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part05+-第50章

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Vatican; culminated in the seizure and imprisonment of two



ecclesiastics charged with various high crimes;among these rape



and murder。







There had just come to the papal throne Camillo Borghese; Paul



V。;strong; bold; determined; with the highest possible theory



of his duties and of his position。 In view of his duty toward



himself; he lavished the treasures of the faithful upon his



family; until it became the richest which had yet risen in Rome;



in view of his duty toward the Church; he built superbly; and an



evidence of the spirit in which he wrought is his name; in



enormous letters; still spread across the facade of St。 Peter's。



As to his position; he accepted fully the theories and practices



of his boldest predecessors; and in this he had good warrant; for



St。 Thomas Aquinas and Bellarmine had furnished him with



convincing arguments that he was divinely authorized to rule the



civil powers of Italy and of the world。'1'











'1' For details of these cases of the two monks; see Pascolato。



Fra Paolo Sarpi; Milano; 1893; pp。 126…128。 For the Borghese



avarice; see Ranke's Popes; vol。 iii。 pp。 9…20。 For the



development of Pope Paul's theory of government; see Ranke; vol。



ii。 p。 345; and note in which Bellarmine's doctrine is cited



textually; also Bellarmine's Selbstbiographie; herausgegeben von



Dollinger und Rensch Bonn; 1887。 pp。 181; et seq。











Moreover there was; in his pride; something akin to fanaticism。



He had been elected by one of those sudden movements; as well



known in American caucuses as in papal conclaves; when; after a



deadlock; all the old candidates are thrown over; and the choice



suddenly falls on a new man。 The cynical observer may point to



this as showing that the laws governing elections; under such



circumstances; are the same; whether in party caucuses or in



church councils; but Paul; in this case; saw the direct



intervention of the Almighty; and his disposition to magnify his



office was vastly increased thereby。 He was especially strenuous;



and one of his earliest public acts was to send to the gallows a



poor author; who; in an unpublished work; had spoken severely



regarding one of Paul's predecessors。







The Venetian laws checking mortmain; taxing church property; and



requiring the sanction of the Republic before the erection of new



churches and monasteries greatly angered him; but the crowning



vexation was the seizure of the two clerics。 This aroused him



fully。 He at once sent orders that they be delivered up to him;



that apology be made for the past and guarantees given for the



future; and notice was served that; in case the Republic did not



speedily obey these orders; the Pope would excommunicate its



leaders and lay an interdict upon its people。 It was indeed a



serious contingency。 For many years the new Pope had been known



as a hard; pedantic ecclesiastical lawyer; and now that he had



arrived at the supreme power; he had evidently determined to



enforce the high mediaeval supremacy of the Church over the



State。 Everything betokened his success。 In France he had broken



down all opposition to the decrees of the Council of Trent。 In



Naples; when a magistrate had refused to disobey the civil law at



the bidding of priests; and the viceroy had supported the



magistrate; Pope Paul had forced the viceroy and magistrate to



comply with his will by threats of excommunication。 In every part



of Italy;in Malta; in Savoy; in Parma; in Lucca; in Genoa;and



finally even in Spain; he had pettifogged; bullied; threatened;



until his opponents had given way。 Everywhere he was triumphant;



and while he was in the mood which such a succession of triumphs



would give he turned toward Venice。'1'











'1' For letters showing the craven submission of Philip III。 of



Spain at this time; see Cornet; Paolo V。 e la Republica Veneta;



Vienna; 1859; p。 285。











There was little indeed to encourage the Venetians to resist;



for; while the interests of other European powers were largely



the same as theirs; current political intrigues seemed likely to



bring Spain and even France into a league with the Vatican。







To a people so devoted to commerce; yet so religious; the threat



of an interdict was serious indeed。 All church services were to



cease; the people at large; no matter how faithful; were to be as



brute beasts;not to be legally married; not to be consoled by



the sacraments; not to be shriven; and virtually not to be



buried; other Christian peoples were to be forbidden all dealings



with them; under pain of excommunication; their commerce was to



be delivered over to the tender mercies of any and every other



nation; their merchant ships to be as corsairs; their cargoes;



the legitimate prey of all Christendom; and their people; on sea



and land; to be held as enemies of the human race。 To this was



added; throughout the whole mass of the people; a vague sense of



awful penalties awaiting them in the next world。 Despite all



this; the Republic persisted in asserting its right。







Just at this moment came a diplomatic passage between Pope and



Senate like a farce before a tragedy; and it has historical



significance; as showing what resourceful old heads were at the



service of either side。 The Doge Grimani having died; the Vatican



thought to score a point by promptly sending notice through its



Nuncio to Venice that no new election of a Doge could take place



if forbidden by the Pope; and that; until the Senate had become



obedient to the papacy; no such election would be sanctioned。 But



the Senate; having through its own Ambassador received a useful



hint; was quite equal to the occasion。 It at once declined to



receive this or any dispatch from the Pope on the plea; made with



redundant courtesy and cordiality; that; there being no Doge;



there was no person in Venice great enough to open it。 They next



as politely declined to admit the papal Nuncio on the ground that



there was nobody worthy to receive him。 Then they proceeded to



elect a Doge who could receive both Nuncio and message;a sturdy



opponent of the Vatican pretensions; Leonardo Donato。







The Senate now gave itself entirely to considering ways and means



of warding off the threatened catastrophe。 Its first step was to



consult Sarpi。 His answer was prompt and pithy。 He advised two



things: first; to prevent; at all hazards; any publication of the



papal bulls in Venice or any obedience to them; secondly; to hold



in readiness for use at any moment an appeal to a future Council



of the Church。







Of these two methods; the first would naturally seem by far the



more difficult。 So it was not in reality。 In the letter which



Sarpi presented to the Doge; he devoted less than four lines to



the first and more than fourteen pages to the second。 As to the



first remedy; severe as it was and bristling with difficulties;



it was; as he claimed; a simple; natural; straightforward use of



police power。 As to the second; the appeal to a future Council



was to the Vatican as a red flag to a bull。 The very use of it



involved excommunication。 To harden and strengthen the Doge and



Senate in order that they might consider it as an ultimate



possibility; Sarpi was obliged to show from the Scriptures; the



Fathers; the Councils; the early Popes; that the appeal to a



Council was a matter of right。 With wonderful breadth of



knowledge and clearness of statement he made his points and



answered objections。 To this day; his letter remains a



masterpiece。'1'











'1' For Sarpi's advice to the Doge; see Bianchi Giovini; vol。 i。



pp。 216; et seq。 The document is given fully in the Lettere di F。



P。 S。; Firenze; 1863; vol。 i。 pp。 17; et seq。; also in Machi;



Storia del Consiglio dei Dieci; cap。 xxiv。; where the bull of



excommunication is also given。











The Republic utterly refused to yield; and now; in 1606; Pope



Paul launched his excommunication and interdict。 In meeting them;



the Senate took the course laid down by Sarpi。 The papal Nuncio



was notified that the Senate would receive no paper from the



Pope; all ecclesiasties; from the Patriarch down to the lowest



monk; were forbidden; under the penalties of high treason; to



make public or even to receive any paper whatever from the



Vatican; additional guards were placed at the city gates; with



orders to search every wandering friar or other suspicious person



who might; by any p
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