Wyclif’s Latin works

De ecclesia, chapter 1, part 3

Christ the head; the church is one, in three parts

Loserth pp. 6.16–10.15

¶16.16–10.15

6Unde sicut Deus iuravit David, quod de fructu ventris sui (scilicet Christum, qui fuit natus de ventre virginis, et per consequens, de illo homine manu forti) poneret super sedem suam: ita iuravit filiis suis, sub condicione tamen, si custodierint testamentum et testimonia Christi. Ne inquit Augustinus aliquis minaretur promissis Dei et in potestate sua ponat quod promisit Deus, ut impleretur, ideo iuravit, annectens condicionem, ne iam glorieris de promissis et dimittas te non custodire; tunc eris filius David, si custodieris: si autem non, non eris filius David. Filiis David promisit Deus; noli dicere filius sum David, si degeneras; sola vidua sedebit in ecclesia benedicta. Tota ecclesia una vidua est, cuius membra sunt pauperes saturati, quia deserti sunt in hoc seculo, quod non desponsant hereditarie sed relinquunt, non sperant in diviciis honoribus vel amicis, sed si habent contempnunt sperando pure in domino. 7Quid igitur valet dicere quod solum isti qui sunt Rome sunt ecclesia vel caput ecclesie? Tales enim uruntur luna per noctem, ut exponit Augustinus psalmo CXX°. Quisquis inquit putaverit ecclesiam in una parte esse et non eam cognoverit diffusam toto orbe terrarum et crediderit eis qui dicunt: Ecce hic est Christus et ecce illic, sicut loquitur evangelium Mathei XXIV°, cum ille totum orbem terrarum emerit quoad valorem precii et ille in proximo scandalizatur et uritur a luna. Ad quid igitur oportet contendere circa caput ecclesie? Ipsa inquit Augustinus caro Christi est caput ecclesie, id est, humanitas secundum quam Christus predestinatus est, ut dicit fides scripture Ephes. I°, IV° et V° capitulis et expressius Col. 1°, 18, dicit quod Christus est caput tocius ecclesie. Et istam conclusionem declarat bene dicta decretalis extravagans Bonifacii VIII que sic incipit: Unam sanctam. Igitur inquit ecclesie unius unum corpus, unum caput, non duo capita quasi monstrum. Secunda conclusio sequens ex quiditate matris ecclesie est quod tantum est una, sic quod non multe ecclesie catholice. Demonstratur sic: Eo ipso quod est ecclesia universalis sive catholica, ipsa continet in se omnes predestinatos. Non est possibile quod sit nisi una talis, igitur non est possibile quod sit nisi una universalis ecclesia. Nam secundum philosophos universale est quoddam totum atque perfectum cui 8nichil deest. Unde sicut iuxta Aristotelem primo de celo omnia primo super tria ponimus: sic non dicimus ecclesiam catholicam nisi que in se continet ista tria: partem in celo triumphantem, partem in purgatorio dormientem et partem in terris militantem. Et in figuram illius dicunt doctores hostiam vel sacramentum eucaristie dividi in tres partes: Primam immersam sacramento liquido dicunt signare ecclesiam triumphantem, que insorpta et inebriata est intuicione divine essencie, ut loquitur caput ecclesie Cantic. V° 1, exhilarans cives et commensales suos. Inebriamini inquit carissimi. Due autem alie partes in manu domini et merito ecclesie expurgande signantur per illas duas partes quas sacerdos tenet in manibus: Maior supposita signat ecclesiam militantem et minor innixa supposite signat ecclesiam in purgatorio expectantem. Ipsa enim innititur suffragiis militantis ecclesie. Et pro istis duabus partibus geminamus preces agno qui est caput ecclesie, ut misereatur nobis. Sed pro tercia parte ad cuius locum et requiem aspiramus petimus, ut idem agnus triplicis nature donet finaliter nobis pacem. Et hinc (ut ostendi alias) dictus sponsus secundum humanitatem suam visitavit tria loca ecclesie, scilicet umbilicum nostre habilitabilis, triginta tribus annis in Judea et Jerusalem conversando, limbum in quo patres purgati sunt, morsellum sue ecclesie in anima extrahendo; sed tercio finaliter ascendens in celum cepit captivitatem quam post triumphum coronavit ad dei dexteram collocando. 9Ista ergo est triplex pars unius universalis ecclesie sive catholice, licet quotlibet sint particulares ecclesie, quia tot quot sunt homines predestinati. Et hinc credo quod in simbolo ecclesie confitentur se credere unam sanctam catholicam et apostolicam ecclesiam. Apostoli enim sunt modo in celo in eadem personalitate qua vixerunt in terris, et sunt modo partes plene purgate eiusdem matris ecclesie, auctoritate quorum sui vicarii iam regunt adolescentulam modo querentem sponsum ecclesie; et sic loquitur decretum XXIV, q. I. Manet inquit Leo papa Petri privilegium ubicunque ex ipsius equitate fertur iudicium. Ipse enim residet in celis videns et procurans quod deus liget et solvat. Unde supradicta decretalis sic loquitur: Unam sanctam ecclesiam catholicam et ipsam apostolicam urgente fide credere cogimur et tenere. Unde unitatem illius ecclesie probat ex scriptura multiplici, primo per illud Canticorum VI°, 8: Una est columba mea, perfecta mea: una est matri sue, electa genitrici sue. Ista columba secundum concordem sanctorum sentenciam est mater ecclesia, cuius mater, quia creatrix est trinitas vel divina essencia, cuius genitrix et fotrix est patris sapiencia et ipsa mater virgo et sponsa humanitatis Christi sui capitis. Ex quibus parentibus spiritualiter, et per consequens, gignicione virginea filii ecclesie procreantur, iuxta quod loquitur apostolus 2ª Cor. XI°, 2, Despondi vos uni viro virginem castam exhibere Christo. Cum ergo in tota scriptura non ponitur vel una sillaba sine sensu, non restat quid pertinencius signaret hoc adiectum una 10in libro sapientissimi Salomonis nisi unitatem ecclesie catholice excludentem pluralitatem. Unde spiritus sanctus in patre Salomonis David sic orat in Christo psalmo XXI°, 21, Erue a framea Deus animam meam et de manu canis unicam meam. Quem textum secundo per decretalem allegatam beatus Augustinus sic exponit tractatu secundo eiusdem psalmi: Framea inquit gladius est, et per gladium mortem intelligi voluit. Unicam meam dixit ecclesiam. Canes sunt qui ceco more latrant nec intelligunt contra quos, eciam cum nichil eis fit, latrant contra viantes, licet velint eis proficere. Et utinam nostri possessionati non sint tales qui conspirant contra catholicos, tangentes eorum potestatem, fastum et ablacionem temporalium solummodo ad medelam.

