concoxions enow from the Church to nourish a conscience to such a strength as Martyrdome requires For that which their great Doctor Franciscus a Victoria pronounces against his direct Authoritie we may as safely say against that the indirect This is the strongest prooâ—e that can be against him This Authority is not proued to be in the Pope by any meanes and therefore he hath it not To which purpose he had directly said before of the direct Authoritie It is manifestly false although they say that it is manifestly true And I beleeue it to be a meere deuise only to flatter the Popes And it is altogether fained without probability Reason Witnesse Scripture Father or Diuine Onely some Glossers of the law poore in fortune and learning haue bestowed this authority vpon them And therefore as that Ermit which was fed in the Desert by an Angell receaued from the Angell withered grapes when hee said his prayers after the due time and ripe grapes when he obserued the iust time but wilde sower grapes when he preuented the time so must that hasty and vnseasonable obedience to the Church to die for her Doctrine before she her selfe knowes what it is haue but a sower and vnpleasant reward CHAP. X. That the Canons can giue them no warrant to aduenture these dangers for this refusall And that the reuerend name of Canons is falsly and cautelously insinuated and stolne vpon the whole body of the Canon law with a briefe Consideration vpon all the bookes thereof and a particular suruay of all those Canons which are ordinarily cyted by those Authours which maintaine this temporall Iurisdiction in the Pope TO this spirituall Prince of whom we spoke in the former Chapter the huge and vast bookes of the Canon law serue for his Guarde For they are great bodies loaded with diuers weapons of Excommunications Anathems and Interdicts but are seldome drawen to any presse or close fight And as with temporall Princes the danger is come very neere his person if the remedie lie in his guard so is also this spirituall Prince brought to a neere exigent if his title to depose Princes must be defended by the Canons For in this spirituall warre which the Reformed Churches vnder the conduct of the Holy Ghost haue vndertaken against Rome not to destroy her but to reduce her to that obedience from which at first she vnaduisedly strayed but now stubbornly rebels against it the Canon law serues rather to stoppe a breach into which men vse to cast as wel straw and Feathers as Timber and Stone then to maintaine a fight and battell 2 This I speake not to diminish the Reuerence or slacken the obligation which belongs to the ancient Canons and Decrees of the Church but that the name may not deceiue vs For as the heretiques Vrsalius and Valens got together a company at Nice because they would establish their Heresies vnder the name of a Nicene Councell which had euer so much reputation that all was readily receiued which was truely offered vnder that name so is most pestilent and infectious doctrine conuayed to vs vnder the reuerend name of Ecclesiastique Canons 3 The body of the Canon law which was called Codex Canonum which contained the Decrees of certaine auncient Councels was vsually produced in after Councels for their direction and by the intreaty of popes admitted and incorporated into the body of the Romane and Imperiall law and euer in all causes wherein they had giuen any Decision it was iudg'd according to them after the Emperours had by such admittance giuen them that strength 4 And if the body of that law were but growen and swelled if this were a Grauidnes Pregnancy which she had conceiued of General Councels lawfully called and lawfully proceeded in and so she had brought forth children louing and profitable to the publique and not onely to the Mother for how many Canons are made onely in fauour of the Canons all Christian Princes would be as inclinable to gâ—ue her strength and dignity by incorporating her into their lawes and authorising her thereby as some of the Emperours were And had the Bishops of Rome maintained that purity and integrity of Doctrine and that compatiblenesse with Princes which gaue them authority at first when the Emperours conceiued so well of that Church as they bound their faith to the faith thereof which they might boldly doe at that time perchance Princes would not haue refused that the adiections of those later Popes should haue beene admitted as parts of the Canon law nor should the Church haue beene pestred and poisoned with these tumors excrescenges with which it abounds at this time and swelles daily with new additions 5 In which if there bee any thinge which bindes our faith and deriues vppon vs a Title to Martyrdome if we die in defence thereof as there are many things deriued from Scriptures and Obligatory Councels the strength of that band rises so much from the nature of the thing or from the goodnesse of the soile from which it was transplanted to that place that though we might be Martyrs if we defended it in that respect yet wee should loose that benefit though it be an euident and Christian truth if we defend it vpon that reason That it is by approbation of the â—ope inserted into the body of the Canon law which is a Satyr and Miscellany of diuers and ill digested Ingredients 6 The first part whereof which is the Decretum compiled by Gratian which hath beene in vse aboue foure hundred yeares is so diseased and corrupt a member thereof that all the Medicines which the learned Archbishop Augustinus applied to it and all that the seuerall Commissioners first by Pius the fift then by Gregory the thirteenth haue practised vpon it haue not brought it to any state of perfect health nor any degree of conualescence 7 But though that Bishop say That Gratian is not worthy of many words though in his dispraise yet because he tels vs That the ignorant admire him though the Learned laugh at him And because hee is accounted so great a part of the Canon Law as euen the Decretall Epistles of the Popes are call'd Extra in respect of him as being out of the Canon Law it shall not be amisse to make some deeper impressions of him 8 Thus farre therefore the Catholicke Archbishop charges him To haue beene so indiscreete and precipitate that he neuer stood vpon Authoritie of Bookes but tooke all as if they had beene written with the finger of God as certainely as Moses Tables And hee is so well confirm'd in the opinion of his negligence that he sayes He did not onely neuer Iudge and waigh but neuer see the Councels nor the Registers of Popes nor the workes of the Fathers And therefore sayes hee There is onely one remedy left which is Vna litura And in another place That there can bee no vse at all made
and voluntarily offring their throates were slaine And hee saies that Simon Acosta one of the fiue brothers who were all of this Order declared himselfe to bee a Iesuite when â—e was not knowne that he might be put to death And so Aquauiua being pursued refused a horse by which hee might haue scaped and chose rather to die then ride And yet this was amongst Infidels where the Haruest was great and the worke-men few which kind of intemperance hath beene formerly condemned out of their owne authors 54 But of this point it is enough to relate the wordes of him who speakes in the person of all the Iesuites who cals himselfe Clarus Bonarscius but is vnmask'd and disanagrammatiz'd by his fellow who calls him Carolus Scribanius he saies That the Scaeuolaes the Catoes the Porciaes and the Cleopatraes are nothing to the Iesuites For they saies he lacked courage Ad multas mortes And in a fewe yeares he saies they haue had three hundred Martyres Therefore he saies that they of that Order doe violently teare out Martyrdome rapiunt spontanea irruptione and Crederes Morbo adesos and for what causes do they this Least the rest of their life should be barren of merites and passe away emptie of glorie and then hee passes to them who haue died in England and as in these men this hunger of false-Martyrdome goes euer together with blasphemy against Princes there he heapes Eulogies vpon Campian and reproaches vpon that sacred Prince for treason to whom he perished whom this wretch dares call Anglicanam Lupam and after Saeuientem Caluinianam lupam and after this he saies That when they come to this Order they bargain vpon this condition vt liceat prodigere animas hostili ferro In which I thinke he relates to that Oath which they take in the Colledge at Rome by a Constitution of the Pope that they shall returne into England to preach the Catholique faith publiquely there which Oath Nauarrus saies bindes them so strictly that they are disabled to enter into any rule of stricter religion though that were a further degree of perfection but must necessarily returne into England Of which oath we will say no more but onely repeat Baronius his Panegyrique and incitatorie encouragement speaking thereof The holy societie in her safe sheep-folds hath fatted you as innocent lambes for this Martyrdome and she sends you forth to triumphes and aduances you to Crownes Be therefore couragious and valiant you who haue vowed and betrothed your blood by an Oath for my part I enuie you that are design'd and apparant martyres and wish that my end may be like yours And what he assignes for one cause of this Martyrdome to which he prouokes them and congratulates their interest therein we declared out of his words before in the shutting vp of the last Chapter which was Defence of Ecclesiastique immunity that is debasing and diminishing of Princes And thus we haue gone one steppe further and to the former which were That the desire of Martyrdome might be vicious that as the Roman authors obserue in the first times it had beeene so and That by the Romane doctrine it must of necessity be so vve haue added now that the Iesuites more then any inflame thereunto CHAP. V. That the Missions of the Pope vnder Obedience whereof they pretend that they come into this Kingdome can be no warrant since there are lawes established to the contrarie to giue them or those which harbour them the comfort of Martyrdome IN the end of the second Chapter I mentioned a Canon of the Eliberitane Councell And as in that place it had this vse and office to shew that the intemperate and inopportune affectation of Martyrdome needed a restraint in some too aemulous thereof by Eulalines Example So may it very properly and needfully haue a place here because it showes the reasons why certaine men were not receiu'd for Martyrs by the Church 2 And the Authoritie of this Councell is of great force as well by reason of the puritie of the time in which it was celebrated which was about three hundred and fiue yeeres after Christ and twentie yeere before the Nicene Councell as especially in this point of Martyrdome because it was held in continuing Persecution and when the danger was imminent in those parts in which the people needed direction and instructionâ— And also because now there is no doubt of the genuine integritie of this Councell For though Bellarmine imputed some errouâ—s to it as being too seuere against such as had slipp'd in time of Persecution and Baronius spoke sometime of it Somewhat freely auâ— shâ—rpely sayeâ— Binius yet after that he changed his opinion and hee and Biniuâ— haue now redeem'd all the Canons of that Councell from any imputation 3 Of which Canons this is the sixtieth That they which breake the Idols of the Gentiles and are slâ—ine by them shall not be receiued inâ—o the number of Martyrs Because this is not written in the Gospell nor found that it was euer done by the Apostles So that by the opinion of that Councell that onely is a sufficient cause to intitle and interest a man in the Crowne of Martyrdome VVhich was found written in the Gospell or practised by the Apostles And is there any thing found in either of them which may be a precedent to this mission Christ appointed twelue whom hee might send to Preach but what The Kingdome of God And assoone as Saule had an inward mission the Text sayesâ— Straightwayes he Preached euen in the Synagogue But what Hee Preached Christ And what did hee Preach of him That he was the Sonne of God And that it was hee that was ordain'd of God a iudge of quicke and dead Andâ— as himselfe sayes of his practise after We preach Christ crucified But this mission from Rome is not to Preach Christ but his Vicar Not his kingdome of Grace or Glorie but his title to Temporall kingdomes Not how hee shall iudge quicke and dead at his second comming but how his Vicar shall inquire Examine Syndicate Sentence Depose yea Murder Princes on earth Not Christ crucified languishing for vs vnder Thorns Nayles Whippes Speares but his Vicar enthron'd and wantonly groning vnder the waight of his Keyes and Swords and Crownes 4 Christ said to those whom he sent VVhat I tell you in darkenesse that speake you in light and what you heare in the eare that Preach you on houses and feare not them that kill the body And if no other thing were told you in darknesse and whisper'd into your ears at your missions hither then those which our Sauiour deliuer'd to them you might be as confident in your publicke Preachings and haue as much comfort of Martyrdome if you died for executing such a Commission But what your instructions deliuered in darkenesse and told in your eares are appeares now enough by Inspection by Confession by
of this Collection but that a better must be attended out of the Originals 9 But if his errour were onely in Chronologies as to giue Pope Nicholas a place in the Councell of Carthage who was dead before Or in Arithmeticke as when purposely he enumerates all the Councels to make the number lesse by foure If this weaknesse had onely beene that he was not able to spell and so in a place of much importance to Read Ephesus for Erphesfurd Hierome for Ieremie and Hereticke for Henrie and a hundred such If he had stopp'd either at mistaking of true Authors as to cite out of Saint Peter that which Saint Paul sayes which libertie his Glosser extends farther and therefore cites a whole sentence for Scripture which is no where Or if he had stai'd at imagining words out of false Authors as to cite the Councell of Geneua and Macharius the Pope which neuer were as he and the Palea doe there were an open way for him as it is said in that Dialogue to say with the Apostle Quia ignorans â—eci 10 But we also finde malignitie and danger to our cause in his Falsifications For to dignifie the Sea of Rome hee cites Ambroses wordes thus Non habent Petri haereditatem qui non habent Petri sedem which in Ambrose is obseru'd to be Petri fidem And to establish the exemption of Clergie men from secular Iustice hee cites this out of a Councell now a thousand yeeres past Clericum nullus presumat pulsare apud Iudicem Saecularem Whereas the words of the Councel are Clericus nullus presumat And so the Councell layes a Commandement vpon the Clergie but Gratian layes it vpon the Layetie 11 Which falsitie Binius citing the Councell aright and Gratians words also right in the Margine forbeares to obserue or reprehend and dissembles the iniurie done to the world therein But Bellarmine hath delt herein with more obnoxiousnesse and lesse excuse then Binius because hauing no reference at all to Gratian hee cites the words out of the Councell it-selfe and hauing said That Counsell pronounces in this point more clearely in these words He cites the words falsely and corruptly as Gratian did before 12 And as for such iniquities as these we haue reason to decline Gratian as iniurious to vs So alâ—o in Charitie towards them which are caried with an implicite Faith in Canons in which name Gratian is enwrapped we are bound to tell you how vnworthy he is to bee relied vpon by you For in the point of the Emperours Electing the Pope hee hath spoken so dangerously that Baronius is forced to giue this censure vpon him Gratian out of too much credulitie improuidently writ out a most manifest imposture and inserted that as a most strong Decree all which with the Author thereof should rather haue beene hissed away and pursued with execrations which also he saies of another place in Gratian to the same purpose and accuses him of mutilating the famous lawes of Charles the Great called Capitularia 13 With like danger to the Romane Sea hee cites a Canon of a Greeke Councell whose sense he apprehended not in the matter of mariage of Priests for he saies that that Canon was grounded vpon the Apostles Canons and yet it is contrarie to the Canons of the Romane Church So that of this place that Archbishop of whom I spoke before exclaimes who can endure this and that by no meanes it may be receaued 14 And not onely in matters of fact though that be the right legge vpon which the Romane Religion especially in Crowne Diuinitie doth stand doth Gratian deceaue you but euen in such things as are matters of faith both naturally and so common to all men As when he allowes that there may be perplexities in euill and so in some cases a necessitie of sinning and then sayes he the remedie is to choose the lesse euill as also of that which is matter of faith especially to the professors of your Religion which is the necessitie of Orall Confession for hauing produced authorities on both sides whether it be necessarie or no he leaues it as indifferent to the Reader to allow choose which opinion he likes best 15 And because the Glosse is now by some thought to be of equal authoritie with the Text it is not an inconuenient way to eneruate both by presenting some of the vanities and illusions of that And though I will not in so serious a businesse insist vpon such thinges as might make sport and moue laughter yet these few I may be excusable to let fall in this place When Gratian speakes of that Parable of the lost sheepe and saies out of the Gospell that the 99 were left in Deserto id est sayes the Glosse In Coelo quod Diabolus per peccatum deseruit Which besides the detortion destroyes vtterly the purpose of our Sauiour in that Parable And so when Gratian out of a Councell cites an Act to be done in Ecclesia Romanorum id est saies the Glosse Constantinopolitanorum 16 In many places Gratian saies that Dioscorus had not erred in fide which being euidently false for he followed and defended Eutyches his Heresie the glosse remedies it thus Non in fide id est non in fide tantum And out of his fauour to Priests where Gratian sayes out of Bede That Priests must alwaies abstain from their wifes the glosse saies Semper id est Horis debitis And when out of the Nicene Councell it was produced That a Prelate might haue in his house no women except his mother or sister or such fit persons as might auoid suspition that is sayes the glosse His mens wiues And when Lanfred a young lusty Bishop and a great huntsman was defamed also for immoderate familiarity with his owne daughter the glosse sayes It was not for any euill for they were too neere in blood but because he kissed her so much openly and put his hand in her bosome 17 And lastly to stay you no longer in this ill aire where the text saies Meretrix est quae multorum libidini patet the glosse brings this indefinite number to a certaine and saies that that name belongs to her when shee hath lyen with 23000. men 18 And as these Authors in whom there are these aspersions and such weedes as these are therefore vnworthy that either the Popes approbation should â—all vpon them or that any obligation should be throwne vpon our consciences from their authoritie so is it impossible that any such approbation should include them both for the glosse doth sometâ—mes when no reconciliation can serue him depart from Gratian with some disdaine as when he sayes Superficialis est Argumentatio Magistri and sometimes in câ—olerâ— as one notes him to say Fateor plane te mentitum Gratiane And sometimes
