THE CHURCH AND THE WORLD.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume IV, Issue 196, 29 December 1876, Page 13

THE CHURCH AND THE WORLD.

"In her humane efforts to subdue the ferocity, to correct the morals, and to humanise the manners of the European nations during the earlier portion of the middle ages, the Church had been necessarily drawn into the vortex of European politics ; and once drawn in, she was compelled to share in all its dangers, storms and vicissitudes. The papacy had "stooped to conquer;" it had descended from its lorty position of mere spirituality into the arena ot worldly affairs, m order to reclaim wen from barbarism, and the result was, that to maintain itself in its new relations to society, it had to .intermingle in scenes of worldly strife, and to surround Ltself with worldly consequence. The princes of Europe, who had treely acknowledged and encouraged this political power of the Popes, and who derived from it so many signal advantages, at length became weary O f the restraints it imposed on them, an i shook off the yoke; and the papacy was then compelled to return to its original position. But, ere it did return, it bore on its body the marks of cruel wounds, received in conflict with theprinces of the world. The Groat Schism of the West was a severe, but perhaps a necessary lesson. It taught the papacy what it had to expect trom that treacherous world which crucified its founder • it threw it back on its primitive resources ; it taught it wherein lay its real strength, and the true secret of its vitality and indestructibilit y . • • 1 ?« ge o e^ View of the sub :Ject sheds great light on the origin of the Schism. As we have already intimated? to explain the causes which led to it, we must go back for more than seventy years, to the period of the unfortunate controversy between Pope Bomta.ce VIII. and Philip the Fair, Kino- of Prance. The circuit stances of that unhappy difference are familiar to every reader of Church history; the results which grew out of it are too marked to be easily forgotten. Both of the illustrious disputants no doubt went too tar; but we think the impartial will admit, that Philip was much more in the wrong than his opponent. Young, ardent ambitious, and unscrupulous, the French monarch seemed to aim at nothing less than universal empire. He was the Napoleon of his day; and, like Napoleon, he dragged the Pope into captivity. He had embroiled himself in a struggle with England and Arao-on • and the consequence was an almost general war throu°-hout iiiiirope. ° " Boniface, treading in the footsteps of his predecessor?, sought to pour oil on the boiling waters; and he offered to mediate between the belligerent sovereigns. He succeeded in bringing about a peace between France and Aragon; and his proffer of mediation between 4 ranee and England, though at first declined, was at length accepted by the fiery French monarch. His award though very wise and d^v 1 ' was> llowever » contemptuously refused by the ambitious c?rp and . fche war raged on with renewed violence. • "^?M laise the amount necessary to prosecute the war with vigor, Philip imposed most exorbitant taxes on both the clergy and laity or his kingdom; he reduced the church of France to a cruel servitude, and he even went so far as to debase the coin of the kingdom ! Boniface protested against his iniquitous conduct, in the tace of all Europe; he issued bull after bull against him • he waxed stronger and stronger in his denunciations; and finally he excommunicated Philip, and placed France under an interdict, •fftiiip treated his menaces and excommunication with contempt, and, though the bold Pontiff more than once evinced a disposition for an accommodation, he spurned all his offers. The states °-enerdl of France were convened ; and William de Nogaret, the keeper of the royal seals, was despatched to Rome with a strong protest against the proceedings of the Pope. This unscrupulous envoy seized on the person of Boniface at Anagni ; and one of his attendants, Sciarra Colonna, a personal enemy of the Pontiff, is said to

have struck him on the face with his gauntlet. Though rescued iroin the hands of his enemies by the people of Anagni, Boniface soon after died at Rome, probably of ill-treatment and of chagrin. " Thus rid of his dread opponent, Philip did not, however, cease to persecute his memory. The better to effect his purpose of vengeance, he used every effort to have a successor elected who would enter into his own views. But at first he did not succeed to the full extent, of his wishes. Benedict XI. was chosen by the Cardinals; but, though he consented to modify some of the more obnoxious among the Bulls of his predecessors, yet he would not, during the few months of his pontificate, consent to all the wishes of Philip. j " On the death of this Pontiff, Philip brought every influence to bear on the Conclave of Cardinal electors j and the result was the election to the Popedorn of one among his own subjects, Ber- ! trand d' Agoust, Archbishop of Bordeaux, who took the name of ' Clement V. He was chosen on the fifth day of June, 1305 ,• and, : m accordance with the wishes of the French monarch, with whom ' he is said to have had a secret understanding, he took up bis residence at Avignon in France. i " This was, in every respect, a most unfortunate step. It ' made the Popes entirely too dependent on France. It crippled I their energies, and greatly diminished the sphere of their usefulness. Their acts were often viewed with suspicion by those belon °-- ' ing to other kingdoms ; and when France was at war with any ! other European Power the Pontiff was scarcely free to hold com- ' munication with its subjects. No one cau read the history of the ' seven Popes who successively reigned at Avignon, from 1305 to 13/8, without being convinced of the evils consequent on this state of dependence, and without feeling that the Pontiff should be in- i dependent of all the sovereigns of Europe. Most of them were too much taken up with mere worldly business and were too subser- ' vient to the interests of France; and a few of them— as John XXll.— were addicted to nepotism. With these exceptions, how- ' ever, they were in the main good men ; some of them were very ' exemplary. Benedict XXII., in particular, won the esteem of all ' by his zeal and disinterestedness. He was wont to say, that a Pon > tiff should be, like Melchisedech, ' without father, without mother without genealogy. 3 "" — ' Spalding.' '