Hence, just as God swore to David that of the fruit of his womb (namely Christ, who was born of the womb of the virgin, and consequently of that man "strong of hand") he would set [one] upon his seat,1 so he swore to his sons, yet under a condition: if they keep the testament and the testimonies of Christ. "Lest anyone", says Augustine, "should threaten on the strength of God’s promises, and put in his own power what God promised, that it should be fulfilled, therefore he swore, attaching a condition: lest you now glory in the promises and let yourself off keeping [them]. Then you will be a son of David, if you keep [them]; but if not, you will not be a son of David."2 To the sons of David God made the promise; do not say "I am a son of David" if you are degenerate. Only the widow will sit, blessed, in the churchecclesia: church.3 The whole church is one widow, whose members are the poor who are filled, because they are forsaken in this world, which they do not wed as an inheritance but leave; they do not hope in riches, honours or friends, but if they have them they despise them, hoping purely in the Lord. 7What then is it worth to say that only those who are at Rome are the church, or the head of the church? For such are "burned by the moon by night", as Augustine expounds on Psalm 120.4 "Whoever", he says, "thinks that the church is in one part, and does not know her as spread through the whole world, and believes those who say 'Lo here is Christ, and lo there', as the gospel of Matthew 24 speaks, although he bought the whole world as regards the value of the price, he is scandalized in his neighbour and is burned by the moon."5 To what end, then, must there be contention about the head of the church? "The very flesh of Christ", says Augustine, "is the head of the church", that is, the humanity according to which Christ was predestinated, as the faith of scripture says in Ephesians chapters 1, 4 and 5; and more expressly Colossians 1:18 says that Christ is head of the whole church.6 And this conclusion is well set out by the decretal extravagant of Boniface VIII which begins thus: Unam sanctam. "Therefore", it says, "of the one church [there is] one body, one head, not two heads like a monster."7

