364 PAPAL HERESIES DISCHARGINGALLEGIANCE. persons constrain ecclesiastics, yea, and bishops themselves, to appear before them, and to stand to their judgment; those that henceforth shall presume to do so, we decree that they shall be separated from the communion of the faithful. "' The Scriptures represent the king, or temporal sovereign, as supreme over his subjects, to whom all are obliged to yield special respect and obedience; the fathers yield him the same place, above all, next to God, and subject to God alone; the ancient good popes acknowledged themselves servants and subjects to the emperor.' But later popes, like " the man of sin" in St Paul, 2 Thess. ii. 3, 4, have advanced themselves above all civil power, claiming to them- selves a supereminency, not only of rank but of power, over all Christian princes, even to depose them : " Christ has committed the rights both of terrestrial and celestial government to that blessed man who bears the keys of eternal life."' " If the secular powers be believers, God wouldhave them subject to the priests of the church. Christian emperors ought to submit, and not preferthe execution oftheir laws to the rulers ofthe church."' God, by indispensable law, has obligedus to retain our obedience to the king, even pagan ; chargingus, under painof damnation, to be subject to him, and not to resist him, &c. But the pope is ready, upon occasion, to discharge subjects from that obligation, to absolve them from their solemn oaths of allegiance, to encourage insurrection against him, to prohibit obedience: " We, observing the decrees of our holy predecessors, by our apostolical authority absolve those from their oath who were bound by their fealty and oath to excommunicated persons; and we enjoin them by all means that theyyield them no allegiance till theycome and make satisfaction. "' Thus he teaches and prescribes "rebellion, perjury," together with all the " murders" and " rapines" consequent on them; which is a far greater heresy than if he should teach " adultery, murder," or Les canonica simpliciter eos esimit.Bell. de Ger. cap. L Sane quia laici quidam ecclesiasticas personas et ipsos etiam episcopos suo judicio stare compellunt, eos qui de cætero id proesumpserint, a communions fidelium decernimus segregandos.Conc. Lat. III., can. siv.;'bid, II. xv.; Steph. VI., Ep. i. tom. i. p. 130; Nie. I., Ep. viii. tom. vi. p. 513. Tertul., Opt., Cyril., &c. alibi; Greg. Ep. ii. 62; Agatho, &c. S Christus beato ceternæ vitro clavigero terreni simul et ceelestis imperii jura com- missit.P. Nie. IL apud Grat. Dist. xxii. cap. 1; Greg. VII., Ep. viii. 21; Caus. xv. qu. 6, cap. 3. ' Seculi potestates si fideles aunt, Deus ecclesim sacerdotibus voluit esse subjectas. Imperatores Christiani subdere debent executions suas ecclesiasticis prmsulibus, non prtoferre. P. Joh. VIII., apud Grat. Dist. xcvi. cap. 11. s Nos sanctorum prmdecessorum nostrorum statuta tenentes, eosqui excommunicatis fidelitate aut sacramento constricti aunt, apostolica auctoritate a sacramento absolvi- inus; et ne eis fidelitatem observent omnibus modis prohibemus, quosque ipsi ad satis- factionem veniant. Greg. VII., in Syn. Rom. Grat. Caus. xv. qu. 6, cap. 4.
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