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

— —bellarmine's argument. 211his see, and, in virtue of this succession, inherited all theroyalties and jurisdiction, the functions and virtues, withwhich Peter became invested when Christ addressed himin the words we have quoted ; that this " mystic oil" hasflowed down through the "pjolden pipes,"—the popes,—toour day ; that it resides in all its fulness in the present occupantof Peter*'s chair ; and that it is thence diffused byinnumerable lesser pipes, formed by the bishops and priests,to the remotest extremities of the Roman Catholic world,vivifying and sanctifying all its members, giving authorityto allits priests, and validity and efficacy to all their officialacts.Bellarmine, as was to be expected, has enteredat greatlength into this question. He lays it down as an axiom,that Christ has adopted for the government of hisChurchthat particular mode which is the best ; and then, havingdetermined, that of the three forms of government,mo-Qiarchi/, aristocracy/, and democracy/,—monarchy is the mostperfect, he concludes that thea monarchy.government of the Church isThis inference he bases not simply on generalreasonings, but also on particularpassages of Scripture, inwhich the Church is spoken of as a house, a state, a kingdom.It is not enough that the Church has a head andking in heaven, with a code of laws on earth,—the Bible,to determine all causes and controversies.That king, saysBellarmine, is invisible ; the Church must have an earthlyand visible head.* Having thus paved the way for theerection of the papal despotism, Bellarmine proceeds toshow, from the passage quoted above, thatPeter was constitutedsole head and monarch of the Church under Christ." Of that passage," remarks Bellarmine, " the sense is plainand obvious. Under two metaphors the primacy of thewhole Church is promised to Peter. The first metaphor isthat of a foundation and edifice ; for what a foundation isin a building, that a head is in a body, a ruler in a state, a* Bellarm. de Roman. Pont. lib. i. cap. 1-9.