exercised by them before they had received these ornaments."* The same author further observes," Besides this, the Popes assumed to themselves an authority of giving leave to the bishops to remove from one episcopal see to another, and obliged all the western bishops to receive their confirmation from Rome, for which they were obliged to pay a certain sum of money as an acknowledgment, which was since converted to annats. The Popes also, by making void the decisions of the provincial synods or assemblies, overthrew their authority: wherefore, when every body plainly perceived that the decrees of these assemblies could produce no other effects but to be continually annulled by the Popes, without so much as hearkening to any reasons, they were by degrees quite abolished. Pope Gregory the seventh also forced the bishops to swear an oath of fealty to the Pope, and by a decree forbad,† that none should dare to condemn any one that had appealed to the Pope. They were also not forgetful in sending legates or nuncios to all places; whose business was to exercise in the name of the Pope the same authority, which had formerly belonged to the bishops, metropolitans, and provincial assemblies."+ In this passage mention is made of the oath of fealty exacted by Gregory the seventh from the bishops. A similar oath has been imposed, even since the Reformation, by Pius the fourth on all the beneficed clergy. He decreed, that they should all swear true obedience to the Roman pontiff, the successor of St. Peter, and vicar of Jesus Christ. In short, how completely the clergy under their bishops became one of the two ecclesiastical kingdoms of the papal beast, will best appear from the following oath, set forth by order of Pope Clement the eighth to be taken by all bishops at their consecration, and by all metropolitans at their instalment. "IN. elect of the church of N. from henceforward will be faithful and obedient to St. Peter the Apostle, and to the holy Roman church, and to our lord, the lord N. Pope N. and to his successors canonically coming in. * Introduct. to Hist. of Eur. cited by Whitaker, p. 404. † Enacted. § Ibid. p. 407. I will neither advise, consent, or do any thing, that they may lose life or member, or that their persons may be seized, or hands any wise laid upon them, or any injuries offered to them under any pretence whatsoever. The counsel, which they shall intrust me withal, by themselves, their messengers, or letters, I will not knowingly reveal to any to their prejudice. I will help them to defend and keep the Roman Papacy and the royalties of St. Peter, saving my order, against all men. The legate of the apostolic see, going and coming, I will honourably treat and help in his necessities. The rights, honours, privileges, and authority, of the holy Roman church, of our lord the Pope, and his foresaid successors, I will endeavour to preserve, defend, increase, and advance. I will not be in any counsel, action, or treaty, in which shall be plotted against our said lord, and the said Roman church, any thing to the hurt or prejudice of their persons, right, honour, state, or power; and, if I shall know any such thing to be treated or agitated by any whatsoever, I will hinder it to my power; and, as soon as I can, will signify it to our said lord, or to some other by whom it may come to his knowledge. The rules of the holy fathers, the apostolic decrees, ordinances, or disposals, reservations, provisions, and mandates, I will observe with all my might, and cause to be observed by others. Heretics, schismatics, and rebels to our said lord, or his foresaid successors, I will to my power persecute and oppose. As for the precise steps, by which this ecclesiastical kingdom was finally and perfectly organized, they are well pointed out by Lord Lyttelton in his history of Henry the second. "It was now an established notion,' says he, "that all metropolitans were only the vicars or rather viceroys of the Pope in their several provinces ; and the pall was the ensign of their office. This was too lightly given way to by kings, and proved in its consequences one of the deepest arts, by which the policy of the court of Rome supported its power. For thus all the greatest prelates, who might have affected an independ Whitaker's Comment. p. 408. ........... ence on that see, had another object of ambition set up, namely, an independence on their own sovereigns, and an imparted share of the papal dominion over all temporal powers." And again: "Henry the first did not enough consider, how much the design of detaching the clergy from any dependence upon their own sovereign, and from all ties to their country, was promoted by forcing them to a life of celibacy: but concurred with the see of Rome, and with Anselm its minister, in imposing that yoke upon the English church, which till then had always refused it-He was also prevailed upon to suffer a legate a latere, the Cardinal of Crema, to preside in a council held at London upon this and other matters, iu derogation to the metropolitan rights of the archbishop of Canterbury; thereby confirming that dangerous and degrading subjection to the Bishop of Rome, which his father had brought upon the church of England.' There was yet another step, by which the second ecclesiastical kingdom of the papal empire was both completed, and kept in subjection. Well knowing the truth of the maxim Divide and rule, the artful pontiffs dexterously contrived to play off the one kingdom against the other, to govern the secular clergy by the instrumentality of the regular. "Whenever any bishop," says Puffendorff, "attempted any thing against the Pope's authority, the mendicant friars with their clamour and noise pursued him every where like so many hounds, and rendered him odious to the common people, amongst whom they were in great veneration through their outward appearance of holiness; and from thence it came to pass, that the bishops, who opposed the Pope's authority, never could make a great party among the common people. Besides this, the friars always kept a watchful eye over the actions of the bishops, giving continual advices concerning them to their generals residing at Rome, whereby the Popes were enabled to oppose timely any design intended against their authority. And these friars proved the main obstacle, why the bishops could not so effectually oppose the Pope's authority which he assumed over them; so * Hist. of Henry II. cited by Whitaker, p. 410, 411. that, being destitute of means to help themselves, they were forced to follow the current."