into the ballance or disputation they giue the Pope authority as Supreame spirituall Princesse ouer all Princes 4 When the first is in question of Priesthood and Magistracy then enters the Sea yea Deluge of Canonists and ouerflowes all and carries vp their Arke that is the Romane Church that is the Pope fifteene cubites aboue the highest hils whether Kings or Emperours And this makes the Glosser vpon that Canon where Priesthood is said to exceede the Layetie as much as the Sunne the Moone so diligent to calculate those proportions and to repent his first account as too low and reforme iâ— by later calculations and after much perplexity to say That since he cannot attaine to it he will leaue it to the Astronomers so that they must tell vs how much the Pope exceedes a Prince which were a fit work for their Iesuite Clauius who hath expressed in one summe how many granes of Sand would fill all the place within the concaue of the firmament if that number will seeme to them enough for â—his comparison But to all these Rhapsoders and fragmentarâ— compilers of Canons which haue onely amâ—ss'd and shoueld together whatsoeuer the Popes themselues or their creatures haue testified in their owne cause Amandus Polanus applies a round and pregnant and proportionall answere by presenting against them the Edicts and Rescripts of Emperours to the contrary as an equiualent prooâ—e at least 5 And for the matter it selfe wherein the Ecclesiastique and Ciuill estate are vnder and aboue one another with vs it is euident and liquid enough since no Prince was euer more indulgent to the Clergie by encouragements and reall aduâ—ncing nor more frequent in accepting the foode of the worde and Sacrament at their hands in which he acknowledges their superiority nor the Clergy of any Church more inclinable to preserue their iust limits which are to attribute to the king so much as the good kings of Israel and the Emperours in the Primitiue Church had 6 It is intire man that God hath care of and not the soule alone therefore his first worke was the body and the last worke shall bee the glorification thereof He hath not deliuered vs ouer to a Prince onely as to a Physitian and to a Lawyer to looke to our bodies and estates and to the Priest onely as to a Confessor to looke to and examine our â—oules but the Priest must aswel endeuour that we liue verâ—uously and innocently in this life for society here as the Prince by his lawes keepes vs in the way to heauen for thus they accomplish a Regale Sacerdotium when both doe both â—or we are sheepe to them both and they in diuers relations sheepe to one another 7 Accordingly they say that the subiect of the Canon law is Homo dirigibilis in Deum BouuÌ„ Commune so that that Court which is forum spirituale considers the publique tranquility And on the other side Charles the great to establish a meane course between those two extreame Councels of which one had vtterly destroyed the vse of Images in Churchesâ— the other had induced their adoration takes it to belong to his care and function not onely to call a Synode to determine herein but to write the booke of that important and intricate point to Adrian then Pope which Steuchius saith remaines yet to be seene in Bibliotheca Palatina and vrges and presses that booke for the Popes aduantage And in the preface of that booke the Emperour hath these wordes In sinu Regni Ecclesiae gubernacula suscepimus and to proceede that not only he to whom the Church is committed ad regendum in those stormy times but they also which are Enutriti ab vberibus must ioine with him in that care and therefore he addes That he vndertooke this worke Cum Conhibentia Sacerdotum in regno suo neither would this Emperour of so pious affections towards that Sea expressed in pro fuse liberalities haue vsurped any part of Iurisdiction which had not orderly deuolued to him and which he had not knowne to haue beene duely executed by his predecessors 8 Whose authoritie in disposing of Church matters and directâ—on in matters of Doctrine together with the Bishops appeares abundantly and euidently out of their owne Lawes and out of their Rescripts to Popes and the Epistles of the Popes to them For we see by the Imperial Law the Authoritie of the Prince and the Priest made equall when it is decreed That no man may remoue a body out of a Monument in the Church without a Decree of the Priest or Commandement of the Prince And yet there appeares much difference in degrees of absolutenesse of power betweene these limitations of a Decree and a Commandement And Leo the first writing to the Emperour Martianus reioyses that he found In Christianiss mo Principe Sacerdot alem affectum And in his Epistle to Leo the Emperour vsing this preface for feare least hee should seeme to diminish him in that comparison Christiana vtor libertate he saith I exhort you to a fellowshippe with the Prophets and Apostles because you are to be numbred inter Christi praedicatores Hee addes that kings are instituted not onely ad mundi regimen but chiefly ad Ecclesiae presidium and â—herefore he praies God to keepe in him still Animum eius Apostolicum Sacerdotalem 9 So for his diligence in the Church gouernement Simplicius the Pope salutes the Emperour Zeno. Eâ—ultamus voâ—iâ— in esse animum Sacerdotis principis For which respect his successor Felix the third writing to thesame Emperour salutes him wiâ—h his stile Dilectissimo fratri Zenoni which is a stile so peculiar to those which are constituted in the highest Ecclesiastique dignities as Bishoppes and Patriarches that if the Pope should write to any of them by the name of Sons which is his ordinary stile to secular princes it vitiates the whole Diplome and makes it false 10 And a Synodicall letter from a whole Councell to a King of France acknowledges this Priestly care in the king thus Quia Sacerdotalimentis affectu you haue commaunded your Priests to gather together c. which right of general superintendencie ouer the whole Church Anastasius the Emperour dissembled not when writing to the Senate of Rome to compose dissentions there hee called Hormisda the pope Papam Almae vrbis Romae but in the Inscription of the Letter amongst his owne Titles he writes Pontifex inclitus 11 Gregory himselfe though his times to some tastes seeme a little brackish and deflected from vpright obedience to princes saith of the Emperoursâ— That no man can rightly gouerne earthly matters except he know also how to handle Diuine And in the weakest estate and most dangerous fitt that euer secular Magistrate suffered and endured Gregory the seuenth denied not that these two dignities were as the two eyes of the body which gouernd the bodie of the Church