The second conclusion, following from the quiddityquiditas: quiddity of mother church, is that she is only one, so that there are not many catholic churches. It is demonstrated thus. By the very fact that she is the universal or catholic church, she contains in herself all the predestinatepredestinatus, -i: the predestinate (sg. "a predestinate [person]"). It is not possible that there be more than one such; therefore it is not possible that there be more than one universal church.8 For according to the philosophers the universaluniversale; ydea: universal; idea is a certain whole and perfect thing, from which 8nothing is lacking. Hence, just as according to Aristotle in On the Heavens I we first apply "all" to three, so we do not call [a church] catholic unless it contains in itself these three: the part triumphant in heaven, the part sleeping in purgatory, and the part militant on earth.9 And in figure of this the doctors say that the host, or sacrament of the eucharist, is divided into three parts. The first, immersed in the liquid sacrament, they say signifies the church triumphant, which is absorbed and inebriated with the vision of the divine essence, as the head of the church speaks in the Canticle 5:1, gladdening his fellow citizens and table-companions: "Be inebriated", he says, "my dearly beloved."10 And the other two parts, which are to be purged in the hand of the Lord and by the merit of the church, are signified by those two parts which the priest holds in his hands: the larger, placed beneath, signifies the church militant, and the smaller, resting on the one beneath, signifies the church in purgatory, waiting. For it rests on the suffragessuffragia: suffrages of the church militant. And for these two parts we double our prayers to the Lamb, who is the head of the church, that he may have mercy on us. But for the third part, to whose place and rest we aspire, we ask that the same Lamb of threefold nature may finally grant us peace.11 And hence (as I have shown elsewhere) the said bridegroomsponsa / sponsus: bride / bridegroom, according to his humanity, visited three places of the church: namely, the navel of our habitable [world], living thirty-three years in Judea and Jerusalem; limbo, in which the fathers were purged, drawing out a morsel of his church in his soul; but third, finally ascending into heaven, he took captivity captive, which after the triumph he crowned, placing it at the right hand of God.12 9This, then, is the threefold part of the one universal or catholic church, although there are any number of particular churches, for there are as many as there are predestinate men.13 And hence I believe that in the creed of the church they confess that they believe "one holy catholic and apostolic church".14 For the apostles are now in heaven in the same personality in which they lived on earth, and are now fully purged parts of the same mother church; by their authority their vicars now rule the young maiden who is now seeking the bridegroom of the church.15 And so the decree speaks in [Causa] 24, q. 1: "Peter’s privilege remains", says Pope Leo, "wherever judgement is given in accordance with his equity."16 For he sits in heaven, seeing and procuring that God binds and looses. Hence the aforesaid decretal speaks thus: "We are compelled, faith urging us, to believe and to hold one holy catholic church, and that apostolic." Hence it proves the unity of that church from manifold scripture: first by that [verse] of the Canticle 6:8: "One is my dove, my perfect one is but one; she is the only one of her mother, the chosen of her that bore her."17 This dove, according to the concordant teachingsentencia: CONTEXTUAL: teaching / sentence of the saints, is mother church: whose mother, because creatress, is the Trinity or the divine essence; whose genetrix and nurse is the Father’s wisdom; and she herself is mother, virgin and bridesponsa / sponsus: bride / bridegroom of the humanity of Christ, her head.18 From these parents, spiritually, and consequently by a virginal begetting, the sons of the church are procreated, according to what the apostle says in 2 Corinthians 11:2: "I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." Since, therefore, in the whole of scripture not one syllable is set down without sense, nothing remains that this adjective "one" 10in the book of the most wise Solomon could signify more pertinently than the unity of the catholic church, excluding plurality. Hence the Holy Spirit, in David the father of Solomon, prays thus in Christ in Psalm 21:21: "Deliver, O God, my soul from the sword: my only one from the hand of the dog." This text, which the decretal cites second, the blessed Augustine expounds thus in the second treatise on the same psalm: "The sword", he says, "is a blade, and by the blade he meant death to be understood. 'My only one' he called the church. Dogs are those who bark in blind fashion and do not understand against whom; even when nothing is done to them, they bark against those on the road, although these wish to do them good."19 And would that our possessionerspossessionati: the possessioners were not such as conspire against catholics who touch on their power, their pride and the removal of their temporal goodstemporalia: temporal goods, only for [their] healing.20

