Selected quad for the lemma: authority_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
authority_n	bishop_n	church_n	universal_a	4,576	5	8.9075	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B09275	Decrees of our Holy Father, Pope Innocent XI containing the suppression of an office of the Immaculate Conception of the most Holy Virgin and of a multitude of indulgences : according to the copies at Rome, from the printing-press of the Most Reverend Apostolick Chamber / translated into English out of the French copy, to which the Latine was adjoyn'd, as also here it is, by the direction of an eminent person of honour.	Catholic Church. Pope (1676-1689 : Innocent XI); Innocent XI, Pope, 1611-1689.; Inchofer, Melchior, 1585?-1648. Epistolae B. Virginis Mariae ad Messanenses veritas vindicata. English & Latin.	1678 (1678)	Wing I200A; ESTC R188290	21,891	70

'T is God alone is able to do this ..... There are in man a thousand windings a thousand artifices to deceive a thousand tricks for mischief In his heart is one thing in his mouth the quite contrary 'T is but few that are truly good and vorthy the love of God not carried on with varice But the greatest part of men by much are hypocrites and counterfeits more are desirous to seem good than to be so Wolves in Sheeps clothing It is not therefore to be wondred at if the Popes prudence be sometimes imposed upon and favours obtained for money Aeneas Silvius Cardinal of Sene afterwards Pope by the name of Pius II. in an Epistle to Martin Meyer Chancellar to the Archbishop of Mayence Care is to be had also that by pretence of false Miracles we may as well say False Indulgences we do not injury to those that are true The Faculty of Divinity at Paris in answer to a consultation concerning the souls of persons deceased appearing after they be dead January 22 1534. The holy Synod of Trent doth declare and ordain that the use of Indulgences being very wholsome for Christian people and approved by authority of Sacred Councils is to be retained in the Church And doth Anathematize those who who say they are useless and deny that there is in the Church a power to grant them But desireth nevertheless that according to the ancient and approved custome in the Church a moderation be used in the granting of them least by too great a facility therein the discipline of the of the Church be infeebled But being desirous that the abuses which herein have crept in and have been an occasion that the favourable name of Indulgences hath been reproached by Hereticks be reformed and corrected doth by this present Decree Ordain in the general that all wicked waies of making gain for the obtaining of them be wholy abolished as from whence hath issued the cause of manyfold abuses amongst Christian people And as for other abuses proceeding from superstition ignorance irreverence or from any other cause or in what manner soever forasmuch as they cannot easily be all prohibited in particular by reason of the manifold corruptions of the different places and provinces wherein these abuses are committed Doth strictly charge all Bishops that every one as to his own Church do make a diligent collection of such kind of abuses and make report of them in the first Provincial Synod to the end that they may be censured by the suffrages of the other Bishops also and thence transmitted forthwith to the Soveraign Roman Pontif and by his authority and prudence it be so ordained as may be most expedient for the universal Church so that by this meanes the Treasure of the holy Indulgences be distributed to all Christian people in a pious and holy manner and without corruption Council of Trent Sess 25. in the Decree touching Indulgences I say it more out of sorrow than by way of reproach that the Lives of the Philosophers by Diogenes Laertius are written with more seriousness than the Lives of the Saints by Christians And that Suetonius hath with much more integrity and less corruption related the affairs of the Caesars than Catholicks have done I say not those of their Emperors but of their Martyrs Virgins and Confessors ⸫⸪ I forbear to name persons But certain it is that those who thus mingle the Ecclesiastick History with fictions and falshood cannot be good men or persons of honesty and that the whole of their Narrations is purposely designed either in order to Lucre or in order to Errour the one whereof is base and sordid the other mischievous pernicious ˙ ˙ So that those who have gone about by fictions and false stories to stir up in mens minds a devotion for the Saints have but as I may judge by these false stories impaired the credit of those which are true and what has been most accurately delivered by the most serious Authors is by this means become questionable ˙ ˙ As though these holy men of God who had in truth done and suffered so much for Christ did stand in need of our Lies Admitting then that these fictions how fals soever might with so much wit and artifice be composed as not to do hurt they are at best but useless and of no real service and like lasy Soldiers the burden of them is more than the advantage they hinder more than they help ˙ ˙ They do therefore a