Summa de Ecclesia

ALTHOUGH from what has been said above it is sufficiently clear how great a benefit to holy Church the very celebration of universal councils brings, nevertheless, in order to have a fuller knowledge of this matter, going over again some things from the preceding ch., we say that it avails most toward six ends. First, the celebration of universal councils avails for preserving the Christian religion in unity of faith, which is the first bond of Christian society, as blessed Chrysostom says. Blessed Isidore assigns this benefit of universal councils in ch. Canones, dist. 15, saying thus: "The canons of general councils began from the times of the emperor Constantine. For in the preceding years, while persecution raged, hardly any opportunity was given of teaching the peoples, whence Christendom was split into diverse heresies, because they had no license to come together into one, except in the time of the aforesaid emperor. For he gave Christians the opportunity of assembling freely." Likewise for this reason the emperor Marcian, writing to all bishops everywhere in the world that they should come to the Chalcedonian synod, speaks thus to the point: "We judged all things then to be set before other affairs which pertain to the true faith and the Christian orthodox religion. With God propitious, we strive that both our empire and the common causes may be the better." Since therefore certain doubts have been raised concerning the orthodox faith, as even the letters of the most holy archbishop of the most happy city of Rome indicate, it has pleased us that a holy council speedily be held, so that, with the fathers agreeing and the truth examined and all partisanship laid aside by which certain men, having already abused religion, have disturbed religion — the orthodox, true, and most salutary faith — that it may be most manifest to the whole world, and henceforth all questioning and doubt may be removed; and below: for whoever sins against the future general synod, useful to the whole world, offends against God indeed and offends our divinity, thus far he. Second, it avails for the easier and firmer elucidation of the truth in doubtful matters: easier indeed, because what is sought by many wise men is more easily found, as Inno. says in ch. de quibus, dist. 20; we call it firmer also, because a judgment is by so much the firmer or weightier as it is confirmed by the sentences of more men and approved by assent. Whence in ch. Extra conscientiam, dist. 64, Inno. says: A judgment is whole which is confirmed by the sentences of very many. Whence blessed Aug. says in book one on baptism against the Donatists that the ancient fathers wavered in faith until they were confirmed by a council of the whole world. For he says thus: "Lest I seem to pursue this by human arguments, since the obscurity of this question in the earlier times of the Church before the schism of Donatus so compelled great men and fathers, bishops endowed with great charity, to dispute and waver among themselves with peace unbroken, that they changed the diverse statutes of councils in their own several regions, until by a plenary council of the whole world what was most salutarily held was strengthened, doubts removed," thus far he. Hence also the emperor Theodosius, writing to Dioscorus archbishop of Alexandria that he meet with his metropolitans — at Ephesus without delay, he says thus — and hasten thou with all the holy bishops whom we have decreed by our sacred letters to meet at the aforesaid city, and with all contrary error removed from the midst as they investigate and inquire most subtly, may the catholic faith or orthodox doctrine be made firm, and shine forth in quiet wherein all hereafter may keep it unshaken and undefiled. Plainly, since the congregation of so many fathers of the Church to whom the Lord says in the Gospel, Matt. 5: you are the light of the world, seems to be nothing else than a congregation of many lamps, the synodal congregation of the fathers conduces well to the illumination of the Christian people and the adornment of the universal Church. Whence that of Eccles. 43 fits the point well: The beauty of heaven, that is, of the Church; the glory of the stars, that is, of the doctors, illumining the world — where the ordinary Gloss says thus: The beauty of heaven, that is, the adornment of the Church, of the saints, the fullness whom the most high God ordained to illuminate the world by the preaching of the Gospel. Third, the celebration of universal councils is useful for the cultivation of the Lord's field, as the canon frequens of the Council of Constance says. For the fathers gathered in council are indeed ministers, workmen, husbandmen of that field of which the Lord says, John 15: My Father is the husbandman, whose ministers' office is to root out the brambles of errors from the Lord's field, to plant the faith, and, with