The Famous Bull IN CAENA DOMINI Published at ROME every Maunday Thursday against Hereticks and all Infringers of Ecclesiastical Liberties With a PREFACE containing some Reflections on the Bull and Animadversions on the late Account of the Proceedings of the PARLIAMENT of PARIS Printed in the Year 1688. PREFACE AFTER so many and so loud Out-cries against that just and necessary distinction of Old and New Popery which the late Artifices and shiftings of our Adversaries have enforced the Divines of our Church to observe and publish after so many vehement Protestations against the reality of any such distinction and confident assertions of the entire Conformity between the Doctrine of the present Church of Rome or rather some few Emissaries of it and that of the immediately precedent Ages so many new Systems Representations and Expositions of the pretended Catholick Doctrine it might have been justly expected that the Faith and Doctrine if not of the present and precedent Age yet at least of all National Churches at this day in Communion with the Church of Rome should be perfectly conformable and invariable For the Opinions of the precedent Age may be indeed falsly represented to us the truth of them may be obscured by cunning Artifices and Illusions or evaded by a bold and obstinate Denial but the Doctrines and Practice of the present Time cannot be dissembled nor without too manifest an affront to Truth be denied by these Gentlemen of the Mission who may perhaps confound our Reason but can never delude our Senses That this distinction is both just and real needs no other Argument than the known and confess'd distinction between French and Italian Popery For since the Patrons and Defenders of both these Parties appeal to the belief of the Church in the precedent Age since both propose Tradition as the Rule of their Faith and challenge to themselves the Consent and Suffrage of that Rule since both their Pleas cannot be allowed and one Party must necessarily have departed from the true ancient and genuine Popery it evidently follows that as one Party conserves the Old so the other hath framed a New sort of Popery I know it is commonly pretended that these differences are of small moment neither essential to Christianity nor to the Doctrine of the Church of Rome that either side may be safely believed and neither renders any Man either less Orthodox or more Heretical But certainly these Pretences are no other than Protestations against matters of Faith since not only the Subjects of these different Doctrines are Matters of the greatest moment and concern but attended with all the solemn Characters and evident Marks of the most momentous Articles of Faith I mean an infinite Zeal and Concern of each Party for the defence and propagation of their own Opinion and condemning the contrary Doctrine as a Crime worthy of Excommunication and Anathema which are never supposed to be inflicted on Opinions of an indifferent nature and free from all Contagion of Heresy or Schism If then the Pope and Italian Divines will not allow those of France to be truly Orthodox and Catholick if they think them unworthy and incapable of Ecclesiastical Dignities and Promotions and daily issue out Excommunications against such Practices as the Church of France is manifestly known to act allow and command if on the other side the French Clergy so far return the Accusation as to attaint the Pope of Heresy to declare his Censures rash unchristian and destructive of the Church and himself ipso facto excommunicate certainly we must renounce all Sense and Reason to imagined these to be no more than verbal Differences Scholastick Niceties and Opinions of private Divines which may be safely either rejected or received That Differences of this nature have arose between the Church of France and See of Rome and those continued with great Heat and Animosity through several Ages is manifest both from Ecclesiastical and Civil History This indeed our Adversaries deny but surely by the assistance of that wonderful Secret which can enable them confidently to propose the greatest Contradictions and Falsities and then effectually secure them from blushing at them The Violence and Cruelties practised upon many thousand Protestants of France have been acted within a few Months in the view of the World and the face of Mankind yet there are not wanting who decry all Relations of these Cruelties and Barbarities as the Calumnies and Fictions of Hereticks and have added this to the other glorious Titles of Lovis le Grand that he hath reduced his Subjects to the Profession of