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
Supernumerary vow of sustaining the Papacy by obeying the Popes will seeme to haue gone further herein then the rest yet the last Order erected by Philip Nerius which was saide to haue beene purposed to eneruate the Iesuites and by a continual preaching the liues of Saints and the Ecclesiastique story to counterpoise with deuotion the Iesuites secular and actiue learning though they set out late haue aemulously endeuoured to ouertake the Iesuites themselues in this doctâ—ine of auiling Princes For Bozius hath made all Princes Tributary or Feudatary to the Pope if not of worse condition And Gallonius seemes to haue vndertaken the History of the persecutions in the Primitiue Church onely to haue occasion by comparison thereof to defame and reproach the lawes and Gouernement of our late Queene 52 But Baronius more then any other exceeds in this point for obeying his owne scope and first purpose to aduance the Sea of Rome he spares not the most obedient childe of that mother the Catholique King of Spaine for speaking of the Title which that King hath to the Kingdome of Sicily he imputes thus much to Charles the fift that being possessed with employments of the fielde hee gaue way to an Edict by which Grande piaculum perpetratur against the Apostolique authority and al Ecclesiastqiue lawes were vtterly dissipated And that hee ioyned together temporall and spirituall iurisdictionâ— and pretended a power to excommunicate and to absolue euen Cardinals and the Popâ—s Nuncioes and so saies he hath raised another Head of the Church pro monstro ostento He addes with extreame intemperance that this claime to that Kingdome was buried a while but reuiued againe by Tyrannicall force by violent grassation and by the robbery of Princes who commaunded that to be obeyed as reasonable which they had extorted by Tyranny And least hee should not seeme to extend his bitternes to the present time he saies those Princes which hold Sicily by the same reasons doe imitate those tyrants And so he imputes vppon all the later kings of Spaine as much vsupation of Ecclesiastique Iurisdiction and as monstrous a Title of head of the Church as euer their malice degorged vppon our king Henrie the eight 53 And though in some passages of that history he hath left some wayes to escape by laying those imputations rather vpon the kings officers then vpon â—he king yet that Cardinall who hath censured that part of his worke espies his workemanshippe and arte of deceiuing and therefore tels him that he hath inuayd against Monarchy it selfe and all defenders thereof and that himâ— Nor doth Baronius repent that which hee hath spoken of those kings but in his answere to this Cardinall he saies that if the King were impeccable if he were an Angell if he were God himselfe yet he is subiect to iust reproofe And in his Epistle to Phil. 3. in excuse of himselfe though hee seeme to spare the present king yet it is as he professes because he hopes that he will relinguish that Iurisdiction in Sicily els he is subiect to all those reproofs reproches which Baro. hath laid vpon his father and Grandfather 54 And though this were a great excesse in Baronius to lay such aspersions vpon those Princes yet his malice appeares to bee more generall for the reason why he makes this pretence so intollerable is because thereby saies he that King becomes a Monarch and there can be no other Monarch in the world then the Pope and therefore that name must be cutte off least by this example it should propagate and a whole wood of monarchs should grow vp to the perpetuall infamy of the Primacy of the Church And so this care of his that no Monarches be admitted implies his confession that they which are Monarches haue right in their Dominions to all that which those kings claime in Sicily which is as much as our kings exercise in England if Baronius do not exceede in his imputation 55 But because there is nothing more tender then honour which as God will giue to none from himselfe being a iealous God so neither ought his Vicâ—gerents to doe it shall not be an vnseasonable and impertinent at most an excuseable and pardonable diuersion to obserue onely by such impressions as remaine in the letters betweene the Emperours and Popes at what times and vpon what occasions the Clergie of that Sea insulted vpon secular Magistacy and by what either dilatory circumuentions or violent irruptions they are arriued to this enormous contempt of Principality as of a subordinate instrument of theirs 56 Before they had much to doe with Emperours for they were a long time religiously and victoriously exercised with suffering we may obseâ—ue in Cyprians time that he durst speake brotherly and fellowly to that Sea and intimate the resoluâ—ions of his Church to that without asking approbation and strength from thence for to Pope Stephen he writes Stephano fratri and then Nos qui gubernandae Ecclesiae libram tenemus and after Hoc facere te oportet with many like impressions of equality But in Firâ—ilianus his Epistle to Cyprian written in opposition to Stephanus his Epistle who was growne into some bitternesse against Cyprian there appeares more liberty for thus he saies