the roots of vices torn out, to engraft virtues. Whence the Lord seems to have said in figure of the Roman pontiff, who is the convoker and director of universal councils, that of Jer. 1: Behold I have set thee over nations and kingdoms, to root up and destroy, and scatter and disperse, to build and to plant, as Pope Inno. attests in ch. Solite, Extra, on majority and obedience. Whence Pope Adrian, speaking to the fathers in the council which he gathered at Rome, says thus to the point: Since we ought, O brethren and most beloved sons, to be strenuous and faithful cultivators of the Lord's field, and for its cleansing there is need to use the heavenly precepts as hoes, so that, if we see any thorny or any poisonous growths germinating in it, with equal labor and unanimous zeal, eager to extirpate these by the roots, let us take up the beak of examination and bring forth the sickle of judgment with concordant sentence, lest what be said reproachfully against us: The harvest indeed is great, but the laborers are few, thus far he. Fourth, the celebration of universal councils is useful for humbling the pride of tyrants and unbelievers, greatly profitable indeed, as we have learned from trustworthy men who were unbelievers in the eastern parts — namely, in Turkey they are terrified, hearing that among Christians universal councils are gathered, and they do so wherever they lurk, and this reasonably, since the Church of God, as is said in Cant. 6, is terrible as an army in battle array. The camps are the doctors, the fathers of the Church gathered together, by whom as soldiers of Christ and champions the Church is fortified, protected and defended. Of whom it is said, Zach. 9: I will encompass my house, that is the Church, with those who fight for me, namely prelates, doctors and faithful princes, who in defending her are said to fight for Christ. Whence the apostle Paul, writing to Timothy, says: Labor as a good soldier, the Gloss in preaching the Gospel against enemies, 2 Tim. ch. 2. Fifth, the celebration of councils is useful for restraining the excesses of certain pontiffs who in their pontificate either exercise it at will with the rules of the holy fathers spurned, or dishonor it by simoniacal depravity, or confound it by worldly vanity and scandalous life. For this cause a council of the bishops of Italy is read to have been gathered at Rome by the emperor against Pope John the twelfth, who was a hunter and a public libertine and incorrigible. For as Pope Hormisda says in the decretal epistle to the bishops constituted throughout Spain, it is hard for anyone's heart to be so hardened by evil thoughts that he suffers himself to become blameworthy when he knows he will undergo the judgments of a council. Sixth, the celebration of universal councils avails for the extinction of almost all scandals which are stirred up in the Church, plainly as the earlier examples teach us, the last refuge of the Church in all her great straits, as was exemplarily shown in the preceding ch. — and there is this in many cases — concerning scandals arisen both by occasion of heretics or schismatics and otherwise, whence on account of these manifold benefits accruing to God's holy Church from the celebration of sacred councils there could most fittingly be adapted mystically to the point, as though spoken to the supreme pontiff, that of Eph. 16: Enter into counsel, namely with the wise. Gather a council, that is, assemble, as Master Nicholas of Lyra expounds, who says: the Holy Spirit — to the Roman pontiff when most grave dangers threaten in the Church: Into council, and gather, that is, gather a universal council, since if where two or three are gathered in Christ's name He Himself is present as inspirer, teacher and helper, as is had in Matt. 18, much more is He to be believed present where a society of many holy fathers has met in the name of Jesus Christ, especially for matters respectively concerning the whole of the Christian religion. But it is to be noted here that these things which have been said are to be taken as when in universal councils procedure is canonical and holy, since otherwise it were better to abstain from celebrating councils, since just as councils duly celebrated have wrought most salutary fruits, so those not duly celebrated have disturbed the whole Church with the greatest scandals, as the traditions of the fathers and the venerable histories teach us. Wherefore Eusebius, most religious bishop of the city of Dorylaeum (who had been unjustly condemned with Flavian by Dioscorus, as is had in the first action of the Chalcedonian council synod), speaking to the synod, says thus: We approach your piety supplicating to obtain justice, and the cause is this: lately a council was held in Ephesus the metropolis which was the last, not to be future, etc., that it fill not the whole world with so great evils and perturbations.