one Religion by methods of Mercy and Gentleness The present differences between the Courts of Rome and France how conspicuous soever might have suffered the same fate and with equal Reason have been denied if Monsieur Barillon the French Ambassador had not by endeavouring to vindicate his Master's Honour and the Justice of his Cause obliged us with an Account of the Proceedings of the Parliament of Paris upon the Pope's Bull an Account which as it is undeniable and unexceptionable to our Adversaries so it abundantly evinceth what I have hitherto advanced The whole Church of France and after them the Sorbon have within a few Years defined and asserted the Fallibility of the Pope and herein acted consonantly to the Principles and Doctrines of their Ancestors who had constantly taught the same Doctrine but never solemnly defined it However this Article is beyond the Alpes rejected with a no less contrary Zeal and Infallibility of the Pope ranked among the Fundamental Doctrines of the Christian Religion For proof of this we need go no farther than the forementioned Account of the Proceedings of the Parliament at Paris which assures us that not only the Italian Doctors and Emissaries of the Court of Rome are employed carefully to propagate the Opinion of the Papal Infallibility as if the belief of that Point were wanting to render France truly Catholick but also that one third of the Episcopal Sees of France being now vacant and the King having nominated to them some of those who assisted at the late National Assembly wherein the Papal Infallibility was rejected Persons as well recommendable for their Piety and Vertue as for their Knowledg and Learning the Pope refuseth to grant Bulls of Confirmation to them on pretence that they do not make Profession of a sound or Orthodox Doctrine because they do Pag. 5 23. not believe him to be Infallible nor like the Italian Doctors attribute to him the Title of Universal Monarch Which evidently demonstrates that the Papal Infallibility is esteemed a necessary Doctrine in Italy and the denial of it incompatible with a sound and Orthodox Belief of the Catholick Faith since Scholastick Niceties were never known to incapacitate Men for Ecclesiastical Preferments or cast them out of the number of Orthodox Christians The Primacy of the Pope is a matter of no less moment How far it extends is indeed controverted among Roman Catholicks but
believe and by preventing their Fluctuation and Mistakes in Faith to secure to them the attainment of eternal Salvation After this Bull hath been Enacted and confirmed by so many Popes promulged so often and so solemnly so exactly executed and put in practise by the Church of Rome proposed as the Standard of Catholick Doctrine and appealed to by this present Pope in the Controversies depending between him and the Court of France it cannot be any longer doubted that all matters whether of belief or practise contained in it are esteemed necessary to Salvation by the particular Church of Rome This also the punishments annexed to it evidently demonstrates Excommunication and Anathema being ipso facto incurred by the violation of any part of it For the very nature of these Excommunications supposeth that the persons offending do by that very act cease to be Christians or Catholicks and disown themselves to be so and that the action to which this punishment is declared to be annexed is directly contrary to Faith and destructive of it If after all the Doctrines of this Bull be denied to be justly charged upon the Church of Rome it might with equal reason be pretended that the ancient Commonwealth of Rome could not be justly accused of Idolatry or the worship of false gods altho she established that worship with severe Laws maintained the exercise of it with the publick Revenues punisht the neglect of it with great strictness and severity and made her addresses to those false Deities upon all great occasions and affairs of State because some few Philosophers opposed the general opinion contemned their Ceremonies and disapproved their worship Many and large Observations might be drawn from this Bull disadvantageous to the Doctrine and Discipline of the present Church of Rome But I will here take notice of no more than two And first Popery is commonly represented by the Reformed Divines as injurious to the Rights of Princes and promoting Sedition and Rebellion That the lawfulness of the Deposition of Princes hath been often defined by Popes and Councils and put in practice by them cannot be denied but then it is pretended that it was not defined dogmatically nor