hee doth positiuely teach the iust contrarie to Gratian in matter of faith as in the Doctrine of perplexities which wee noted before 19 How dangerous therfore it is to confide in Gratian we see already may haue further light by obseruing That Ballarmine saies that in a main point of Canonicall Scriptures Gratian was deceiued by trusting a false copie of Saint Augustines workes And as Bellarmine saies hereâ— that Gratian was deceiued so Gratian deceiued him for in that Canon which we cyted before of the exemption of Clergy men either Bellarmine was a direct falsifier of the Councel or an indiscreet credulous swallower of Gratians errours which in his Recognition he refuseth not to confesse in another matter wheÌ„ he retracts some things which he spoke vpon the credit of Gratian there repents recaÌ„ts theÌ„ 20 But you and Bellarmine may easily be misled by him since euen a Pope himselfe was brought into a false perswasion by his errour For till of late all the copies of the Decretum in that famous Canon Sancta Romana which distinguishes Canonicall fâ—om Apocryphall writings in stead of the wordes Sedulij opus Heroicis versibus descriptum had these wordes Hereticis versibus Which saies a Catholique authour induced not onely many wise men but euen pope Adrian 6. to a perswasion that al Poetry was Hereticall since Gelasius a Pope and Author of that Canon though he praised Sedulius his worke in that place yet because it was writ in verse he câ—ls them Hereticos versus 21 Of them therfore which will binde their faith to the Canons and aduentuâ—e these dangers for that faith as the Canonists say that Saterday and Sunday is all one fictione Canonica so wee may say thaâ— they are but Martyres fictione Canonica and that not onely a Martyr and a Selfe-murderer but a Martyr and a Traytor may be all one Fictione Canonica And by such fiction that English Priest Bridgewater which cals himselfe Aquipontanus ouerturning and reâ—enuersing his name with hâ—â— conscience may be beleeued when he saies That those Priests which were executed vnder Queene Elizabeth died pro inficiatione pontificatus faeminei But their malice was not because she would haue bin a Priest but because she would not be a Sacrifice to their Idolatry nor Ambition nor open her heart to their inchantments nor her throate and sides to their poisons and swords 22 The next limme in this great body of the Canon law after the Decretum is the Decretall set out by Gregoâ—y the ninth who was Pope about the yeare one thousand two hundred thirty And as the Decretum pretends to bring to all purposes sentences of Fathers anâ— Canons of Counsells So this pretends principally the Rescripts and Deâ—retall letters of Popes So also doe all tâ—e other bookes which were set out after in supplement of this as that which is called Sextus set forth by Boniface the eight who was Pope An. one thousand three hundred and the Clementines which Clement the fift set out who was Pope within sixe yeares afterâ— and those Extrauagants which beaâ—e the name of Iohn the two and twenty within ten yeares of Clement and those which are called common Extrauagants because they come from diuers Popes and to these is added not long since the booke called Septimus Decretalium 23 And thus this fat law for so Ciuilians say of that that it is Crassa aequitas which is a praise beyond desert though rhey speake it in diminution scorn grows daily so fast that as any corruption can get entertainment in a grosse body so I doubt not but this or the next age shall see in their Octaues and future Volumes not onely many of their letters yet for shame coÌ„cealed but at Henry the thirds death canonized in the body of this law For though they haue denied it with some-earnestnesse yet they haue also confest that if it were such as it is said to be it admits a good interpretation 24 But for these bookes though they haue more credit with them then the Decretum hath I will ease my selfe of that labour which I tooke in that booke in presenting particular defects and infirmities both because we haue Bellarmines confession That there are many things in the Decretall Epistles which doe not make a matter to be De fide but onely doe declare what the opinions of the Popes were in those causes and because a Catholique authour of whom we spake before hath obserued that the compiler of the Decâ—etals by leauing out a word in a Canon of a Councell of Carâ—hage hath occasion'd the Church euer since to doe directly aganst the purpose of that Councell in shauing the heads of Priests For whereas the Councell is cited by him Clerici nec Comam Nutriant nec barbam by occasion whereof many subsequent orders were brought in for Shauing and transgressors seuerely punish'd it appeares that he left out in the end the word Radant which vtterly changed the precept into the contrary These Canons therefore of so sickely and weake a constitution that any thing deiects them cannot preuaile so much vpon our consciences as to imprint and worke such a confidence in them and irremoueablenesse from them as to maintaine them with the same maner of testimonie as we would doe the words of God himselfe 25 For howsoeuer they depart from them and seeme somewhat negligent of the Canons when we make vse of them to our aduantage against them yet they affright and enthrall the tender consciences of their owne Disciples with nothing more then the name of Canons to which promiscuously they ascribe all reuerence and assent without distinguishing to them which are Gratians and which are opinionate and which Decretall for all together are approoued and confirmed And therefore the Canons themselues not only inflict an Anatheme vpâ—on any â—ay-maâ— which shall so much as dispute vpon the text or any one Iod oâ— the Epistle of Pope Leo which is in the Canons but also prâ—nounce it blasphemy against the holy Ghost to violaâ—e a Canon willingly becauâ—e â—hey are made by the hyol Ghost And Bellarmine also writing against a Doctor which had defended the Venetian caâ—se against the Popes Censures saies That it is a gâ—ieuous rashnesse not to be lefâ— vnpunished that he should say â—he Canons as being but Humane lawes cannot haue equall authority with Diuine For this saies Bellarmine is a contempt of the Canons as though they were not made by the direction of the holy Ghost And yet these Canons which that Doctor intimated were but two and cyâ—ed but by Gratian and concerned onely Exempâ—ion of Clergie men from seculâ—r â—udges 26 And so â—arsons when he is to maâ—e hâ—s aduantage of any Sentence in Gratian vses to dignifie it thus That it is translated by the Popes into the Corps of the Canon law and so not onely allowed and admitted
not beneficed is so necessarie necessitate Sacramenti that except hee haue such a license the penitent though neuer so contrite and particular in enumeration of his sinnes and exact in satisfactions and performing all penances is vtterly frustrate of any benefite by vertue of this Sacrament So therefore a certaine and naturall euidence of a morall truth such as arises to euery man That to a King is due perpetuall obedience is better authority to induce an assurance and to produce an oath that the contrary is Hereticall then an implicite credite rashly giuen to a litigious Councell not beleeued by all Catholiques and not vnderstood by al that sweare to beleeue it 44 For the other obstacle and hinderance which reâ—ards them from pronouncing that this position is hereticall which is the Canon of the Laterane Councell enough hath beene said of the infirmity and inualidity of that Councell by others Thus much I may be bolde to adde that the Emperour vnder whome that Councell was held neuer accepted it for a Canon neiâ—her in those wordes not in that sense as it is presented in the Canon law from whence it is transplanted into the body of the Councels And the Church was so farre from impâ—gning the Emperours sense and acceptation thereof that Innocent the fourth and diuers other Popes being to make vse thereof cyte the Constitution of the Emperour not any Canon of a Councell in their Directions to the Inquisitors how to proceede against Heretiques They therefore either knew no sâ—ch Canon or suspected and discredited it 45 Thus therefore that pretended Canon saies If a temporall Lord warned by the Church do not purge his land of Heretiques let him be excommunicate by the Metropolitane and Conprouinciall bishopps if he satisfie not within a yeere let it be signified to the Pope that he may denounce his subiects to be absolued from their Alleageance and expose his Land to Catholickes which may without contradiction possesse it the right of the principall Lord which we call Lord Paramount being reserued if hee giue no furtherance thereunto And thus farre without doubt the Canon did not include Principall and Soueraigne Lords because it speakes of such as had Lords aboue them And where it concludes with this clause The same Law being to be obseru'd toward them Qui non â—abent Dominos principales The Imperiall Constitution hath it thus Qui non habent Domos principales 46 And certainely the most naturall and proper accepâ—ation of Domos Principales in this place in the Emperours Lawe is the same as the word Domicilium Principale hath in the Canons which is a Mans chiefe abiding and Residence though vpon occasion he may be in another place or haue some relation and dependance vpon a Prince out of that Territorie And it may giue as much clearenesse to the vnderstanding of this Lawe if wee compare with it the great and solemne Clementine Pastoralis 47 For then Robert being King of Sicily that is such a Principall Lord as this pretended Canon speakes of but yet no Soueraigne for he depended both vpon the Empire and vpon the Church was condemned as a Rebell by the Emperour Henrie the â—euenâ—h And Clement the fiâ—t annâ—lâ—'d and abrogated that Sentence of the Emperours vpon this reason That though the King of Sicily held some Lands of the Empire yet Domicilium suum fouebat in Sicilia which belong'd to the Churcâ— and therefore the Emperors Iurisdiction could not extend to him bâ—cause hâ— had not Imperioâ— Hereupâ—on the Glosse enters iâ—to Disputation how farre a man which hath goods in one Dominion shâ—ll be subiect to the Lawes of that place though his Principale Domicilium as he still câ—ls it be in another So that it seemes the Emperour had this purpose in this Constitution that tâ—ose Domini Principales which were vnder the Iurisdiction and Dependance of the Empireâ— should indure the penaltie of this Law if theâ— transgressed it though they â—ad not there Domos Prinâ—ipales within the limiâ—s of 〈◊〉 â—mpire For at the time when this Constitution was made the Emperours thought iâ— lawâ—full for them to doe so though a hundred yeâ—re aâ—â—er Clement tâ—e fift denied by this Canon thaâ— they had so large a power But this Constitution inâ—erâ—es nothing against Soueraigne Lords whom the Empeâ—our could not binde by any Constitution of his becâ—use they had no dependâ—nce vpon him 48 And as tâ—e Constitution dâ—ffers from tâ—e Canon in such maâ—erâ—all words as ouerthrowes that â—ense which they would extoâ—t out of it which is That Soueraignes are included therein so doeth it in the sense and in the appointing of the Officer who shall expel these fauourers of heretiques For where the Canon saies Let it be tolde to the Pope who may absolue the Subiects and expose the land the Emperour speakes of himselfe we do expose the land So that he takes the authority out of the Popes hand which he would not haue done nor the Pope haue cyted as to his aduantage that lawe by which it was done if either Iure Diuino such a power had resided in him or a Canon of a generall Councell had so freshly inuested him therewith 49 And as it is neither likely that the Emperour would include himselfe in this Law nor possible that he should include others as Soueraine as himselfe at least so doth it appeare by the Ordinary Glosse vpon that constâ—â—ution which hath more authority then all other Expositors that that law is made against such Lords and Subiects as haue relation to one another by feudall law for so it inâ—erpreâ—es Dominum temporalem and Dominum prinâ—cipalem to be when some Earle holdes something of a King which King also must haue a dependency vpon the Empire because otherwise the Imperiall law could not extend to him And yet euen against those principal Lords the law seeme so seuere that the Glosse saies Non legitur in Scholis So that so many proofes hauing beene formerly produced Canonsâ— but that those which are vsually offered now are but ragges torne out of one booke and put into another out of the Extraâ—agants into the Councels and this Imperiall constitution which to the Pope himselfe seemed of more force then his Predecessors Decretall neither concerning Soueraine Lords nor acknowledging this power of absoluing Subiects to be in the Pope but in himselfe no sufficient reason arises out of this imaginary Canon which should make a man affraid to call that Hereticall which is against his naturall reason and against that maine part of Religion which is ciuill obedience 50 For the Romans dealing more seuerâ—ly and more iniuriously with vs then the Greeke Church did with them when they presented to the Emperour vpon a commission to make an Inquisition to that purpose 99â— errours and deuiations in matter of faith in the Romane Church of which some were Orthodoxall truths some no matter of faith but circumstantiall indifferenciesâ— though they called them all errours in
of ours and of their owne authors who determine it roundly Deposuit id est Deponentibus consensit 91 And therefore insisting little vpon these hee makes hast to that wherein he excels which is to reproach and debase the State and Order of Kings For he says That euen Exorcists which is no sacred order are superiour to Princes Nor is his intemperance therefore excessiue because hee subiects men to such as are in the way going towards Priesthood for that will bee still vpon the old ground that priesthood is in an incomprehensible distance and proportion aboue principalitie but his reasons why Exorcists are aboue Princes discouers more malignitie to Princes absolutely which is That since they are aboue the Diuell himselfe much more are they Superiour to those which are subiect to the deuill and members of the deuill Nor could his argument haue any life or force here except he presum'd Kings to be poysoned corrupted by the very place by the order it selfe for otherwise if he meant it onely of vicious Kings why should he institute this comparison of Exorcists and Kings since it ought to bee of Exorcists and vicious men And therefore as he sayes after in this Epâ—stle That he finds in his owne experience that the Papacie either finds good men or makes them good and that if they want goodnesse of their owne they are supplied by their predecessours and so Aut Clari eriguntur aut Erecti illustrantur So he thinkes either that onely members of the deuill come to be Kings or that kings grow to be such when they are kings For so much he intimates euen in this place when hee sayes In Regall dignitie very few are saued and from the beginning of the world til now we find not one King equal in sanctitie to innumerable Religious men What King hath done any miracles To what King haue Churches or Altars beene erected How manâ— Kings are Saints Whereas onely in our Sea there are almost a hundred 92 And thus I thought it fit to runne ouer this Letter becauâ—e here sâ—emes the first fire to haue beene giuen and the first drop of poyson to haue beene instil'd of all those virulencâ—es and combustions with which the later Authours in that Church are inflam'd and swollen vp in this point of auiling Princes Of which ranke this Pope had respect to none but those who were really profitable to him Nor haue I obserued any words of sweetenesse in him towards any of them but onely to our King the Conquerour and to one King of Spaine To ours he sayes VVe account you the onely man amongst Kings that performes his duetie and this he â—ayes because â—e should graunt more to God and Saint Peter and Saint Stephen and be vigilant vpon Saint Peters estate in England that he mâ—ght find him a propitious debter And to the king of Spaine he sayes The present which you sent me is so ample and so magnificent as became a King to giue and Saint Peter to receiue and you show by your present how much you esteeme him 93 And such Princes as these he was loath to loose For he accounted that a losse which now they call the onely perfection that is to enter into a Religious and regular Order For this Gregorie chides an Abbot bitterly for admitting a Prince who might haue beene profitable to his state into the Cloyster For he sayes To doe so is but to seeke their owne ease and now not onely the Shepheards depart from the care of the Church but the Dogges also which he speakes of Princes He tels him That he hath done against the Canons in admitting him and that he is therein an occasion that a hundred thousand persons doe lacke their guide And therefore