and the apostles appointed for themselves after the Lord's ascension deacons to be ministers of their episcopate and of the church,"[1]—why should it be wondered at if God almighty, putting the pope and his cardinals to death and giving them also eternal life—in case they merit it—should allow His church throughout the whole world to wage war with these same orders now as originally, namely, without the cardinals, and should ordain that the church should be ruled again as she was ruled by His own indestructible law, by giving bishops and priests who, by evangelizing and prayer and the exemplification of good lives, would diligently feed Christ's sheep. For this office alone was given to Peter by Christ, as appears in John 21.
Hence Augustine notes, Ep. 141, ad Paulinum [Migne's ed., xxxiii: 635], how in the apostolic passage, Eph. 4:11, the office of pastor and the office of teacher are joined. "Pastors," he says, "and teachers whom thou hast appointed to discern above all the truth, are, I think, the same, and not the pastors one and the teachers another. And so, as he had spoken previously of pastors, he added teachers that pastors might understand that teaching—doctrina—belonged to their office. And, therefore, he did not say, 'some pastors and some teachers'—the form of speech used in the former part of the preceding verse—but 'some pastors and teachers,' as if one office were embraced under the two words: 'some,' he said, 'pastors and teachers.'"
Hence, if that which is superfluous be taken away, it would appear what pope, cardinal or bishop would remain a true shepherd out of the treasury of the Lord, and perhaps more would be found useless thieves and robbers rather than true vicars of the Lord Jesus Christ.
But against what has been said the objection is brought,
- ↑ Cyprian's text, which Huss is quoting, runs thus: "The deacons should remember how the Lord chose the apostles, that is, the bishops and presbyters, but after the Lord's ascension, the apostles appointed them as ministers of their episcopate and the church."
