CALL TO THE MINISTRY. There are two sorts of motions or calls to the ministry. First, the outward; whereby those who have a right of recommending a person to the execution of any ecclesiastical office, do fix upon him as one in theirjudgment qualified for it; and the bishop, approving their judgment, does admit him into such office in due manner, as the laws ofGodand the rites of the Church do require. But the inward call is something preceding this, and is required by our Church as a qualification for the latter. Now it has been some matter of doubt what is meant here by being “inwardly moved by theHoly Ghost.” But I think no one can judge, that the compilers of this office did ever entertain such enthusiastical notions, as to imagine that no persons were to be admitted into any degree of the ecclesiastical orders, without having a special revelation from theHoly Spirit, thatGodhad particularly commissioned them to take upon them that office, as St. Paul says of himself, that he was “an apostle called ofGod.” (Rom. i. 1; 1 Cor. i. 1.) For such calls as these were miraculous and extraordinary, and remained not much longer than the apostolical times. It remains, therefore, that this motion or call must be something in a more ordinary and common way.
Now we know that the Scripture teaches, that the common and ordinary graces, and all good dispositions and resolutions, are attributed to theHoly SpiritofGod. “Every good and perfect gift cometh from above.” (Jam. i. 17.) “It isGodthat worketh in you, both to will and to do, of his good pleasure.” (Phil. ii. 13.) The apostle calls the ordinary graces of love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, meekness, temperance, “the fruits of theSpirit.” (Gal. v. 22, 23.) Thus the belief of the gospel is called “the spirit of faith.” (2 Cor. iv. 13.) And it is said expressly, that “no one saith thatJesusis theLord, but by theHoly Ghost.” (1 Cor. xii. 3.) Now, I conceive, all that is here meant by “inward motion of theHoly Ghost,” is his ordinary motion, by which Christians are stirred up to every good resolution which they make, or good action which they do. And whereas a resolution to take upon one the office of the ministry, without any bad design mixing with it, is a good resolution, so he that takes it up may be properly said to be moved by theHoly Ghostto do it. For it must be undoubtedly owned, that such a resolution is a good and pious one, since the apostle says plainly, laying it down as an undoubted truth, “This is a true saying, if a man desireth the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work.” (1 Tim. iii. 1.) And, to be sure, in those times it seldom happened, that this or any other ecclesiastical office was desired, but only from a pure view of doing good. For these were exposed the foremost to the rage of the persecutors, and men must be actuated by a noble zeal for the gospel, to lay themselves under the necessity of being exposed to the most grievous sufferings, or laying down their lives for the sake of it. And in these times, likewise, men may, and frequently, I doubt not, do, take upon them the ecclesiastical employs upon very good aims. Therefore the meaning of this question is, whether, after an impartial examination of their hearts, they find that they do not take this sacred employ upon them, barely for a maintenance in the world, or that thereby they may acquire those superior dignities and profits, which in these peaceable ages of Christianity some of the clergy do partake of; but only that they think they may be serviceable inGod’svineyard, and are willing to contribute the best of their labours therein, “for the promoting ofGod’sglory and the edifying of his people.” I do not think the question intends, that all who are to be ordained should profess that they would be desirous of this office, though there were no temporal advantages attending it, and though it exposed men not only to starving, but to apparent persecution and death; for then most, even the best persons, as times go now, might justly scruple the answering to such a question: but I take it to mean no more than that, since they are to take upon them some employ or other for their own subsistence and the benefit of the community, they choose to take upon them the office of the ministry, wherein they think they can act more forGod’sglory and the benefit of their Christian brethren, than by exercising any temporal calling; and that they verily believe, that it was not without the assistance ofGod’sgood Spirit that they formed this judgment and resolution.—Dr. Nicholls.
The candidate for deacon’s orders has the question of the inward call put to him thus: Do you trust that you are inwardly moved by theHoly Ghost, to take upon you this office and ministration to serveGod, in promoting his glory, and the edifying of his people?
This is a great question indeed, and that which no man can give a true and positive answer to, without having searched narrowly into his own heart, and seriously considered the bent and inclinations of his soul. But it is a question very necessary to be propounded, for theHoly Ghostnow supplies the place and room of our blessedSaviourin his Church militant here on earth. And therefore, as it wasby him that the several offices themselves were at first constituted, so it is by him that men are called to the execution of them; and it is by him alone that all ecclesiastical ministrations, performed by such officers, are made effectual to the purposes for which they are appointed; and therefore the Church is bound to take care that none be admitted into her ministry but such as she believes and hopes to be called to it by theHoly Ghost. But she can have no ground to believe this, but only from the persons themselves, none but themselves being acquainted with the motions ofGod’sSpirit upon their own hearts. And therefore the bishop requires them to deal plainly and faithfully with him and the Church, and to tell him whether they really trust that they are moved by theHoly Ghostto take this office upon them? To which every one is bound to answer, “I trust so:” not that he knows it, or is certain of it, for it is possible that his heart may deceive him in it, but that he trusts or hopes it is so.