Though by the inhumanity of Stephen we haue the better tryall of Cyprians wisedome we are no more beholden to him for that then we are to Iudas for our saluation He addes after That that Church doth in vaine pretend the authority of the Apostles since in many sacraments Diuinae rei it differs from the beginning and from the Church of Hierusalem and defames Peter and Paul as Authors thereof And therefore â—aies he I doe iustâ—y disdaine the open and manifest â—oolishnesse of Stephen by whom the truth of the Christian Rocke is abolished So roundly and constantly were their first attempts and intrusions resisted and this not onely by this Aduocate of Cyprian but euen by himselfe also in as sharpe words as these in his Epistle to Pompeius 57 And for their behauiour to the Emperoâ—s as long as Zeale and Pouertie restrain'd them it cannot be doubted but that they were respectiue enough The preambulatorie Letters before the Councell of Chalcedon testifie it well Where the Letters of the Emperours yea of their Wiues are accepted by the name of Diuales and Sacrae literae and Diuinae syllabae And about the same time Leo the Pope writing to Leo the Emperour he sayes Hanc Paginam necessariae supplicationis adieci And in the next Epistle but one Literas Clementiae tuae veneranter accepi quibus cuperem obedire So also Felix the third to Zeno the Emperour cals himselfe Famulum vestrum and such demissions as these Liceat venerabilis Imperator exponere And Per mei Ordinis paruitatem audias are frequent in him And in Iustinians time which was presently after that Church sensible of the vse and
as those principles of faith or as the duties of euery particular man for though we know naturally that Princes must be obeyed yet you wil say som cases may occur in which we may not obay then there must be some certaine way for vs to aâ—taine to the knowledge therof by discourse industrie if we may aduenture these dangers for it and we may not aduenture them till we haue by that industrie sought it out For if we shall say that some things are to be held by a man De fide of which he shall still be vnder an inuincible ignorance though he bestow and employ all possible diligence as it is said of Cyprian that bee did erre in matter of faith after he had vsed all possible industrie then contrarie opinions in matter of faith may be iust caâ—ses of Martyrdome and yet one of these opinions must of necessitie bee Hereticall For if Cyprian were vnder an inuincible ignorance he was bound to doe according to his conscienceâ— since he had no way to rectifie it So that he must haue died for his Conscience in that case that is for such an opinion as all his Aduersaries were bound to die for the conâ—rarie But since this seemes incongruous and absurd the other opinion will stand safe and vncontrouled that our Conscience whose office is to apply our knowledge to something and to present to vs some law that bindes vs in that case cannot binde vs to these heauy incommodities for any matter but that which wee therefore beleeue that wee know because there are certainely some meanes naturally and ordinarily prouided for the knowledge thereof and that wee haue vsed those meanes Now in a man in whom there are all these iust preiudices and prescriptions That Nature teaches him to bey him that can preserue him That the Scriptures prouoke him to this obedience That the Fathers inteâ—prete these Scriptures of Regall power That subsequent acts and Experience teaches Regall power to be sufficient for that end what can arise strong enough to defeate all these or plant a knowledge contrary to this by any euidence so neere the first Principles as this is grounded vpon If it were possible that any thing could be produced at last by which all these reaâ—ons should be destroyed yet till that were done which is not yet done both the priority and birthright of the â—easons and rules of nature which are on that side for Rules are elder then the excepâ—ion and the dangers which would ouertake and entrapâ— and depresse such as refused the Oath must preuaile against any thing yet appearing on this part for thus farr the Casuists agree as in the better opinion That although thâ—t which they cal Metum iustum which is such a feare as may fall vpon a constant man and yet not remoue his habite of Constancy doth not excuse a man from doing any Euil yet that is meant of such an Euill as is Euill naturally and accompanied with all his circumstances for though no such feare can excuse me in an absolute deniall to restore any thing wâ—ich wâ—s committed to my trust yet I maybe excused fâ—om deliuering a sword committed to me if I haue sâ—ch a iust feare that the owner will therewith offend me or another And thâ—y account not onely the feare of death to be this iust feare which may excuse in transgressions in any thing which is not naturally euill but the feare of Torture Imprisonment Exile Bondage Losse of temporall goods or the greater part thereof or infamy and dishonour And not onely when these are imminent vppon our selues but vppon our wiues and children And not onely when a law hath directly pronounced them but when the State threatens them that is is exasperated and likely to pâ—oceed to tâ—ese inflictions And though Canonists are more seuere and rigid in the obseruation of theiâ— lawe yet the common opinion of Diuines is That this iust feare excuses a man from the breaking of any humane lawe whether Civill or Ecclesiastique anâ— that none of those lawes binde vs to the obseruation therof in danger of death or these distresses except in this case that these punishments are threatned to vs because we will not breake the law in contempt and despite of that authority which made the law for then no feare can excuse vs because the obedience to Superiour authority in general is morall and naturall and therefore the power it selfe may not be contemned though in case of this iust feare I may lawfully thinke that that power