sayes he Since there are scarce any good Princes to bee found I am grieu'd that so good a Prince is taken away from his mother That is from the Churcâ— as it must necessarily be intended in this Epistle So pliant and seruiceable to his vses would Gregorie make Regall dignitie or else breake it in peeces 94 And where could our later men find better light in this mischeiuous and darke way then in this Gregories Dictates of which these are some That onely the Pope may vse Imperiall Ornaments That all Princes must kisse his feete That onely his Name must be rehearsed in the Church That there is no other Name in the world with many such transcendencies And accordingly he is wel secondâ—d by others which say that he is Superillustris and may not be cald so neither because he is so much aboue all Dignitie that our thought cannot extend to his Maiestie And to preuent all opposition against it Baldus in a choler sayes That he that sayes the contrarie Lyes 95 And vpon what place of Scripture may â—hey not build this supremacy and this obedience to it after a Pope who is heire to an Actiue and Passiue infallibility and can neither deceiue nor be deceiued hath extorted from Samuel so long before the Apostolique Sea was established a testimony That not to obey the Apostolique Sea was the sinne of Idolatrie teste Samuele which he iterates againe and againe in diuers other Epistles 96 From this example and from this libertie proceedes that malignity wherewith the later writers wrest euery thing to â—he disgrace of Principality By this authority Symancha drawes into consequence and vrges as a precedent to be imitated the example of the Scythians who killed their king for admitting some new rytes in diuine worshippe Which sayes Simancha was iustly done for the Subiects of hereticall Princes are deliuered from their Iurisdiction And in like maner Schultingius an Epitomizer of Baronius finding in him out of Strabo that in Egypt the Priests had so much authority ouer the Kings that sometimes by a bare message they would put one King to death and erect another and repeating the same gloriously and triumphantly a second time at last in a Marginall note hee claimes the same authority for the Pope when he notes and sayes thereupon The supreame authority of the Clergy is proued against the Caluinists So that we may easily discerne by these examples which they propose for imitation what authority they ayme at But Schultingius might also haue obserued as a prophecy of the ruine of their vsurpation that as soone as a learned and vnderstanding king Ergamenes came amongst them he tooke away that custome 97 From this libertie Bellarmine also to the danger of any Prince differing in any point from the integrity of the Romane profession hath pronounced That Heretiques are depriued of all â—urisdiction euen before excommunication And that therefore an Emperour cannot call a Councell because that must be done in Nomine Christi and that Princes haue not their precedencies as they are members of the Church for so Ecclesiastique Ministers are aboue them 98 And this hath made a Contry-man of ours deliuer
not reach and attaine to the force of that Canon saies Gretzer who allowes him all these escapes That he did it either by negligence inconsideration a fore conceiu'd perswasion or some other cause which is large enough 2 But if euer a Iesuite come to be the Church that is the Pope we shall sooâ—e be precluded by the Churches Definitions And as now to doubt whether the Pope without a Councell may teach an Heresie is Haeresi proximum and so is Semi-haereticum when a Iesuite is Pope it will be Hyper-haereticum and Sesqui-haereticum for we haue beene already taught that something may be more thenheresie when by a new Decretall of Paul the fourth they say That any great person falling into Heresie or Schisme shall for the first offence be esteemed relapsed and be in the same desperate state as if he had formerly iuridically abiurd the same heresie At least when a Iesuite comes to that Throne as in this last volume of the Canon law we haue a new title presented De Cardinalibus which was in none of the rest where they are call'd The principall members of the Church constituted by the holy Ghost And the most noble part of the Popes body And the clearest lights and most speciall children of the Church where to take any thing from them is called Sacrilege and to fauour any which hath dis-fauoured them or hurt them is made Treaâ—on so without doubt the Iesuites will be as indulgent to their owne Order and we shall haue at the next croppe when there is a new Haruest of ripe Decretals a title De patribus Societatis Iesu. 3 As at their first institution they were thus neere the Papacy that the Order of the Theatines of which Paulus fourth who was at that time Pope was either the authour or a principall man desired to be vnited to them by which meanes they might haue compassed the Papacy in thâ—ir Cradle so haue they of late made suspicious approaches thereunto by admitting Cardinal shippes and other Dignities 4 Those of theiâ— Order who heretofore refused offers of that Dignity as you say Laynez did â—rom Paulus the fourth and Borgia from Iulius the third did it Constantissime and I beleeeue with such constancy in resistance Tolet and Bellarmine might haue preuailed Hee which giues rules for the institution of Monkes forbiddes not onely Bishoppâ—ickes but all acquaintance with Bishoppes By all meanes saith hee let a Monke auoide women and Bishops because both hinder Diuine Contemplation which Rule when Iesuiâ—es broke and came to liue in secular and Ecclesiasticall Courts they shewed that they were not stubborne and inexorable against these preferments 5 And if euer they attaine the Papacy they haue already laide good foundations for the entailing thereof vpon their owne Family by Azorius his disputation what the authority of the Pope is in designing a Successor for he deliuers it as the common opinion that the forme of electing the Pope being founded vpon the Canons it may at his pleasure be changed So that the Pope may establish the Prouincials of the Iesuites to be the Electors And then descending to another question whether the Pope himselfe may designe his Successor hee saies that the Canons against it cannot preiudice him because he is aboue them and that it is not forbid Iure Diuino and that for matter of fact he beleeues S. Peter did chuse Clement but least the Popes should haue nothing to auert them from this course before any Iesuite were Pope and so worke an exclusion he saies It is not lawfâ—ll Iure Naturae that is saies he because natural reason informes that it were inconuenient for the Church And but for that inconuenience he saies they might cast lots for the papacy But this inconuenience depends vpon such reasons and circumstances as are alterable and when they cease this law of nature ceases too 6 And though Laynez in the vacancy after Paulus the fourth is said by you to haue had twelue of the best voyces for the Papacy though he were out of the Colledge of Cardinals And in one Conclaue Bellarmine also is said to haue had some yet if any Iesuite had voices enow would his Supeâ—iour allow him the Religion of his vow by which he ought to refuse it or his naturall liberty by which any man that is chosen Pope may if he will refuse it 7 If it were once come to that as you are content yet â—o seeme as modest as the Carthusian who saies that he beleeues it to be a singular blessing of God that no Carthusian hath beene Pope you would make good hast to reckon with the forwardest Orders how many Popes you had had And quickly in these accounts ouergoe the Franciscans themselues who reckon of their Order not onely Popes and Martyres and such poâ—sible things but are so precipitate and transported with this fury that they reckon how many of the Apostles Prophets and Patriarches they haue had of their Order So as I thought whilst I reade it they would neuer haue stopped till they had tolde vs how many Adams and Eues had beene of their Order and how many Iesus Christs besides S. Francis For I vnderstand not by what other figure they vse this anticipation and call these auncients Franciscans then that by which Serarius the Iesuit saies Herod was a great Machiauellian and Gregorie de Valentia that Plato might learne the doctrine of Purgatory out of the booke of the Machabees which was written after his deâ—th 8 But besides that the Iesuites decay in the hearts of Princes which Philip the second of Spaine testified well because though he had great vse of their seruice hee neuer did any thing for them this also makes me doubt that they will neuer haue Pope because it is already reueil'd by Christ to S. Francis that Antichrist shall come out of the family of the Franciscans 9 This also encreases my suspicion that they could neuer compasse that which is much lesse then a Pope which is a Saint in their family For the Authority of the Pope is greater then of a Saint sayes Cassanaeus And in his Indulgences he doth as familiarly command Angels as the yonger Prentizes the Exorcists do deuils To whom they vse this language when any spirit possesses a body I command Lucifer and all the Furies in hell to precipitate you into hell fire presently indispensably and â—ternally till the day of iudgement And I forbid the Ayre to haue any power to receiue you 10 And though Tortus say That the time of the Canonizing of the founder of that Order is not yet pass'd and therefore hee may bee Canonized in good time which is a poore comfort since I neuer found any such limitation nor that a Saint apparant as Ignatius is may be superannated and grow too old to bee Canoniz'd yet since those two great Princes
and come backe or did the Priests find such spirituall comfort in transgressing this Law that they offred to goe out 21 And in all our differences which fell out in this Kingdome betweene our Kings and the Popes when so many capitall Lawes were made against Prouisions and Appeales not to dispute yet wheâ—her de Iure or de facto only or whether by way oâ— Introduction or Declaration doe you finde that the Catholiques then vsed the benefite of those lawes to the procurement of Martyrdome or hath the blood of any men executed by those lawes died your Martyrologes with any Rubriques And yet those times were apt enough to countenance any defender of Ecclesiastique immunity though with diminution of Ciuill and Secular Magistracie as appeares by their celebrating of Becket yeâ— I find not that they affoorded the title of Martyre to any against whom the State proceeded by the Ordinary way and course of law 22 Why therefore shall not the French and Italian and olde English lawes giue occasion of Martyrdome in the same cases as these new lawes shall At least why should Campian and those which were executed before these new statutes be any better Martyres then they since they were as good Catholiques as these and offended the common law of England in the same point as these But if the Breach and violating of the later statutes be the onely or liueliest cause of Martyrdome then of Parsons who euery day of his life doth some act to the breaking thereoâ— it is verie properly said by one of his owne sect That hee is per totam vitam martyr 23 And this may suffice to remember you that you intrude into this emploiment and are not sent and that our Lawes ought to worke vpon your Oath of returning to the annihilation thereof because both the necessitâ—e of the making and continuing â—hereof and the precedents of our owne and other Catholicke Kingdomes giue vs warrant to make seditious Doctrine Treason and your owne Canons and Iâ—dicaâ—â—re giue vs example and if we needed it Authoritie to proceede in that maner CHAP. VI. A comparison of the Obedâ—â—nce due to Princes with the seuerall obediences requir'd and exhibited in the Romane Church First of that blind Obedience and stupiditie which Regular men vowâ— to their Superiours Secondly of thâ—t vsurpeâ— Obedience to which they pretend by reason of our Baptisme wherein we ar said to haue made an implicite surrender of our selues and all that we haue to the Church And thirdly of that Obedience which the Iesuits by a fourth Supernumeraâ—ie vowe make to be dispos'd at the Popes absolute will THere hath not beene a busier disquisition nor subiect to more perplexitie then to finde out the first originall roote and Source which they call Primogenium subiectum that may be so capable of Power and Iurisdiction and so inuested with it immediately from God that it can transferre and propagate it or let it passe and naturally deriâ—e it-selfe into those formes of Gouernement by which mankind is continued and preserued For at the resolution of this all Quâ—stions of Subiection attend their dispatch And because the Clergie of the Roman Church hath with so much fierce earnestnesse and apparance of probablenesse pursued this Assertion That that Monarchall forme and that Hierarchie which they haue was instituted immediately from God Many wise and iealous Aduocates of Secular Authoritie fearing least otherwise they should diminish that Dignitie and so preuaricate and betray the cause haue said the same of Regall power and Iurisdiction And euen in the Romane Church a great Doctor of eminent reputation there agrees as he sayes Cum omnibus sapientibus That this Regall Iurisdiction and Monarchie which word is so odious and detestable to Baronius proceedes from God and by Diuine and naturall Law and not from the State or altogether from man And as we haue it in Euidence â—o we haue it in Confession from them that God â—ath as immediately created some Kings as any Priests And Cassanaeus thinkes this is the highest Secular Authoritie that euer God induced For he denies That old or new Testament haue any mention of Emperour 2 But to mine vnderstanding we iniure and endanger this cause more if wee confesse that that Hierarchie is so Immediately from God as they obtrude it then we get by offering to drawe Regall power within the same Priuiledge I had rather thus farre abstaine from saying so of either that I would pronounce no farther therein then this That God hath Immediately imprinted in mans Nature and Reason to be subiect to a power immediately infus'd from him and that hee hath enlightned our Nature and Reason to digest and prepare such a forme as may bee aptest to doe those things for which that Power is infus'd which are to conserue vs in Peace and in Religion And that since the establishing of the Christian Church he hath testified abundantly that Regall Authoritie by subordination of Bishops is that best and fittest way to those ends 3 So that that which a Iesuite said of the Pope That the Election doth onely present him to God wee say also of a King That whatsoeuer it be that prepares him and makes his Person capable of Regall Iurisdiction that onely presents him to God who then inanimates him with this Supremacy immediately from himselfe according to a secret and tacite couenant which he hath made with mankinde That when they out of rectified Reason which is the Law of Nature haue begot such a forme of Gouernement he will infuse this Soule of power into it 4 The way therefore to finde what Obedience is due to a King is not to seeke out how they which are presum'd to haue transferr'd this power into him had their Authoritie and how much they gaue and how much they retain'd For in this Discouerie none of them euer went farther then to Families In which they say Parents and Masters had Iurisdiction ouer Children and Seruants and these Families concurr'd to the making of Townes and transâ—err'd their power into some Gouernour ouer them all 5 But besides that this will not hold because such Sauadges as neuer rais'd Families or such men as an ouerburdned kingdom should by lot throw out which were peeces of diuers families must haue also a power to frame a forme of Gouernement wheresoeuer they shall reside which could not bee if the onely roote of Iurisdiction were in parents masters This also will infirme and ouerthrow that Assertion that if parents and masters had not this supreme Soueraignty which is requisite in Kings they could not transferre it into Kings and so Kings haue it not from them And if they were Soueraignes they cold not transfer it â—or no Soueraigne can deuest himselfe of his Supremacie 6 Regall authority is not therefore deriued from men so as at that certaine men haue lighted a King at their Candle or transferr'd certaine Degrees of Iurisdiction into him and therefore it is a cloudie and
