Clement VI, 1342-1352

The Satisfaction of Christ, the Treasure of the Church,

[From the Bull of jubilee, "Unigenitus Dei Filius," Jan. 25, 1343]

The only begotten Son of God . . . "made unto us from God, wisdom, justice, sanctification and redemption" [1 Cor. 3], "neither by the blood of goats or of calves, but by His own blood entered once into the holies having obtained eternal redemption" [Heb. 9:12]. "For not with corruptible things as gold or silver, but with the precious blood of His very (Son) as of a lamb unspotted and unstained He has redeemed us" [cf.1 Pet. 1:18-19], who innocent, immolated on the altar of the Cross is known to have poured out not a little drop of blood, which however on account of union with the Word would have been sufficient for the redemption of the whole human race, but copiously as a kind of flowing stream, so that "from the soles of His feet even to the top of His Head no soundness was found in Him" [ Is. 1:6]. Therefore, how great a treasure did the good Father acquire from this for the Church militant, so that the mercy of so great an effusion was not rendered useless, vain or superfluous, wishing to lay up treasures for His sons, so that thus the Church is an infinite treasure to men, so that they who use it, become the friends of God [ Wis. 7:14].

Indeed this treasure . . . through blessed Peter, the keeper of the keys of heaven and his successors, his vicars on earth, He has committed to be dispensed for the good of the faithful, both from proper and reasonable causes, now for the whole, now for partial remission of temporal punishment due to sins, in general as in particular (according as they know to be expedient with God), to be applied mercifully to those who truly repentant have confessed.

Indeed, to the mass of this treasure the merits of the Blessed Mother of God and of all the elect from the first just even to the last, are known to give their help; concerning the consumption or the diminution of this there should be no fear at any time, because of the infinite merits of Christ (as was mentioned before) as well as for the reason that the more are brought to justification by its application, the greater is the increase of the merits themselves.

[Condemned and publicly recalled by him in the year 1347]

1 . . . That through natural appearances no certainty, as it were, be had regarding things; yet that measure can be had in a short time, if men turn their intellect to things and not to the intellect of Aristotle and his commentator.

2 . . . That clearly from the above mentioned evidence from one matter another matter cannot be inferred or concluded, or from the nonexistence of one, the nonexistence of another.

3 . . . That the propositions: "God is" and "God is not" signify entirely the same thing, although in a different way.

9 . . .That the certainty of evidence does not have degrees.

10 . . . That we do not have from our soul the certainty of evidence concerning another material substance.

11 . . . That with the certainty of faith excepted there was not another certainty except the certainty of the first principle, or that which can be resolved into the first principle.

14 . . . That we do not know clearly that other things can be from God because of some effect--that some cause works efficiently which is not God--that some efficient cause is or can be natural.

15 . . . That we do not know clearly whether any effect is or can be produced naturally.

17 . . . That we do not know clearly that in any production the subject concurs.

21 . . . That in any demonstrated matter whatever no one knows clearly that in truth it surpasses all others in nobility.

22 . . . That in any demonstrated matter no one knows clearly that this thing is not God, if by God we understand the most noble substance.

25 . . . That one does not know clearly that in truth it can be reasonably conceded, "if any matter has been produced, God has been produced."

26 . . . That it cannot be shown clearly that in truth any matter at all is eternal.

30 . . . That these consequences are not clear: "An act of understanding exists; therefore intelligence exists. An act of willing exists, therefore will exists."

31 . . . That it cannot be shown clearly that in truth all things which are apparent are true.

32 . . .That God and the creature are not something.

40 . . .That whatever exists in the universe is better that, than not that.

53 . . .That this is the first principle and not another: "If something is, it is something."

[From the letter "Super quibusdam" to the Consolator, the Catholicon of the Armenians, Sept. 20, 1351]

3 . . . We ask: In the first place, whether you and the Church of the Armenians which is obedient to you, believe that all those who in baptism have received the same Catholic faith, and afterwards have withdrawn and will withdraw in the future from the communion of this same Roman Church, which one alone is Catholic, are schismatic and heretical, if they remain obstinately separated from the faith of this Roman Church.

In the second place, we ask whether you and the Armenians obedient to you believe that no man of the wayfarers outside the faith of this Church, and outside the obedience of the Pope of Rome, can finally be saved.

But in the second chapter . . . we ask:

First, whether you have believed, believe, or are prepared to believe with the Church of the Armenians which is obedient to you, that blessed Peter received complete power of jurisdiction over all faithful Christians from our Lord Jesus Christ; and that every power of jurisdiction, which in certain lands and provinces and in different parts of the world especially and particularly Jude Thaddeus and the other Apostles had, was completely subject to the authority and power which blessed Peter received from our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, over whomsoever are believers in Christ in all parts of the world, and that no apostle or any other one whosoever received that very complete power over all Christians except Peter alone.

In the second place, whether you have believed, have held, or are prepared to believe and to hold with the Armenians subject to you that all the Roman Pontiffs, who succeeding blessed Peter have entered canonically and will enter canonically, have succeeded blessed Peter the Roman Pontiff and will succeed in the same plentitude in the jurisdiction of power over the complete and universal body of the militant church which blessed Peter himself received from our Lord Jesus Christ.

In the third place, if you and the Armenians subject to you have believed and do believe that the Roman Pontiffs who have been and we who now are the Roman Pontiff and, those who in future will be successively as legitimate vicars of Christ and full of power in the highest degree, have received immediately from Christ Himself over the complete and universal body of the church militant, every jurisdiction of power which Christ as fitting head had in human life.