* The regular and secular clergy then, under their respective generals and bishops, are the two horns or ecclesiastical kingdoms of the papal catholic empire. These horns appeared to the prophet to be of a different form from those of the first or temporal beast: they resembled the horns of a lamb. Now, when we recollect that the second beast is styled a false prophet, we can scarcely doubt but that the symbol was so constructed in allusion to his spiritual character. Accordingly Accordingly the two ecclesiastical horns claimed to be the only servants of the Lamb of God, and affected to be like him in meekness and humility. Solemnly devoting themselves to a life of celibacy, and ever engaged in a round of religious ceremonies, they appeared to the deluded populace to be saints indeed, far removed from all the cares and vanities of this transitory world. And, in order that this impression might not be too soon worn off, new saints were at seasonable intervals added to the calendar; and their names enrolled along with those of the real servants of the Lamb, the holy Apostles of the primitive Church. Even the sovereign pontiff himself, who had a look more stout than his fellows, delighted nevertheless to style himself, with sanctified hypocrisy, the servant of the servants of God.† 3. But, notwithstanding his lamb-like appearance, the beast spake as a dragon-The church of Rome, like a true child of that old serpent the devil, forcibly established and supported idolatry; claimed a proud superiority over all temporal dominion; advanced her interests. with all the wily cunning of the serpent; anathematized and persecuted to death the faithful servants of Christ; and esteemed every lie and every imposture, which ad * Hist. of Henry II. cited by Whitaker, p. 416. We may, if we please, suppose the cardinals to constitute the body of the second beast; and we shall then have the whole Romish Hierarchy completely pourtrayed. "Prælati Romanenses in Universitate Pragensi congregati, contra Johannem Hussum et alios affirmant (in quarto suo decreto seu articulo), quod collegium cardinalium Romæ sunt corpus Ecclesia. Cui respondet Johannes Hussus, Christum esse caput Ecclesiæ, omnesque fideles Christianos corpus esse Ecclesiæ Christi. Cui replicant Prælati processu longo et tædii pleno, ostendentes, quomodo Papa sit caput, et quomodo cardinalium collegium solum, et non alii Christiani, sint corpus Ecclesiæ.” Act. et Monument. A. D. 1414. p. 589, 590, 591. cited by Potter, Interp. num. 666. Cap. xix. p. 121. VOL. II. 20 vanced her authority, a laudable and even pious fraud. That no faith is to be kept with heretics, is a well known maxim of this genuine offspring of the father of lies: that kings excommunicated by the Pope, may be deposed and murdered by their subjects, is another of her maxims: and that the end sanctifies the means, that it is lawful to do evil that good muy come, has been the avowed principle of the Jesuits.* Her dracontine cruelty and ferocity need no proofs. Where pagan Rome hath slain her thousands papal Rome hath slain her ten thousands. “The fourth council of Lateran," says Bp. Burnet, "decreed, that all heretics, should be delivered to the secular power to be extirpated-If a man had but spoken a light word against any of the constitutions of the church, he was seized on by the bishop's officers: and, if any taught their children the Lord's prayer, the ten commandments, and the Apostles' creed, in the vulgar tongue,† that was criminal enough to bring them to the stake, as it did six men and a woman at Coventry in the Passion week 1519." Here it may be observed, that, while the first or secular beast is represented as making war with the saints and overcoming them, it is no where said that the second or ecclesiastical beast and the image which he set up should do more than cause them to be killed. The above-cited decree of the council of Lateran shews how exact the prophecy has been in this particular. The little horn hath always worn out the saints by causing them to be killed, or by delivering them over to the secular arm,§ * The maxims of the Jesuits are these, "That actions intrinsically evil, and directly contrary to the divine laws, may be innocently performed by those who have so much power over their own minds, as to join, even ideally, a good end to this wicked action, or (to speak in the style of the Jesuits,) who are capable of directing their intention aright." (Mosheim's Eccles. Hist. Cent. 17. Sect. 2. p. 1. cited by Whitaker.) Thus it appears, that the Jesuits were the prototypes of Weishaupt's diabolical sect of Illuminati. + In direct opposition to this abominable system of keeping the people in profound ignorance, the church of England specially charges all sponsors to provide, that the child, for whom they have been sureties," may learn the Creed, the Lord's Prayer, and the ten Commandments, in the vulgar tongue, and all other things which a Christian ought to know and believe to his soul's health." Office of Bap tism. Hist. of Reformation cited by Whitaker, p. 419. On this occasion, the Inquisitors, with a disgusting affectation of lamb-like meekness, are wont to beseech the civil magistrates to shew mercy to those unfortunate victims whom they themselves have given up to be consigned to the flames. |