Summa de Ecclesia

INDEED we can gather most clearly from the premises that the Roman pontiff is the immediate prelate and judge of the polity of all Christians, to do in the whole world whatever inferior prelates can do.

Although this is sufficiently open both from the traditions of the fathers and from the reasons in the preceding articles, nevertheless, that the truth may shine forth more clearly, we shall take care to fortify it with authorities and reasons. First thus. In whatever order the whole power of inferiors depends and originates from the power of the superior, to whatsoever things the power of inferiors can extend itself, to all those the power of the superior can extend itself immediately; but the power of jurisdiction, of which we speak, of all other prelates in the Church is derived from the power of the Pope; therefore it follows that the supreme pontiff can do immediately in the whole world all things whatsoever other prelates can; the consequence is plain. The major proposition is known of itself, since the second cause or power is not sustained except from the first, nor receives the virtue of influencing except from the first, on which it depends according to its whole potestative being, as is had from the commentary on the first proposition On Causes. But the minor was demonstrated above in ch. 60. Secondly thus. For which it is supposed, as St Thomas says in 2 of the Sentences, dist. 9, that the division of the Hierarchy into orders is of a potent whole into potential parts, whose condition of the whole is that according to complete virtue it is in the supreme part, and that such a superior potency or power has in itself more completely those things which are of the inferior order; then thus. In the hierarchical order whatever an inferior virtue or power can, a superior can; but the virtues or powers of the inferior prelates in the ecclesiastical Hierarchy are inferior to the power of the supreme pontiff; therefore whatever the virtue or power of any inferior prelate whatsoever can do in his committed diocese or people, the Pope himself can; the consequence is plain; but the major is of Boethius saying: Whatever an inferior virtue can, a superior can, and not conversely. Likewise it is of Dionysius in the chapter on the Heavenly Hierarchy, where he says: The more divine virtues have with their own the subjected, that is the operations of subjects or inferiors. But the minor is most known.

Thirdly this. The power of the Pope in the ecclesiastical Hierarchy is universal power, but the power of other prelates is particular power; but a universal power and virtue acts upon that which is subjected to a particular virtue more efficaciously than the particular virtue itself; therefore the Pope by his universal power can do in the whole and in every people whatever inferior prelates can, and more and more perfectly; the consequence is plain. The antecedent for the greater part is plain, since the care of the whole world is committed to the Pope, with the Lord saying to him: Feed my sheep. In sign of which the synod of Chalcedon acclaimed to Pope Leo: Most holy Leo, apostolic universal patriarch, live through many years. But other prelates are called into a share of solicitude, not into fullness of power. But the minor is plain, since, as is said in the first proposition of the book of Causes, the primary universal cause pours more influence into its caused thing, indeed than the second causes, than the secondary cause. And universal is said here not by predication but by extension of the inflowing virtue which flows universally into all things existing under it.