as a matter of faith that their definitions are misrepresented by us and were never received nor allowed by the Universal Church However the justice of our Charge is sufficiently manifested by this Bull which asserteth and maintaineth the Independency of the Clergy from the Secular Prince by forbidding the Civil Power to apprehend imprison vex summon tax fine or exercise any Act of Authority over Ecclesiastical persons upon pain of Excommunication and Anathema Now Deposition of Princes by the Papal Authority and exemption of the Clergy from any obedience to them by reason of their immediate subjection to the Pope being both founded upon the same principle of injustice and usurpation do mutually infer each other Nay to exempt the whole Clergy from the obedience of their Natural Prince doth actually devest him of all authority of one part of his subjects and deprive him of one half of his Kingdom especially in those Countries where the Clergy and Regulars are vastly numerous as in all places where Popery obtains or where they possess a great part of the Revenues of the Kingdom the Secular Prince being not only forbidden to impose any Taxes upon the Clergy or their Revenues but also even to receive them when voluntarily offered without an express License from the Court of Rome If after all this the Romish Emissaries will pretend to true and real Loyalty and acknowledg their subjection to their Natural Prince they must first own themselves to be Excommunicated persons and lay down the name of Roman Catholicks But we have reason to believe that our English Missionaries intend no such acknowledgment since they have with so much pomp lately revived the Festival of St. Thomas Becket who died in defence of this Trayterous Position That the Clergy owe no Subjection to the Secular Power In the next place it may be observed that the greatest part of this Bull is employed in Excommunicating and Anathematâ—zing all those who any ways presume to intermeddle in the cognizance of Ecclesiastical matters or interrupt the proceedings of Ecclesiastical Courts by Prohibitions Appeals or any Evasions of the like nature or who give aid advice or consent thereto All this is worded with such scrupulous nicety and exactness that it is impossible to be avoided by any subtile Evasions and then the Excommunication incurred can be taken off and absolved only by the Pope himself except at the point of death and then only when eminent signs of true repentance and assurance of full satisfaction are given Notwithstanding such express prohibition and denunciation of Anathema's it is notoriously known that all Popish Princes do intermeddle in judging Ecclesiastical Causes that particularly in France the Spiritual Courts are almost wholly rendred useless and debarred from exercising their Authority by frequent Prohibitions from the Secular Court and that in Sicily all Ecclesiastical Matters and Causes are decided by the sole Authority of the King of Spain and his Commissioners not to mention examples and practises of the like nature in other Popish Countries From whence it follows that by vertue of this Bull all these Princes their Counsellors Parliaments Lawyers and Adherents together with all who procure execute or consent to these Prohibitions and Impediments of Ecclesiastical Justice stand Excommunicate by the Pope and are really no Members of the Church of Rome No Priviledg or Exemption can in this case be drawn from ancient Immunities Pragmaticks or Concordats which the Parliament of Paris so much insist on since the Bull proceeds with a Non obstante to all these and declares them Null whensoever they oppose the Contents of the Bull. Nay decreeth that whoever recurs to them thereby to elude the Obligation of the Bull shall thereby ipso Facto become Excommunicate altho he should in no other case have incurred that Punishment In vain therefore doth the Parliament of Paris oppose the Liberties of the Gallican Church the Pragmatick of St. Lewis and Concordat of Lewis the XI and Francis to the present Attempts of the Pope and his Excommunication of the Marquis of Lavardin For the Pope having wisely grounded his Proceedings upon the Bull in Caena Domini which annuls and abolisheth them all the Parliament must either forego their Plea or their pretence of retaining Communion with the Church of Rome By the same Artifice the Pope hath cut off the Advocates Appeal to a future Council For the Bull declareth that all who make admit favour or countenance any such Appeal shall incur Excommunication Thus also the Argument of the Invalidity of the Excommunication of the Embassador drawn from the Omission of his Name in the Papal Instrument falls to ground For the Bull hath particularly provided for this Case and decreeth that all Violators of it of what Dignity soever shall be as effectually Excommunicated as if