in the place of being the particular Assistant in the Conclaue for since they affoord a particular Tutelar Angell to euerie Colledge and Corporation And to the race of Flyes and of Fleas and of Ants since they allowe such an Angell to euery Infidell Kingdome yea to Antichrist yea to Hell it selfe it were verie vnequall to denie one to this place This Angell I say would be glad of the roome and become a Suiter to the holy Ghost to name him in the next Conclaue For he should not onely enlarge his Diocesse and haue all the lower world vnder him but hee shall haue those two principall Seraphins which euer attend the Pope Michael and Gabriel for that Gabriel is the second Victorellus produces two very equall witnesses The Romane Litanie and Tassoes Hierusalem And all the particular Angels of all spirituall Societies And because also as he saies he is Temporall Lord all the Archangels and Principalities which gouerne particular estates â—hall concur to his Guard and assistance 4 As Nero had an officer A voluptatibus So it seemes haue the Popes A titulis And flatterers haue alwaies a Complacencie and Delight in themselues if they can bestow a stile and Title vpon a great Prince because therein they think they contribute somthing to his greatnesse since Ceremonie is a maine part of Greatnesse and Title a great part of that And now they had obserued that all the chiefe Titles of the Pope had been attributed to others and were in their Naâ—ure and vse communicable For all the Apostles and all the Disciples of Christ are called Vicarij Christi And this name will not serue his turne if it were peculiar to himselfe For as his Victoria teaches vs This Vicariate doth not enable him to doe all thinges which are not expresly forbidden him as some doe thinke but onely such things as are expresly graunted vnto him and therefore his claime by that Title will be too strict And the name of Vniuersall Bishop was giuen to Cyprian when hee was stiled Totius orbis Praeses And in that sense it may iustly bee giuen For as a Physician or Chyrurgion which hath taken into his Cure any one part of a mans body either corrupted or in danger of being so may iustly be said to looke to and preserue the body of such a man So that Bishop which gouernes well one Church is therein a Bishop of the whole Church benefits the whole mystical body therof by reason of the strong relation indissoluble coÌ„nexion of all the parts with one another and to the head 5 And for that stile of Pontifex Maximus which either is not due to the Pope or else is so sublime and transcendant a name as Bellarmine could bring it within no Rule nor Predicament when hee makes vp the Canon of the Popes fifteene Titles by all and euery one of which hee sayes his Primacie is euidently collected They saw it giuen to Atâ—anaâ—ius in Ruffinus And the name of Pope was so communicated that not onely euery Bishop was called a Pope but Cyprian The Pope Quem Christiani suum Papam vocant In the estimation of which name they haue often fluctuated and waâ—uered For almost for nine hundred yeeres they affoorded it to all Then they restrain'd it to the Bishops of Rome to which purpose Biel vpon the Canon of the Masse cites diuers Canons though farre from the matter 6 And euer since the Reformation of the Church was couragiously begun and prosperously and blessedly prosecuted they hauing beene call'd Papists for their implicite relying vpon the Pope lest their owne Argument against vs That to bee denominate from any person is a marke of Heresie should be retorted vpon themselues they haue in all Dedications and publike Acts as much as they can forborne and declin'd that name Pope and still vsurped Summus Pontifex and Pontifex Maximus And yet being stil vrged and followed and hauing no escape but that the name of â—apists stickes to them and by their Rules imprints some markes of Heresie though Bellarmine a little ashamed of the name Papist say That onely the Lutherans and a few neighbour Countreyes call them so Yet that late Carmelite that hath defended Lypsius sayes confidently We are Papists we confesse it and we glory in that Name 7 And this name of Pope they are the rather content to take to him againeâ— because they thinke that we grudge him that name For so that Councellour of the Parliament of Burdeaux which in his Historie of the progresse and decay of Heresie hath taken occasion to speake of the affaires of England in which because no man should doubt of the trueth therof he proâ—esses to follow Sanders and Ribadeneâ—ra by whome a Morall man may as well be instructed for matter of Fact as a Christian might be by Arrius or Mahomet for his Faith sayes That Henrie the â—ight made it Felonie to call the holy Father Pope or to reade that name in any Booke and not to blot it out 8 Hauing therefore found such easinesse and flexibility in all olde Names they haue prouided him now of this name spirituall Prince in a larger sense then that great Prince whom they call Praeste-gian assumes it for that name signifies Apostolique and Christs Vicegerent in his owne kingdomes or then Christ himself euer assumed or the Holy Ghost by the Prophet Esay reckoning vp his most glorious titles euer attributed to him and yet in that place of Esay both his eternall Kingdome by his filiation and his euerlasting Kingdome of glory inchoated in his resurrection and his Kingdome of grace in our consciences are euidently to bee discerned For though there be mention oâ— Principality yet it is said Principatus super humerum eius which your Doctor expounds of carying the Crosse and that he shall be Princeps pacis which is Intrinsicall â—aies the same Expositor belonges to the Conscience But this Doctrine which must so settle and affirme a Catholique conscience that it must binde him to die and entitle him to Martyrdome hath no touch nor tincture of either of these Principalities of Patience or of Peace buâ— all therein is Anger and Warre not onely with that sword of two edges of the Word and Censures which is his but with two swords which now we shall see how he claimes 9 The Pope represents Christ to vs saies Bellarmine as he was whilst he liued amongst men nor can we attribute to the Pope any other office then Christ hadâ— as he was a mortall man And in tâ—is Capacitie saies he Christ neither had the execution nor the power of any temporall Kingdome And that therefore if the Pope as a King can take from any King the execution of his place he is greater then Christ and if he cannot then he hath no Regall power Thus hee disputes against those
and approued but commended and commanded and as he addes after Canonized and determined for Canonicall law and authorized and set forth for Sacred and Authenticall whatsoeuerâ— For they continue stâ—ll that practise which Frederic the Emperour obserued in his time when they interdictâ—d his Kâ—ngdome of Sicily Offundunt bibulis auribus Canonâ—s 27 And when they list to vrge a Canon any litle rag torn or fallen off from â—hence must bind the Church de fide as a cathedrall and Decretall resolâ—â—ion for so saies he that made the Notes vppon Cassianus excusing Origen Chrysostome some other Fathers for inclining to Platoes opinion of allowing some vse of lies in wise men That it was lawfull till the Church had defined the contrary But now saies he the Pope hath decreed it And how hath he decreed it In a letter vpon a question of Vsurie the Pope saies Since the Scriptures forbid lies euen for defense of any mans life much lesse may vsury be permitted But if in this question of lying the band did not aâ—ise out of the euidence and truth of the matter it selfe but relied vppon the authority of the Popes declaration and decision can such a ragge casually and incidentally fall into a letter of another purpose by way of comparison binde the whole Church De fide when as though Sixtus 4. had so much declared himselfe to fauour the opinion of our Ladies conception without originall sinne that he had by one Canon instituted a particular Festiuall thereof and appointed a particular Office for â—hat day with many Indulgences to the obseruers thereof yet the fauourers of the contrary opinion forbore not for reuerence of that Canon to preach publiquely against that Doctrine till some yeares after he forbad it vnder paine of Excommunication by another Canon that any should affirme that she was conceaued in originall sinne and yet this is not esteemed as yet for all this to be decreed as a matter of faith in that Church yea it is so farre from it that after all these solemnities and preiudices of that Pope yet the Commissioners of Sixtus the fift and Gregory the thirteenth appointed to expunge all dangerous passages in the Canons in the Glosse vpon that Canon which reckons all the festiuall daies which are to be obserued haue left these words vntouched The Conception of our Lady is not named because it ought not to be kept though in England and some other places it be And the reason is because she was conceaued in originall sinne as all but Christ were And after the Iesuite of whom I spoke before had refreshed that Doctrine That a Confession of a person absent made by letters was Sacramentall and Clement the eight was so vehement against it that by a solemne decree he condemned it for false rash and scandalous at least and commaunded that no man should speake of it but by way of condemning it and excluded euen dumbe men from this benefiâ— yet another Iesuite since a great Doctor perplexorum findes escapes to defend that Doctrine from beeing Hereticall 28 So that though in trueth there goe verie many Essentiall formalities to such a Decree as bindes the conscience De fide yet these men when they need the Maiestie of a Canon will euer haue feâ—ters in all corneâ—s to holde all consciences which offâ—r to slip or breake from them and still oppresse them with waights and with Mountaine of Canons Which way the Canonists doe noâ— only approue as the most conuenient to hold men in that Religion because the Canons are more easily vâ—ried and flexâ—ble and appliable to occasionâ— then the Scriptures are but also because ordinâ—rily the Canonists haue no other learning they think the way by Canons to be the fittest means to reduce them whom they call Heretiques For so sayes one of them in his booke to the present Pope with mâ—ch aâ—uâ—enesse certainty and subtilty The Canons may well be alleadged against Heretiques because they alleadge Scriptures and they cannot know Scriptures by any other way then Canons 29 But besides that I haue giuen you sufficient light to look into the deformity and coâ—ruption of the Canons which GOD forbid any should vndeâ—stand me to meâ—ne of Canons in that sense and acceptation that the Ancients receaued it which is of the Constitutions of Orthodox Councels for I take it here as your Doctors do as your Confessors doe for the whole body of the Canon law extant before I enteâ— into the suruay of those paâ—ticular Canons which vsually are obtruded in this point of the Popes temporall Supremacie I will remember you briefly of some of those reâ—sons and occasions such as may be fittest to vn-entangle your consciences and deliuer them from perplexiâ—ies in which the Canons doe not binde vs to theâ—r obseruation 30 Oâ— which one of the most principall and important is That Canons doe neuer binde though they be published and knowledge taken of them except they bee recâ—aued and practised in that Country So saies Gratian Lawes are instituted when they are published but confiâ—med when they are put in practise And therefore saies he none are guilty of transgressing Telesphorus Decree that the Clergie should fast fiftie dayes because it was neuer approued by practise No more doth the Decree of Aâ—exander the third though vnder excommunication That in Armies there should bee abstinence for reuerence of certaine dayes binde any manâ— because it was not practised which opâ—nion Nauarre also followes and a late Canonist writing to this Pope calls it Singularem et Magistralem et a toto mundo allegatum And vpon this reason the Councell of Trent bindes not yet in some Countries in neither Tribunall of conscience or the outward censures of the Church because it is not receaued 31 And can you finde â—hat any such Canons as enable the Pope to depose a Prince haue beene admitted by our Princes and practisâ—d as ordinarie and currant law Or can you finde any Canon to this purpose with the face and countenance oâ— a law made by the Popes in reposed peaceable times deliuered quietly as a matter of Doctrine and conscience and so accepted by the Church and state For if in temporall Scismes and differences for temporall matters betweene the Popes and other Princes the Popes to raise or maintaine a party against their enemies haue suffered seditioâ—s Bulls and Rescripts to passe from them to facilitate and effect their enterprises then in hand this is farre from the nature of a law and from being accepted and practised and so iustified as it may be drawne into consequence and haue power and strength to binde the conscience 32 And as acceptation giues life to law so doth disuse or custome to the contrarie abrogate it And howsoeuer a superstition toward the Canons may still be preserued in some of you yet the generall state that is the same authority by which those
Canons were receaued before which euer had anie strength here hath disused them pronounced against so many of them as can fall within this question that is Such as bee derogatorie to the Crowne For if these lawes bee not borne aliue but haue their quickning by others acceptation the same power that giues them life may by desertion withdraw their strength and leaue them inualid 33 And thus much seemed needfull to be said in the first part of this chapter that you might see how putrid and corrupt a thing it is which is offered to you vnder the reuerend name of Canons And that though this Cannon law be declined and extenuated when we vrge it yet euery Sentence thereof is equall'd to Diuine Scripture and produced as a definition of the Church when it may worke their ends vpon your consciences which for diuers reasons issuing out of their owne rules should now be deliuered from that yoake THE SECOND PART FOr the second place in this Chapter I reserued the consideration and suruay of those Canons which are Ordinarily vsurped for defence of this temporall Iurisdiction In which my purpose is not to amasse all those Canons which incline toward that point of which condition those which exexempt the Clergy from secular Iurisdiction and very many other are but onely such as belong more directly to this point to which the Oath stretches That is whether the Pope may depose a Soueraine Prince and so we shall discern whether your consciences may so safely relie vpon any resolution to be had out of the Canons that you may incurre the dangers of the law for refusall thereof 2 Of which Canons though I will preâ—ermit none which I haue found to haue beene vrged in any of their Authours I will first present those Fower which are alwaies produced with much confidence and triumph Though one Catholique Author which might be aliue at the making of the Clementines for he liued and flourished about 1350 and Clement the fift died not much before 1320. haue drawen these foure Canons into iust suspition for thus he saies of them The Pastors of the Church putting their Hooke into another mans Haruest haue made foure Decretals which God knowes whether they be iust or no But I doe not beleeue yet I recall it if it be erroneous that any of them is agreeable to Law but I rather beleeue that they were put forth against the libertie of the empire 3 The fiâ—st is a letter of Innocent the third who was Pope about 1199. to the Duke of Caringia the occasion of which Letter was this Henry the son of Frederic the first of the house of Sueuia succeeding his Father in the Empire had obtained of the Princes of Germany to whom the Election belonged to chuse as Successoâ— to him his sonne Henry but hee being too young to gouerneâ— when his father died they tooke thereby occasion though against their Oath to leaue him being also dâ—sirous â—o change the stocke and chuse an Emperour of some other race By this meanes was Duke Berâ—holdus by some of the Prâ—nces elected but resign'd againe to Philip brother to the dead Emperour in whom the greatest number consented But some of the other Princes had called home out of England Otho of the house of Saxony and elected him Here upon arose such a schisme as rent that country into very many parts And then Innocent the third an actiue and busie Pope for it was he which so much infested our King Iohn sent his Legate into those parts vpon pretence of composing those differences And being in displeasure with the house of Sueuia for the Kingdome of Sicily which was in their possession but pretended to by the Church his Legate disallowed the election of Philip and confirmed Otho But some of the Princes ill satisfied with the Legates proceeding herein complained thereof to the Pope in aunswere whereof the Pope writes to one of them this Letter In which handling his Right of confirming the elected Emperor though he speake diuers things derogatorie to the dignity of Princes discoursiuely and occasionally yet is not this letter such a Decree as being pronounced Cathedrally in a matter of faith after due consultation should binde posteritie but onely a direction to that person how he ought to behaue himselfe in that businesse 4 The Letter may be thus abridged VVe acknowledge the right of the Election to be in the Princes especially because they haue it from the Apostolicke Sea which transferred the Empire vnto them But because we must consecrate the Person elected we must also examine his fitnesse Our Legate therefore did no Acte concerning the Election but the person elected Wee therefore repute OTHO Emperour For if the Electors would neuer agree should the Apostolicke Sea alwayes be without a defender We haue therfore thought it fit to warâ—e the Princes to adhere to him For there are notorious impediments against the other as publicke Excommunication persecuting the Church and manifest periurie Therefore wee commaund you to depart from him notwithstanding any Oath made to him as Emperour 5 And is there any matter of Faith in this Decretall Or any part thereof Is it not all grounded vpon matter of fact which is the Translation oâ— the Empire which is yet vnder disputationâ— Doe not many Catholicke writers denie the verie act of Transferring by the Pope And saye That the people being now abandoned and forsaken by the Easterne Emperours had by the law of Naâ—ure and Nations a power in themselues to choose a King And doe not those which are more liberall in confessing the Translation denie that the Popes Consecration or Coronation or Vnction inâ—uses any power into the Emperor or works any fartâ—er then wâ—en a Bishop doeth the same ceremonies to a King Is it not iustly said that iâ— the Emperour must stay for his Authoritie till the Pope doe these acts he is in worse condiâ—ion by this increase of his Dominions then he was before For before he was Emperour and had a little of Italy added to him there was no doubâ— but that he had full iurisdiction in his owne Dominions before these Ceremonies and now hee must stay for them 6 And may not the Popes question in this leâ—ter be well retorted thus If the Pope will not crowne the Emperour at all shall the Empire euer lacke a head For the Pope may well be presumed to be slacke in that office because he pretends to be Emperour during the vacancie But besides that an ouer earnest maintaining of this that the Emperour had no iurisdiction in Italy before these Ceremonies would diminish and mutilate the patrimonie of the Church of which a great part was confeâ—red and giuen by Pipin beâ—ore any of these ceremonies were giuen bâ— the pope the glosser vpon the Clementines is liquid round in this point when he sayes That these ceremonies and the taking of an Oath are nothing and that now Resipiscente mundo the world being