But what ground can any one have to trust that he is moved by theHoly Ghostto take the ministry upon him? To that I answer in short, that if a man finds that, upon due examination, the bishop of the diocese, where he is to serve, is satisfied of his abilities and qualifications for the ministry; and that his great end and design in undertaking it is to serveGod, for the promoting of his glory and the edifying of his people; he hath good grounds to trust, that he is moved to it by theHoly Ghost, it being only by him that any man can be duly qualified for it, and moved to take it upon him, out of so good and pious a design as that is. But if either of these things be wanting; as, if a man be not fitted for the office, he may conclude he is not called to it by theHoly Ghost, for he neither calls nor useth any but fit instruments in what he doth; or, if a man be moved to it out of a design, not to do good, but to get applause or preferment in the world, he may thence infer that he is not moved to it by the Spirit ofGod, but by the spirit of pride and covetousness, and then can have no ground to expect that theHoly Ghostshould ever bless and assist him in the execution of his office. According to these rules, therefore, they who are to be ordained may discern whether they can truly give the answer required to this great question that will be propounded to them. As for their qualifications for it, the bishop hath already approved of them; but as to their main end and design in undertaking the ministry, that must be left toGodand their own consciences, who alone know it, and so can best judge whether they can truly say that they “trust they are moved to it by theHoly Ghost.”—Bp. Beveridge.
The following is Calvin’s definition of the inward call in his book of Institutes, which being published about ten years before the Ordinal of Edward the Sixth, might probably be a guide to our Reformers in framing this question: “That it is the good testimony of our own heart, that we have taken this office, neither for ambition, covetousness, nor any evil design, but out of a true fear ofGod, and a desire to edify the Church.” Now this we may know by duly considering, whether it were the external honours and revenues that are annexed to this profession, or any other worldly end, that first or chiefly did incline us to the ministry. If so, we were moved by carnal objects, and led on by our own corrupt will and affections. But if our principal motives were spiritual, that is, a zeal forGod’sglory, and a desire to promote the salvation of souls, then we were “moved by theSpirit, and inwardly called byGod.” I grant we cannot but know there are honours and rewards piously and justly annexed to this holy function; and, as men, we cannot but hope for a competency of them; yea, this may be a subordinate motive. But I may say of the priesthood, asChristof the kingdom of heaven, it must be sought in the first place for itself, and the other only as additional consequences thereof. (Matt. vi. 33.) We must love the duties of this calling; reading, study, praying, preaching, &c., more than the rewards. Yea, if persecution should ever strip the Church of these provisions, as it hath often done, we must not cast off our holy ministrations. (1 Cor. ix. 16.)
This inward call thus explained is the first and one of the principal qualifications for him that is to be employed about heavenly things. And therefore it is inserted, not only into ours, but other reformed offices for ordination; where it is inquired, “if they believe thatGodby the Church calls them to this ministry, and if they did not seek for worldly riches or glory,” as in the liturgy of the Belgic Church. Our candidates know this question will be asked: wherefore let them examine their hearts strictly, and answer it in the sincerity of their souls; not doubting but that goodSpirit, who excited them to this work, will assist and bless all their performances.—Dean Comber.
We may here observe, that the first question put to those who are to be ordainedpriests, concerning their being moved by theHoly Ghostto take that office upon them, is now omitted. For, these having been ordained deacons before, it is supposed that they were then moved by theSpirit of Christto take the ministry of his gospel upon them, and there is no need of any further call from him. For being once called by him, though it was but to the lowest office of his own institution, the Church takes it for granted that it is his pleasure they should be promoted to any higher office, if there be sufficient reason and occasion for it.—Bp. Beveridge.
CALOYERS. A general name given to the monks of the Greek Church. It is taken from the Greekκαλεγόροι, which signifies “good old men.”—Hist. des Ord. Relig.P. i. cap. 19. These religious consider St. Basil as their father and founder, and look upon it as a crime to follow any other rule than his. There are three degrees among them; the novices, who are called Archari; the ordinary professed, called Microchemi; and the more perfect, called Megalochemi. They are likewise divided into Cœnobites, Anchorets, and Recluse.
The Cœnobites are employed in reciting their office from midnight to sunset; and as it is impossible, in so long an exercise, they should not be overtaken with sleep, there is one monk appointed to wake them; and they are obliged to make three genuflexions at the door of the choir, and, returning, to bow to the right and left to their brethren. The Anchorets retire from the conversation of the world, and live in hermitages in the neighbourhood of the monasteries. They cultivate a little spot of ground, and never go out but on Sundays and holidays, to perform their devotions at the next monastery; the rest of the week they employ in prayer and working with their hands. As for the Recluse, they shut themselves up in grottos and caverns on the tops of mountains, which they never go out of, abandoning themselves entirely to Providence. They live on the alms sent them by the neighbouring monasteries.