Fourthly thus. The Pope, the vicar of the supreme king in the kingdom of the Church, is not of lesser authority and amplitude of power, as to the immediate execution of his authority and the extension of his power, than temporal kings are in temporal kingdoms in the execution of their power, as is plain. But any king can do immediately in his kingdom whatever inferior powers can do, even with them unconsulted, as is plain; therefore much more strongly can the Pope, by reason of the amplitude of his power, do in the kingdom of the Church, wheresoever and whensoever it shall seem good to him, whatever inferior prelates can do. The consequence is plain with the whole antecedent. Fifthly thus: bishops are given to the Pope as helpers, and are called into a share of solicitude, as the seventy elders into the help of Moses, Num. 11; whence the Pope in ordaining bishops says: We more efficaciously carry out heavenly commands if we share our burdens with the brethren. But he who takes someone as a helper does not thereby lose the power of working when he shall have leisure or he shall wish; rather he himself is the principal worker and the helper secondary; therefore the Pope can do all things concerning the peoples of the whole world which any inferior prelates whatsoever can do, even with them unconsulted; the consequence is plain with the whole antecedent. Sixthly, whosoever does something through another can also do this through himself; but when inferior prelates exercise hierarchical acts concerning subjected peoples, the supreme pontiff is said to do this through them; therefore it follows that the Pope in the whole ecclesiastical Hierarchy can do through himself whatever hierarchical act an inferior prelate can do. The consequence is known; the major too is known, since the secondary or ministerial agent depends on the principal in the virtue of acting. But the minor is of Dionysius saying in 3rd ch. of the Heavenly Hierarchy: He who according to us is the supreme priest, purifying or illuminating through his ministers or priests, is himself said to purify or illuminate, with others placing their own sacred operations upon them. Seventhly. The ecclesiastical order is then best ordered when it imitates the divine government; but the divine government is so that God so acts upon things through the mediation of second causes that He can act upon them immediately, as He sometimes does when it pleases His will. Therefore likewise the Pope can execute through himself, when it shall seem expedient to him, the act of government of the churches which he executes through the mediation of inferior prelates. The consequence is plain, and the antecedent for both parts. Nor can it be alleged that it is not fitting because God cannot err, but the Pope can, and abuse his power; since although that is true, yet since inferior prelates can equally err, and do err, and abuse their power as does the Pope, the argument remains in its strength. Eighthly. To whomsoever any jurisdiction is committed, to him all things seem committed without which jurisdiction cannot be explicated, for otherwise the commission would be in vain; but to the Pope is committed the jurisdiction of the whole world, of all the sheep of Christ; but this jurisdiction cannot be exercised by him in the whole world unless he avails to exercise through himself every act owed to pastoral dignity; therefore the same as before. The consequence is plain, the major proposition: both because otherwise the commission would be in vain, which is not to be posited in the works of God, for God and nature do nothing in vain; and secondly because he who wills something with perfect and ultimate will consequently wills everything without which that cannot be done. But the minor is plain from that, John, last ch.: Feed my sheep, and from the sayings alleged above. Ninthly. The Pope, instituting prelates in churches and calling them into a share of solicitude, does not despoil himself of fullness of power nor of jurisdiction through commission, so that it becomes so proper to the ordinary that the Pope has no longer power over it there as before the commission; therefore it follows that the Pope can always exercise and execute immediately in the whole world whatever inferior prelates can. The consequence seems most clear, and the antecedent too is plain, both by authority and by example: by authority indeed, since Num. 41.¹

To Moses, in the appointing of the elder judges as helpers of the same, the Lord says: I will take of thy spirit; where the Gloss of Origen says, yet not so that Moses had less. But the example is from earthly royal power, where a king appointing a governor in one cause does not despoil himself of the right of his power, nor is he to be said to do injury to the governor if concerning anything whatever committed to another he pronounces sentence immediately. Tenthly thus: the Pope holds in the Church the place of our Lord Jesus Christ, but the rest of the prelates the place of the apostles, as bishops, or of the disciples, as the lesser priests; but it would be ridiculous and blasphemous that Christ, present to His Church with bodily presence, could not do immediately through the whole world whatever His apostles and disciples could do in the Church; therefore likewise it seems blasphemy against the vicar that the vicar of Christ could not exercise immediately in the whole world whatever other prelates can, or that their licence would have to be awaited. The consequence is manifest, for such as is the order of dependence of the superior in any community upon other inferior powers, such seems to be that of his lieutenant with fullness of power upon the same. The major is manifest as to the Pope, since the Pope is the vicar of Christ on earth. And Chrysostom upon that, John, last ch.: Feed my sheep, that is, be set over in my place, and head of thy brethren. The second part is plain through the Gloss on Luke 10; the minor is clear. From these are manifestly confuted several errors. The first is of those saying that parishioners cannot be led back to God through penance except through the mediation of parochial priests. The second is that, although the Pope and bishops are principals of parishioners, they are not immediately curates of others, or that they do not have immediate care of them. The third error is that neither the Pope nor a bishop can hear the confessions of parishioners, who are held to confess the same sins to parochial priests. The fourth error is that neither the Pope nor a bishop can give a general power of hearing confessions to any, since according to such they are held to confess the same sins to parochial priests. That these are in error is manifestly plain, and is also gathered from the extravagant of John 22 which begins Vessel of Election, in which the aforesaid articles, which were of John of Poliaeo, were condemned.