great deal of mischief to Christs Church who think they can never write a good history of the worthy deeds of Saints unless embellished with forged Revelations and false Miracles Melchior Canus who was one of the Divines in the Council of Trent lib. 11. de locis ch 4. Making his visite in those parts de Liano he understood that near the church of that place there was a Coffin of Stone with some bones in it which were had in great veneration as true reliques of Saints There being a common report that the night before the Feast of S. Peter in vinculis or Lamm●s day there did in miraculous manner come forth of those bones so great a quantity of water that it filled the whole Coffin and though those of the neighbourhood came in great numbers that day to take of that water which they held to be a thing miraculous holy yet was the water not at all diminished but the Coffin still continued full ˙ ˙ The Cardinal S. Charles Borromeus who held the reliques of Saints in great Veneration where ever he met with them would needs come see these and examine them that thereupon he might particularly recommend them to the people for their greater veneration Whence came the Proverb That Cardinal Borromeo would neither let the living nor the dead be at rest Resolving then to visite these bones and inquiring diligently how they came there he could find nothing of certainty He thereupon began to suspect it was some devilish cheat And to evidence the truth he caused the Coffin and the bones to be well dryed and then committed the custody thereof to three Priests whom he could trust that same night on which the water used to come forth And then there appearing no sign of water at all it was thereby discovered to be a meer artifice and cheat And to make provision against so great an abuse he caused both the Coffin and reliques to be buried under ground that the people might not any more be cheated to that false worship Which thing was received by the people of those parts with great admiration extolling the Cardinal as a holy man and having the spirit of God with him Johannes Petrus Issuanus a Priest of Milan in the Life of S. Charles lib. 6. chap. 7. The thing was done in the year 1580. We Ordain that the Bishops be careful to have the Breviaries within their Diocess to be well accurately corrected and that things therein appointed to be read

DECREES OF OUR HOLY FATHER POPE INNOCENT XI Containing The SUPPRESSION of an Office of the Immaculate Conception of the most Holy VIRGIN And of A Multitude of INDVLGENCES According to the Copies at Rome From the Printing-Press of the most Reverend Apostolick Chamber Translated into English out of the French Copy to which the Latine was adjoyn'd as also here it is By the direction of an Eminent Person of Honour OXFORD Printed by LEONARD LICHFIELD Printed to the University for Ric. Davis 1678. Sept. 18 1678. IMPRIMATUR JOH NICHOLAS Vice-Can OXON Prove all things Hold fast that which is Good S. Paul 1 Epistle to the Thessalonians c 5. Let us not make to our selves a Religion out of our own Fancies For what is Real and True how small soever is more worth than all that we can invent of our own head S. Augustin in his Book of the True Religion c. 55. What is to be uttered in the presence of Truth it self ought not either to be spoken or written but with great Reverence and Circumspection least we Provoke God more to wrath even by those things whereby we think to Pacifie him For nothing can be Pleasing to him but what is Honest and True Letaldus a Monk of Mans in his Preface to the Life of S. Julian Bishop of Mans. The SUPPRESSION of an Office Of the Immaculate Conception of the most Holy VIRGIN FRier Raimund Capisucci of the order of the Preaching Friers Master of the Sacred Apostolique Palace Judge Ordinary c. By Authority of the Office we hold and by express Order of our most Holy Father by Divine Providence Pope INNOCENT XI to us directed His Holyness having first consulted heard the Advise of the most Eminent and most Reverend Cardinals the General Inquisitors We do Prohibite and Declare to be Prohibited a small Book Intituled The Office of the Immaculate Conception of the most Holy Virgin our LADY approved by the Soveraign Pontif PAUL the Fifth who hath granted to whosoever shall devoutly recite the same an Hundred daies Indulgence as may appear by his Bull of July 10. 1615. Printed at Milan by Francis Vigon Which Office begins with these Words At Mattins Ave Maria ver Eia mea labia nunc annunciate c. i. e. Hail Mary O my lips shew ye forth c. And ends with this Prayer Deus qui per Immaculatam Virginis Conceptionem c. i. e. O God who by the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin c. Let none therefore of what Order Degree or Condition soever dare to keep read print or cause to be printed the said Office But so soon as they shall have knowledge of this Decree whosoever shall have the said Office be required forthwith to deliver the same to the Ordinaries or to the Inquisitors of the Place under the Penalties contained in the Index of Books Prohibited In witness whereof we have given forth this present Decree Signed by our Hand and ratified by our Seal