In the monasteries, the religious rise at midnight, and repeat a particular office, called from thence Mesonycticon; which takes up the space of two hours: after which, they retire to their cells till five o’clock in the morning, when they return to the church to say matins. At nine o’clock they repeat the Terce, Sexte, and Mass; after which they repair to the refectory, where is a lecture read till dinner. Before they leave the refectory, the cook comes to the door, and, kneeling down, demands their blessing. At four o’clock in the afternoon, they say vespers; and at six go to supper. After supper, they say an office, from thence called Apodipho; and at eight, each monk retires to his chamber and bed till midnight. Every day, after matins, they confess their faults on their knees to their superior.
They have four Lents. The first and greatest is that of the Resurrection of our Lord. They call it theGrand Quarantain, and it lasts eight weeks. During this Lent, the religious drink no wine, and their abstinence is so great, that if they are obliged, in speaking, to name milk, butter, or cheese, they always add this parenthesis,Timitis agias saracostis, i. e. “Saving the respect due to holy Lent.” The second Lent is that of the holy Apostles, which begins eight days after Whit-Sunday: its duration is not fixed, it continuing sometimes three weeks, and at other times longer. During this Lent, they are allowed to drink wine. The third Lent is that of the Assumption of our Lady: it lasts fourteen days; during which they abstain from fish, excepting on Sundays, and the day of the Transfiguration of our Lord. The fourth Lent is that of Advent, which they observe after the same manner as that of the Apostles.
The Caloyers, besides the usual habit of the monastic life, wear over their shoulders a square piece of stuff, on which are represented the cross, and the other marks of the passion of our Saviour, with these letters, JC. XC. VC., i. e.Jesus Christus Vincit.
All the monks are obliged to labour for the benefit of their monastery, as long as they continue in it. Some have the care of the fruits, others of the grain, and others of the cattle. The necessity the Caloyers are under of cultivating their own lands, obliges them to admit a great number of lay-brothers, who are employed the whole day in working.
Over all these Caloyers there are visitors or exarchs, who visit the convents under their inspection, only to draw from them the sums which the patriarch demands of them. Yet, notwithstanding the taxes these religious are obliged to pay, both to their patriarch and to the Turks, their convents are very rich.
The most considerable monastery of the Greek Caloyers in Asia, is that of Mount Sinai, which was founded by the emperor Justinian, and endowed with sixty thousand crowns revenue. The abbot of this monastery, who is also anarchbishop, has under him two hundred religious. This convent is a large square building, surrounded with walls fifty feet high, and with but one gate, which is blocked up to prevent the entrance of the Arabs. On the eastern side there is a window, through which those within draw up the pilgrims in a basket, which they let down by a pulley. Not many miles beyond this, they have another, dedicated to St. Catharine. It is situated in the place where Moses made the bitter waters sweet. It has a garden, with a plantation of more than ten thousand palm-trees, from whence the monks draw a considerable revenue. There is another in Palestine, four or five leagues from Jerusalem, situated in the most barren place imaginable. The gate of the convent is covered with the skins of crocodiles, to prevent the Arabs setting fire to it, or breaking it to pieces with stones. It has a large tower, in which there is always a monk, who gives notice by a bell of the approach of the Arabs, or any wild beasts.
The Caloyers, or Greek monks, have a great number of monasteries in Europe; among which that of Penteli, a mountain of Attica, near Athens, is remarkable for its beautiful situation, and a very good library. That of Calimachus, a principal town of the island of Chios, is remarkable for the occasion of its foundation. It is calledNiamogni, i. e. “The sole Virgin,” its church having been built in memory of an image of the holy Virgin, miraculously found on a tree, being the only one left of several which had been consumed by fire. Constantin Monomachus, emperor of Constantinople, being informed of this miracle, made a vow to build a church in that place, if he recovered his throne, from which he had been driven; this vow he executed in the year 1050. The convent is large, and built in the manner of a castle. It consists of about two hundred religious, and its revenues amount to sixty thousand piasters, of which they pay five hundred yearly to the Grand Seignor.
There is in Amourgo, one of the islands of the Archipelago called Sporades, a monastery of Greek Caloyers, dedicated to our Lady: it is a large and deep cavern, on the top of a very high hill, and is entered by a ladder of fifteen or twenty steps. The church, refectory, and cells of the religious, who inhabit this grotto, are dug out of the sides of the rock with admirable artifice.