as he is a temporall Prince For first he saies The King of Sicily held that Kingdome of the Church and the Pope who was thereby his ordinary iudge ought to haue beene called to the iudgement And that the Emperour could not take knowledge of faults committed at Rome as those with which that King was charged were laid to be Nor his Iurisdiction and power of citation extend into the territory of the Church where that King was then residing nor he bee bound vpon any Citation to come to a place of so certaine danger 15 It is not therefore for this part of the Decretall that either they alleadge it so frequently or that Albericus laid that marke vpon it that it betrayed the authority of the Emperours for in this particular case I should not bee difficult to confesse some degrees of Iustice in prouiding that the Sentence of the Empeâ—or should not preuaile where naâ—urally and iustly it could not worke especially the pope proceeding so manneâ—ly as to reuoke it after the Emperors death and as the Glosse saies Ad tollendum murmur Populi who grudged that the Emperour should dispose of them who were the subiects of the Church 16 But the danger is in the last clause which is We out of the Superiority which without doubt we haue ouer the Empire and out of that power by which we succeed therein in a vacancy and by that power which Christ gaue vs in Peter declare that iudgement to bee voide and reuâ—ke all which hath beene done thereupon For the first part of which Clause touching his Superiority ouer the Emperor if he had any which as many good authors denie as affirme itâ— he had it by contract betweene the Emperour and the Church and he neither can nor doth claime that at least not all that which hee pretended in the Empire in other princes dominions for where doth he pâ—etend to succeede â—n a Vacancy but in the Empire And if he had that right Iure Diuino it woulâ— stâ—etch to all other places And â—f it be by Conâ—ract that cannot be but conditionall and variable in it selfe and not to be drawen into eâ—ample to the preiudice of any other prince And â—or his last title which is the power deriued by S. Peter to him because in this place he extends it no further but to a defence of S. Peters patrimony and onely by declaring a Sentence to be void which otherwise might scandalize some of his subiects we haue no reason to exagitate it in this plâ—ce nor haue you any reason to assure your consciences by the instruction or light of this Canon that that power extends to any â—uch case as should make you in these substantiall circumstances of great deâ—riment refuse this Oaâ—h 17 The fourâ—h Canon which is the Clementine of the diuers Oathes sworne by the Emperours to the Popes though it be euer cited and be by Albericus iâ—stly accused of iniustice yet it can by no extension worke vpon your conscience For the purpose thereof is but this That diffeâ—ences continuing betweene the Emperour and the King of Sicily and â—he Pope writing to reconcile them he vseth this as one induction That they had both sworne Fidelity and Alleageance to him The Emperor answered That he vnderstood not that Oath which he had taken to be an Oath of Alleageance And therfore the Pope afteâ— the Emperouâ—s death in this Decretall pronounces That they are Oathes of fidelities and Alleageance and that whosoeuer shall be created Emperour shall take those Oathes as such But to leaue it to the Lawyers whose tongues and pennes are not silencâ—d by this Decretall to argue whether they be oathes of Alleageance or no and imposed by the pope essentially so as the Emperour had no iurisdiction without them the first being a Constitution of the Emperour Otho and not of the pope if it be rightly cited by Gratian The second but an oath of Protection of the Church and the pope And the third only oâ— a pure and intire obseruing of the Catholique faith who can presse an argument out oâ— this Canon though it weâ—e wholy confessed and accepted as it lies that the pope may depose a king of England For Bellarmine informes your consciences â—eeâ—er then any of those Conâ—ellors who auert you from the oath by this and such Canonsâ— That the Empire not depending absolutely vpon the Pope but since Charlemains time this Oath of Alleageance is taken of the Emperour because the Pope translated the Empire vpon him And whether â—his be true or false in the laâ—ter part of translation yet his reason and argument discharges all other supreme princes ouer whom the pope hath no such pretence 18 Hauing passed through these foure wee will consider those Canons which are in Gratian to this purpose The first whereof may iustly be the Donation of Constantine Which though it be not Gratians but inserted by the name of Palea of whom whether hee were a man of that name a Schoâ—ler of Gratian or whether he called his Adâ—dition to Gratian Paleas in humility the Canonists are like to wrangle as long as any body will read them yet it is in the body and credit of Canon law 19 Towards the credit of this Donation there lackes but thus much to make it possible That the Emperour had not power to giue away haâ—â—e his Empire and that that Bishop had not capacitie to receiue it And but thus much of making it likely That the Church had no possession thereof but that it remained still with the Successors of the Emperours for if it had these degrees of possibility or credibility did not speake in barbarous language discording from that time nor in false Latine vnworthy of an Emperours Secreâ—arie nor gaue the pope leaue to confer orders vpon whom he would nor spoke of the Patriarchate of Constantinople before it had either that Dignity or that Name I should be content as I would in other fables to study what the Allegory thereof should be But since the Pope can liue without it And Azâ—rius tells vs that though the Donation bee falâ—e yet the Pope hath other iust titles to his estates though by his leaue he hath no such title as will authorize him to depose Princes as Soueraigne Lord ouer all the Westerne Kings as they pretend by this if it were iustifiable I will leaue it as they doe as a thing too suspicious and doubtfull to possesse any roome but that which it doth in Gratian. Onely this I will adde that if the power of the Emperour were in the Pope by vertue of this Donation yet wee might safely take this Oath because this Kingdome hath no dependance vpon the Empire 20 The next that I finde alleadged to keepe this Order as they lie in Gratian is a sentence taken out of S. Augustine by which you may see how infinite a power they place in the Pope His words are If the King must bee
obeyed though hee commaund contra Societatem yea it is contra Societatem if he be not obeyed because there is a generall contract in humane Societies that Kings must be obeyed how much more must we obey God the Gouernour of all Creatures And do they which alleadge for the Popes Supremacy ouer Princes intend the Pope to be Gouernour of all Creatures Doth he gouerne Sea and Elements or doe they thinke that the will and commandements of God are deriued to vs onely by the way of the Pope or why should not wee thanke them for producing this Canon since it is direct and very strong for Kings and for the Popes it is but common with all other Magistrates who must be obeyed when God speaks in them or when they spâ—ake not against God 21 In the tenth Distinction one Pope by the testimony of two other popes saies That the Ecclesiastique Constitutions must be preferred before the Emperours lawes And the cases mentioned there are the constituting of a Metâ—apolitane the dissoluing of a Mariage vpon entring into Religion to which I say that these cases by consent of the Emperours were vnder their iurisdiction And if you gather a generall rule by this of the force of Canons aboue Ciuill lawes you proceede indirectly accepting the same persons for Parties Iudges and Witnesses and besides it is not safe arguing from the Emperour to another absolute Prince nor from the authority which Canons haue in his Dominions to what they should haue in all 22 In the 21. Distinction A Pope writing to a Bishoppe of Milan telles him That the dignities and preheminences of Churches must be as the Bishoppe of Rome shall ordaine because Christ committed to Peter which hath the keyes of eternall life Iura terreni simul Caelestis imperij But if he meane by his Terrenum Imperium the disposing of the dignities and preheminencies of Churches one aboue another in this world Or if he meane by it That he hath this Terrenum Imperium as he hath the keyes of heauen that is to binde and loose sinnes by spirituall censures and Indulgences of absolâ—tion in which capaciâ—y he may haue authority ouer the highest secular Princes for any thing conteined in this Oath this Canon wil do vs no harme But if hee meane that Christ gaue him both these authorities together and that thereby he hath them as Ordinary Iudge then Bellarmine and all which follow the Diuines opinion of indirect power will forsake him and so may you by their example 73 After another Pope Gelasius writes to Anastasius the Emperour comparing Secular and Ecclesiastique dâ—gnity And he saâ—es You know that you depend vpon their iudgement but this is saies the Glosse in spirituall matters And because this Canon comes no neerer our question then to iustifie in the Pope a power of excommunicating Princes for it assumes no more â—hen Ambrose exercised vpon Theodosius I will stand no longer vpon it 24 And these be the Canons which out of the Distinctions I haue obserued to be scattered amongst their Authours when they teach this doctrine for any that preferres Priest-hood befoâ—e Principality seemes to them â—o conduce to that point Now I will follow Gratian in his other parts where the first is the Canon Nos si incompetenter which is veâ—y ofâ—en vrâ—ed but it is so farre â—rom inâ—luding this power of Deposing that it excludes it â—or allowing the Priest poweâ— to Reprehend and remembring former examples of Excommunication hee addes Nathan in reproouing the King executed that office in which he was Superiour to him but he vsurped not the Kings office in which he was inferiour nor gaue iudgement of death vpon him as Adulterer or murderer 25 In the seuenth Question of the ninth Cause from the Canon Episcopo to the end of that Question there are many sayings which aduance the digniâ—y of the Romane Seate and forbidde al men to hinder Appeals thither or to iudge of the popes Decrees But all these were in spirituall causes and directed to spirituall persons and vnder spirituall punishments Onely in the Canon Fratres the king of Spaine seemes to be threatned but it is with Excommunication onely And all these Canons together are deliuered by one Pope of another In whome saâ—es the Glosse It is a familiar kinde of proofe for one one Pope to produce another for witnesse as God did proue the sinnes of Sodome by Angels And as there is much iniustice in this manner of the Popes proceeding so is there some tincture of blaspemy in the maner of iustifying it by this Comparison 26 The Canon Alius which droppes out of euery penne which hath written of this Subiect is the first wherein I marked any Pope to speake of Deposing In this Gelasius writes to Anastasius a Pope to an Emperour that Pope Zachary his predecessor had deposed the King of France because he was vnfit for so great a power But the Glosser doth the Pope good seruice and keepes him within such a conuenient sense as may make him say true For saies â—e He deposed that is Hee gaue consent to them which did depose which were the States of that Kingdome which he saies out of the Euidence of the history for he is so farre fâ—om coarcting the Popes power that wee may easily deprehend in the Glosse more â—raud and iniquity then arrogance and tyrannie in the Pope For saies he the vnfitnesse of the French King was licentiousnesse not infufficiency to gouerne for then the Pope ought to haue giuen him an assistant To proue wâ—ich he cites two other Canons In which places it appeares That to Bishoppes vnable by reason oâ— age to discharge their functions the Pope assigns Coadiutores and by this the Glosser might euict that he hath the same Ordinary authority to dispose of Kingdomes as of Bishoprickes This Canon therefore doth onely vnfaithfully relate the act of another Pope and not determine nor decree any thing nor binde the conscience 27 In the same Question there is a Canon or two in which our case is thus farre concern'd that they handle the Popes authority in Absoluing and Dispensing from Oathes And the first is câ—ted often and with great courage because besides the word Ab omnibus Iuramentis cuiuscunquemodi obligationibus absoluimus there followes parsue theÌ„ with the spirituall and materiall sword But when we consider the case and the History this power will not extend to our cause For the Pope thereby doth giue liberty to some Bishops to recouer by iust violence such parts of the Church Patrimonie as were taken away from them and doth dispence with such oathes as they had beene forced to take by those which iniuriously infested the Church Yet I denie not but that the glosser vpon this Canon is liberall enough to the Pope for he sayes hee hath power to dispence against the law of Nature against the Apostle 28 After this followes that
solemne and famous Canon of Gregory the seuenth Nos sanctorum Of whom since he had made a new rent in the body of the Church as Authors of his own Religion if he had any professe it is no maruaile that he patched it with a new ragge in the body of the Canon law Thus therefore he saies Insisting vpon the statutes of our predecessors by our Apostolique authority wee absolue from their Oath of Alleageance all which are bound to persons excommunicate And we vtterly forbid them to beare any Alleageance to such till they come to satisfaction But to whom shall these men be subiect in the meane time To such a one as will be content to resigne when so euer the other will aske forgiuenesse Ambition is not an ague it hath no fits nor accesses and remittings nor can any power extinâ—guish it vpon a sodaine warning And if the purpose of Popes in these deposings were but to punish with temporarie punishment why are the Kingdomes which haue been transferred by that colouâ— from Hereticall Princes still with-held from their Catholique Heires 29 But who these predecessors of whom the Pope speaks in this letter were I could neuer find And it appeares by this that this was an Innouation and that he vsed Excommunication to serue his own ends because in another Canon he sayes That many perished by reason of Excommunications and that therefore he being now ouercome with compassion did temper that sentence for a time and withdraw from that band all such as communicated with the excommunicate person except those by whose Counsaile the fault was perpetrated which induced the Excommunication And this sayes the glosse he did because he saw them contemne excommunication and neuer seek Absolution for all those whom he exempts by this Canon were exempt before his time by the law it selfe So that where he sayes Temperamus it is but Temperatum esse ostendimus and hee did but make them afraid who were in no danger and make them beholden to him whom the law it selfe deliuered And of this Canon in speciall words one of their great men sayes That it binds not where it may not be done without great damage of the subiect 30 Of his Successor almost immediate for Victor the third lasted but a little I finde another Canon almost to the same purpose for he wrâ—tes to a Bishop to forbid the Souldiers of an Earle who was excommunicate to serue him though they were sworne to him For sayeâ— heâ— They are not tied by any authority to keepe that alleageance which they haue sworne to a Christian Prince which resists God and his Saints and treads their precepts vnder his feete But in this man as Gregories spirit wrought in him whâ—lst he liued for he was his Messenger to publish the Excommunication against the Emperour in Germany so Gregories ghost speakes now for all this was done to reuenge Gregories quarrell though in his owne particular hee had some interest and reason of bitternesse for he had beene taken and ill vsed by Henry in Germany 31 In the 25 Cause there is a Canon which tasts of much boldnesse What King so euer or Bishop or great person shall suffer the Decrees of Popes to be violated Execrandum Anathema sit But these for in this Cause there are diuers Canons for the obseruing of the Canons are for the most part such imprecations as I noted before Gregory the first â—o haue made for preseruation of the priuiledges of Medardus Monastery and some other of the same name of which kinde also Villagut hath gathered some other examples And at farthest they extend but â—o excommunication and are pronounced by the Popes themselues and are intended of such Canons as are of matters of faith that is such as euen the Popes themselues are bound to obserue as appeares here by Leoâ—he â—he fourths Canon Ideo permittente And here I will receiue you from Gratian and leade you into the Decretals whom they iustly esteeme a little better company 32 To proue the Popes generall right to interpose in all causes which seemes to conduce to the Question in hand they cite often this case falling out in England which is vpon seuerall occasions three or foure times intimated in the Decretals It was thus Alexander the third writes to certaine Bishoppes in England to iudge as his Delegates in a Matrimoniall cause And because the person whose legitimation was thereby in question was an â—eire and the Mother dead and the Pope thought it not fit that after her death her marriage should bee so narrowly looked into since it was not in her life therefore he appoints That possession of the land should bee giuen first and then the principall point of the marriage proceeded in And by this they euict for him a title in temporall matters Accessorily and Consequently But if they consider the times they may iustly suspect vniust proceeding For it was when Alexander the third did so much infest our King Henry the second And it seemes he did but trie by this how much the King would endure at his hands for when he vnderstood that the king tooke it ill then came another Letter related also in the Canons wherein hee confesseth that that matter appertaines to the King and not to the Church And therefore commaundes them to proceede in the matter of the marriage without dealing with the possession of the land 33 Another Canon not much vrged by the defenders of direct Authoritie but by the other faction is a Letter of Innocent the third In which Letter I beleeue the Pope meant to lay downe purposely and determinately how farre his power in Temporall matters extended For it is not likely that vpon a Petition of a priuate Gentleman for Legitimation of his Children who doubted not of his power to doe it the Pope would descend to a long discourse and proofe out of both testaments and reasons of conueniencie that he might doe it and then in the end tell him hee would not except hee meant that this Letter should remaine as euidence to posteritie what the Popes power in Temporall causes was Let vs see therefore what that is which he claimes 34 A Subiect of the King of France who had put away his Wife desires the Pope to legitimate certaine Children which he had by a second wife And it seemes he was encouraged thereunto because the Pope had done that fauour to the King of France before The Pope answers thus By this it seemes that I may graunt your request because I may certainely Legitimate to all spirituall capacities and therefore it is Verisimilius probabilius that I may doe it in Temporall And sayes he It seemes that this may be prooued by a similitude because hee which is assumed to bee a Bishop is exempted thereby from his fathers iurisdiction and a slaue deliuered from bondage by being made a Priest And hee addes In the patrimonie I