which made the law meant not to binde me in particular in these heauy inconueniences To apply this to our present purpose since this Oath is not Naturally Euill so as no circumstance can make it good for then it would haue appeared so at first and the Pope himselfe could by no Iudult or Dispensation tolerate it which I thinke they will not say nor offered in contempt of the Church of Rome or in such sort as it should be a signe of returning to our Religion or abandoning the Romane profeâ—sion but onely for the Princes security certainely though the refusall thereof were commanded by any law of humane constitution and so it became Euill because it was Forbidden yet in these afflictions certainely to be endured by the letter of an expresse law by euery Refuser and in this bitternesse and exasperation of the whole State against that whole Partie and the cause of Catholiques the taking of the Oath were so excusable as the refusing thereof could not be excused For in such a iust Feare euen Diuine Positiue Law looses her hold and obligation of which sort â—nâ—egrity of Confession is by all helde to be and yet such sinnes may be omitted in confession as would either Scandalize the Confessor Endanger the penitent or Defame a third person In which the Casuists are so generally concurrent that wee neede no particular authorities And in the matter of the greatest importance which can be in that Church which is the Election of the Pope and an assurance that he whom they acknowledge for Pope is true Pope which Comitolius a Iesuite as much more peremptorie then the rest of the Iesuites as they are aboue all other Friars sayes To be an Article of Faith and that we are bound to beleeue the present Pope to bee Christs Vicar with a Diuine and with a Catholicke Faith and that all Decrees of Popes which annull all Elections if they appeare after to haue beene made by Simonie intend no more but to declare that GOD will neuer suffer that to bee done or discouer it presently in which opinion that matter of fact should so binde our Faith hee is for any thing which I remember to haue read singular and I had occasion before to name one greaâ— Doctor of his owne Religion directly contrarie to him in the very point In these Elections I say which induce by his Doctrine a Diuineâ—aith â—aith and necessarily such a probable and
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
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
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
not onely be enwrapp'd in the bands of ExcoÌ„munication but cast into hell Vinculis Anathemaâ—is And this Iohn the eight at the same time when he alowes him all due attributes desires him to incline his sacredeares to him threatens Charles himself that if he restore not certain things taken from a Nunnerie by a certaine day He should bee Excommunicate till restitution and if being thus lightly touchâ—d he repented not Durioribus verberibus erudieâ—dus erat 73 So that whether this farther punishment were no other then that which is now called excommunicatio Maior or that which is called in the Canons Anathema maranatha the denouncing of which and the absoluing from it was acted with many â—ormalities and solemnities and had many ingredients of burning tapers and diuers others to which none could be subiected without the knowledge of the Arch-Bishoppe it appeares that it now here extends to temporall punishment or forfaitures and confiscations 74 Of which there appeares to me no euidence no discernable impression no iust suspition till Gregory the seuenths time And then as it may well be said of Phalaris his letters that they were al writ for execution and of Brutus his letters that they were all Priuy Seales for money so may wee â—ay of Gregories iudging by the frequency thereoâ— that they were all cholerique excommunications and that with Postscripts worse then the body of the letter which were Confiscations neuer found in his predecessors which should haue beene his precedents 75 And for this large and new addition of Eradication hee first threatned it to the Fench King and then practised it effectually vpon the Emperour To the Bishoppes of France he writes That their King Philip is not to be called King but a Tyrant which by perswasion of the Diuel is become the cause and the head of all mischiefe Therefore saies he all you must endeauour to bow him And thus farre his Pastorall care might binde him And to shew him that he cannot escape the sword of Apostolique animaduâ—rsion and thus farre his iealousie of his spiritual Primacy might excuse him But when he adds Depart from communion with him and obedience to him forbid Diuine Seruice throughout all France and if he repent not we will attempt to take the Kingdome from his possession they are wordes of Babel which no man at that time vnderstood yet he writes in the same tenour to the Earle of Poicton That if the king perseuere both he and all which giue any obedience to him shall be sequestred from the communion of the Church by a Councell to be held at Rome So assuredly and confidently could hee pronounce before hand of a future determination in a Councell there 76 And of his owne seuerity vsed towards the Emperour whom vpon seuere penances hee had resumed â—nto the Church he blushes not to mâ—ke an Historical Narration to the Bishops and Princes of Germany thus He stood three daies before the gate despoiled of all Kingly ornaments miserable and barefooâ—e till all men wondred at the vnaccustomed hardnesse of our minds And some cryed out that this was not the grauity of Apostolique seuerity but almost the cruelty of Tyrannique sauagenesse 77 And when Rodulphus whom he had set vp against the Emperour was dead seeing now as himselfe confesses almost all the Italians enclin'd to admit the Emperour Henry euen they whom he trusted most for so he saies â—ene omnes nostri fideles he protesteth that Rodolphus was made without his consent Ab vltramontâ—nis