe all the religion of the Iesuites When thus it is marked and marked by a Pope their mouthes are stopped for euer For he doth deliuer the sense iudgement and religion of the Church in his time faithfully and freely against which testimonie no exception can be taken 66. And that these men that haue brought in this newe straunge monstrous religion may be throughly knowen and no doubt or scruple left behinde hee describeth them thus Alius dicit quod primam sedem nemo iâ—…dicabit quod 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Augusto neque ab omni clero nec à regibus c. iudicars valeat 〈◊〉 â—…ere non veretur Rom. PontificeÌ„ quamuis animas 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ad inferos trahat nullius reprehensioni fore subiâ—…ctum Nec considerant miseri quia quâ—… praedicant tantopere verba aut ipsaâ—… summorum Pontificum sunt suas fimbriâ—…s extendentium aut eorum quieis adulabaâ—…tur That is One saith that no man may iudge the first sea that he may not be iudged either of the Emperour nor by all the Clergie nor by Kings c. Another is not ashamed to affirme that though the Pope should draw innumerable soules with himselfe to hell yet no man ought to reprooue him Neither doe these wretches consider that these doctrines which thus they would aduâ—…nce are either the wordes of the Popes themselues inlarging their fringes or the words of their flatterers Then in his iudgement it is cleere that the Church on the one side held the truth euen till his time in this point of Iurisdiction and on the other side the Pope and his flatterers maintained as he calleth them new and straunge doctrines of Iurisdiction It is well to be obserued that 〈◊〉 Siluiâ—… before he was Pope could so freely condemne this Papall
Iurisdion And was hee trow you a Lutheran verily so was the Church in his time for he doth deliuer not so much his owne priuate iudgement as the iudgement of the Church in his time and in the times before him For he saith it was the iudgement of all that liued and died in the Church before him 〈◊〉 mortuoruâ—… that the Pope is to be iudged by the Church by a Councell and that therefore the Councell is aboue the Pope This faith he is the opinion of all that liued and died in the Church And yet hee knew well that Friars and flatterers had before his time maintained the contrary but these he regarded not because the Church then regarded them not they were but of base and vile accompt in respect of the Church and so much the more vile because against the iudgement of the auncient Church against the rules of interpretation against honestie and conscience they had drawen some textes of Scripture to maintaine this Papal Iurisdiction These are they whom these learned men call 〈◊〉 miserable and wretched soules who will not vnderstand that all this which they bring for the Popes Iurisdiction is nothing but the vain words of the Popes themselues or of their flatterers 67. Now seeing the Pope with his flatterers hath much preuailed since this time against the expectation of these learned men must we not conclude that they haue herein made a departure from the Church that they are but flatterers who now follow the Pope that they were neuer accompted otherwise by the grauer sorâ—… of the Church of Rome that their opiâ—…ions are new and strange Thâ—…n with what countenance can the successours of Aenâ—… 〈◊〉 pâ—…t vpon vâ—… the imputation of heresie who follow the ingenuous free and sincere iudgement of the same Siluiuâ—… leauing these opinions whiâ—…h are confessed by him to be new fond straunge vnreasonable deuises of base flatterers and maintaining the 〈◊〉 truth which by the testimonie of these men alwayes continued in the Church This man with many moâ—… will be raised vp in the day of iudgement against this present generation consisting onely euen by the confession of their own Bishops Cardinals and Popes of the Pope and his flatterers forsaking the fellowship of the Church 〈◊〉 is the ground of their conscience For let me speake onely of this part of their religion which now I handle that is Iurisdiction and what ground can any man finde here whereupon he may rest his conscience Let them not bring vs an idle and impertinent discourse of their three conuersionâ—… which in good time by the grace of God will be reuâ—…rsed but let them come to the point and let them shewe in this particular what ground of conscience any man may haue to rest on for the Popes Iurisdiction which was crossed contradicted and inhibited by the auncient Fathers confuted by the learned men of the Church of Rome condemned by the Councell of the Church of Rome maintained by none â—…ut such as are thus notoriously branded with the ignominious titles of flatterers 68. And because the Pope and his flatterers for spâ—…aking of them I must vse this name and stile which so many writerâ—… of the Church of Rome haue vsed before me let â—…hem not blame me or thinke that I 〈◊〉 them I vse but the words of these other writers whom I haue cited These men I say being driuen in argument from all helpes hauing no meanes to answere the learned that disputed against them did vse to flie for helpe to these words of the Gospell Thou art Peter and to thee will I giue the keyes of the kingdome of heauen and I haue prayed for thee Peter that thy faith faile not and such like the same Author declareth that they did altogether abuse and peruert these places of Scripture against the sense of the wordes and against the expositions of the auncient doctors For thus hee saith Eâ—… quia huiusmodi dicta solutionem habent recurrunt statim ad Euangelium tu es Petrus tibi dabo claues regnicâ—…lorum rogaui pro te Petre ne deficiat fides tua duc in altum rete c. Quâ—… omâ—…ia hi homines miro modo sublimant expositionibus sanctorum doctorum omninò posthabuis That is And because these words conteining their reasons aâ—…e all answered they flie presently to the Gospell thou art Peter and to thee will I giue the keyes of the kingdome of heauen and I haue prayed for thee Peter that thy faith faile not and cast thy net into the deepe c. All which these men after a marueilous maner raise vp to extoll the Pope reiecting altogether casting behind theÌ„ the expositions of anâ—…ient doctors Then we haue one Pope full of our side for he assureth vs that this new strange wresting of these textes to aduance the Popes Iurisdiction standeth wholly against the expositions of the auncient Fathers Aenaeas Siluiuâ—… in the same booke speaketh much in the honour of the French Cardinall of Arles as an especiall admirer of his vertues Lodouicus Cardinalis Arelatensis saith he Uir omnium conâ—…tantissimus ad gubernationem generalium conciliorâ—…m natus That is A man of all other moâ—…t constant and one that was borne for the gouernment of general Councels One testimonie I would produce of this Cardinall and then wee haue three Cardinals for vs Cameracensis Cusanus Arelatensis This Cardinall in the mids of the Councell of Basil professed that the doctrine of the Popes Iurisdiction ouer generall Councels was a new doctrine and strange at that time in the Church â—…ardinalis Arelatensiâ—… saith he aiâ—… Eugenianos nuntios implesse Galliam qui 〈◊〉 doctrinam praedicantes authoritatem Romani Pontificis supra generalia concilia magnifacerent 69. After all this when we finde that Cardinall Bellarmine and the rest of the Friars and flatterers haue nothing to say for the Popes Iurisdiction but that which is condemned by these learned men as a newe and straunge doctrine in the Church haue no other reasons to maintaine this their new doctrine then the peruerting of these texts of Scriptures which distorting of Scriptures is expresly censured by the said learned men as standing against the naturall sense of the words and against the expositions of the ancient Fathers writing of those Scriptures when we find not one or two or a few but the cry of the whole Church against them who is able by any shew of learning to auoid our conclusion that they who thus maintain this Papall Iurisdiction are the followers of their forefathers that is onely Friars and flatterers And that we who denie this Papall Iurisdiction giuing to the Church on the one side and to Soueraigne Princes on the other side their proper distinct auncient rights respectiuely belonging to each of them are the followers and the children of our forefathers that is the true ancient vnchaunged Catholicke Church FINIS Iob. 7. 1. Uitruuius lib. 9. cap. 3. Caluin in Amos