may freely doe it where I am supreme Prince But your case is not the same as the Kings was not oâ—ly for spirituall considerations which are That he was lawfully seperated and pretended neerenesse of blood and was not forbid to marrie againe and your proceeding hath beene without colour and in contempt of the Church But the King who had no Superiour in Temporall matters might without doing wrong to any other submit himselfe to our iurisdiction But you are knowen to be subiect to another Thus farre hee proceeded waueringly and comparatiuely and with conditions and limitations 35 And least this should not stretch farre enough he addes Out of the Patrimonie in certaine causes wee doe exercise Temporall iurisdiction casually which the Glosse interprets thus requestedâ— And the Pope hath said before That he which makes this request must be one that hath no Superiour And in this place he sayes That this may not be done to preiudice anothers right But after this vpon a false foundation that is an errour in their Translation where in Deuteronomie Death being threatned to the transgressour of the sentence Of the Priest and Iudge they haue left out the Iudge he makes that state of the Iewes so falsely vnderstood to be a Type oâ— Rome and so Rome at this time to be Iudge of all difficulties because it is the seate of the high Priest But he must be thought more constant then to depart from his first grouÌ„d and therefore must meane When superiour Princes which haue no other Iudges are in such doubtes as none else can determine Recurrendum est ad sedâ—m Apostolicam that is they ought to do it rather then to go to the onely ordinary Arbitrator betweene Soueraigne Princes the sword 36 And when such Princes doe submit their causes to him in such cases hee deâ—lares himselfe by this Canon to be a competent Iudge though the matter be a ciuill businesse and he an Ecclesiasticall person and though he seeme to goe â—omewhat farther and streâ—ch that typicall place in Deuteron to â—gree with Rome so farre that as there so here he which disobeyes must die yet hee explanes this death thus Lâ—t him as a dead man be seperated from the Communion by Excommunication So that this Canon pâ—rposely enacted to declare temporall authority by a Pope whom none exceeded in a stâ—ffe and earnest promoâ—ing the dignity of that Sea procedes onely by probabilities and verisimilitudes and equiualencies and endes at last with Excommunication and therefore can imprint in you no reason to refuse this Oath For out of this Canon doth Victoria frame a strong argument That this most learned Pope doeth openly confesse by this Canon that he hath no power ouer the King of France in Temporall matters 37 Another Canon of the same Pope is often cited by which when the King of England complain'd that the King of France had broken the Peace which was confirm'd by Oath the Pope writes to the Bishops of France That though he intende not to iudge of that Title in question which appertaines not to him yet the periurie belongs to his cognisance and so he may reprooue and in cases of Contumacie constraine Per districtionem Ecclesiasticam without exception of the persons of Kings And therefore sayes he If the King refuse to performe the Articles and to suffer my Delegates to heare the cause I haue appointed my Legate to proceede as I haue directed him What his Instructions were I know not by this but beyond Excommunication you see by the Text he pretends not Whatsoeuer they were this is certaine That the Princes of those times to aduantage themselues against their enemies with the Popes helpe did often admit him to doe some acts against other Princes which after when the Pope became their enemie themselues felt with much bitternesse But in this Canon hee disclaimes any Iurisdiction to iudge of Titles which those Popes tooke to themselues who Excommunâ—cated our late Queene if Parsons say true That they had respect to the iniustice of her Title by reason of a Statute and all those Popes must doe which shall doe any act which might make this Oath vnlawfull to you 38 In the title De Sent. Excom there are two Canons which concernes onely Excommunication of Heretickes and inâ—ringers oâ— Ecclesiasticke Immunitie and are directed but to one parâ—icular place VVhich though they can impose noâ—hing vpon your conscience against this Oath may yet teach you not to grudge that a State which prouides for her securitie by Lawes and Oathes expresse it in such words as may certainely reach to the principall purpose thereof and admit no euasions For so these Canons doe when they Excommunicate All of all Sexe of any Name Fauourers Receiuers Defenders Lawmakers Writers Gouernours Consuls Rulers Councellours Iudges and Registers of any statutes made in that place against Church liberties 39 That the Canons haue power to abrogate Ciuill lawes of Princes they vse to cite the Canon Quoniam omne made by Innocent the third who hath made more Canons then halfe of the Popes before him And if this doe not batter downe yet it vndermines all secular power For they may easily pretend that any Lawe may in some case occasion sinne This Canon hath also more then Ordinary authority because it is made in a generall Councell thus it â—aies Absque bona fide nulla valeat praescriptio tam Canonica quam ciuilis And this saies Bellarmine doth abrogate an Imperiall lawe by which prescription would serue so that it begann Bona fide though at some time after he which was in possession came to know that his title was ill but the Canon lâ—w requires that he esteeme in hâ—s conscience his title to be good all the time by which he pâ—escribes But by this Canon that particular Imperiall lawe is no more abrogated then such other lawes as cannot be obserued without danger of sinne which includes not onely some Ciuill Constitutions but also some other Canons For your Glosser saies That the Canon derogates from all Constitutions Ciuill and Ecclesiastique which cannot be obserued without deadly sin that is it makes them guilty in foro interiori He addes That he doth not beleeue that the Pope did purpose by this Canon to preiudice the ciuill lawes nor that the wordes are intended of ciuill and secular law but that by those wordes Tam ciuilis quam Canonica the Pope meanes that a prescriber Malae fidei is guilty in conscience whether it be of a matter Secular or Ecclesiastique For saies bee though some say the Pope meant to correct the law herein yet this correction is not obserued in Iudicio Seculari And therefore saies hee I doe not beleeue that the Pope himselfe is bound to iudge according to this Canon where he hath temporall iurisdiction because hee hath that Iurisdiction from the Emperour therefore the Imperiall law standes still and is not abrogated by this Canon
though of a generall Councell 40 This Pope also by a Canon in the title de Voto hath gone the farthest of any which haue fallen within my obseruation for a King of Hungary which had made a vowe to vndertake a warre for Hierusalem preuented by death imposed the execution thereof vpon his yonger sonne who binding himselfe to performe it with the armie which he leuied for that purpose in pretence troubled his brother in his Kingdome To him therefore Innocentius writes That except he doe forthwith performe the vow he shall be excommunicate and depriued of all right to that Kingdome and that the kingdome if his elder brother die without issue shall deuolue to his younger brother But all these threatnings except that one of Excommunication were not thundered by the Pope as though hee could inflict them out of his authority but he remembers this ill-aduised Prince that except he performe the will of his father he looses his inheritance by the law Which the Glosse in this place endeuours to proue and to that purpose cytes and disputes some of the lawes in that point 41 The Canon Solitae though it be euery where alleadged and therefore it importunes me to mention it reaches not to our question for it is onely a Reprehension made by a Pope to a Greeke Emperour because hee did not affoord his Patriarch of Constantinople dignity enough in his place And he tels him that he mistakes S. Peters meaning in his Epistle where he teaches obedience to Emperours For saies he he writ but to those which were vnder him and not to al and he did prouoke them to a meritorious humility not informe them of a necessary Duety For saies he if that place shall be vnderstood of Priests and literally then Priests must bee subiect to Slaues because it is Omni Creaturae neyther saies he is it said To the King absolutely Precellenti but tanquam precellenti which was not added without cause For saies the Glosse this word Tanquam is Similitudinarium non expressiuum veritatis So that S. Peter doth not call the king Superiour in truth but as it were Superiour as I noted the Cardinals to subscribe Letters to persons of lower ranke Vester vti frater And that which followes of the punishment of euill doers and praise of God is not saies he that the King hath power of the sword ouer good and euill but onely ouer them which because they vse the sword are vnder his iurisdiction Then proceedes he to magnifie Priesthood because Ieremie to whom Commission was giuen ouer Nations was descended of Priests and because the Sunne which designes Priesthod is so much bigger then the Moone with so many more impertinencies and barbarismes and inconsequences that I wonder why he who summ'd it should so specially say of this Canon that it is Multum Alâ—egabile 42 In the Canon Grauem Honorius the third writes to certaine Prelates whose Church had receiued much detriment by a Noble-man That since he hath continued contemptuously vnder Excommunication two yeares if vpon this last monition he refuse to conforme himselfe they should discharge those Churches from their obedience to him and denounce those which ought him alleageance to be discharged therof as long as be remained Excommunicate But it appeares not here whether hee were a Subiect of the Romane Church or no And yet appeares plainely that he was no Soueraigne and therefore no precedent in our case in which there could not easily be restitution giuen to any after another were in possession 43 In the next volume of the law which they call Sexâ—us I haue noted in their Authours but one Canon which comes within any conuenient distance of this point which is a Letter of Innocent the fourth to the Nobility of Portugall by which vnder paine of Excommunication hee commaunds them to receiue the kings brother as coadiutor to that king Notwithstanding any Oath of Alleageance or resistance of the King So that they preserued the right in the King and in his children if he shall â—aue any Which being but matter of fact doth not constitute a rule nor binde consciences especially when for the fact it selfe the note saies in that place That the Pope ought not to haue interposed himselfe in that businesse 44 In the Extrauagantsâ—f â—f Pope Iohn the two and twenteth there is one Canon which would take great hold of consciences obliged to that Sea but that it proceedes from a Pope infam'd for heresie and claimes that Iurisdiction which it there inculcates in the right of being Emperour at that time when the throne by the death of Henrie the seuenth was vacant Thus it saâ—es Since it is cleare in law and constantly obserued of olde that in a vacancy of the Empire because then there can be no recourse to any Secular Iudge the Iurisdiction Gouerâ—ment and Disposition of the Empire deuolues to the Pope who is knowne to haue exercised all these therein by himselfe or others whereas diuers continue the offices of the Empire without our Confirmation we admonish all vnder Excommunication euen Kings to leaue off those titles and if they doe not so within two moneths how could hee prophesie so long a vacancie Wee will Excommunicate the persons and interdict the Dominions of them all Etiam superiores et inferiores Reges and proceede with them spiâ—itually and temporally as we shall farther see to be expedient And wee absolue all men of all Oathes by which they were bound to them But as I said before this right of inflicting temporall punishment hee claimâ—s as Emperour and the spirituall punishments are threatned to no other nor in any other Capacity then as they are officers of the Empire of which then hee imagines himselfe supreme Prince and so he is enabled to doe all those acts vpon any Prince which depends vpon the Empire which he might doe Ordinarily in the Patrimony and all which the Pope and the Emperour together might doe vpon any Prince which vsurped the titles and dignities of the Empire without the Emperours approbation 45 In the Common Extrauagants that which they call vnam Sanctam made by Boniface the eight Anno 1302. hath the greatest force of all both because it intends to proue and to Decree a certaine proposition That it is of the necessitie of Saluation to be subiect to the Pope and also because it determines it with Essentiall and formall words belonging to a Decree Declaramus Definimus Pronunciamus And though in the body and passage of the Decree there are sometimes arrogations of Secular Iurisdiction by way of argument and conueniencie and Probable consequence yet is there nothing drawne into the definition and Decree and thereby obligatorily cast vpon our Consciences but onely this That a Subiection to the Pope is of the necessitie of Saluation For sayes the glosse it was the intention of the Pope in this Decretall to bring reasons examples and authorities to
proue that Conclusion So that as if it pleased him to haue said so definitiuely without arguing the case the Decretall had beene as perfit and binding as it is after all his reasons and argumentation so doe not his Reasons bind our reason or our faith being no part of the Definition but leaue to vs our liberty for all but the Definition it selfe 46 And a Catholique which beleeues by force of this Decretall That he cannot be saued except he obay the Pope is not bound to beleeue thereâ—fore that these words of S. Iohn There shall be one sheepe-folde and one sheepheard are meant of a Subiection of all Christian Princes to the Pope as this Decretall by way of Argument sayes but he may be bold for all this to beleeue an elder Pope that this is spoken of ioyning Iewes and Gentiles in one faith or Theophilact That this proues one God to be the sheepheard of the olde and new Testament against the Maniches Nor is he bound because this Decretall saies it by the way to beleeue that the words in Saint Luke Behold here are two swords to which Christ did not answere It is too much but it is enough doe proue the spirituall and temporall swords to bee in the disposition of the Church but he is at liberty for all this to bâ—leeue Chrysostome That Christ by mentioning two swords in that place did not meane that they should possesse swords for what good sayes he could two swords doe but he forwarned them of such persecutions as in humane iudgement would neede the defence of swords Or he may beleeue Ambrose That these two swords are the sword of the Worde and the sword of Martyrdome of which there is mention in S. Luke A sword shall passe thorow my soule So that these swords arme them to seeke the truth and to defend it with their liues or hee may beleeue S. Basil who saies That Christ spoke Prophetically that they would encline to vse swordes though indeede they should not doe so Both which expositions of Chrysostome and Basil a Iesuite remembers and addes for his owne opinion That Christ did not confirme two Swords to the Church by Saying It is enough but onely because they could not vnderstand him he broke off further talke with them as we vse when we are troubled with one who vnderstands vs not to say T is well T is enough 47 For Bellarmine is our warrant in this case who saies That those wordes intimate no more but that the Apostles when persecution came would be in as much feare as they who would sell all to buy swords and that Pope Boniface did but mystically interprete this place 48 And as the exposition of other places there cited by Boniface and his diuers reasons scattered in the Decretall â—al not within the Definition therof noâ— binde our faith so doth it not that those wordes spoken by God to Ieremy I haue set thee ouer the nations and ouer the Kingdomes and to plucke vp and roote out to destroy and to throw downe to build and to plant are veâ—ifiâ—d of the Ecclesiastique power though he say it But any Catholique may boldly beleeue that they were spokeÌ„ only to Ieremy who had no further Commission by them but to denounce and not to inflict those punishments For it were hard if this Popes Mysticall expositions should binde any man contrary to his oath appointed by the Trent Councell to leaue the vnanime consent of the Fathers in expounding these Scriptures and so an obedience to one Pope should make him periured to another The last Dâ—finition therefore of this Decretall which was first and principally in the purpose and intention of this Pope which is Subiection to him is maâ—ter of faith to all them in whom the Popes Decreâ—s beget faiâ—h but temporall Iurisdiction is not hereby imposed vpon the conscience as matter of faith 49 But because this Canon was suspiciously penn'd and perchance misinterpretable and bent against the kingdome of France