But the most celebrated monasteries of Greek Caloyers are those of Mount Athos in Macedonia. They are twenty-three in number; and the religious live in them so regularly, that the Turks themselves have a great esteem for them, and often recommend themselves to their prayers. Everything in them is magnificent; and, notwithstanding they have been under the Turk for so long a time, they have lost nothing of their grandeur. The principal of these monasteries areDe la PanagiaandAnna Laura. The religious, who aspire to the highest dignities, come from all parts of the East to perform here their noviciate, and, after a stay of some years, are received, upon their return into their own country, as apostles.
The Caloyers of Mount Athos have a great aversion to the pope, and relate that a Roman pontiff, having visited their monasteries, had plundered and burned some of them, because they would not adore him.
There are female Caloyers, or Greek nuns, who likewise follow the rule of St. Basil. Their nunneries are always dependent on some monastery. The Turks buy sashes of their working, and they open their gates freely to the Turks on this occasion. Those of Constantinople are widows, some of whom have had several husbands. They make no vow, nor confine themselves within their convents. The priests are forbidden, under severe penalties, to visit these religious.—Broughton.
CALVINISTS. Those who interpret Scripture in accordance with the views of John Calvin, who was born at Noyon,A. D.1509, and afterwards settled at Geneva, and who established a system both of doctrine and of discipline peculiarly his own.
The essential doctrines of Calvinism have been reduced to these five: particular election, particular redemption, moral inability in a fallen state, irresistible grace, and the final perseverance of the saints. These are termed, by theologians, the five points; and ever since the synod of Dort, (seeDort,) when they were the subjects of discussion between the Calvinists and Arminians, and whose decrees are the standard of modern Calvinism, frequent have been the controversies agitated respecting them. Even the Calvinists themselves differ in the explication of them: it cannot therefore be expected that a very specific account of them should be given here. Generally speaking, however, they comprehend the following propositions:—
1st, ThatGodhas chosen a certain number inChristto everlasting glory, before the foundation of the world, according to his immutable purpose, and of his freegrace and love, without the least foresight of faith, good works, or any conditions performed by the creature; and that the rest of mankind he was pleased to pass by, and ordain them to dishonour and wrath for their sins, to the praise of his vindictive justice.
2ndly, ThatJesus Christ, by his sufferings and death, made an atonement only for the sins of the elect.
3dly, That mankind are totally depraved in consequence of the fall; and, by virtue of Adam’s being their public head, the guilt of his sin was imputed, and a corrupt nature conveyed to all his posterity, from which proceeds all actual transgression; and that by sin we are made subject to death, and all miseries, temporal, spiritual, and eternal.
4thly, That all whomGodhas predestinated to life, he is pleased, in his appointed time, effectually to call, by his word and Spirit, out of that state of sin and death, in which they are by nature, to grace and salvation byJesus Christ.
And 5thly, That those whomGodhas effectually called and sanctified by his Spirit, shall never finally fall from a state of grace.
CAMALDOLI. A religious order of Christians founded by St. Romuald, about the end of the tenth century: this man gave his monks the rule of St. Bennet’s order, with some particular constitutions, and a white habit, after a vision he had of several persons clothed so, who were going up on a ladder to heaven. He was of a noble family of Ravenna, and having found on the Apennine hills near Arezzo a frightful solitary place, called Campo Maldoli, he began to build a monastery there, about the year 1009, and this monastery gave its name to all the order. The congregation of hermits of St. Romuald, or of Mount Couronne, is a branch of the Camaldoli, to which it was joined in 1532. Paul Justinian, of Venice, began its establishment in 1520, and founded the chief monastery in the Apennine, in a place called the Mount of the Crown, ten miles from Perugia, and dedicated to ourSaviourin 1555.—Hist. des Ord. Relig.
CAMERONIANS. A party of Presbyterians in Scotland, so called from Archibald Cameron, a field preacher, who was the first who separated from communion with the other Presbyterians, who were not of his opinion concerning the ministers that had accepted of his indulgence from King Charles II. He considered the acceptance of the indulgence to be a countenancing of the supremacy in ecclesiastical affairs. The other Presbyterians wished the controversy to drop, till it could be determined by a general assembly; but the Cameronians, through a transport of zeal, separated from them, and some who associated with them ran into excess of frenzy; declaring that King Charles II. had forfeited his right to the crown and society of the Church, by his breaking the solemn league and covenant, which was the terms on which he received the former; and by his vicious life, which,de jure, they said, excluded him from the latter; they pretended both to dethrone and excommunicate him, and for that purpose made an insurrection, but were soon suppressed. Since the accession of King William III. to the crown, they complied with and zealously served the government; and as regards their former differences in Church matters, they were also laid aside, the preachers of their party having submitted to the General Assembly of the Scottish establishment in 1690, of which they still continue members.
CAMISARDS. The popular name of the Protestants who rose in the Cevennes against the oppression of Louis XIV. of France. There are various etymologies of the word; the most probable is that which derives it fromcamisaorchemise, in allusion to theblouseorsmock-frockwhich was generally worn.
