The-papacy-its-history-dogmas-genius-and-prospects-wylie

SPIRITUAL DIRECTION INCLUDES TEMPORALITIES. 113excommunication on monarchs, in the middle ages, on whatground did they rest their acts ? On the constitutional lawof Europe ? On rights made over to them by a convention,express or tacit, of sovereigns and people ? No ; but on thehighest style of divine right. They gave and took awaycrowns, as the vicars of Christ and the holders of the keys.These popes did not act as casuists, but as rulers. They didnot decide a point of morality, but a point of policy. Onecan easily imagine the measureless indignationof Gregoryor Innocent, had any one then dared to propound such atheory,—how quickly they would have smelt heresy in it,and summoned the pontifical thunders to purge out thatheresy.Jurisdiction they did claim then, and on the theoryof infallibility they claim it still ;nor does it mend the matterthough one should grant that that jurisdiction is of a spiritualnature, with the indirect temporal power attached ;for,as we have already shown, this is but adding one step moreto the logic, without adding even a step more to the processby which the act becomes thoroughly temporal. Nay, itdoes not mend the matter though we should drop the attachedindirect temporal power, and retain only the spiritualjurisdiction.That jurisdiction is infallible and supreme, andextends to all things affecting religion, that is, the Church,the popes being the judges. We have had a modern proofhow little this would avail to curb the excesses of pontificalambition. We have seen the Pope, solely by the force ofthe spiritual jurisdiction, endeavouring to compel Piedmontto alter its laws, and to restore the lands to monasteries, andagain extend to the clergy immunity from the secular tribunals.Even De Maistre grants the right of excommunicatingsovereigns guilty of great crimes.But the Pope is to be thejudge of what crimes do and do not merit this dreadful punishment; and the notions of pontiffs on this grave point areapt to differ from those of ordinary men. Innocent III.threatened to interrupt the succession to the throne of Hungarybecause his legate had been stopped in passing throughthat kingdom. Wherever duty is involved, there the PopeI