betweene which state and the Pope there was then much contention so that therefore it kept a iealous watch vppon the proceeding of that Church Clement the fifâ— who came to be pope within foure yeares after the making of this Canon made another Decree That by this Definition or Declaration of Boniface that Kingdome was not preiudiced nor any more subiect to Rome then it was before the making of that Decree And though it was not Clements pleasure to deale cleerely but to leaue the Canon of Boniface as a stumbling blocke still to others yet out of the whole History this will result to vs that if this temporall Iurisdiction which some gather out of this Canon were in the Pope Iure Diuino hee could not exempt the kingdome of Fraunce and if it were not so no Canons can create it But euen this exemption of Clement proues Bonifaces acte to be Introductory and new for what benefite hath any man by being exempted from a Declaratorie law when for all that exemption â—ee remaines still vnder the former law which that declares So that nothing concerning temporall Iurisdiction is defined in that Canon but it is newly thereby made an Article of faith that all men must vpon paine of damnation be subiect to the Church in spirituall causes from which Article it was necessary to exempt France because that kingdome was neuer brought to be of that opinion 50 And in the last Volume of the Canon law lately set out in the Title De Rescrip Mand. Apost there is one Canon of Leo the tenth and another of Clement the seuenth which annull all Statutes and ciuill constitutions which stoppe Appeales to Rome or hinder the execution of the Popes bulles and inflicts Excommunication and Interdicts the Dominions of any which shall make or fauor such Statutes But because these Canons doe not define thisâ— as matter of faith I doubt not but the Catholiques of England would bee loath to aduenture the daungers which our Lawes inflict vpon such as seeke Iustice at Rome which may be had here And they doe though contrarie to these Canons in continuall practise bring all their causes into the Courtes of Iustice here which if the Canons might preuaile belong'd to Rome 51 And these be all the Canons which I haue mark'd either in mine owne reading of them or from other Authors which write of these questions to bee cited to this purpose Those which concerne Ecclesiasticke immunitie or the Popes spirituall power I omitted purposelyâ— And of this kind which I haue dealt withall I doubt not but some haue escaped me But I may rather be ashamed of hauing read so much of this learning then not to haue read all 52 Heere therefore I will conclude that though to the whole body of the Canon Law there belong'd as much faith and reuerence as to the Canons of the old Councels yet out of them you can finde nothing to
Matrimony and others of others and he must sweare That he beleeues Purgatory Indulgences and veneration of Reliques and hee must sweare That all things contrary to that Coâ—ncell are hereticall And this oath is not onely Canonized as their phrase is by being inserted into the body of the Canon law but it is allowed a roome in the Title De Summa Trinitate fide Catholica and so made of equall credite with that And that oath by which the Cardinals are bound to the maintenance of the Church priuileges is conceiued in so strong and forcible wordes that Baronius calls it Terribile Iuramentum saies that the only remembring of it inflicts a horror vpon his minde and a trembling vpon his body 7 And with equall diligence are those oathes framed which are giuen to the Emperours when they come to be Crowned by the Pope For before he enters the land of the Church he takes one oath Domino Papae iuro that I will exalt him with all my power And before he enters Rome he sweares that he will alter nothing in that Gouernement And before he receiues the Crowne he sweares that he will protect the Popes person and the Church And in the creation of a Duke because hee might haue some dependance vpon another Prince the Pope exhibites to him this oath I vow my reuerence and obedience to you though I be bound to any other 8 So did Gregory the seuenth exact a curious oath of the Prince of Capua that he would sweare Alleageance to the Emperour when the Pope or his Successors should admonish him thereto and that when hee did it he would doe it with reseruation of his Alleageance to the Pope And so when the Emperour Henrie the seuenth though he confessed that he had swoâ—ne to the Pope yet denied that hee vnderstood that Oath to be an Oath of Alleageance or Fidelity the Popes haue tooken order not onely to insert the oath into the body of the Canon Lawe but to enact thereby That whosoeuer tooke that Oath after should account and esteeme it to bee an Oath of Alleageance 9 With how much curiositie and vnescapablenesse their formes of Abiuration vnder oath are exhibited They thought they had not giuen words enow to Berengarius till they made hâ—m sweare That the body in the Sacrament was sensibly handled broken and ground with the teeth which he was bound to sweare Per Homousion trinitatem And they dressed and prepard Hierome of Prage an oath in the Councell of Constance by which he must sweare freely voluntarily or else bee burned and simplie and without condition To assent to that Church in all things but especially in the Doctrines of the Keyes and Ecclesiastick immunities and reliques and all the ceremonies which were the most obnoxious matters 10 But yet this seem'd not enough And therefore though Castrensis say That there is no Law by which he which abiures should bee bound to abiure any other Heresie then that of which he was infamed yet hee sayes that it stands with reason that he should abiure all And accordingly the Inquisition giue an oath in which sayes hee Nulla manet rimula elabendi For he must sweare That he abiures all Heresies and will alwayes keepe the faith of Rome And that he hath told all of others and of himselfe and euer will doe so And that if he doe not he renounces the benefit of this Absolution and will trouble the Court with no more dayes of hearing but sayes he Ego me iudico 11 And if wee doe but consider the exacte formes and the aduantagious words and clauses which are in their Exorcismes to cast out and to keepe out Diuels they may be good inducements and precedents to vs how diligent we should be in the phrase of our Laweâ— to expell and keepe out Iesuites and their Legion which are as craftie and as dangerous 12 When therefore it was obserued that not onely most of the Iesuites Bookes which tooke occasion to speake either of matter of State or Morall Diuinitie abounded with trayterous and seditious Aphorismes and derogatorie from the dignitie of Princes in generall but that their Rules were also exemplified and their speculations drawne into practise in this Kingdome by more then one Treason and by one which included and exceeded all degrees of irreligion and inhumanity then was it thought fit to conceiue an oath whose end and purpose and scope was to try finde out who maintained the integrity of their naturall and ciuill obedience so perfectly as to sweare that nothing should alter it but that he would euer do his best endeuour to the preseruation of the Prince what enemie so euer should rise against him 13 And if any of the materiall words or any clause of the Oath had beene pretermitted then had not the purpose and intent of the Oath beene fulfilled That is no man had auerr'd by that oath that he thought himselfe bound to preserue the King against All enemies which to doe is meere Ciuill obedience For though the generall word of Enemie or Vsurper would haue encluded and enwrapped as wel the Pope as the Turke when either of them should attempt any thing vpon this Kingdomeâ— yet as it hath euer beene the wisdome of all States in all Associations and leagues to ordaine Oathes proper to the busines then in hand and to the imminent dangers So now it was most necessâ—rie to doe so because the malignitie of men of that perswasion in Religion had so violently broke foorth and declar'd it-selfe Which happie diligence the effect praises and iustifies enough since it appeares that if these particular clauses had not beene inserted they would haue swallowed any Oath which had beene presented in generall termes and haue kept their Consciences at large to haue done any thing which this Oath purpos'd to preuent 14 He therefore that should desire to bee admitted to Sweare that hee would preserue the King against all his enemies Except the Pope or those whom he should encourage or imploy Or that he would euer beare true Allegeance Vntill the Pope had discharged him or that heâ— would discouer any conspiracie which did happen before the Pope did authorize it Or that he would keepe this Oath Vntill the Pope gaue him leaue to breake it this man should be farre from performing the intent and scope of an Oath which should be made for a new attestation that hee would according to his naturall duetie and inborne obedience absolutely desend the King from All his enemies 15 I make no doubt but the Iesuites would haue giuen way to the Oath if it had beene conceiu'd in generall words of All obedience against all Persons for it were stupiditie to denie that â—o be the dutie of all Subiects Nor would they haue exclaim'd that spirituall Iurisdiction had beene infringed if in such times as their Religion gouern'd here this clause had beene added to defend the King Though
the Metropolitane of England should Excommunicate him And yet by there Doctors it is auerr'd that Iure Diuino and Iure Comâ—muni Antiquo A Bishop may Excommunicate a King as Ambrose did Theodosius and that excepting onely infallibilitie of iudgement in matter of Faith a Bishop might Iure Diuino doe all those things in his Diocesse which the Pope might doe in the whole Church For so Bellarmine himselfe concludes arguing from the Popes Authoritie in all the world to a Bishop in his Diocesse If thereâ—ore an Oath had beene lawfull for defending the King against All enemies though a Bishop Excommunicate him And the Pope haue onely by positiue lawes withdrawne from the Bishops some of the exercise of their iurisdiction and reserued to himselfe the power of excommunicating Princes it is as lawfull to defend him aâ—ter a Popes excommunication now as it was after a Bishops when a Bishop might excommunicate and no man euer said that a Bishop might haue deposed a King 16 All which they quarrell at in the oath is that any thing should be pronounced or any limits set to which the Popes power might not extend but they might as well say that his spirituall power were limited or shortned and so the Catholique faith impugned if one should denie him to haue power ouer the winde and sea since to tame and commaund these in ordine ad spiritualia would aduance the conuersion of the Indies and impaire the Turks greatnesse and haue furthered his fatherly spirituall care of this Kingdome in 88. 17 All the substance of the oath is virtually comprehended in the first proposition That king Iames is lawfull King of all these Dominions The rest are but declarations and branches naturally and necessarily proceeding from that rooâ—e And as that Catholique which hath sworne or assented that Paul the fift is Pope canonically elected hath implicitely confessed that no man can deuest or despoile him of that spirituall iuâ—isdiction which God hath deposed in him nor of those temporall estates which by iust title his predecessours possessed or pretended too so that Subiect which sweares king Iames to bee his true and lawfull King obliges himselfe therein to all obedience by which hee may still preserue him in tâ—at state which is to resist all which shâ—ll vpon any occasion be his enemies 18 For if a king be a king vpon this condition that the Pope may vpon such cause as seemes iust to him depose him the king is no more a Soueraigne then if his people might depose him or if a Neighbour king might depose him For though it may seeme more reasonable and conuenient that the Pope who may bee presumed more equall and dispassioned then the people and more disinteressed then the neighbour Princes should be the Iudge and Magistrate to depose a Prince enormously transgressing the wayes in which his duâ—y bound to him to walke though I say the king might hope for better Iustice at his hand then anothers yet he is no Soueraigne if any person whatsoeuer may make him none For it is as much against the nature of Soueraignty that it may at any time be iustly taken away as that it shall cerâ—ainly bee taken away And therefore a King whom the Pope may depose is but a Depositarieâ— and Guardian of the Souerainty â—o whose trust it is committed vpon condition as the Dictators were Depositaries of it for a certaine time And Princes in this case shall bee so much worse then Dictators as Tenants at will are worse then they which haue certaine leases 19 And thereâ—ore that suspition and doubt which a learned Lawyer conceiued that the Kings of France and Spaine lacked somewhat of Souerainty because they had a dependance and relation to the Pope would haue had much reason and probability in it though he meant this onely of spirituall matters concerning religion if that authority which those Kings seeme to be subiect to were any other then such as by assenting to the Ecclesiastique Canons or confirming the immunities of the Ecclesiastique state they had voluntarily brought upon themselues and the better to discharge their duetyes to their Church and to their ciuill state had chosen this way as fittest to gouerne their Church as other waies by Iudges and other Magistrates to administer ciuill Iuâ—stice 20 So thereâ—ore his Maiesties predecessors in this Kingdome were not the lesse Soueraigne and absoluteâ— by those acts of Iurisdiction which the Popes exercised here For though some kings in a mis-deuout zeale and contemplation of the next life neglected the office of gouernement to which God had called them by attending which function duely they might more haue aduanced their saluation then by Monastique retirings of which publique care and preseruing those which were committed to their charge and preferring them before their owne happinesseâ— Moses and St. Paul were couragious examples Though I say they spent all their time vpon their owne future happinesse and so making themselues almost Clergy men and doing their duties gaue the Clergie men way and opportunity to enter vpon their office and deale with matter of State And though some oâ—her of our kings oppressed with temporall and personall necessities haue seemed to diminish themselues by accepting conditions at the Popes hands or of his Legates And some others out of their wisedome auoiding dangers of raw and immature innouâ—tions haue digested some indignities and vsurpations and by the examples of some kingdomes about them haue continued that forme of Church Gouernment which they could not resist without tumult at home and scandall abroadâ— yet all this extinguished no part of their Souerainty which Souerainty without all question they had before the other entred into the kingdome intirely and Souerainty can neither be deuested nor deuided 21 As therefore Saint Paul suffered Circumcision as long as toleration thereof aduanced the propagation and growth of the Church when a seuere and rigid inhibition thereof would haue auerted many tender and scrupulous consciences which could not so instantly passe from a commandement of a necessity in taking Circumcision to a necessity in leauing it But when as certaine men came downe and taught that circumcision was necessary to saluation and so ouerthrewe the whole Gospell because the necessity of both could not consist together then Circumcision was vtterly abolished So as long as the Romane Religion though it were corrupted with many sicknesses was not in this point become so infectious and contagious as that it would vtterly destroy and abolish the Souerainâ—y of Princes the kings of England succourd relieued and cherished it and attended an opportunity when God would enable them to medecine and recouer her but to be so indulgent to her now is impossible to them because as euery thing is iealous of his owne being so are kings most oâ— any and kings can haue no assurance of being so if they admit professors of that Religion which teache that the Pope may at any time Depose them