and that he went to depose him and to call those Bishops to account which adhered to himâ— And then he writes to certaine Prelates to slacken the Election of a new Emperour and giues instruction what kind of person hee would haue to bee elected One which should be obedient humbly deuout and profitable to the Church and that would take an oath to doe any thing which the Pope would commaund him in these wordes Per veram obedientiam and that hee would be made a Knight of Saint Peter and of the Pope 78 But although many watchfull and curious men of our Church and many ingenious of the Romane haue obseâ—ued many enormous vsurpations and odious intemperances in this tempestuous Pope Gregory the seuenth and amongst them almost anatomiz'd euery limme of his Story yet it may bee lawfull for mee to draw into obseruation and short discourse two points thereof perchance not altogether for their vnworthines pretermitted by others Of which the first shall be the forme of the excommunication against Henry because by that it will appeare what authority hee claimed ouer Princes And the other â—haâ—â— be â—is letteâ—â—o a Bishop wâ—o desired to draw from him some reaâ—ons by which he might defend that which the Pope hâ—d done because by that it will appeare vpon what foundations he grounded thâ—s preteâ—ce and authorâ—ty 79 The excoÌ„municaâ—ion is thus deliuered Conâ—tradico ei I denie him the gouernment of al the kingdom of Germany of Italy and I absolue all Christians froÌ„ the band of the oth which they haue made to him or shall make and I forbid any man to serue him as his king for it is fit that he which endeuors to diminish the honor of the Churchâ— should loose his owne honour And because he hath contemned to obey as a Christian participating with excommunicated persons and despising my admonitions and seperating himselfe from the Church I tie him in vinculo Anathematis By which we see that he beginnes with Confiscation And because it had neuer beene heard that the Popes authority extended beyond Excommunication therefore hee makes Deposition a lesse punishment then that and naturally to precede it for he makes this to bee reason enough why he should forfait his dignity because he attempted to dimâ—nish the Dignity of the Church But for his Disobedience to the Chuâ—ch and him he inflicts Excommunication as the greater and gâ—eatest punishment which he could lay vpon him And it is of dangerous câ—nsequence if Excommunication bâ— of so high a nature and of so vast an exâ—ent that wheresoeuer it is iustly inflicted that presupposes Confiscation and Deposition 80 And another dangerous preiudice to the safetâ—e of all Princes ariseth out of this pâ—ecedent which is that hee absolues the Subiects of all Oathes of Alleageance which they shall make after that Denunciation For if his successor that now gouernes shall be pleased to doe the same in England at this time and so giue his partie here such leaue to take the Oath of Alleageance doth he not thereby vtteâ—ly frustrate and annihilate all that which the indulgence of a mercifull Prince and the watchfulnesse of a diligent Parliament haue done for the Princes safety and for distinction betweene trayterous and obedient subiects Yet both this Deposition and this Absolution of subiects and this Interdiction were all heaped and amass'd vpon a Catholique Prince before the excommunication it selfe or any
other fault intimated the dâ—minishing of the honour of that Church and participating with excommunicated persons 81 And now we may discend to the suruay of that letter which he writes to a Bishoppe who desired to haue something written by him wherby he might be help'd and arm'd against such as deâ—yed that by the authority of that Sea he could excommunicate that Prince or absolue his subiects First therefore he saies That there are manie and most certaine Documents in the Scriptures to that purpose of which hee cites 〈◊〉 which are ordinarily offered as Tu es Petrus and Tibi dabo Claues and Quodcunqe ligaueâ—is and then he askes Whether Kings be excepted But Kings are not excepted but this proceeding against Kings is excepted That is it is not included in that Commission as hath beene enough and enough proued by many 82 Then followes that tâ—stimony of Gelasius a Pope That Priest-hood is aboue Principality and that the Bishoppe of Rome is the chiefe Priest If wee allow both Testem Testimonium yet the câ—use is safe he may be â—boue all in some functions yet not in temporall 83 His next authority is Iulius another Pope who expounding the wordes Tibi dabo Claues to certaine Easterne Bishoâ—pes saies Shall not â—e that opens heauen iudge of the earth But this dooth as much destroy all Iudicature and all Magistracy as iustifie the deposing of â—ings 84 After this he cites though not as Gregories words are a priuiledge graunted by Gregory the fiâ—st to a Monasterie and depriuation from secular dignity and excommunications to any that in â—ringe that priuiledge And this priuiledge Bellarmine also produces to proue the Popes soueraignty in tempoâ—all matâ—ers It is the prâ—uiledge of the Monastery of S. Medard which is in Gregories Epistle and it is cyted by this other Gregory it makes deposition the lesser punishment and to precede excommunication for he sayes That Gregory though a milde Doctor did not onely depose but excommunicate the transgressors But both this Pope that cytes it deceiues vs by putting in the word Decreuit as though this had the solemnities of a Popes Decree which presumes an infallibility and Bellarmine deceiues vs by mutilating the sentence and ending at that word Honore priuetur for he that reads the whole sentence shall see that all this Decree of Deposition and Excommunication was no more then a comminatory imprecation to testifie earnestly the Founders affection to haue those priuiledges obserued and deterre men from violating thereof as the vehemence and insolent phrase of the Instrument do intimate