Folio 349

Innocent X, 1644–1655

printed p. 317 · pdf p. 349

the Congregations held in the presence of most happily reigning Clement VIII and Paul V on the question of "Aids of Divine Grace," both under the name of Francis Payne, once Dean of the Roman Rota, and under the name of Fr. Thomas of Lemos, O.P., and of other prelates and theologians, who, as it is asserted, were present at the aforementioned Congregations, besides a certain autograph or exemplar of the Constitution of the same Paul V on the definition of the aforesaid question On Aids, and of the condemnation of the opinion or opinions of Louis Molina, S.J., His Holiness by the present decree declares and decrees that no trust at all is to be placed in the above-mentioned assertions, acts, on behalf of the opinion of the Brothers, O.S.D., as well as of Louis Molina and of the other religious, S.J., and in the autograph or exemplar of the above-mentioned Constitution of Paul V; and that nothing can or ought to be alleged by either side or by anyone whatsoever; but that on this aforesaid question the decrees of Paul V and Urban VIII, their predecessors, are to be observed.1

  1. When, indeed, the faculty of Louvain implored Innocent VII that by authority of the Holy See they might be allowed and be free to continue handing down the doctrine of their elders which is contained in the book of censorship of the Universities of Louvain and Douae, together with the apology of Louvain, and that it be declared by the same that the doctrine of grace efficacious by itself, and of predestination before foreseen merits has been condemned and weakened by no Apostolic decrees thus far, the Highest Pontiff (in a brief on the 7th day of Feb., 1694) in the reported words of the "Indiculus," "Profundiores vero etc." [see n. 142] attributed to St. Celestine I, replied: "We do not think it opportune at present to demand a more elaborate discussion of divine helps than that which was instituted by our predecessors, Clement VIII and Paul V." When finally the Jansenists, who, in so far as they could, had not ceased to foment disagreements, and called themselves "Augustinian Thomists," and pretended to battle against the Jesuits alone, lamented that through the Bull "Unigenitus" the doctrine of Sts. Augustine and Thomas had been condemned by the machinations of the Jesuits, Clement VI, who had published that Constitution, refuted those calumnies in the year 1718 by another (Constitution) which begins, "Pastoralis officii" sec. 3. Furthermore, Benedict XIII, who by the Constitution "Pretiosus" (May 26, 1727) confirmed the privileges of the Order of Preachers, prohibited, sec. 30, anyone from condemning in any way whatsoever the doctrine of St. Thomas and his school, and from ridiculing it as condemned in the Bull "Unigenitus." Finally, Clement XII (October 2, 1733) confirmed the decrees of Clement XI and Benedict XIII, and added this: "Yet, having discovered the mind of our predecessors, we do not wish either by our own or their praises conferred on the Thomistic school, which we approve and confirm by our repeated judgment, that there be any disparagement of the other Catholic schools which think differently from the same in explaining the efficacy of divine grace, and whose merits also are clear to the Holy See." He renewed the decrees of Paul V and of others and forbade (all) "from daring to brand any mark or theological censure on the same schools which have different opinions, and to assail their opinions by insults and invectives, until this Holy See shall decide that some definition and pronouncement must be made on the same controversies." ↩