speaks: "The emperor Constantine on the fourth day after his baptism conferred on the pontiff the grant—privilegium—of the Roman church that the pontiffs might have headship in all the earth, as judges over the king." In this grant, this among other things is read: "We have bestowed upon him power and ability and imperial honor, seeing that he is thus to hold the government over the four sees, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem and Constantinople, and is the highest ruler over all priests in the whole world," etc. See how the institution and preeminence of the pope emanated from Cæsar's power, which, however, cannot limit God's power. For this reason later pontiffs, fearing that they might lose their pre-eminence, sought confirmation from other Cæsars, as the Decretum, Dist. 63 (Friedberg, 1: 244], says: "I, Lewis, Roman emperor, Augustus, do decree and bestow by this our act of confirmation upon thee, blessed Peter, prince of the apostles, and through thee upon thy vicar, Lord Pascal, supreme pontiff, and upon thy successors forever, even as by our [your] predecessors ye have up to this time held in our [your] power and gift alone and controlled the Roman state."[1]
But there need be no anxiety over this grant of words when Cæsar says: "I, Lewis, concede unto thee, blessed Peter." Never did Peter, who at that time was already in possession of the kingdom of heaven, stand in need of civil possession over Rome, and never was Lewis greater than Peter and more truly in possession than Peter. Would that Peter, if it had been God's will, had said: I do not accept
- ↑ Huss's text departs from the original substituting nostris for vestris, and nostra for vestra, the original reading, "even as by your predecessors ye have held in your own power and gift and disposed of the city of Rome with its duchy and all the suburban regions and towns, its hilly territory, and its seacoast line and harbors and all cities, strongholds, walled towns and villas in the regions of Tuscany," etc. This pact between Lewis and Pascal, 817-824, is first found in Anselm of Lucca, d. 1073, and is deemed altogether spurious or at least largely interpolated.
tains the express assertion of Constantine's donation: "The emperor Constantine bestowed upon the apostolic see the crown and all royal authority in the city of Rome and in Italy and in the regions of the West."