22 We doe not therefore by this oath exempt the King from any spirituall Iurisdiction Neither from oâ—ten incitations to continue in all his dueties by Preacâ—ing the word nor from confirming him in grace by the blessed Sacrament Nor from discreet reprehension if hee should transgresse We doe neither by this oath priuiledge him from the Censures of the Church nor denie by this oath that the Pope hath iustly ingrossed and reserued to himselfe the power to inflict those censures vpon Princes We pronounce therein against no power which pretendes to make Kings better Kings but onely against that which threatens to make them no kings 23 For if such a power as this of deposing and annihilating Kings bee necessarie and certaine in the Church and the Hierarchie thereof be not well established nor our saluation well prouided for without this power as they teach why was the Primitiue Church destitute thereof For if you allow the answere of Bellarmine That the Church did not depose Kings then because it lacked strength you returne to the beginning againe and goe round in a circle For the wisedome of our Sauiour is as much impeached and the frame of the Church is as lame and impotent and our saluation as ill prouided for if Christ doe not alwayes giue strength and abilitie to extirpate wicked kings if that be necessarie to saluation as he were if he did not giue them Title and Authoritie to doe it Yea all tese defect would still remaine in the Church though Christ had giuen Authoritie enough and Strength enough if he did not alwayes infuse in the Pope a Will to doe it 24 And where this power of deposing Princes may be lawfully exercised as in States where Princes are Conditionall and not absolute and Soueraigne as if at Venice the State should depose the Duke for attempting to alter that Religion and induce Greeke errours or Turcisme or if other States which might lawfully doe so should depart from the obedience and resist the force of their Princes which should offer to bring into that State the Inquisition or any other violence to their Conscience if the people in these States should depose the Prince did they doe this by any Spirituall Authoritie or Iurisdiction Or were this done by such a Temporall Authoritie as were indirect or casuall or incident or springing out of the spirituall authoritie as the Popes ridler makes his authoritie to bee Or must they stay to aske and obtaine leaue of their Clergie to depose such a transgressor If therefore such a particular state in whom the Soueraignty resides haue a direct temporall power which enables it sufficiently to maintaine and conserue it selfe such a supreme spirituall power as they talk of in the Pope is not necessarie for our saluation nor for the perfection of the Church gouernment 25 Nor is there any thing more monstrous and vnnaturall and disproportioned that that spirituall power should conceiue or beget temporall or to rise downwards as the more degrees of heigth and Supremacie and perâ—â—ctâ—oâ— it hath the more it should decline and stoope to the consideration of secular and temporall matters It may well haue some congruity with your Rules that the Popes of Rome in whom the fulnesse of spirituall power is said to be should haue more iuriâ—dictioÌ„ in spirituall matters then other Prelates They may be better trusted with the spirituall food and physicke of the Church and so prepare and present the word and the Sacraments to vs in such outward sort and manner as wee may best digest and conuert them to nouriture They may be better trusted with the spirituall Iustice of the Church and make the censures thereof profitable to the delinquent and others by his example They may be better trusted with the spirituall treasure of the Church and apply and dispence the graces of which they haue the stewardship at their discretion They may be better credited with canonizing of Saints and such acts of spirituall power then others and these are many and great offices to be put into one bodies hands But thaâ— out of this power and then onely when this power is at her fulnesse and perfection in the Pope there should arise and growe a temporall power which in their estimation is so poore and wretched a thing that a boy which doth but shaue his head and light a candle in the Church is aboue it for so they say euen of the lesser Orders is either impossible or to prodigious as if to insist vpon their owne comparisons of spirituall and temporall power the Sunne at his highest glory should be said to produce a Moone-light or golde after all trials and purifyings should bring â—orth Lead 26 Nor doe they for this Timpany or false conception by which spirituall power is blowne vp and swelled with temporall pretend any place of Scripture or make it so much as the putatiue father thereof For they doe not say that any place of Scripture doth by the literall sense thereof immediatly beget in vs this knowledge That the Pope may depose a Prince but all their arguments are drawne from naturall reason and discourse and conuenience So that if either the springe which moues the first wheele or any wheele by the way be disordered the whole Engine is defeated and made of no vse 27 And in this wee will ioyne and concurre with Azorius the Iesuite That though there be someâ—things which neither the Scriptures doe in expresse words forbid the Pope to doe nor the Canons can disable himâ— because hee is aboue them yet the very law of Nature inhibites them and prouides that by no meanes they may be done and that if the Pope should doe such a thing there were a Nullity in the action and the Church would neuer permit it but doe some act in opposition against it And all this out of this respect That naturall Reason would teach them that the generall peace and tranquility of the Christian Common-wealth would be disturbed thereby 28 If therefore in the point in question wee must be directed by naturall reason and dispute which is most profitable and conuenient for the peace of Christian states though it may bee long vncertaine on both sides where the victorie will fall yet during the suite Melior est conditio possidentis And since it is confessed that Princes before they accepted Christianitie had no Superiour and nothing appeares why Princes should not be as well able to gouerne Subiects in Christian Religion as in Morall vertue or wherein they neede an equall Assistant or Superiour now more then before or by what auâ—horitie the Pope is that Officer it is a precipitate and hastie preiudice for any man before iudgement to set to the seale of his bloud and a licentious and desperate extending of the Catholique faith to intrude into the body thereof and charge vpon our consciences vnder paine of damnation such an article as none but the thirteenth Apostle Iudas would haue made and
as his witnesses are all of â—o high dignity as no ambition can be higher then to be admitted amongst those witnesses of Christ â—or they are thus laide downe First the Baptâ—st then his Miracles then his Father and then the Scriptures 9 How soone God beganne to call vpon man for this seruice by sealing his acceptation of Abels sacrifice in accepting Abel for a Sacrifice for so saith Chrysostome Abel in the beginning before any example first of all Dedicated Martyredome And as soone as Christ came into the world after he receiued the oblations of the kings presenting part of their temporall fortunes the next thing wherein he would be glorified was that Holocaust and Hecatombe of the innocent children martyrd for his name 10 And though wee cannot by infinite degrees attaine to our patterne Christ the generall Sacrifice yet we must exceed those Typique times and Sacrifices of the old law and be no more couetous of our selues then they were of their beasts when that Sacrifice is required at our hands for when we sacrifice our concupiscences by rooting them out we equall them who sacrificed their beasts but we exceede them when we immolate our soule and body to God 11 The blood of the Martyres was the milke which nourished the Primitiue Church in her infancy and shall it be too hard for our digestion now It was the seede of the Church out of which we sprung and shall wee grudge to Tithe our selues to God in any proportion that hee will accept As Zipporah said to Moses vere sponsus sanguinum es mihi the Church may well say to Christ who lookes for this Circumcision at her hands and this tribute of blood which he hath so well deserâ—edâ— both by begetting the Church by his blood vpon the Crosseâ— and feeding her still wiâ—h the same blood in the Sacrament 12 But those whom hee hath pre-ordained to this supreame Dignity of Martyrdome God doth ordinarily bring vp in a nouitiate and Apprentisage of worldly Crosses and Tribulations And as Iâ—stinians great Officer Tiberius when out of a reuerence to the signe of the Crosse he remoued a Marble stone from the Pauement and vnder it found a second stone with the same Sculpture and vnder that a third and vnder all great plenty of treasure had not this treasure in his hope nor purpose nor desire before hand but satisfied himselfe in doing that honour to that signe which those first times needed So is the treasure and crowne of Martyredome seposed for them who take vp deuoutly the crosses of this life whether of pouerty or anguish'd consciences or obedience of lawes which seeme burdenous and distastefull to them for all that time a man serues for his freedome and God keeps his reckoning from the inchoation of his Martyredome which was from his first submission to these tribulations which Chrysostome testifies thus That when one is executed he is then made a Martyr that is declared and accepted â—or a Martyre by the Church but from that time when he begunne to shewe that he would professe that Religion he was a Martyre though he endured not that which Martyres doe 13 Saint Paulâ—aith â—aith of himselfe I die daily and Chrysostome of Dauid He merited the Crowne of Martyrdome a thousand times in his purpose and disposition and was slaine for God a thousand times And these persecutions are not onely part of the Martyredome but they are part of the reward for so St. Marke seemes to intimate when hee expresseth Christ thus No man shall forsake any thing for my â—ake but he shall receiue a hundred folde now at this preâ—ent houses Brothers Sisters Mothers and Children and land with Persecutions So that Christ promises a reward but not to take away the persecution but so to mingle and compound them and make them both of one taste and indifferency that wee shall not distinguish which is the meate and which is the sawce but nouriâ—h our spirituall growth as well with the persecution as with the reward 14 For this high degree of a consummate Martyre is not ordinarily attained to per Saltum but we must be content to â—erue God first in a lower ranke and Order for as much Kings as come to the possession of a Kingdome by a new or a violent or a litigious Title doe vse at the beginning to signe their Graunts and Edicts and oâ—her publâ—que Acts not onely themselues but admit the Subscription and testimony of their Counsellers and Nobility and Bishoppes but being estâ—blished by a long succession and entring by an indubitate Title are confident in their rights and come to signe Teste me ipso So doth our Sauiour Christ ordinarily in these times when hee is in possession of the world seale his graces to vs by himselfe in his word and Sacraments and doâ—h not so frequently câ—ll witnesses and Martyrs as he did in the Primitiue Church when he induced a new Religion and saw that that maner of confirmation was expedient for the credite and conueiance thereof And if a man should in an immature and vndigested zeale expose his life for testimony of a matter which were already beleeued or to which he were not called by God he did no more honor God in that acte then a Subiect should honour the King by subscribing his name and giuing his Tâ—stimony to any of the Kings Graunts CHAP. II. That there may be an inordinate and corrupt affectation of Martyrdome THe externall honours by which the memories of the Orthodox Martyres in the Primitiue Church were celebrated and enobled as styling their deaths Natalitia obseruing their Anniuersaries commemorating them at their Altars and instituting Notaries to register their actions and passions inflamed the Heretiques also to an ambition of getting the like glory And thereupon they did not onely expose and precipitate themselues into â—ll dâ—ngers but also inuented new wayes of Martyredome with hunger whereof they were so mâ—ch enraged and transported that some of them taught That vpon conscience of sinne to kill ones selfe was by this acte of Iustice a Martyrdomeâ— vpon which ground Petilian against whom Saint Augustine writes canonized Iudas for a Martyre The rage and fury of the Circumcelliones in extorting this imagined Martyrdome brought them first to solicite and importune others to kill them and if they fail'd in that suite they did it themselues And another Sect prospered so farre in heaping vp numbers of Martyres that their whole sect was called Martyriani 2 And a zealous scorne to be ouertaken and â—qual'd in this honor prouoked sometimes those who write the Actes of the Orthodoxe Martyrs to insert into their Histories some particulars which were not true and some which were not iustifiable for of the first sort of these insertions which proceeded as he saith out of too much loue to the Martyrs Baronius in his Martyrologe complaines and by the Canon which forbids these Histories to be reade publiquely in the
Romane Church it seems they were careful that the people should not thereby be taught and encouraged to bring such actions into consequence and imitation as if the immediate instinct of Gods spirit did not iustifie them would seeme indiscreete and intemperate Nor were they onely which corrupted the stories in fault but out of Binius the last compiler of the Councels we may perceiue that euen they which were Orthodoxe proâ—essors had some tincture of this ouer-vehement affectation of Martyredome for he saies that the sixeteth Canon of the Eliberitane councell by which it is enacted That those Christians which attempted to breake the Idols of the Gentiles and were slaine by them should not be numbred amongst the Martyrs was made to deterre men from following such examples as Eulalia who being a maide of twelue years came from her fathers house declared her selfe to be a Christian spit in the Iudges face and prouoked him to execute her To which they were then so inclinâ—ble that as a Catholique Author hath obserued that state which inflicted those persecutions sometimes made Edicts that no more Christians should be executed because they perceiued how much contentment and satisfaction and complacency some of them had in such dying 3 And although these irregular and exorbitant actes be capable of a good interpretation that is that the spirit of God did by secret insinuations eâ—cite and inflame them and such as they were to puâ— feruor into others at that time yet certainly God hath already made his vse of them and their examples belong no more to vs in this part and circumstance of such excesses 4 And though this secret and inward instinct and mouing of the holy Ghost which the Church presumes to haue guided not onely these martyres in whose forwardnesse these authors haue obserued some incongruity with the rules of Diuinity but also Sampson and those Virgines which drowned themselues â—or preseruation of their chastity which are also acounted by that Church as martyres although I say this instinct lie not in proofe nor can be made euident yet there are many other reasons which authorize and iustifie those zealous transgressions of theirs if any such were or make them much more excuseable then any man can be in these times and in these places wherein we liue 5 For the persecutions in the Primitiue Church were raised either by the Gentiles or the Arrians either the vnity of the God-head or the Trinity of the persons was euer in question which were the Elements of the Christian Religion of which it was fram'd and complexioned and so to shake that was to ruine and demolish all And they were also the Alphabet of our Religion of which no infant or Neophyte might be ignorant But now the integrity of the beliefe of the Roman Church is the onely forme of Martyrdome for it is not allowed for a Martyrdome to witnes by our blood the vnity of God against the Gentiles nor the Trinity of persons against the Turke or Iew except we be ready to seale with our blood contradictorie things and incompatible for the time past since euidently the Popes haue taught contradictorie things and for the time present obscure and irreuealed thinges and entangling perplexities of Schoolemen for in these yea in future contingencies we must seale with our blood that part which that Church shall hereafter declare to be true 6 This constant defence of the foundation and this vndisputable euidence of the truth was their warrant And they had another double reason of making them extremely tender and fearefull of slipping from their profession which was first the subtilties and Artifices of their aduersaries to get them to doe some acte which might imply a transgressing and dereliction of their Religion though it were not directly so and so draw a scandall vpon their cause and make their simplicity seeme infirmity and impiety and secondly the seuerity which the Church vsed towards them who had done any such acte and her bitternesse and aâ—ersenes from re assuming them euen after long penances into her bosome For by the third Canon of the Eliberitane Councâ—l which I mentâ—oned before it appeares that euen they whom they called Libellaticos because they had for money bargained and contracted with the State to spare them from sacrificing to Idolles though this were done but to redeeme their vexation and trouble were seperated from the holy Communion But none of these reasons can aduantage or relieue those of the Romane perswasion in these times because no point of Catholique faith either primary and radicall or issuing from thence by necessary deduction and consequence is impugned by vs nor their faith in those points wherin it abounds aboue ours explicated to them by any euidence which is not subiect to iust quarrell and exception nor are our Magistrates laborious or actiue to withdrawe them by any snares from their profession but only by the open and direct way of the word of God if they would heare it nor is the Church so sowre and tetricall but that she admits with ease and ioy those which after long straying not only into that Religion but into such treasons and disobediences as that Religion produces returne to her againe CHAP. III. That the Romane Religion doth by many erroneous doctrines mis-encourage and excite men to this vicious affectation of danger first by inciting secular Magistracy secondly by extolling the value of merites and of this worke in special by which the treasure of the Church is so much aduanced and lastly by the doctrine of Purgatory which by this acte is said certainely to be escaped The first part of Principallity and Priest-hood HAuing laide this foundation that the greatest Dignitie wherewith God hath enriched mans nature next to his owne assuming thereof may suffer some infirmitie yea putrefaction by admixture of humane and passionate respects if when we are admitted to bee witnesses of Gods honour we loue our owne glory too much or the Authoritie by which this benefit is deriu'd vpon vs too little which is the function of secular Magistracie We are next to consider by what inducements and prouocations the Doctrine and practise of the Romane Church doth put forward and precipitate our slipperie disposition into this vicious and inordinate affection and dangerous selfe-flatterie 2 In three things especially they seeme to me to aduance and â—oment this corrupt inclination First by abasing and auiling the Dignitie and persons of secular Magistrates by extolling Ecclesiasticke immunities and priuiledges Secondly by dignifying and ouer-valewing our merits and satisfactions and teaching that the treasure of the Church is by this expence of our blood increased And thirdly by the Doctrine of Purgatorie the torments whereof are by this suffering said to be escaped and auoided 3 And in the first point which is a dis-estimation of Magistracie they offend two wayes Comparatiuely when they compare together that and Priest-hood and Positiuely when not bringing the Priestly function