Pius VI, 1775-1799

religiously trained by them; for this is the effect of baptism, which, though it be unlawful, nevertheless is true and valid.

Errors Concerning Duelling¹

[Condemned in the Constitution, "Detestabilem," Nov. 10, 1752]

1491. 1. A military man who would be considered fearful, timid, abject, and unfit for military offices unless he offers or accepts a duel, and hence would be deprived of an office by which he supports himself and his family, or who would be perpetually deprived of the hope of promotion otherwise due him and merited by him, is free from guilt and penalty, whether he offers a duel or accepts one.

1492. 2. Those who accept a duel, or even provoke a duel for the sake of protecting their honor, or of avoiding the disrepute of men, can be excused when they know for certain that the combat will not take place, inasmuch as it will be prevented by others.

1493. 3. A leader or military officer who accepts a duel through grave fear of losing his reputation or his office, does not incur the ecclesiastical penalties brought by the Church against duelists.

1494. 4. It is permitted in the natural state of man to accept and to offer a duel to preserve one's fortunes with honor, when their loss cannot be prevented by any other means.

1495. 5. This permission, claimed for the natural state, can also be applied to the state of the commonwealth which is badly regulated, that is to say, in which justice is openly denied, either because of the negligence or the wickedness of the magistracy.

Condemned and prohibited as false, scandalous, and pernicious.

CLEMENT XIII 1758–1769 CLEMENT XIV 1769–1774

PIUS VI 1775–1799

Mixed Marriages in Belgium²

[From the Rescript of Pius VI to Card. de Franckenberg, Archbishop of Mechlin, and to the Bishops of Belgium, July 13, 1782]

1496. . . . And therefore we must not depart from the uniform opinion of our predecessors and from ecclesiastical discipline, which do not approve marriages between parties who are both heretics, or between a Catholic