In the fourth place, if you have believed and now believe that all the Roman Pontiffs who have been and we who are, and others who will be in the future from the plentitude of past power and authority have been able, are able, and will be able directly by our own power and theirs both to judge all those subject to our jurisdiction and theirs, and to establish and delegate ecclesiastical judges to judge whomsoever we wish.

In the fifth place, if you have believed and now believe that to such an extent has been, is, and will be both pre-eminent authority together with juridical power of the Roman Pontiffs who have been, of us who are, and of those who in future will be, has been, is, and will be so extensive, that by no one have they been, can we be, or will they in the future be able to be judged; but they have been, we are, and they will be reserved for judgment by God alone; and that from our sentences and judgments it has not been possible nor will it be possible for an appeal to be made to any judges.

In the sixth place, if you have believed and still believe that the plentitude of the power of the Roman Pontiff extends so far that it is possible to transfer patriarchs, the Catholicon, the archbishops, bishops, abbots, and whatsoever other prelates from the offices in which they have been established to other offices of greater or lesser jurisdiction, or, as their sins demand, to demote, to depose, excommunicate, or to surrender them to Satan.

In the seventh place, if you have believed and still believe that the Pontifical authority cannot or ought not to be subject to any imperial or regal or other secular power, in so far as pertains to a judicial institution, to correction or to deposition.

In the eighth place, if you have believed and now believe that the Roman Pontiff alone is able to establish sacred general canons, to grant plenary indulgences to those who visit the thresholds of the Apostles, Peter and Paul, or to those who go to the Holy Land, or to any of the faithful who are truly and fully repentant and have confessed.

In the ninth place, if you have believed and do believe that all who have raised themselves against the faith of the Roman Church and have died in final impenitence have been damned and have descended to the eternal punishments of hell.

In the tenth place, if you have believed and still believe that the Roman Pontiff regarding the administration of the sacraments of the Church, can tolerate and even permit different rites of the Church of Christ, in order that they may be saved, provided that those matters are always preserved which belong to the integrity and necessity of the sacraments.

In the eleventh place, if you have believed and now believe that the Armenians, who are obedient to the Roman Pontiff in different parts of the world and who observe studiously and with devotion the forms and rites of the Roman Church in the administration of the sacraments and in ecclesiastical duties, fasts, and other ceremonies do well, and by doing this merit eternal life.

In the twelfth place, if you have believed and now believe that no one can be transferred from episcopal offices to the archiepiscopal, patriarchal, or to the Catholicon by his own authority, nor even by the authority of any secular leader whomsoever, whether he be king or emperor, or any one also distinguished by any such power or earthly office.

In the thirteenth place if you have believed, and still believe that the Roman Pontiff alone, when doubts arise regarding the Catholic faith, through authentic decision can impose the limit to which all must inviolably adhere, and that whatever by the authority of the keys handed to him by Christ, he determines to be true is true and Catholic, and what he determines to be false and heretical, must be so regarded.

In the fourteenth place, if you have believed and now believe that the New and Old Testaments in all their books, which the authority of the Roman Church has given to us, contain undoubted truth in all things.

[From the same letter to Consolator]

We ask if you have believed and now believe that there is a purgatory to which depart the souls of those dying in grace who have not yet made complete satisfaction for their sins. Also, if you have believed and now believe that they will be tortured by fire for a time and that as soon as they are cleansed, even before the day of judgment, they may come to the true and eternal beatitude which consists in the vision of God face to face and in love.

[From the same letter to Consolator]

(12) You have given responses which influence us to ask the following from you: first, concerning the consecration of chrism, whether you believe that the chrism can rightly and deservedly be consecrated by no priest who is not a bishop.

Second, whether you believe that the sacrament of confirmation cannot ordinarily be administered by any other than by the bishop by virtue of his office.

Third, whether you believe that by the Roman Pontiff alone, having a plentitude of power, the administration of the sacrament of confirmation can be granted to priests who are not bishops.

Fourth, whether you believe that those confirmed by any priests whatsoever, who are not bishops and who have not received from the Roman Pontiff any commission or concession regarding this, must be anointed again by a bishop or bishops.

[From the same letter to Consolator]

(15) After all the above mentioned, we are forced to wonder strongly that in a certain letter, which begins, "To the honorable Fathers in Christ," you retract fourteen chapters from the first fifty-three chapters. First, that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. Third, that children contract original sin from their first parents. Sixth, that souls separated from their bodies, when entirely cleansed, clearly see God. Ninth, that the souls of those departing in mortal sin descend into hell. Twelfth, that baptism destroys original and actual sins. Thirteenth, that Christ did not destroy a lower hell by descending into hell. Fifteenth, that the angels were created good by God. Thirtieth, that the pouring out of the blood of animals works no remission of sins. Thirty-second, those who eat of fish and oil on the days of fasts, shall not judge. Thirty-ninth, that having been baptized in the Catholic Church, if they become unfaithful and afterwards are converted, they must not be baptized again. Fortieth, that children can be baptized before the eighth day and that baptism cannot be by any liquid other than pure water. Forty-second, that the body of Christ after the words of consecration is the same in number as the body born from the Virgin and immolated on the Cross. Forty-fifth, that no one even a saint can consecrate the body of Christ, unless he is a priest. Forty-sixth, that it is necessary for salvation to confess all mortal sins perfectly and distinctly to one's own priest or with his permission (to another priest).