PUBLIC DOCUMENTS. 



649 



do causa ad Ronianam Ecelesiam prpptcr po- 



: in principalitatem necossc m-iuper I'uit MIIH m 



Hire Eccleaiam, hoc est, eos, qui sunt inidi>iuu 



li'lcli 1 *, ut in I'll Sedo, o qua venoraiuluc c<>nniiuiu'>uis 



iuru in ormies diinanant, tuinc]iiiiin membra in oapito 



consooiatu, in unaia corporia oompagcm coaloscorout.* 



Si quis ergo dixerit, non esso ox ipsius Criati Domini 



institutions seu iure divino, ut heutus IVtrus in ]>ri- 



mutu super uni \.-rsum Ecclesiam habcat perpctuos 



-'ires ; nut Koiimiuiin Pontiticem non csso beati 



Petri iu eodcm priiuatu succossorem ; anathema sit. 



CAPUT III. 



DB VI ET KATIONE I' 1J I HAT US BOilAXI PONTIFICI8. 



Quapropter apertis innixi sacrarum litterarum testi- 

 moniis et inliaerentes turn Praodecessprum Nostro- 

 runi lioinanorum Pontiflcum, tuui Conciliorum gene- 

 ralium disertis, perspicuisque dccretis, innovamus 

 occumenici Concihi Florentini deflnitionem, qua cre- 

 denduin ab omnibus Christi fidelibus est, sanctam 

 Apostolicam Sedem, et Eoraanum Pontiflcem in uni- 

 versum orbem tenere primatum. et ipsum Pontiflcem 

 Romanum successorein esse ueati Petri priticii>i3 

 Apostolorum, et verum Ohristi Vicarium, totiusquo 

 Eeclosiae caput, et omnium Christianorum piitrem 

 ac doctprem existere ; et ipsi in beato Petro pascendi, 

 rogendi et gubernandi universalem Ecclesiam a Do- 

 mino nostro lesuChristo plenum potcstatem traditam 

 esse ; queinadmodum etiam in gcstls oecumenicorum 

 Conciliorum et sacris canonibus continetur. 



Docemus proinde et dcclaramus, Ecclesiam Roma- 

 nam disponente Domino super omnes aliaa ordinariac 

 potestatis obtinere priucipatum, et hanc Roman! Pon- 

 tificis iurisdictionis potestatem, quae vere episcopalis 

 est. immediatam esse : erga quain cuiuscumque ritua 

 et dignitatia, pastores atque ndeles, tarn seorsuin sin- 

 guli quam simul omnes, officio hierarchicae subordi- 

 nationis, veraeque obedientiae obstringuntur, non so- 

 lum in rebus, quae ad fldem et mores, sed etiam in 

 iia, quae ad disciplinam et regimen Ecclesiae, per 

 toturn orbem diffusae pertinent ; ita t ut eustodita cum 

 Bomano Pontince tarn communionis, quam eiusdem 

 fldei professionU uuitate, Ecclesia Christi sit unus 

 grex sub uno summo pastore. Haeo est catholicae 

 veritatis doctriiia, a qua deviare salva fide atque sa- 

 lute nemo potest. 



Tantum autem abest, ut haec Summi Pontificia 

 potestas official ordinariae ac immediatae illi episco- 

 pali iurisdictionia potestati, qua Episcopi, qui positi 

 a Spiritu Sancto in Apostolorum locum auccesserunt. 

 t amquam veri Pastores assignatos aibi gregea, singuli 

 singulos, paacunt et regunt, ut eadom a supremo et 

 universal! Paatore asseratur, roborctur ac vindicetur, 

 secundum illud sancti Gregorii Magni : Meus honor 

 cst honor universalis Ecclesiae. Meus honor est 

 fratrum meorum solidus vigor. Turn ego vere hono- 

 ratus sum, cum eingulia quibusque honor debitus 

 uon ncgatur.f 



Porro ex auprema ilbi Romani Pontificia potcstate 

 gubernandi univursain Ecclesiam ius eidem ease con- 

 sequitur, in huiu.s sui muneris exercito libere commu- 

 uicandi cum pastoribua et grcgibua totiua Ecclesiae, 

 ut iidem ab ipso in via aalutis doceri ac regi poasint. 

