De ecclesia, chapter 14, part 8

The donation of Constantine would make the pope Caesar’s almsman

Loserth pp. 326.32–328.25

¶1326.32–328.6

326Item, quilibet simplex sacerdos habet parem potestatem ordinis cum papa, et ad illam potestatem ordinis consequitur essencialiter proporcionalis potestas secularis dominii; 327ergo quilibet simplex sacerdos habet titulum de iure ad dominandum seculariter toti mundo. Sed dic buphotracti maledicti tot dominati; tunc enim nec foret ordo nec civilis dominacio, nec oporteret sacerdotes acquirere sibi titulos in suscipiendo ordines, cum illo titulo ordinum excellunt seculariter quemlibet regem mundi. Item, parem potestatem dominandi seculariter habet quilibet presbiter regni nostri, sicut haberet supposito quod ipse solus foret sacerdos in Anglia et rex noster conquireret quotquot regna, sed tunc foret secularis dominus capitaliter omnium bonorum regni nostri. Ergo et modo de iure. Aliter enim sequeretur quod civilis dominacio pape dependeret ab integritate dominacionis imperii, et per consequens, papa nitendo destruere imperium, destrueret proprium civile dominium, vel si ipse debet dominari seculariter super omnes naciones iam infideles, per idem quilibet sacerdos habet ius ad taliter dominandum. Item, tunc superflueret carta cesaris tamquam impossibilis et heretica, non ergo incorporanda foret in canone tamquam paris auctoritatis cum dictis sanctorum doctorum, ut patet XCVIª d. Constantinus; ibi enim dicitur quod Constantinus quarto die sui baptismi contulit privilegium Romano pontifici et ordinavit ut, sicut ipse imperat aliis regibus, sic eius episcopus aliis sacerdotibus, unde iudicat et discernit quod episcopus Romanus habeat potestatem utendi insigniis regalibus, unde et sanccivit, dixit et consuluit quod ditavit ac sua largitate concessit et ex imperiali potestate statuit et confirmavit ut usque in finem mundi dona 328sua et privilegia maneant illibata. Et multa alia verba ibi inseruit que iuxta succedentem superbiam sonarent in heresim, quia innuerent papam esse elemosinarium cesaris, et per consequens ipsum posse revocare donatum condicione dirupta, cum dicit se ordinare ut per manus beati Silvestri et successorum eius omnia disponantur.

Again, every simple priest has a power of order equal with the pope, and on that power of order there follows essentially a proportional power of secular lordship; 327therefore every simple priest has a title by right to exercise lordship in secular fashion over the whole world. But say buphotracti: "cursed be so many lords!"¹ For then there would be neither order nor civil exercise of lordship, nor would priests need to acquire titles for themselves in receiving orders,² since by that title of orders they excel in secular fashion any king in the world. Again, every presbyter of our kingdom has a power of exercising secular lordship equal to what he would have on the supposition that he alone were a priest in England and our king conquered ever so many kingdoms; now in that case he would be secular lord, as head, of all the goods of our kingdom. Therefore now also, by right. For otherwise it would follow that the pope’s civil exercise of lordship depended on the integrity of the empire’s exercise of lordship, and consequently that the pope, by striving to destroy the empire, would destroy his own civil lordship; or, if he ought to exercise secular lordship over all the nations that are now unbelievers, by the same token every priest has a right to exercise lordship in that way. Again, Caesar’s charter would then be superfluous, as impossible and heretical; it would not, therefore, have to be incorporated in the canon as of equal authority with the sayings of the holy doctors, as is clear in dist. 96, Constantinus.³ For there it is said that Constantine, on the fourth day after his baptism, conferred a privilege on the Roman pontiff and ordained that, as he himself commands other kings, so his bishop [should command] other priests; whence he judges and decrees that the Roman bishop should have the power of using the royal insignia; whence too he sanctioned, said and counselled what he had enriched [him with] and granted of his largesse, and by imperial power established and confirmed that to the end of the world his 328gifts and privileges should remain inviolate.⁴ And he inserted there many other words which, in the light of the pride that followed, would sound like heresy, because they would imply that the pope is Caesar’s almsman, and consequently that he [Caesar] can revoke the gift when the condition is broken,⁵ since he says that he ordains that all things be disposed by the hands of blessed Silvester and his successors.