the XVII day of February in the Year MDCLXXVIII Fr. Raimund Capusucci of the Order of the Preaching Friers Maister of the Sacred Apostolick Palace c. The place of † the Seal This day being Febr. 19 1678 the above-mentioned Decree was set up and Published at the Gates of the Palace of the Holy Office of the Inquisition and in Campi Florae and other usual and accustomed places of the City by me Francis Perid Cursitor of our most Holy Father and of the most Holy Inquisition At Rome From the Printing-house of the most Reverend the Apostolique Chamber MDCLXXVIII The SUPPRESSION of a Multitude of INDULGENCES THe Sacred Congregation appointed for regulating Indulgences and Holy Reliques hath often times received complaints against certain Indulgences dispersed carried about in divers parts of the Christian world which are supposititious and purely false and others to be examined which upon diligent Inquiries are found to be either Apocryphal or by Popes of Rome revoked and called in or null and void the time for which they were granted being now past and expired Many of which not being easie to be discovered by Christian people not well skilled in these affairs they are thereby deluded and disappointed of the hopes they had of obtaining Indulgences and Forgiveness of their sins For which cause the said Sacred Congregation earnestly desiring to apply a remedy to this evil which doth dayly spread it self more and more and to provide for the good of Souls and the due respect of Indulgences hath with great care and diligence caused a Collection to be made of divers of them and an Index or Table made thereof Such are those in the first place which are said to de granted by John II. and Sixtus IV to those who shall say the Prayer of the Charity of our Lord Jesus Christ We pray Thee most gratious Lord c. By Urban II. granted to the Church of S. Mary commonly called of Campagnole and of S. Victoria By Eugenius III. to the Revelation made to S. Bernard of a Blow or Stroke on the shoulder of our Lord Jesus Christ By Innocent III. to the Archiconfraternity or Arch-con-friery and rhe Order of the Redemption By Boniface IX to those who repair to the Chapel of S. Nicholas of Tolentin on the day of his Festival By John XXII to those who kiss the measure of the sole of the Foot of the Blessed Virgin By Alexander VI. to the Image of S. Mary commonly called Laghetti By Leo X. to those who wear the Cord of S. Francis Printed first at Rome and then at Milan in the year 1665. but there are also true Indulgences belonging to the Co-friers of the Archiconfriery of the Cordiliers of S. Francis To them that shall say the Angelical Prayer when the Clock strikes To the Image of the Immaculate conception of the Virgin Mary painted in a circle with the Moon under her feet By Pius IV or Pius V. to the Prince of Sienne By Clement VIII to those who say the Praye● O great mystery c. To the Church of our Lady as they call it of Mount-Serrat Printed at Avignon And likewise other Indulgences for the Soul● of Christs faithful people departed Printed a● Madrid July 20. 1606. By Paul V. to those who sing the Hymn We praise thee Mother of God We confess thee Virgin Mary c. or who be present on Saturday when it is sung And to the Crowns Rosaries and Medals blessed by the said Pope at the request of the Cardinal Frederick Borromaeus in the year 161● when the Church of S. Charles was building a● Rome And by the same Paul V Gregory XV to those who say Praised be the most Holy Sacrament Praise be to the most Holy Sacrament By Vrban VIII in honour of the same Sacrament at the request of Cardinal Magalotti And to the Priests that after the celebration of the Masse shall say Hail Daughter of God the Father Hail Mother of God the Son c. By Clement X to

inviolably Given at Rome the 7th day of March 1678. The Cardinal Aloysio Homo-Dei The place of † the Seal Michael Angelo Ricci Secretary The 12 day of the Month of March 1678 the Decree above said was affixed and published at the Gates of the Court and in Campi Florae and other accustomed places in the City by me Roch de Stephanis Cursitor of our Holy Father the Pope Laurence Segni Master Cursitor The Rules whereby we may Judge of the Vsefulness of these Two DECREES WE find upon accurate observation very often th●t even those things which had been judged right and good have upon a more exact examination of the truth been found far otherwise in S. Just 1. Discourse to the Gentiles The Truth is not put to shame by any thing but by being suppressed Tertullian against the Valentinians And what I pray is it that we have to do Is it not what the Canons of the Church require ...... But when things are done against the Canon it 's fit they should be reformed Pope Julius 1 Epist ad Orientales in the 11 Apology of Athanasius It is dishonorable and pernicious to Chistianity that those who make profession of it should in matters of Religion talk so absurdly that an Infidel who hears them so discoursing contrary to all reason cannot but laugh at it But that which is herein the greatest trouble is not that he who thus talks becomes ridiculous but that those who are not of the Church take this to