impressis Notarii publici manu subscriptis sigillo Judicis Ordinarii Romanae Curiae vel alterius personae in dignitate ecclesiastica constitutae munitis eandem prorsus fidem in judicio extra illud ubique locorum adhibendam fore quae ipsis praesentibus adhiberetur si essent exhibitae vel ostensae § 30. Nulli ergo omnino hominum liceat hanc paginam nostrae excommunicationis anathematizationis interdicti innovationis innodationis declarationis protestationis sublationis revocationis commissionis mandati voluntatis infringere vel ei ausu temerario contraire Siquis autem hoc attentare praesumpserit indignationem Omnipotentis Dei ac Beatorum Petri Pauli Apostolorum ejus se noverit incursurum Datum Romae apud S. Petrum Anno Incarnationis Dominicae Millessimo sexcentesimo decimo sexto Idus Aprilis Pontificatus nostri anno quinto Anno a Nativitate Domini Nostri Jesu Christi millesimo sexcentesimo decimo tertio Indict 11. die vero quarta mensis Aprilis Pontificatus Sanctiss in Christo Patris D. N. D. Pauli divina providentia Papae V. anno octavo supradictae literae affixae publicatae fuerunt ad Valvas Basilicarum S. Joannis Lateranensis Principis Apostolorum in acie Campi Florae per nos Baldassarem Vacham Brandimartem Latinum Cursores Jacobus Brambilla Mag. Curs The Sixty third Constitution of Paul V. THe Excommunication and Anathematization of all Hereticks whatsoever and their favourers and Schismaticks or of those who violate the Ecclesiastical Liberty or any ways infringe the Contents of this Bull which is wont to be published on Maunday-Thursday As for almost all the Chapters of this Bull besides the 3d Extravagant of Paul II. and the 5th Extravagant of Sixtus IV. in the Title of Penance and Remissions you have them before ordained in the first Constitution of Urban V. fol. 215. in the 25th Constitution of Julius II. f. 482. in the 10th Constitution of Paul III. f. 522. and in the 81st Constitution of Gregory XIII f. 348. lib. 2. Other Bulls of this nature called Bulls in Caena Domini I have purposely omitted being content with these from which it may appear that the Popes have made some Variation in them according to the Exigency of the times Yet I would not omit those which follow as being especially necessary and partiticularly published upon the several Chapters of this Bull. There is extant therefore in this Collection a particular Edict of Nicolas III. about the 1st Section of this Bull in his 2d Constitution Sup. fol. 143. concerning Sect. 2. there is extant Const 5. of Pius II. f. 290. l. 1. concerning § 4. there is extant Const 7. of Pius V. f. 137. l. 2. concerning § 7. is extant Const 3. of Nicolas V. f. 283. l. 1. concerning § 10. is extant a Canon of Callistus in c. 23. Const 24. qu. 3. Concerning § 11. in respect of the Cardinals is extant Const 16. of Leo X. f. 420. l. 1. and Const 93. of Pius V. f. 222. l. 2. Concerning § 12. is extant Const 11. of Alexander VI. f. 352. Concerning § 14. is extant Const 2. of Martin V. f. 239. and Const 17. of Innocent VIII f. 343. and Const 30. of Leo X. f. 440. and Const 39. of Clement VII f. 505. l. 1. and Const 19. of Gregory XIII f. 290. l. 2. Concerning § 15. are many Canons in the Body of the Law and Const 10. of Martin V. f. 247. Concerning § 19. is extant Const 3. of Urban VI. f. 222. Concerning § 20. is extant Const 8. of John XXII f. 174. and Const 3. of Clement VI. f. 212. and Const 13. of Leo X. f. 314. and Const 11. of Paul IV. f. 595. Another like Excommunication usually published on Maunday Thursday is extant in the 62d Constitution of our Holy Lord Urban VIII inf Tom 4. Paul Bishop Servant of the Servants of God in perpetual memory of the thing now Decreed THE Pastoral vigilance and care of the Bishop of Rome being by the duty of his Office continually employed in procuring by all means the peace and tranquility of Christendom is more especially eminent in retaining and preserving the unity and integrity of Catholick Faith without which it is impossible to please God That so the faithful of Christ may not be as Children wavering nor be carried about with every wind of Doctrine by the cunning craft of men whereby they lay in wait to deceive but that all may meet in the unity of the Faith and the knowledg of the Son of God unto a perfect man That in the communion and society of this life they may not injure