by a bitternes vnvsuall in medicinall excommunications For all the curses due to Heretiques and all the torments which Iudas endures are imprecated vpon him it is subscribed not only by Gregory with 30. Bishops but by a King and a Queene no competent Iudges in this Gregories opinioÌ„ of faults punishable by excoÌ„munication 85 And the same Pope in erecting of an Hospitall and endowing it with some immunities vses the same language that the infringers thereof should loose all their power and honour and dignity and after be excoÌ„municate and yet this is neuer produced nor vnderstood to confirme his temporall soueraignty 86 The Donation of Constantine which was not much lesse then 300. yeare beâ—ore this end in like words If any man violate this Donation let him be eternally condemned let him finde Peter and Paul in this life and in the next his enemies and leâ— him perish with the Diuell and al the reprobate burning in Inferno inferiore And wil they from this argue in Constantine a power to open and shut hel gates And will they endanger al those Catholique authors to this eternall damnation which haue violated this Donation of Constantine by publique bookes 87 And â—uch a Commination as this of Gregâ—ry appeares in a Canon of the first Councell at Paris not long before his where it is threatned that whosoâ—uer shall â—eceiue a person suspended from the Communion himself shal be seperated A concordia fratrum and as we hope or trust shall sustaine the wrath of the eternall iudge for â—uer And not to insist long vpon examples of such imprecations about 160 yeare after Gregory Paulus 1. erecting a Monastery in his owne house maâ—es this Constitution If any of the Popes our successors or any mighty or Inferiour person of what dignity soeuer alien any of these things let him know that he is anathematiz'd by Christ and Peter and estrâ—nged from the Kingdome of God and that he shall giue an account thereof to the Saints in the day of iudgement For sayeth hee I desire the Iudge himselfe that hee will cast vppon them the wrath of his power that their life may bee laborious and mournefull and they may die consuming and may bee burnt eternally with Iudas in hell fire in voragine chaoâ— And that they that obserue this Constitution may enioy all blessednes at the right hand of God 88 And when in the behalfe of the Kings of Spaine the same argument is made for them that because there are many Diplomes extant in Sicily by which the Kings Anathematise inâ—ringâ—rs of their Constitutions that therefore they exeâ—cised Spirituall Iurisdiction Baronius saies that this argument is ridiculous because iâ— is hard to finde any instrument of Donations from Princes or from priuate men or from women in which these bitter formes of excommunication are not Which saies he do not containe any sentence of excommunication but Imprecations to deterre other as euery man was at libertie â—o doe when he made any such graunts So that Baronius hath laughed out of countenance this argument vpon Medardus priuiledge which hath beene so oâ—â—en and so solemnly offered and iterated And it appeares hereby that the punishments mentioned in these Constituâ—ions were not such as the makers thereoâ— could inflict but onely such as â—hey wished to fall vpon them that offended and such I doubt not was Gregories Imprecation in his successors interpretations that is that hee wished all Kings to be depriued 89 His next reason why Princes may be deposed by Priests is the diuersity of their Beginning and first Institutionâ— for as before he had said to another Bishop of the same place Regall Dignity was found out and inuented by humane pride but Priests were intituled by the Diuine pietie So here he repeates it with more contumely Who knowes not that Kings had their beginnings from those menâ— who being ignorant of God and prouoked by the prince of the world the Diuell through Pride Rapine Perfidiousnesse Murder and all wickednesse affected a gouernment ouer their equalls by a blind Ambition and intolerable presumption 90 Then he proceeds to the examples of Innocent who excomunicated Arcadius and of Zachary who deposed Childerique The first of which is not to the purpose Except Excommunication presume Deposing which Innocent intended not And the second hath beene abundantly and satisfactorily spoken to by very many
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
of the Councell of Trent and yet proâ—est against this temporall iâ—risdiction And doth not another Catholique say That when a lay man sweares Obedience to the Pope according to that Oath of Pius the fourth it must be restrained in his vnderstanding onely to his spiriuall power Herein therefore is no vniuersall consent And are not they which seeme to maintaine this temporall power so diuided amongst themselues that in a mutinie and ciuill dissention they rather wound one another then any third enemie when they labour more to oâ—erthrow the way by which this temporall iurisdiction is claimed then to establish the certaintie of the matter it selfe And though such things as appeare to vs euidently and presently out of the Scriptures binde our assent and beleefe though wee may dispute about the way and manner as no man denies the conception of our blessed Lady though it be disputed whether shee were conceiued with original sinne or without it And though those things which appeare to vs out of the first intrinsique light of Nature and reason claime the same authoritie in vs as no man doubts whether he haue a soule or no though many dispute whether â—e haue it by infusion from God or by propagation from our parents yet in things further remoued and which are directed by more wheeles and suggestionâ— and deducements we cannot know certainely enough for so great a vse as to testifie them in this fashion as we speake of that they are except we know first how and in what manner they are As if a man be conuented before a Iudge â—especially when