 Quare damnamus ac reprobamua illorum aententias, 

 qui hanc supremi capitia cum paatoribus et gregibus 

 coiinuunicationem hcite impcdiri posse dicunt, aut 

 i-:iru.li!in rcddunt aaeculari potestati obnoxiam, ita ut 

 cotrtendant, quao ab Apostolica Sede vel eius auc- 



* S. Iren. adv. Hner. 1. 111. c. 3. Ep. Cone. Aqnllcia. 



II, inter cpp. S. Ambros. ep. xl. 



t Ep. ad Eulog. Alcxandrui. 1. vill. cp. ixx. 



boon given to him, has never left the helm of the 

 Cliun-h originally iutriwted to him.* 



For tliis rcawm it won alwavs necesRary for every 

 other cliurch, that in, the faithful of all countries, to 

 have recourse to the Roman Church on account of ito 

 superior headship, in order that being joined, as mem- 

 bers to their head, with Una sec, from which the rights 

 of religious communion flow unto all, they might be 

 knitted into the unity of one body.f 



It', therefore, any one shall say that it is not by 

 the institution of Christ our Lord Himself, or by di- 

 vine right, that blessed Peter has perpetual succes- 

 sors in the grimacy over the whole Church ; or, that 

 the Roman pontiff is not the successor of blessed Pe- 

 ter in this primacy ; let him be anathema. 



i 



CHAPTER III. 



OF THE POWEB AND NATURE OF THE PEIJfACT OF THE 

 BOMAIT PONTIFF. 



Wherefore, resting upon the clear testimonies of 

 holy writ, and following the full and explicit decrees 

 of our predecessors the Roman pontiffs, and of gen- 

 eral councils, we renew the definition of the (Ecumeni- 

 cal Council of Florence, according to which all the 

 faithful of Christ must believe that the holy apostolic 

 see and the Roman pontiff hold the primacy over the 

 whole world, and that the Roman pontiff is the succes- 

 sor of blessed Peter the prince of the apostles, and the 

 true vicar of Christ, and is the head of the whole 

 church, and the father and teacher of all Christians ; 

 and that to him, in the blessed Peter, was given by 

 our Lord Jesus Christ full power of feeding, ruling, 

 and governing the universal Church ; as is also set 

 forth in the acts of the oecumenical councils, and in 

 the sacred canons. 



Wherefore, we teach and declare that the Roman 

 Church, under divine providence, possesses a head- 

 ship of ordinary power over all other churches, and 

 that this power of jurisdiction of the Roman pon- 

 tiffj which is truly episcopal, is immediate, toward 

 which the pastors and faithful of whatever rite and 

 dignity, whether singly or all together, are bound by 

 the duty of hierarchical subordination and of true 

 obedience, not only in things which appertain to faith 

 and morals, but likewise in those things which con- 

 cern the discipline and government of the church 

 spread throughout the world, so that being united 

 with the Roman pontiff, both in communion and in 

 profession of the same faithj the Church of Christ 

 may be one fold under one chief shepherd. This is 

 the doctrine of Catholic truth, from wnich no one can 

 depart without loss of faith and salvation. 



So far, nevertheless, is this power of the supreme 

 pontiff irorn trenching on that ordinary power of 

 episcopal jurisdiction oy which the bishops, who 

 have been instituted by the IIolv Ghost, and have 

 succeeded in the place of the apostles, like true shep- 

 herds, feed and rule the flocks assigned to them, 

 each one his own ; that, on the contrary, this their 

 power is asserted, strengthened, and 'vindicated, by 

 the supreme and universal pastor ; as St. Gregory the 

 Great saith : " My honor is the honor of the universal 

 Church ; my honor is the solid strength of my breth- 

 ren ; then am I trulj honored when to each one of 

 them the honor due is not denied." J 



Moreover, from that supreme authority of the 

 Eoman pontiff to govern the universal Church, there 

 follows to him the right, in the exercise of this his 

 office, of freely communicating with the pastors and 

 flocks of the whole Church, that they may be taught 

 and guided by him in the way of salvation. 



Wherefore, we condemn nnd reprobate the opinions 

 of those who say that this communication of the su- 

 premo head with the pastors and flocks can bo law- 

 fully hindered, or who make it subject to the secular 



* 8. Leo. Sera. Hi., chap. ill. 



t St. IremetiB against Heresies book Hi. chap. 3. Epist. 

 of Council of Aqailela, 881, Epist. St. Ambroso, Ep. xl. 

 ; St. Gregory the Great ad Eulogius, Epiut. SO. 