nor offend one another but rather being joyned together with the bond of Charity as members of one body under Christ the Head and his Vicar upon Earth the Bishop of Rome St. Peter's Successor from whom the unity of the whole Church doth flow may be increased in edification and by the assistance of the Divine Grace may so enjoy the tranquility of this present life that they may also attain eternal happiness For which Reasons the Bishops of Rome our Predecessors upon this day which is dedicated to the Anniversary commemoration of our Lord's Supper have been wont solemnly to exercise the Spiritual Sword of Ecclesiastical Discipline and wholsom Weapons of Justice by the Ministry of the Supreme Apostolate to the glory of God and salvation of Souls We therefore desiring nothing more than by the guidance of God to preserve inviolable the integrity of Faith publick Peace and Justice following this ancient and solemn Custom § 1. We excommunicate and anathematize in the name of God Almighty Father Son and Holy Ghost and by the authority of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul and by our own all Hussites Wiclephists Lutherans Zuinglians Calvinists Hugonots Anabaptists Trinitarians and Apostates from the Christian Faith and all other Hereticks by whatsoever name they are called and of whatsoever Sect they be as also their Adherents Receivers Favourers and generally any Defenders of them together with all who without our Authority or that of the Apostolick See knowingly read keep print or any ways for any cause whatsoever publickly or privately on any pre text or colour defend their Books containing Heresie or treating of Religion as also Schismaticks and those who withdraw themselves or recede obstinately from the obedience of us or the Bishop of Rome for the time being § 2. Further We excommunicate and anathematize all and singular of whatsoever station degree or condition they be and interdict all Vniversities Colledges and Chapters by whatsoever name they are called who appeal from the Orders or Decrees of Vs or the Popes of Rome for the time being to a future General Council and those by whose aid and favour the Appeal was made § 3. Further We excommunicate and anathematize all Pirates Corsairs and Robbers by Sea roving about our Sea chiefly from Mount Argentiere to Terracina
that some Power was assigned by Christ to St. Peter and his Successors over all Members of the Christian Church is the common Principle of all proposed by them as the only Center of Unity and a Doctrine necessarily to be received by all Catholicks Whatsoever this Power is it being of Divine Institution cannot be annulled or restrained by any General Council much less by the Laws and Edicts of the Civil Power but may be exercised independently from both If then any Church refuseth any Obedience or Submission to the Commands of the Pope unless they be conformable to the Canons of Councils and ratified in the first place by the Civil Power they thereby declare an intire Disbelief of any Power committed to the Pope by Divine Institution For however they may pretend Councils to be Infallible and consequently inerrable in fixing the limits of the Papal Power although even according to this supposition the Papal Power not being antecedent to General Councils could have no existence in the three first Centuries when no such Councils were held yet this Infallibility cannot be pretended to be inherent in the Civil Power The Temporal Prince may possibly be an Atheist an Apostate or an Heretick may forbid all Obedience to be paid even to the most just Commands of the Pope and deny to ratify such Orders as do naturally flow from the execution of that Commission which Christ hath given to the Pope If the Pope hath indeed any such Divine Commission he may and ought to execute it in spight of all opposition of the Civil Power and if he exceeds not the bounds of his Commission he ought to be obeyed by all faithful Christians although the Civil Power far from ratifying his Commands should even forbid them to be obeyed No priviledg can exempt us from this Duty nor any humane Law dispense with the Obligation of it yet the Church of France pretends and constantly averrs that no Obedience is due to any Commands of the Pope of what nature soever until they be first ratified and confirmed by their Prince This pretence was not started of late but hath been introduced and continued for several Ages being the grand Principle of the so much famed Liberties of the Gallican Church a Principle which can no otherwise be maintained than by disowning and disclaiming