CANCELLI. (SeeChancel.)
CANDLES. (SeeLights on the Altar.)
CANDLEMAS DAY. A name formerly given to the festival of the Purification of the Virgin Mary, observed in our Church, February 2. In the mediæval Church, this day was remarkable for the number of lighted candles which were borne about in processions, and placed in churches, in memory of him who, in the words of Simeon’s song at the Purification, came to be “a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of his people Israel.” From this custom the name is supposed to be derived.
CANON. The laws of the Church are calledcanons, the wordcanonbeing derived from a Greek word, which signifies a rule or measure.
Since the Church is a society of Christians, and since every society must have authority to prescribe rules and laws for the government of its own members, it must necessarily follow that the Church has this power; for otherwise there would be great disorder amongst Christians. This power was exercised in the Church before the Roman empire became Christian, as appears by those ancient canons which were made before that time, and which arementioned in the writings of the primitive fathers; by the apostolical canons, which, though not made by the apostles themselves, are nevertheless of great antiquity; and by various canons which were made in councils held in the second century, which were not directory alone, but binding, and to be observed by the clergy, under the penalty of deprivation; and by the laity, under pain of excommunication. Under this title we will mention: 1. Foreign canons. 2. Such as have been received here. 3. The power of making new canons.
(I.) As to the first, Constantine the Great, the first emperor who gave Christians some respite from persecution, caused general councils and national and provincial synods to be assembled in his dominions; where, amongst other things, rules were made for the government of the Church, which were called canons; the substance of which was at first collected out of the Scriptures, or the ancient writings of the fathers. We will not trouble the reader with a long history ofprovincial constitutions,synodals,glossaries,sentences of popes,summaries, andrescripts, from which the canon law has, by degrees, been compiled, since the days of that emperor; it is sufficient to state, that they were collected by Ivo, bishop of Chartres, about the 14th year of our King Henry I., in three volumes, which are commonly called theDecrees. These decrees, corrected by Gratian, a Benedictine monk, were published in England in the reign of King Stephen; and the reason of the publication at that time might be to decide the quarrel between Theobald, archbishop of Canterbury, and Henry, bishop of Winchester, the king’s brother, who being made a legate, the archbishop looked upon it as a diminution of his power, and an encroachment upon that privilege which he had aslegatus natus. (SeeLegate.) These decrees were received by the clergy of the Western Church, but never by those of the East, which is one reason why their priests continued to marry, which the clergy of the West were, by these decrees, forbidden to do.
The next, in order of time, were theDecretals(seeDecretals,) which are canonical epistles written by popes alone, or assisted by some cardinals, to determine any controversy; and of these there are likewise three volumes. The first volume of these Decretals was compiled by Raimundus Barcinus, who was chaplain to Gregory IX., and were published by him about the 14th year of King Henry III.,A. D.1226. This was appointed to be read in all schools, and was to be taken for law in all ecclesiastical courts. About sixty years afterwards, Simon, a monk of Walden, began to read these laws in the university of Cambridge, and the next year in Oxford. The second volume was collected and arranged by Boniface VIII., and published about the 27th year of our King Edward I.,A. D.1298. The third volume was collected by Clement V., and published in the Council of Vienna, and likewise here, in the 2nd year of Edward II.,A. D.1308, and from him were calledClementines.
These decretals were never received in England, or anywhere else, but only in the pope’s dominions, which are therefore called by canonistsPatriæ obedientiæ, as particularly the canon concerning the investiture of bishops by a lay hand. John Andreas, a celebrated canonist in the fourteenth century, wrote a commentary on these decretals, which he entitledNovellæ, from a very beautiful daughter he had of that name, whom he bred a scholar: the father being a professor of law at Bologna, had instructed his daughter so well in it, that she assisted him in reading lectures to his scholars, and, therefore, to perpetuate her memory, he gave that book the title ofNovellæ.
About the tenth year of King Edward II., John XXII. published hisExtravagants. But as to the Church of England, even at that time, when the papal authority was at the highest, none of these foreign canons, or any new canons, made at any national or provincial synod here, had any manner of force if they were against the prerogative of the king, or the laws of the land. It is true that every Christian nation in communion with the pope sent some bishops, abbots, or priors, to those foreign councils, and generally four were sent out of England; and it was by those means, together with the allowance of the civil power, that some canons made there were received here, but such as were against the laws were totally rejected.
Nevertheless, some of these foreign canons were received in England, and obtained the force of laws by the general approbation of the king and people (though it may be difficult to know what these canons are); and it was upon this pretence that the pope claimed an ecclesiastical jurisdiction, independent of the king, and sent his legates to England with commissions to determine causes according to those canons, which were now compiled into several volumes, and calledJus Canonicum: these were not only enjoined tobe obeyed as laws, but publicly to be read and expounded in all schools and universities as the civil law was read and expounded there, under pain of excommunication to those who neglected. Hence arose quarrels between kings and several archbishops and other prelates, who adhered to those papal usurpations.
