NO. VIII. 380 St. Athanasius, Hosius, and Lucifer of Cagliari against APPENDIX. rights; nor blend the Roman empire with the decrees of the Church." And again: "For when," says he, "were such things heard from the beginning of the world? When did the judgment of the Church receive its authority from the emperor? Or when was this ever owned as a judgment? There have been many synods before now, and many judgments or determinations of the Church; but neither did the fathers ever address themselves to the emperor in these things: nor did the emperor concern himself with the affairs of the Church." From these words of the most holy father it is evident beyond contradiction, that the fathers of the fourth century were of opinion, that the Church is a society subsisting of itself, separate from that of the State. They thought that it belonged to none but the bishops to determine controversies of faith: they judged it a very heinous crime for the emperor to concern himself in matters of this nature. This was the opinion of that most excellent and courageous prelate, who was perfectly well acquainted with the nature of the Christian religion, and maintained it with the greatest constancy. He had not the least suspicion of any authority in ecclesiastical matters that appertained to the civil magistrate, nor of the confusion of those two powers. Next to St. Athanasius let us hear Hosius the famous bishop of Corduba, a man truly great, and eminent both for piety and constancy of mind; though at last wearied out with old age and misery, he left a memorable example of human weakness. In an Epistle which he wrote to Constantius himself, there is this passage most worthy of a primitive bishop: "Forbear, I beseech you, and remember that you are a mortal man; dread the day of judgment, and preserve yourself pure μίσγειν τὴν Ῥωμαϊκὴν ἀρχὴν τῇ τῆς * πότε γὰρ ἐκ τοῦ αἰῶνος ἠκούσθη βασιλέα οὔτε βασιλεὺς τὰ τῆς ἐκκλη σίας περειργάσατο.—[Id., ibid., § 32 p. 376, A.] * παῦσαι, παρακαλῶ, καὶ μνήσθητι, ὅτι θνητὸς ἄνθρωπος τυγχάνεις φοβή θητι τὴν ἡμέραν τῆς κρίσεως, φύλαξαν σεαυτὸν εἰς ἐκείνην καθαρόν· μὴ τίθει σεαυτὸν εἰς τὰ ἐκκλησιαστικὰ, μηδὲ σὺ περὶ τούτων ἡμῖν παρακελεύου· ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον παρ' ἡμῶν σὺ μάνθανε ταῦτα· σοὶ βασιλείαν ὁ θεὸς ἐνεχείρισεν. ἡμῖν τα the interference of the emperor in ecclesiastical questions. 381 DISSERT. IIL against that day. Do not concern yourself in the affairs of HUGHES the Church, nor lay any commands upon us in such matters; but rather learn such things from us. God has invested you with the kingdom, but has entrusted ecclesiastical matters with us and as he that secretly invades your government, resists the ordinance of God; so do you also beware, lest by drawing to yourself those things which belong to the Church, you become guilty of a great crime. It is written, Render unto Cæsar the things which are Cæsar's, and unto God the things which are God's. Neither therefore is it lawful for us to govern upon earth, nor have you, O emperor, power to offer incense." He admirably agrees with St. Athanasius. He repeats almost the same words, and most expressly distinguisheth between the regal authority and the sacerdotal. As it is a crime for the bishop to snatch the reins of the empire, so it is a crime for the king to usurp the rights of the bishop. The last I shall mention is Lucifer bishop of Cagliari, a most strenuous defender of the Nicene faith, and of the discipline of the Church. This bishop of Cagliari wrote three bold Epistles, and such as shewed the spirit of a bishop throughout. He sent these Epistles to the emperor Constantius, to plead in behalf of St. Athanasius. In the first of them there are these words: "Confess yourself a Christian, join with us in execrating the sect of the Arians, raised by the device of the devil; believe as we believe, who are bishops deriving our succession from the blessed Apostles; confess the only Son of God, as they confessed Him, and as we confess Him; and you shall obtain the pardon of so great crimes." And a little after: "It is not to be wondered at, τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἐπίστευσε· καὶ ὥσπερ δ τὴν σὴν ἀρχὴν ὑποκλέπτων ἀντιλέγει τῷ διαταξαμένῳ θεῷ· οὕτω φοβήθητι, μὴ καὶ σὺ τὰ τῆς ἐκκλησίας εἰς ἑαυτόν ἕλο κων, ὑπεύθυνος ἐγκλήματι μεγάλῳ γένῃ· ἀπόδοτε, γέγραπται, τὰ Καίσαρος Καί σαρι, καὶ τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ, τῷ θεῷ· οὔτε τοίνυν ἡμῖν ἄρχειν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ἔξεστιν οὔτε σὺ τοῦ θυμιᾶν ἐξουσίαν ἔχεις, βασιλεῦ. -[Hosii Epist., ibid., § 44. p. 371, A, B.] [There are only two "books" of the work pro S. Athanasio here referred to; they are addressed to Constantius, as are the other treatises of Lucifer of Cagliari; but his epistles are not.] Fatere te Christianum; execrare nobiscum catervam commento diaboli quæsitam Arianorum; crede sicuti credimus nos, qui ex beatorum apostolorum successione sumus episcopi: confitere unicum Dei filium, sicuti illi confessi sunt et nos confitemur, et veniam consequeris tantorum scelerum. .... Non mirandum quandoquidem scriptum teneamus,' sanctus autem immundus est apud malos,' vobis malignis displicet is, qui Deo placeat, tibi præsertim temerario et superbo, qui teme NO. VIII. 382 That the right of excommunication belongs to the Church APPENDIX. since we remember it is written: 'He that is holy is vile among the wicked;' he that pleases God displeaseth all you that are impious, and you especially who are rash and proud, and are hence known to be rash and proud, because you have stretched out your hands against the ordinance of God; because you thought that the apostolic tradition was to be destroyed; and because you determined to reduce the bishops under your jurisdiction, under whose care you ought to demean yourself." See with what an infinite cloud of most undeniable witnesses we are encompassed on all