UNIVERSITY OF DOUAY. January 5, 1789. At a Meeting of the Faculty of Divinity of the University of Douay, &c. &c. 1 To the first and second queries the Sacred Fa culty, answers-That no power whatsoever, in civil or temporal concerns, was given by the Almighty, either to the pope, the cardinals, or the church herself, and, consequently, that kings and sovereigns are not in temporal concerns, subject by the ordination of God, to any ecclesiastical power whatsoever; neither can their subjects by any authority granted to the pope or the church, from above, be freed from their obedience or absolved from their oath of allegiance. This is the doctrine which the doctors and pro fessors of divinity hold and teach in our schools, and this all the candidates for degrees in divinity maintain in their public theses, &c. &c. &c. To the third question the Sacred Faculty, answers-That there is no principle of the catho lic faith, by which catholics are justified of not keeping faith with heretics, who differ from them in religious opinions. On the contrary, it is the unanimous doctrine of catholics, that the respect due to the name of God so called to witness, re quires that the oath be inviolably kept, to whom soever it is pledged, whether catholic, heretic, or infidel, &c. &c. &c. Signed and sealed in due form. UNIVERSITY OF LOUVAIN. The faculty of divinity at Louvain, having been requested to give her opinion upon the question above stated, does it with readiness-but struck with astonishment that such questions should, at the end of this eighteenth century, be proposed to any learned body by inhabitants of a kingdom that glories in the talents and discernment of its natives. The faculty being assembled for the above purpose, it is agreed, with the unanimous assent of all voices, to answer the first and second queries absolutely in the negative. The faculty does not think it incumbent upon her in this place to enter upon the proofs of her opinion, or to shew how it is supported by passages in the Holy Scriptures, or the writings of antiquity. That has already been done by Bossuet, De Marca, the two Barclays, Goldastus, the Pithæuses, Argentre Widrington, and his Majesty King James the First, in his Dissertation against Bellarmine and Du Perron, and by many others, &c. &c. &c. The faculty then proceeds to declare, that the sovereign power of the state is in no wise (nor even indirectly as it is termed) subject to, or depen dent upon any other power, though it be a spiritual power, or even though it be instituted for eternal salvation, &c. &c. That no man, nor any assembly of men, how ever eminent in dignity and power, nor even the whole body of the catholic church, though assembled in general council, can, upon any ground or pretence whatsoever, weaken the bond of union between the sovereign and the people, stil less can they absolve or free the subjects from their oath of allegiance. Proceeding to the third question. The said faculty of divinity (in perfect wonder that such a question should be proposed to her) most positively and unequivocally answers-That there is not, and there never has been, among the catholics, or in the doctrines of the church of Rome, 'any law or principle which makes it lawful for catholics to break their faith with heretics, or others of a different persuasion from themselves in matters of religion, either in public or private concerns. The faculty declares the doctrine of the catholics to be, that the divine and natural law, which makes it a duty to keep faith and promises, is the same, and is neither shaken nor diminished if those with whom the engagement is made hold erroneous opinions in matters of religion, &c. &c. Signed in due form on the 18th UNIVERSITY OF ALCALA. To the first question it is answered-That none of the persons mentioned in the proposed ques tion, either individually, or collectively in council assembled, have any right in civil matters; but that all civil power, jurisdiction, and pre-eminence are derived from inheritance, election, the consent of the people, and other such titles of that nature. To the second it is answered in like manner-That none of the persons above-mentioned have a power to absolve the subjects of his Britannic Majesty from their oaths of allegiance. To the third question it is answered-That the doctrine which would exempt catholics from the obligation of keeping faith with heretics, or with any other persons who dissent from them in matters of religion, instead of being an article of catholic faith, is entirely repugnant to its tenets.. Signed in the usual form, UNIVERSITY OF SALAMANCA. To the first question it is answered That nei ther pope, nor cardinals, nor any assembly or individual of the catholic church, have, as such, any civil authority, power, jurisdiction, or preeminence in the kingdom of England. To the second it is answered-That neither pope, nor cardinals, nor any assembly or indivi dual of the catholic church, can, as such, absolve the subjects of Great Britain from their oaths of allegiance, or dispense with its obligations. To the third it is answered-That it is no article of catholic faith with heretics, or with persons of any description who dissent from them in matters of religion. Signed in the usual form, UNIVERSITY OF VALLADOLID. To the first question it is answered-That nei -ther pope, cardinals, nor even a general council, have any civil authority, power, jurisdiction, or pre-eminence, directly or indirectly, in the kingdom of Great Britain, or over any other kingdom or province in which they possess no temporal dominion. That neither To the second it is answered pope, nor cardinals, nor even a general council, can absolve the subjects of Great Britain from their oaths of allegiance, or dispense with their obligation. To the third it is answered-That the obligation of keeping faith is grounded on the law of nature, which binds all men equally, without respect to their religious opinions; and with regard to catholies, it is still more cogent, as it is confirmed by the principles of their religion. Signed in the usual form, February 17th, 1780 |