(II.) Besides these foreign canons, there were several laws and constitutions made here for the government of the Church, all of which are now in force, but which had not been so without the assent and confirmation of the kings of England. Even from William I. to the time of the Reformation, no canons or constitutions made in any synods were suffered to be executed if they had not the royal assent. This was the common usage and practice in England, even when the papal usurpation was most exalted; for if at any time the ecclesiastical courts did, by their sentences, endeavour to force obedience to such canons, the courts at common law, upon complaint made, would grant prohibitions. So that the statute of submission, which was afterwards made in the 25th year of Henry VIII., seems to be declarative of the common law, that the clergy could notde jure, and by their own authority, without the king’s assent, enact or execute any canons. These canons were all collected and explained by Lyndwood, dean of the Arches, in the reign of Henry VI., and by him reduced under this method.
1. The canons of Stephen Langton, archbishop of Canterbury, made at a council held at Oxford, in the 6th year of Henry III.
2. The canons of Otho, the pope’s legate, who held a council in St. Paul’s church, in the 25th year of Henry III., which from him were called the Constitutions of Otho; upon which John de Athon, one of the canons of Lincoln, wrote a comment.
3. The canons of Boniface, of Savoy, archbishop of Canterbury, in the 45th of Henry III., which were all usurpations upon the common law, as concerning the boundaries of parishes, the right of patronage, and against trials of the right of tithes in the king’s courts against writs of prohibition, &c. Although he threatened the judges with excommunication (some of the judges being at that time clergymen) if they disobeyed the canons, yet they proceeded in these matters according to the laws of the realm, and kept the ecclesiastical courts within their proper jurisdiction. This occasioned a variance between the spiritual and temporal lords; and upon this the clergy, in the 31st of Henry III., exhibited several articles of their grievances to the parliament, which they calledArticuli Cleri: the articles themselves are lost, but some of the answers to them are extant, by which it appears that none of these canons made by Boniface was confirmed.
4. The canons of Cardinal Ottobon, the pope’s legate, who held a synod at St. Paul’s, in the 53rd of Henry III., in which he confirmed those canons made by his predecessor Otho, and published some new ones; and by his legantine authority commanded that they should be obeyed: upon these canons, likewise, John de Athon wrote another comment.
5. The canons of Archbishop Peckham, made at a synod held at Reading, in the year 1279, the 7th of Edward I.
6. The canons of the same archbishop, made at a synod held at Lambeth, two years afterwards.
7. The canons of Archbishop Winchelsea, made in the 34th of Edward I.
8. The canons of Archbishop Reynolds, at a synod held at Oxford, in the year 1322, the 16th of Edward II.
9. The canons of Symon Mepham, archbishop of Canterbury, made in the year 1328, the 3rd of Edward III.
10. Of Archbishop Stratford.
11. Of Archbishop Simon Islip, made 1362, the 37th of Edward III.
12. Of Symon Sudbury, archbishop of Canterbury, made in the year 1378, the 2nd of Richard II.
13. Of Archbishop Arundel, made at a synod at Oxford, in the year 1403, the 10th of Henry IV.
14. Of Archbishop Chichely, in the year 1415, the 3rd of Henry V.
15. Of Edmond and Richard, archbishops of Canterbury, who immediately succeeded Stephen Langton.
It was intended to reform these canons soon after the Reformation; and Archbishop Cranmer and some other commissioners were appointed for that purpose by Henry VIII. and Edward VI. The work was finished, but the king dying before it was confirmed, it remains unconfirmed to this day. The book is called “Reformatio Legum Ecclesiasticarum ex Authoritate RegisHenry VIII.inchoata et perEdward VI.prorecta:” it was put into elegant Latin by Dr. Haddon, who was then university orator of Cambridge, assisted by Sir John Cheke, who was tutor to Edward VI. The above canons made by our Church before the Reformation, are, of course, binding on our Church now, and are acted uponin the ecclesiastical courts, except where they are superseded by subsequent canons, or by the provisions of an act of parliament.