he is bound in conscience not to answere except he be his competent Iudge as you teach when Ecclesiastique persons are called to Secular tribunals he cannot be sure that man is his competent Iudge except he know first whether he haue that authority as Ordinary or by speciall Commission Though therefore in this point in question for a pious credulity and generall intention to aduance the dignity of the Church of Rome a Catholique may haue an indigested and raw opinion that this power is in the Pope yet when he examines himselfe and calls himselfe to account he must first know how it is before he can resolue that it is And though he may erre in the manner by which he beleeeues it to be in him yet certainely he must arest himselfe vpon some one of those waies by which the Pope is said to haue that Iurisdiction or else hee doth not answere his conscience that askes him how he knowes it and if his conscience doe not aske him he is in too drowsie and stupid a fit to be a Martyr Since therefore all his authority must be Direct or Indirect Ordinary or Extraordinary as he is Pope or not as he is Pope whosoeuer will seale with his blood the auerment of this Iurisdiction auerres one of these waies how it comes to him Which being so he cannot iustly be called a Martyr since he only is a Martyr whom all the Churcâ— esteeâ—es to be so And he which should die for maintenance of Direct power should neuer be admitted into such a Martyrologe as the fauourers of Indirect power should compile nor these into the other And if two should come to execution together vpon occasion of denying this Oath of which one refused it because hee thought the Pope Direct Lorde the other Indirect if they forbore hard words to one another at that time doubtlesse in their consciences they would impute to one another the same errours and the same falshoods of which they inter-accuse one another in their bookes and neither would beleeue the other to be a true Martyr And might not a dispassioned and equal spectator apply to them both seuerally that Rule of the law That to that which is forbidden to be had by one way one may not be admitted by another Especially since a Lawyer which hath written on that side takes the aduantage of this Rule against Princes when he saies That they haue no Iurisdiction vpon Clergie mens goods because this were indirectly to haue iurisdiction vpon their persons which being saies he forbidden to be had one way may not be permitted another It was saide to Pompey when hee wore such a scarfe about his legge as Princes wore about their head That it was all one in which place he wore the Diademe and that his Ambition appeared equally in either And so ought this indirect power though it pretend more tamenesse and modestie aueâ—t men as much as the other for Bellarmine can finde as good an Argument for Peters Supremacie out of Christs washing his feete as his appointing him to kill and eate which is saies hee the office of the Head So that from head to foote all arguments serue his turne But to turne a little back to this point of knowledge since the conscience is by Aquinas his definition Ordo scientiae ad aliquid and an Act by which wee apply our knowledge to some particular thing the Conscience euer presumes Knowledge and we may noâ— especially in so great dangers as these doe any thing vpon Conscience if we doe it not vpon â—nowledge For it is not the Conscience it selfe that bindes vs but that law which the Conscience takes knowledgâ— of and presents to our vnderstanding And as no â—gnorance excuses vs iâ— it be of a thing which wee ought to know and may attaine to â—o no misconceiued knowledge bindes our conscience in these dangers if it be of a matter not pertinent to vs or to which wee haue no such certaine way of attaining that we can iustly presume our Knowledge to be certaine For though in the questions raised by Schoolemen of the Essence and Counsailes of God and of the Creation and fall and Ministerie of Angels and such other remoued matters to the knowledge whereof God hath affoorded vs no way of attaining a man may haue some such knowledge or opinion as may sway him in an indifferent action by reasons of conueniencie and with an apparant Analogie with other points of more euident certainty yet no man may suffer any thing for these points as for his Conscience because though he haue lighted vpon the truth yet it was not by any certaine way which God appointed for a constant and Ordinarie meanes to finde out that truth And if this refusall of the Oath and implication of a power to depose the King be a matter pertinent to vs that we are bound to know it As all men in generall are bound to know the principles and elements of the Christian faith and the generall precepts of the law And euery particular man is bound to know those things which pertaine to his state and office Then euery Subiect which doth not know this is in an inexcuâ—able and damnable ignorance which was the case of as many as did at first or do yet allow the taking of the oathâ— Or if it be not so immediat to vs
which entitle the Pope to a Direct and Ordinary Iurisdiction ouer Prinâ—es 10 And the same reasons and groundes by which he destroies that opinion will destroy his which is That as Christ was so the Pope is spirituall prince ouer all men and that by vertue of that power he may dispose of all temporall things as hee shall iudge it expedient to his spirituall ends 11 For first against that opinion of Ordinarie Iurisdiction hee argues thus If it were so it would appeare out of the Scriptures or from the Tradition of the Apostles but in the Scriptures there is mention of the keyes of Heauen but none of the Kingdomes of the earth nor doe our Aduersaries offer any Apostolique Tradition Will not you then before you receiue too deepe impression of Bellarmines doctrine as to pay your liues for maintenance thereof tell him That if his opinion were true it would appeare in Scripture or Apostolique