be the sense of those that are the Founders of our Religion ...... And these rash venturous persons it is not to be expressed what grief and trouble hereby they do create to prudent sober Christians S. Augustin in his Book on Genesis ad literam chap. 19. For in the prayers of a great many there be every day many things found amiss if heard by the more learned And many things therein contrary to the Catholick Truth The same S Aug. l. 6. of Baptism against the Donatists c. 25 And in Gratian's Canon-law De Consecrat Dist 4. si non sanctificatur Truth gives a luster and splendor to all Art● and Disciplines And where this is wanting beauty and comliness must needs be wanting Isidore Pelusiote lib. 2. Epist 64. What hope is there left when the Master the learned are silent and the Talkers be thos● who if things be as they say were never th● Sholars of those Masters I am afraid that th●● silence of theirs is a Connivance I am afrai● that 't is those rather may be thought the Speakers who suffer these thus to speak without controll Silence in such cases is very suspitiou● For Truth certainly would oppose it if the fal●hood were displeasing 'T is we therefore mu●● answer for it if by our silence we give countenance to the errour Let such therefore be sharply rebuked and not left at liberty thus to ta●● as they list Pope Celestin 1. Epist. to the Bishops of France He that cannot content himself with a few things 't is evident that he makes his estimate not by the Worth of things but by the Bulk of them S. Avitus Bishop of Vienna in the Dalphiny Epist 2. to King Gundebald 'T is the source of most pernicious Errours in those Authors for whom we have a reverence to be fond of euery thing without distinction resolve to justify whatever we there meet with M. Aurelius Cassiodorus a Senator in his book de divinis Lectionibus c. 24. Next unto God himself we are to reverence the Truth being that alone which brings us nearest to God Martinus Dumiensis Bishop of Bragues in his Book De moribus To observe also inviolable in every point the holy General Counsils of Nice Constantinople the first of Ephesus of Calcedon the second of Constantinople held in the time of the Emperour Justinian of pious memory ...... And to reform whatever shall happen to be contrary to the discipline of their Canon The Journal of the Roman Church in the Profession of Faith which the Popes were wont to make at their Creation or Election There be some who think they do service to God if in order to the putting a greater luster on his praise they invent Romantick Stories full of untruths But they would be of another mind if they well considered the words of the great Apostle who saies to the Corinthians If Christ be not risen then is our Preaching vain and your faith is also vain yea and we are found false witnesses of God c. according therefore to these words of the Apostle he deserves to be called A false witness who out of an indiscreet zeal to praise God tells a Lye And he doubtless bears witness against God himself who doth unworthily contrive a forgery for his praise The Cardinal Petrus Damiani in his Preface to the Life of S. Maure Bishop of Cesena in Italy and in the Prologue to the Life of S. Romuald It belongs to our duty as well to retrench and forbid what is amiss as to establish what is right and when so established to enforce it by the strength of our Apostolick authority Pope Alexander the III Epist to Stephen Bishop of Meaux As we do not intend to infringe or make void what by our Predecessors hath upon good and advised deliberation been established so also those things which have been gotten of them by surprise to the Churches detriment and dishonour we will have reformed and reduced to a better condition Pope Innocent III to the Bishop of Canterbury and to other Bishops Forasmuch as falshood ought not to be suffered under the pretense of piety we do by these our Apostolick Letters to you directed Require you to admonish the said Abbat and Monks to desist from such presumptions ...... For it is no way conducing to their salvation or their repuration to make a gain by Preaching a Lye .... The XV. year of our Popedome The same Pope l. 3. Epist 10. to the Abbat and Prior of S. Victor In this sixth rank we are to reckon the Legends and Miracles of Saints the Lives of the Fathers the Visions of devout persons the Citations and Opinions of holy Doctors All which the Church admits not as things necessary to be believed in order to salvation but as things conducing to excite devotion in Christians and for their edification Provided there be nothing therein contained which is known to be false John Gerson Chancellare of the Church of Paris in his Declaration of Truths to be believed as necessary to salvation The abuses which are crept into the Church of God it becomes us by the exercise of our authority to take away Pope Nicolaus V in his Constitution touching the conferring of Benefices in Germany The Wheat as yet is covered with the husks The Bishop of Rome is not able to pry into and search the hearts of men Mans heart is wicked and unsearchable who can know it 'T is I the Lord that search the heart and try the reines