(III.) The next thing to be considered is, the authority of making canons at this day; and this is grounded upon the statute 25 Henry VIII., commonly called the act of submission of the clergy, by which they acknowledge that the convocation had been always assembled by the king’s writ; and they promisedin verbo sacerdotis, not to attempt, claim, or put in use, or enact, promulge, or execute, any new canons in convocation, without the king’s assent or licence. Then follows this enacting clause, viz. That they shall not attempt, allege, or claim, or put in use, any constitutions or canons without the king’s assent; and so far this act is declarative of what the law was before. The clause before mentioned extends to such canons as were then made both beyond sea and in England, viz. to foreign canons, that they should not be executed here until received by the king and people as the laws of the land, and to canons made here which were contrary to the prerogative, or to the laws and customs of the realm. This appears by the proviso, that no canons shall be made or put in execution within this realm, which shall be contrary to the prerogative or laws. But the next are negative words, which relate wholly to making new canons, viz. “nor make, promulge, or execute any such canons without the king’s assent.” These words limit the clergy in point of jurisdiction, viz. that they shall not make any new canons but in convocation: and they cannot meet there without the king’s writ; and when they are met and make new canons, they cannot put them in execution without a confirmation under the great seal. Some years after this statute, the clergy proceeded to act in convocation, without any commission from Henry VIII. But the canons which they made were confirmed by that king and some of his successors, as particularly the injunctions published in the 28th year of Henry VIII., for the abolishing superstitious holy days; those for preaching against the use of images, relics, and pilgrimages; those for repeating the Creed, theLord’sPrayer, and Ten Commandments in the English tongue. Henry VIII. sometimes acted by the advice of his bishops, out of convocation, as about the injunctions published in the 30th year of Henry VIII., for admitting none to preach but such as were licensed; those for keeping a register of births, weddings, and burials; and for the abolishing the anniversary of Thomas à Becket. The like may be said of those injunctions published in the 2nd year of Edward VI., prohibiting the carrying of candles on Candlemas day, and ashes in Lent, and palms on Palm Sunday. Queen Elizabeth, in the second year of her reign, published several injunctions by the advice of her bishops. And two years afterwards she published a book of orders without the confirmation of her parliament. When she was settled in her government, all Church affairs were debated in convocation. Several canons were made in her reign, and confirmed by her letters patent: but as she did not bind her heirs and successors to the observance of them, those canons expired with her reign. In all these reigns the old canons were still in force, but in the first year of King James, 1603, the clergy being lawfully assembled in convocation, the king gave them leave, by his letters patent, to treat, consult, and agree on canons: these they presented to him, and he gave them his royal assent; and by other letters patent, for himself, his heirs and successors, ratified and confirmed the same. These canons thus established were not then invented, but were collected out of ordinances which lay dispersed in several injunctions published in former reigns, and out of canons and other religious customs which were made and used in those days; and being thus confirmed, are the laws of the land, and by the same authority as any other part of the law; for being authorized by the king’s commission, according to the form of the statute 25 Henry VIII., they are warranted by act of parliament; and such canons made and confirmed, shall bind in ecclesiastical matters as much as any statute. An act of parliament may forbid the execution of any canon; but it has been usual to respect all those which enjoin some moral duty; yet a canon not confirmed by an act of parliament cannot alter any other law. It is agreed that canons made in convocation, and confirmed by letters patent, bind in all ecclesiastical affairs; that no canons in England are absolutely confirmed by parliament, yet they are part of the laws of the land, for the government of the Church, and in such case bind the laity as well as the clergy; that though such canons cannot alter the common law, statutes, or royal prerogative, yet they may alter other canons, otherwise the convocation could not make new canons. All that is required in making such canons is, that the clergy confine themselves to Church affairs, and do not meddle with things which are settled bythe common law. But though no canons are absolutely confirmed by act of parliament, yet those which are neither contrary to the laws of the land, nor to the queen’s prerogative, and which are confirmed by her, are made good, and allowed to be so, by the statute 25 Henry VIII. And as to those canons which tend to promote the honour ofGodand service of religion, they must necessarily bind our consciences. Such are those which enjoin the sober conversation of ministers, prohibiting their frequenting taverns, playing at dice, cards, or tables; this was anciently prohibited by the Apostolical Canons, and in the old articles of Visitation here, and in several diocesan synods. Such are those canons, also, which relate to the duties of ministers in praying, preaching, administering sacraments, and visiting the sick.
It may be as well, for the convenience of students, to insert here, from Bishop Halifax’s Analysis of the Civil Law, a few explanations of the method of quoting the Jus Canonicum. TheDecretumof Gratian (which must not be confounded with the Decretals) is divided into, 1.Distinctions.2.Causes.3.Treatise concerning consecration.TheDecretalsare divided into, 1. Gregory IX.Decretals in 5 books.2. Thesixth Decretal.(Boniface, 1298.) 3. TheClementine Constitutions(of Pope Clement V.). Now in theDecretum, 1st part, e. g. “1 dist. c. 3,” Lex, [or i. d. Lex,] is thefirst distinction, 3rd Canon, beginning with the wordLex. In theDecretum, 2nd part, e. g. “3 qu. 9, c. 2,” means the third cause, ninth question, 2nd Canon. The 3rd part of the Decretum is quoted as the first, with the addition of the wordsde consecratione.
