UNIVERSAL BISHOP AN ANTICHRISTIAN TITLE. 159 or Patriarch, " what wilt thou say to Christ, the head of the universal church, in the account of the lastjudgment ; thouwho, by theappella- tion of universal, dost endeavour to subject all his members to thee? Whom, I pray, dost thou mean to imitate in so perverse a word, but him who, despising the legions of angels constituted in fellowshipwith him, endeavoured to burst upward to the top of pre-eminence, that he might seem to be subject to none, and to be alone over all? who also said, ` I will ascend into heaven, and will exalt my throne above the stars.' For what are thy brethren, all the bishops of the univer- sal church, but the stars of heaven? to whom, while by this haughty word thou desirest to prefer thyself, and to trample on their name in comparison to thee, what dost thou say but, ` I will climb into hea- ven?' And again, in another epistle to the bishops of Alexandria and Antioch, he taxes the same patriarch for "assuming to boast, so that he attempts to ascribe all things to himself, and studies, by the ela- tion of pompous speech, to subject to himself all the members of 'Christ, which adhere to one sole head, namely, to Christ."' Again; "I confidently say, that whoever calls himself Universal Bishop, or desires to be so called, does in his elation forerun Antichrist, because he pridefully sets himself before all others ? "3 If these argumentations be sound, or signify any thing, what is t. the pretence of " universal sovereignty and pastorship" but a piece of Luciferian arrogance? Who can imagine that even this pope could approve, could assume, could exercise it? If he did, was he not monstrously senseless, and above measure impudent, to use such discourses, which so plainly, without altering a word, might he re- torted upon him,which are built upon suppositions that it is un- lawful and wicked to assume superiority over the church, over all bishops, over all Christians? the which, indeed (seeing never pope Tu quid Christo universalis ecclesite capiti in extremi judicii dicturus examine, qui cuneta ejus membra tibimet coneris Universalis appellatione supponere? Quis rogo in hoc tam perverso vocabulo nisi ille ad imitandum proponitur, qui despectis angelorum legionibus serum socialiter constitutis ad culmen conatus est singularitatis erumpere, ut et nulli subesse, et solus omnibus prnesse videretur? qui etiam dixit, "In ccelum conscendam, super astracceli exaltabo solium meum." ... Quid enim fratres tui omnes universalis ecclesite episcopi, nisi astra cceli sunt ? quibus dum cupis temetipsumvoea, bulo elationis præponere, eorumque nomen tui comparatione calcare, &c.Greg., Ep. iv. 38. 3 Jactantiam sumpsit ita ut universa sibi tentet adscribere, et omnia pre soli uni capiti cohserent, videlicit Christo, per elationem pompatici sermonis ejusdemChristi sibi studeat membra subjugare. Gr. M., Ep. iv. 36. The same words we have in the epistle of Pope Pelagius, predecessor of St Gregory, to thebishop of Constantinople. P. Pelag., Ep. viii. 3 Ego autem fidenter dico, quia quisquis se Universalen, Sacerdotem vocat,vel vocari desiderat, in elatione sua Antichristum pracurritquia superbiendo se ceterispraponit. Greg. I., lib. vi. Ep. 30. Nec dispari superbia ad errorem ducitur; quia sicut per- versus ille Deus videri vult super omnes homines; ita quisquis est, qui solus sacerdos appellari appetit, super enteros sacerdotes se extollit. AdHawk Aug. Ì
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=