¶2328.7–328.25

328Et credo, si ista carta relicta fuerit, non invenirent cartam aliam in scriptura. In tales infinitas vesanias antichristinas inducitur populus in ecclesia propter reliccionem evangelii, propter oblivionem paupertatis Christi et candentem cupiditatem ad fastum seculi. Vidit enim quod, si beatus Silvester recepit secundum dictam formam dominium illud a cesare, tunc cesar habens integrum imperium, tam large benedicens pape foret quoad seculum ipso maior, cum partem sue magnificencie impertitus fuisset elemosinario suo pape. Ideo querunt mendaciter alias minas hereticas et blasphemas, dicentes quod Christus, Petrus et alii dominati sunt civiliter toti mundo, et illo iure, non iure cesaris gaudent suo dominio. Idem est expresse contra Augustinum super Joh., Omelia VIª, et contra decretum distinccione VIIIª, Quo iure, et contra beatum Bernardum, libro II ad papam Eugenium: Esto, inquit, ut alia racione tibi vindices dominatum sed non iure apostolico, quod probat efficaciter ex scriptura.

And I believe that, if this charter were abandoned, they would not find another charter in scripture. Into such endless antichristian madnesses the people in the church are led, because of the abandoning of the gospel, because of forgetfulness of Christ’s poverty, and a burning greed for the pomp of the world. For they see⁶ that, if blessed Silvester received that lordship from Caesar according to the said form, then Caesar, having the whole empire and blessing the pope so largely, would be greater than he as regards the world, since he would have bestowed part of his magnificence on his almsman the pope. Therefore they lyingly seek out other heretical and blasphemous threats,⁷ saying that Christ, Peter and others exercised civil lordship over the whole world, and that by that right, not by Caesar’s right, they enjoy their lordship. This is expressly against Augustine on John, Homily 6, and against the Decretum, distinction 8, Quo iure, and against blessed Bernard, book 2 to Pope Eugenius: "Granted," he says, "that you claim lordly rule for yourself on some other ground, but not by apostolic right";⁸ which he proves effectively from scripture.⁹

Notes

1 327.2: A and A₁ read Sed dum; Loserth judges that some words seem to have fallen out here and asks what buphotracti means. He prints Matthew’s conjecture Dic bufo crati: maledicti tot dominati, "Say, toad, to the harrow: cursed be so many lords!", which renders the Anglo-Norman proverb Dehez eient tanz meistres, dist le crapod al herce (cursed be so many masters, said the toad to the harrow), in English "Many masters, quoth the toad to the harrow". The print is translated and the word left in Latin; the participle dominati is rendered "lords".
2 Titulos … in suscipiendo ordines: the canonical title (a benefice or assured living) required of a candidate for holy orders. Ordo in "neither order nor civil exercise of lordship" may be the sacrament or ordered society; the sentence turns on both.
3 Decretum D. 96 c. 14 Constantinus, the Donation (form ours; Loserth gives the canon by its incipit, noting that Wyclif’s account is drawn from it "with some words changed"; the chapter number is confirmed).
4 Sanccivit, dixit et consuluit quod ditavit …: quod is taken as relative, "what he had enriched [him with]"; as a conjunction it would give "that he had enriched [him]". The sentence strings together the canon’s verbs of grant.
5 Ipsum posse revocare: taken as Caesar, the donor, who could revoke an alms whose condition was broken; grammatically it could be the pope. Iuxta succedentem superbiam: "in the light of the pride that followed", that is, the later papacy’s.
6 328.12: the print Vidit (so on the plate) has no subject that construes; B Vident agrees with querunt below and is translated. Print Vidit, B Vident. 328.14 B reads integrum dominium for integrum imperium.
7 328.17: the print reads minas, "threats" (so on the plate), which construes only loosely with querunt; a corrupted word (e.g. vias, "ways") is possible. Translated as printed.
8 Augustine, In Iohannis evangelium tractatus 6.25; Decretum D. 8 c. 1 Quo iure (Loserth; form ours); Bernard, De consideratione II.6.10 (PL 182, 748: Esto, ut alia quacunque ratione haec tibi vindices: sed non apostolico jure), quoted loosely. Vindices is Loserth’s emendation from Bernard’s text; the manuscripts read vendicens. Bernard’s noun is dominatus, rendered "lordly rule" to keep it apart from dominium.
9 After scriptura A adds the scribe’s Czech prayer Hospodyne racz pomoc psati, which Loserth glosses Domine velis adiuvare scribentem, "Lord, be pleased to help the writer"; A₁ has "cap. XVI" in the text here.

How the Latin of this chapter was established

Plate readings; page · reading · note):
- 327: ergo (print p.327 l.1 '174d ris dominii; ergo')
- 327: destruere (15 is the line number)
- 327: XCVIª
- 328: et
- 328: ∅ (print p.328 begins 'sua et privilegia'; the inserted run is the end of p.327)
- 328: VIª
- 328: VIIIª
- 326: essencialiter
- 326: secularis dominii (secula- here, 174d ris dominii at top of p.327; main token covers both words)
- 328: maneant