In the Decretals (the first division) is given the name oftitle, number ofchapter, with the addition ofextra, or a capital X. E. g. “c. 3, extra de usuris,” means the 3rd chapter of Gregory’s Decretals, inscribed “de usuris,” i.e. the 19th of the 5th book. “c. cum contingat 36 X. de off. et Pot. Jud. del.,” means the 36th chapter beginning with “cum contingat,” of the Title in Gregory’s decrees, inscribed “de officio.” The sixth Decretal, and the Clementine Constitutions, are quoted the same way, except that instead ofextra, or X., is subjoinedin sexto, orin 6; and in Clementini, or in Clem. The Extravagants of John XXII. are contained in one book, xiv. titles. The following are the
CANONS OF 1603.
ConstitutionsandCanonsEcclesiastical, treated upon by the Bishop of London, President of the Convocation for the Province of Canterbury, and the rest of the Bishops and Clergy of the said Province; and agreed upon with the King’s Majesty’s Licence, in their Synod begun at London, Anno Domini 1603, and in the year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord JAMES, by the Grace of God, King of England, France, and Ireland, the First, and of Scotland the Thirty-seventh: and now published for the due observation of them, by his Majesty’s Authority under the Great Seal of England.
James, by the grace of God, King of England, Scotland, France, and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, &c., to all to whom these presents shall come, greeting: Whereas our Bishops, Deans of our Cathedral Churches, Archdeacons, Chapters, and Colleges, and the other Clergy of every Diocese within the Province of Canterbury, being summoned and called by virtue of our Writ directed to the Most Reverend Father in God, John, late Archbishop of Canterbury, and bearing date the one and thirtieth day of January, in the first year of our reign of England, France, and Ireland, and of Scotland the thirty-seventh, to have appeared before him in our Cathedral Church of St. Paul in London, the twentieth day of March then next ensuing, or elsewhere, as he should have thought it most convenient, to treat, consent, and conclude upon certain difficult and urgent affairs mentioned in the said Writ; did thereupon, at the time appointed, and within the Cathedral Church of St. Paul aforesaid, assemble themselves, and appear in Convocation for that purpose, according to our said Writ, before the Right Reverend Father in God, Richard Bishop of London, duly (upon a second Writ of ours, dated the ninth day of March aforesaid) authorized, appointed, and constituted, by reason of the said Archbishop of Canterbury his death, President of the said Convocation, to execute those things, which, by virtue of our first Writ, did appertain to him the said Archbishop to have executed if he had lived.
We, for divers urgent and weighty causes and considerations as thereunto especially moving, of our especial grace, certain knowledge, and mere motion, did, by virtue of our Prerogative Royal, and Supreme Authority in causes Ecclesiastical, give and grant by our several Letters Patent under our Great Seal of England, the one dated the twelfth day of April last past, and the other the twenty-fifth day of June then next following, full, free, and lawful liberty,licence, power, and authority unto the said Bishop of London, President of the said Convocation, and to the other Bishops, Deans, Archdeacons, Chapters, and Colleges, and the rest of the Clergy before mentioned, of the said Province, that they from time to time, during our first Parliament now prorogued, might confer, treat, debate, consider, consult, and agree of and upon such Canons, Orders, Ordinances, and Constitutions, as they should think necessary, fit, and convenient, for the honour and service of Almighty God, the good and quiet of the Church, and the better government thereof, to be from time to time observed, performed, fulfilled, and kept as well by the Archbishops of Canterbury, the Bishops, and their Successors, and the rest of the whole Clergy of the said Province of Canterbury in their several callings, offices, functions, ministries, degrees, and administrations; as also by all and every Dean of the Arches, and other Judge of the said Archbishop’s Courts, Guardians of Spiritualities, Chancellors, Deans, and Chapters, Archdeacons, Commissaries, Officials, Registrars, and all and every other Ecclesiastical Officers, and their inferior Ministers, whatsoever, of the same Province of Canterbury, in their and every other of their distinct Courts, and in the order and manner of their and every of their proceedings: and by all other persons within this realm, as far as lawfully, being members of the Church, it may concern them, as in our said Letters Patent amongst other clauses more at large doth appear. Forasmuch as the Bishop of London, President of the said Convocation, and others, the said Bishops, Deans, Archdeacons, Chapters, and Colleges, with the rest of the Clergy, having met together at the time and place before mentioned, and then and there, by virtue of our said authority granted unto them, treated of, concluded, and agreed upon certain Canons, Orders, Ordinances, and Constitutions, to the end and purpose by us limited and prescribed unto them; and have thereupon offered and presented the same unto us, most humbly desiring us to give our royal assent unto their said Canons, Orders, Ordinances, and Constitutions, according to the form of a certain Statute or Act of Parliament, made in that behalf in the twenty-fifth year of the reign of King Henry the Eighth, and by our said Prerogative Royal and Supreme Authority, in Causes Ecclesiastical, to ratify by our Letters Patent under our Great Seal of England, and to confirm the same, the title and tenor of them being word for word as ensueth: