32 INTRODUCTION. Such is the oath prescribed to bishops; the which is worth the most serious attention of all men who wouldunderstand how miser- ably slavish the condition of the clergy is in that church, and how inconsistent their obligation to the pope is with their duty to their prince. And in perusing it we may note that the clauses in a different character* are in the more ancient oath, extant in the Gregorian Decretals;l by which it appears how the pope more and more en- larges his power, and straitens the bands of subjection to him. And it is very remarkable that the new oath has changed these words, " Regulas sanctorum patrurn" into "Regalia Sancti Petri ;" i. e., " The rules of the holy fathers" into " The royalties of St Peter." XV. I know there are within the Roman communion great store of divines who contract the papal sovereignty within a much narrower compass, refusing to him many of those prerogatives, yea, scarce allowing to him any of them. There are those who affirm the pope, in doctrine and discipline, subject to the church, or to a general synod representing it ; which opinion thwarts a proposition in Bellarmine's opinion " even almost an article of faith." But to be evenwith him, theyhold his proposi- tion to be quite heretical. " The pope is simplyand absolutely above the universal church;-thisproposition is almost an article of faith,"2 sorum prxdictorum, conservare, defendere, augere, promovere curato. Neque ero in consilio, vet facto, sou tractatu in quibus contra epsum dominum nostrum, vel eandern Romanam ec- clesiam, aiiqua sinistra velprcejudicialiapersonarum, juris, honoris, status et potestatis eorum machinentur. Et sit alice a quibuscunque trattari vel procurati novero, impediam hoc pro posse, et quanto citius potero significabo eidem domino nostro, vel alteri per quern possit ad ipsius notitiampervenire. Regulas sanctorumpatrum, decreta, ordinations, seu dispositions, reservations, provisiones, et mandata apostolica, totis viribus observabo, et faciam ab alias ob- servari. I3cereticos, schismaticos, et rebelles eidena domino nostro vel successoribus prcedictis, pro posse persequar et impugnabo. Voeatus ad synodum veniam, nisi prmpiditus fuero canonica prmpeditione. Apostolorum limina singulis trienniis personaliterper me ipsum visitabo, et domino nostro ac successoribus prcefatis rationem reddam de toto meopastorali oficio, ac de rebus omnibus admeati ecclesice statum, ad deri et populi disciplinam, animaruns denique quce meceficlei tradita; Bunt, salutem quovis modo pertinentibus, et vicissim mandata apostolica humiliter recipiam et quam diligentissimeexequar. Quod si legitimo impedimento detentas fuero, pregiata omnia adimplebo per certum nuncium ad hoc speciale mandatum habentem de gremiomei capituli, aut alium in dignitateecclesiastica constitutuoe, seu alias per- sonatum habentem; aut, his mihi deficientibus, per dicecesanum sacerdotem; et clero deficiente omninoper aliquem aliumpresbyterum secularem vel regularem spectatceprobitatis et religionis de supradictis omnibus piene instructum. De hujusmodi autem impedimento docebo per le- gitimas probationer ad sancta; Romance ecclesice cardinalem proponentem in congregation sacri concilii per supradictum nuncium transmittendas. Possessions vero admensam meam pertinentes non vendar, nec donabo esegue impignorabo, nec de novo infeudabo vel aliquo modo alienaba, etiam cum consensu capituli ecclesice mece, inconsulto Romano pontifice. Et si ad aliquam alienationem devenero, pcenas in quadam super hoc edita constitution contento eo ipso incurrere volo. Sic me Deus adjuvet et hæc sancta Dei evangelia. * That is, the clauses in Roman letters are those in themore ancient oath ; those in Italics have been all added by subsequent popes. En. 1 Greg. Dec., lib. ii. tit. 24, cap. 4. 2 Summus pontifex simpliciter et absolute est supra ecclesiamuniversam; hæcpro - positio est fere de fide. Bell. de Cone., ü. 17.
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