trâ—dition And shal poore and lame and â—lacke arguments coniecturally and vnnecessarily deduced from similitudes and comparisons and decency and conueniency binde your iudgements and your liues for reuerence of him who by his example counsels you to cal for better proof wil you so in obeying him disobey him swallow his conclusions yet accuse his fashioÌ„ of prouing them which you do if when he cals for scriptures against others you aâ—cept his positions for his sake without scriptures 12 Another of Bellarmines reasons against Ordinary Iurisdiction is That Regall authority was noâ— necessary nor of vse in Christ to worke his end but sâ—perfluous and vnprofitable And what greater vse or necessity can the Pope haue of this Extraordinarie authority which is a power to work the same effects though not by the same way then Christ had if his ends be the same which Christs were and it appeares that Christ neither had nor forsaw vse of either because he neither exercised nor instistuted either For that is not to the purpoâ—e which Bellarmine saies that Christ might haue exercised that power if he would since the Popes authority is grounded vpon Christs example and limited to that For Christ might haue done many thinges which the Pope cannot do as conuerting all the world at once instituting more sacraments and many such and therefore Bellarmine argued well before that it is enough for him to proue that Christ did not exercise Regall power nor declare himselfe to haue it which Declarion onely and practise must be drawen into Consequence and be the precedent for the Pope to follow 16 The light of which Argument that the Pope hath no power but such as Christ exercised hath brought so many of them to thinke it necessarie to proue That both Christ did exercise Regall autâ—ority in accepting Regall reuerence vpon Palme-Sunday and in his corrections in the temple And his iudgement in the womans case which was taken in Adulterie And that S. Peter vsed also the like power in condemning Ananias and Saphira and Simon Magus 14 In another place Bellarmine saies That S. Paul appealed to Caesar as to his Superiour Iudge not onely de facto but de Iure and that the Apostles were subiects to the Ethnique Emperours in all temporall causes and that the law of Christ depriues no man of his right which he had before And lately in his Recognitions he departs from this opinion and denies that he was his Iudge de Iure If his first opinion be true can these consist together that he which is subiect in temporal causes can at the same time and in the same causes be superiour Or that he ouer whom the Emperour had supreame temporall authority should haue authority ouer the Emperour in temporall causes and what is there in the second opinion that should induce so strong an Obligation vpon a conscience as to die for it Since the first was better grounded for for that he produâ—ed Scriptures and the second is deâ—titute of that helpe and without further searâ—h into it tels vs that neither the Doctrine nor the Doctor are constant enough to build a Marâ—yredome vpon 15 Thus also Bellarmine argues to our aduantage though he doe it to proue a necessity of this power in the Church that euery Common-wealth is sufficiently prouided in it selfe to attaine the end for which it is instituted And as we said before the end of a Christian Common-wealth is not onely Tranquility for that sometimes may be mainâ—ained by vnchristianly meanes but it is the practise of all morall vertue now explicated to vs and obserued by vs in the exercise of Christian Religion and therfore such a Common-wealth hath of it selfe all meanes necessary to those ends without new additions as a man consisting of bodie and soule if he come from Infidelity to the Christian Religion hath no new third essenâ—iall pâ—rt added to him to gouerne that body and soule but onely hath the same soule enlightned with a more expliciâ—e knowledge of her duety 16 Bâ—llarâ—ine also tels vs That in the Apostles time these two powers were seperated and â—o all the Temporall was in the Emperour as all the Ecclesiasticke in the Apostles and that Hierarchie By what way then and at what time came this Authoritie into them if it were once out For to say that it sprong out of Spirituall Authoritie when there was any vse of it were to say that that Authoritie at Christs institution had not all her perfections and maturity and to say that it is no other but the highest act and a kinde of prerogatiue of the spirituall power will not reach homeâ— For you must beleeue and die in this that the Pope as spirituall Prince may not onely dispose of temporall matters but that herein hee vses the temporall sword and temporall iurisdiction 17 But when Bellarmine saies That this supreme authority resides in the Pope yet not as he is Pope And that the Pope and none but he can â—epose Kings and transfer Kingdomes and yet not as Pope I proâ—esse that I know not how to speake thereof with so much earnestnesse as becomes a matter of so great waight For other Princes when they exercise their extraordinarie and Absolute power and prerogatiue and for the publique good put in practise sometimes some of those parts of their power which are spoken of in Samuel which to many men seeme to exceede Regall pâ—weâ— yet they professe to doe these things as they are Kings and not by any other authoritie then that 18 And if there be some things which the Pope cannot doe as Pope but as chiefe spirituall Prince this implies that there are other inferiour spirituall Princes which are Bishops for so Bellarmine saies That Bishops in their Diocesses are Ecclesiastique Princes And haue Bishops any such measure of this spirituall principality that they may do somthings by that which they cannot doe as they are Bishopsâ— 19 All Principalities maintaine their being by these two reward
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
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