STATE PAPERS. 



733 



tin, where, a second time, the inha- 

 bitants loudly expres'^ed their vene- 

 ration for us, we had the inexpressi- 

 ble happiness of again beholding the 

 emperor Napoleon, and of confer- 

 ring with him. We took the op- 

 portunity of earnestly recommend- 

 ing again to his consideration the 

 ecclesiastical concerns of France and 

 Italy, and after returning his maje?- 

 ly our sincere thanks, for all the 

 benefits he had conferred on us and 

 the catholic religion, we jjroreeded 

 on our route to Etruria, and arr.vcd 

 at Florence. — Our entry into that 

 city was attended with much splen- 

 dour and productive of great public 

 rejoicings. The illustrious q"^n <*f 

 JEtruria again received us in the mo t 



i magnificent manner, evincing, at the 

 same time, the most becoming piety. 

 ■ The Lord, in his unbounded merc}', 

 had prepared lor us in this city, the 

 most gratifying of all consolation. — 

 In our former route, through this 

 city, we had a presentiment, that 

 ; our reverend brother, Scipio Ricci, 

 i ancient bishop of Pistoya, seriously 

 i; intended to be reconciled to ns, and 

 ' the holy Roman church; a thing 

 which we had desired for some time, 

 in common with all good men. He 

 acquainted us, with truly filial con- 

 fidence, that he was ready, in the 

 i sincerity of his heart, to subscribe 

 to the formula, which we should 

 please to propose (o him. He has 

 performed his promise, for the for- 

 mula which had been transmitted by 

 ')>ir reverend brother, the archbishop 

 of I'hillipo, ha.s been acknowledged 

 and signed by him. By tliis decla- 

 ration, which he has requested may 

 be published, in reparation of his 

 former scandal, he ha.s (estined that 

 he has received purely, simply, and 

 in full sincerity and reverence, the 

 constitutions of the holy apostolic 



see, by wliich are prescribwl the er- 

 rjrs of Biius, of Jansenius, of 

 Quefnel, and their sectarian follow- 

 ers; ai'd especially, the dogmatic 

 bull Aucthorem Fidei, by vihich are 

 condemned, eiglity-five propositions, 

 taken from the synod of Pistoya, 

 which he had himself collected and 

 published. Farther, he has declared, 

 that he reprobates and condemns all 

 these propositions, and each of them, 

 under the qualifications, and in the 

 sense expressed thereof, in the bull 

 above mentioned. And finally, he 

 declares his determination to live and 

 die in the faith of the holy Roman 

 and apostolic churcli. and in perfect 

 submission to her, and also to ns 

 and our successors' in the chair of 

 bt. Peter, in our qualities of vicars 

 of Christ on earth. After this so- 

 lemn declaration, we have called him 

 into our presence, we have heard 

 him protest anew, the sincerity of 

 his sentiments, and his implicit sub- 

 mission to the dogmatical decisions 

 of Pius VI. his attachment to the 

 orthodox faith, and to the apostolic 

 see, which, he said, had in fact pra- 

 served him in f lie midst of his errors. 

 We thereupon paternally embraced 

 him, we have acknowledged all the 

 merit of his conduct, and, in the full 

 atiecfion of our charity, we have re- 

 conciled him to ourseU, and the holy- 

 catholic church. In congratulating 

 us in his letters on our happy return 

 to Rome, he declares his adherence 

 to the recantation made by him at 

 Florence, which consideration af- 

 fords us the greatest pleasure. 



Reverend brethren, we have con- 

 ceived it our duty to communicate 

 these important matters to you ; ia 

 consideration of which, it behoves 

 us to prostrate ourselves at the foot 

 of the throne of the author of all 

 these bunefits, and humbly to sup- 

 plicate 



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