Notes

  1. 1 Ps. 131:11–12 (Loserth), reported indirectly. DR "of the fruit of thy womb I will set upon thy throne. If thy children will keep my covenant, and these my testimonies…". Wyclif’s testimonia Christi for Vg testimonia mea. Sedem is kept as "seat" to match sedes at 6.9. Manu forti: the etymology of "David" as "strong of hand" (Jerome, Liber interpretationis hebraicorum nominum, PL 23:847A, David … manu fortis).
  2. 2 Augustine, Enarr. in Ps. 131 (Loserth, loc. cit.). Minaretur promissis Dei: "threaten on the strength of God’s promises" (ablative of ground, as ex … vicaria … minari, 6.4). Dimittas te non custodire: "let yourself off keeping [them]". Where the quotation ends is not marked; we close it after the second filius David.
  3. 3 Sola vidua sedebit in ecclesia benedicta: benedicta may agree with vidua (our reading, after Ps. 131:15 viduam ejus benedicens benedicam, DR "Blessing I will bless her widow") or with ecclesia ("in the blessed church"). Pauperes saturati: the same verse, "I will satisfy her poor with bread". Tota ecclesia una vidua est is Augustine’s phrase on that verse (Enarr. in Ps. 131.23, PL 37:1726; A’s margin Tota ecclesia est vidua).
  4. 4 Ps. 120:6, DR "nor the moon by night", which Augustine reads of those deceived about the church. A reads CX. Loserth: Aug. Opp. IV, p. 1381. The question mark: the print’s ecclesie.' is read as a question.
  5. 5 Matt. 24:23, DR "Lo here is Christ, or there"; Wyclif has et ecce illic. Cum ille … emerit: ille is Christ, the buyer of the whole world (cum concessive: the man is scandalized although Christ bought the world); the second ille is the man, and et ille opens the main clause. In proximo: "in his neighbour", taking offence at Christians outside his one part.
  6. 6 Ipsa caro Christi est caput ecclesie: Augustine, Enarr. in Ps. 120.12, PL 37:1615, the passage of n. 4: quia ipsa caro Christi caput Ecclesiae est. B’s margin cites Eph. 1, 4, 5 and Col. 1; Col. 1:18 DR "And he is the head of the body, the church". Fides scripture: the faith of scripture (cf. the glossary ex fide).
  7. 7 Boniface VIII, Unam sanctam (1302): Igitur ecclesiae unius et unicae unum corpus, unum caput, non duo capita, quasi monstrum (Friedberg II, 1245–46; Wyclif omits et unicae). Loserth: Extrav. comm. 1.8.1 (our modern form of his "Lib. I. Tit. VIII … cap. I"). A later hand in A₁’s margin objects: Scias quia istam decretalem falsificat, nichil enim ibi de predestinatis, "know that he falsifies this decretal, for there is nothing there about the predestinate; but the decretal proves that to be subject to the Roman pontiff is of necessity for salvation".
  8. 8 The minor premiss carries no connective in the Latin: "such" (talis) is a church that contains all the predestinate, and there can be only one such whole.
  9. 9 Aristotle, De caelo I.1, 268a: "all" is first said of three (of two we say "both"). Loserth quotes the Greek (to gar tria panta einai). Dormientem: the church sleeping, the souls in purgatory (the glossary, ecclesia dormiens). Totum atque perfectum cui nichil deest: Aristotle, Physics III.6, 207a8–10.
  10. 10 Insorpta: Loserth’s print; read as absorpta, "absorbed". Inebriata: Loserth’s correction of the MSS' debriata. Cant. 5:1, DR "be inebriated, my dearly beloved". The triple fraction is the Triforme est corpus Christi tradition (Amalarius; Gratian, De cons. D.2 c.22), though Wyclif’s assignment of the parts differs: Amalarius, De eccl. off. III.35 (PL 105:1154D–1155A), and Gratian, De cons. D.2 c.22 (PL 187:1740A), read them as the risen body, the body still walking on earth and the body lying in the tombs, where Wyclif makes the two parts held in the hands the church militant and the church in purgatory.