all Divine Institution of the least Papal Power and accordingly we are told in this account that the boundless and arbitrary Authority of the Pope hath been the Source of almost all the incurable mischief with which the Church is afflicted that his Power Pag. 13 15 22 9. reacheth no farther than the Diocess of Rome and his Patriarchship than the neighbouring Provinces stiled Suburbicarian that it would be very advantageous that all Ecclesiastical Matters were transacted in the Kingdom without ever being obliged to have recourse to Rome and that an Ambassador of France executing his Master's Orders cannot thereby incur Ecclesiastical Censures although none will deny that Ambassadour may possibly in obedience to his Master's Commands oppose even that Authority of the Pope which was lawfully invested in him by Christ if any such there be But not only doth the Church of France hereby disown the Divine Institution of any Papal Power not only doth she declare the Thunders of the Vatican to have nothing formidable to be transitory Fires which exhale into Smoke and do neither hurt Vid. pag. 19. nor prejudice save to those who darted them but affirms the Pope to be a Favourer and Patron of Hereticks ipso facto excommunicate and no Member much less Head of the Catholick Church He is accused to have maintained converse and correspondence with the condemned Disciples of Jansenius ever since Pag. 27. he hath been seated in S. Peter's Chair to have spoken in the highest degree in their praise and declared himself their Protector â—nd thereby so far to have endangered the Peace of the Church that nothing less than the foresight and cares of Lovis le Grand could restore or conserve it that he favours the Quietists and connives at their Heresy underhand espouseth their Party and protects their Persons He is denounced Excommunicate upon this ground That he who without lawful cause and through humane motives undertakes to suspend one of the Members of Jesus Christ from the Communion of the Church doth Pag. 12. separate himself from it by such an unjust Attempt Nay farther he is declared by the ill exercise of his Power to have lost Pag. 37. the Power of binding and unbinding and thereby in effect to have fallen from the Papacy and to be deposed Alas that Innocent XI whom our Missionaries represent to us as the grand Pattern of Apostolick Vertue and Holiness should at last be convicted of Heresy and proved to be no Member of the Church He hardly escaped last year from being condemned as a Quietist in the Inquisition of Rome and now alas poor Man instead of enjoying that Honour which he hath so ambitiously courted of suffering Martyrdom in defence of the Church he may perhaps be burnt for an Heretick as soon as Lovis le Grand shall please Pag. 7. to execute that Right which he pretends to have to make himself known in the quality of his Sovereign It cannot be pretended that these are matters of light moment in themselves but unhappily at this time heightned into great differences by the ill Conduct and false Zeal of an ignorant and stupid Pope since his Actions are grounded upon and upheld by the famous Bull in Coenâ Domini which himself refers to and the Parliament of Paris upon that account decrieth with so much indignation telling us that if this Decree whereby the Popes declare themselves Sovereign Monarchs of the World be legitimate Pag. 11. the Majesty Royal will then depend upon their humour all their Liberties will be abolished the Secular Judges will no longer have the Power to try the possession of Benefices nor the civil and criminal Cause of Ecclesiastical Persons All this is indeed literally true and the natural consequence of that Bull. But then this alone abundantly manifests the Justice of our Charge and the real difference of the Doctrines of the Churches of France and Italy in matters of the greatest moment In France this Bull is esteemed impious unjust and uncanonical derogatory to the Rights of Princes and Priviledges of national Churches contrary to the Laws and destructive of the Christian Church At Rome it is accounted sacred and inviolable ratified and confirmed by more than twenty Popes whose Names and Constitutions are prefixed to the Bull published with the greatest Solemnity imaginable every Maunday Thursday the Infringers and Violators of it declared ipso facto excommunicate and Priviledges and Dispensations to the contrary annulled and made void and all this as the Preface of the Bull assureth us to preserve the Unity and Integrity of the Faith to teach all private Christians what they are certainly to