sides. Whether we consider the holy fathers in their private works, or appeal to councils both general and provincial, or regard the testimonies of the emperors themselves, or lastly, have respect to those various and unhappy contests which arose between the Arian emperors and the orthodox bishops, from all these particulars it is most clearly demonstrated that the Christian society, from the times of Constantine, did never incorporate with the civil government, but always remained entire and distinct. DISSERTATION IV. THE RIGHT OF EXCOMMUNICATION BELONGS TO THE CHRISTIAN IN the former Dissertations I have, I hope, fully and co["the," piously proved that the Christian Church is a true and ed. 3.] proper society, distinct and separate from the civil society, and administered by governors of her own; and from those premises it always appeared to me to follow that the right of excommunication belongs to her; for we must either deny that the Church of Christ is a society, which the followers of Erastus are for the most part used to deny, or if we grant this, we must also acknowledge that this society comprises in it a power of excommunicating. Nothing can be imagined more clear and evident than this; and yet such is the rarius hinc intelligeris ac superbus,quod tuerat, sub tuam ditionem censueris redigendos.-[Luciferi Caralitani pro S. Athan., lib. i. c. 33. ap. Biblioth. Patrum, Galland., tom. vi. pp. 169, B, 170, B.] DISSERT. IV. jure divino; argued (1.) from the nature of a society. 383 wicked perverseness of mankind, that there are not wanting HUGHES such as do not only deny this power to the Church, but also maintain with great vehemence that it is both ridiculous and absurd. And indeed they have endeavoured with the greatest zeal and earnestness to shew that this tyrannical opinion, as they are pleased to call it, cannot be defended either by reason, or by the holy Scriptures, or by the example and authority of the primitive Church. For this reason I might seem to be very much wanting to my purpose if I should pass by a controversy of so great moment and importance without taking notice of it. It shall therefore be my province to shew clearly and distinctly, and yet in a few words, how much support this cause of ours receives both from reason, and from holy Scripture, and lastly from the examples of the purest ages; and I cannot but entertain the strongest hopes that all these do make very much for us and our case. I affirm, therefore, that the right of excommunication belongs to the Church by divine right, and this I shall endeavour to prove from these following arguments. I. My first argument shall be drawn from the very nature of society. That the Christian religion is a true and proper, although it be a spiritual society, is so clear and evident that nothing can be more. For it is not by any means sufficient for our salvation to give credit to the Gospel, and conform our lives according to the moral precepts contained therein : it is also necessary for us to join ourselves to the Church of Christ, that we may partake of the Sacraments which Christ instituted for that end that they may be conveyances of grace to us, without which we cannot please God. To say all in one word: Jesus Christ, God-man, by the merits of His passion, has obtained for us reconciliation and forgiveness of sins; but He has so annexed this forgiveness of sins to His Sacraments instituted in His Church, that we must not so much as hope for this forgiveness without the participation of those Sacraments. And this sufficiently demonstrates the Christian religion to be a true and proper society. It cannot be denied that every society whatsoever has all those things which are necessarily required to preserve the society safe and entire; but for preserving a society safe and entire it is in the first place required that it have a power of NO. VIII. 384 This power was conferred on the Church by God. APPENDIX. receiving worthy and fit persons into the society, and of turning out such as are refractory and unworthy. All men must necessarily grant me this. Without this power it is not possible for any, even the least society, to subsist. The Christian Church is a true and proper society; therefore it is necessary that the Christian Church have the same power of admitting worthy and fit persons, and of ejecting, that is, of excommunicating such as are obstinate. Hence, likewise, we may collect that this power of excommunication appertains to the Church by divine right. For since the Christian Church is a true and proper society, founded by God Himself, it most evidently follows that God has granted to this society all those privileges which are necessary to preserve it as a society. Therefore it was very well observed by the learned Grotius, that for the asserting of this power to the Church of Christ it is not necessary to descend to particular passages of holy Scripture. This is abundantly demonstrated from the very nature of society. And indeed this right of excommunicating appears so necessary, I will not say to the Christian Church, but to every religion whatsoever, that you will hardly find one sect or way of worship, even among the heathen, that does not enjoy the like privilege. We are informed by Julius Cæsar that the Druids were wont to exclude those from their sacrifices who did not observe their decrees. In Philip of Macedon's Epistle to the Athenians we read, "that the people were so exasperated against the Megarenses, because they had killed Anthemocritus, as to exclude them from their mysteries." And the scholiast of Aristophanes observes, "that it was the custom that murderers should not partake of the sacrifices"." Nicolaus Damascenus says of the Cerceti, a people of India, "that they shut out from their holy rites such as had any way injured them!" It is a thing most notorious, that before the sacrifices were slain a crier made proclamation with |