  11. 11 The Agnus Dei: miserere nobis twice, then dona nobis pacem; the two petitions for mercy go to the two parts still to be purged, the prayer for peace to the third. Agnus triplicis nature: the threefold nature is not explained; B’s margin: Christus dicitur agnus tripliciter.
  12. 12 Habilitabilis: as printed (B breaks off at umbili-); read as habitabilis, "the habitable [world]", whose navel is Jerusalem (Ezek. 38:12, Vg umbilici terrae). Conversando: "living" (cf. the glossary conversacio). Cepit captivitatem: Eph. 4:8 (Ps. 67:19), DR "he led captivity captive". Ut ostendi alias: not identified.
  13. 13 Tot quot sunt homines predestinati: each predestinate person is a particular church; the universal church is one whole of three parts.
  14. 14 The Nicene–Constantinopolitan Creed. In simbolo … confitentur: Loserth’s text; the MSS have quo in simbolo, and AA₁ confitetur.
  15. 15 Adolescentulam: the church militant as the maiden of the Song (Cant. 1:2 adolescentulae), seeking the bridegroom (Cant. 3:1–2). Sui vicarii are the apostles’ vicars; their rule depends on auctoritate quorum, the apostles’ authority.
  16. 16 Gratian, Decretum C.24 q.1 c.5 (Loserth), from Leo I, Sermon 4.3 (PL 54:151A–B). Ex ipsius equitate: Peter’s equity, not the judge’s. The next sentence is Wyclif’s: Peter "procures" that God binds and looses; the binding is God’s.
  17. 17 Unam sanctam, opening words (Friedberg II, 1245–46). Cant. 6:8, DR; Wyclif’s matri sue for Vg matris suae.
  18. 18 Three relations: the Trinity is the church’s mater as creatress; the Father’s wisdom (the Son) her genitrix et fotrix; and the church herself is mother, virgin and bride of Christ’s humanity. Fotrix: "nurse", one who cherishes.
  19. 19 Augustine, Enarr. in Ps. 21, enarratio II (Loserth: Opp. IV, p. 98). Secundo per decretalem allegatam: Unam sanctam cites Ps. 21:21 after Cant. 6:8. Licet velint eis proficere: we take the subject as the travellers (viantes); it could be the dogs ("although they mean to do them good").
  20. 20 Tangentes agrees with catholicos: the catholics who touch on the possessioners’ power, pride and the taking away of their temporal goods, solummodo ad medelam, only as a remedy. It could agree with the possessioners ("touching their power"), but the sentence then loses its point.
How the Latin of this chapter was established
  • Plate readings; page · reading · note):
    • 7: Quid (first word after folio mark 128d)
    • 7: Rome
    • 7: Christus
    • 7: I°
    • 7: Col (15 is the line number)
    • 8: in
    • 8: insorpta (print has insorpta) [NW]
    • 9: ubicunque (hyphenated ubi-/cunque across line)
    • 9: solvat (leading 1 is margin fragment)
    • 9: 2ª
    • 10: framea [NW]
    • 8: deest
    • 007: ∅ ('ales’ already inside neighbour 15 Tales) [DELX]
    • 7: XXIV°, [-VERSE]
  • 8.9 inebriata: Loserth’s correction ("Codd: debriata. Correxi").
  • 9.4 in simbolo … confitentur: Loserth’s text (n. 14).
  • OCR scars corrected in the Latin against the plates: 7.2 ecclesie.' → ecclesie?; 7.5 orbe.; 7.6 est'; 7.20 alinea letter F; 8.1 nich.il; 8.6 [in fisuram → in figuram (the print’s reading); 8.17 Pro → pro; 8.29 stray ■.
  • Variants noted but not affecting the English: 8.8 B immensam, dignare; 8.13 B expungnande; 8.15 B et quatuor innixa; 9.16 B et tenemur; 9.28 B cum igitur; 10.5 B carnis.