747. necessity of sheltering an usurpation under a pretence of law. 15. But, whatever sense other churches might have of the council of Sardice, it is very evident that it was not esteemed as a general council by the church of England, nor the authority thereof as to the matter of appeals ever allowed, till by base and unworthy arts the legatine power was forced upon these nations about four hundred years after the council of Cloveshoe1. Thus much is evident, that the council of Hatfield received all the general councils then received by the Christian church, which the council thus enumerates; the councils of Nice, Constantinople, Ephesus, Chalcedon, and the second at Constantinople; and at the same time the English church received a patriarchal council under pope Martin, but takes no notice of that at Sardice. And in the council of Calcuith the bishops of Ostia and Tudertum3, legates of Adrian bishop of Rome, proposed to the English bishops the receiving of six general councils only; and this was in the year 787, before which time, it is very well known, the church of Rome had received six general councils without that of Sardice, not including the disputed council of Constantinople against the worship of images. And in the mighty collections out of the councils made by Theodore archbishop of Canterbury in the seventh century, and by Egbert archbishop of York in the eighth, there is not so much as one canon from the Sardique council: but on the contrary the hundred-forty-first canon in the collection of Egbert is taken from the council of Nice, and asserts the authority of the metropolitan in his synod to be finals; though in his forty-eighth canon he speaks of carrying some questions to Rome for decision. 1 [See below, II, vii, 10, 15; viii, 7-17; ix, 1-4.] 2 Concil. Britan. Spelman I, 169, [Wilkins I, 52. See before, vii, 3.] 3 [The episcopus Tudertinus was bishop of Tuder (now Todi) in Umbria on the Tiber.] 4 Ibid. Spelman I, 293, [Wilkins I, 146. See below, I, xii, 12. Wilkins places this council of Cealchythe in the year 785 in accordance with the Saxon Chronicle.] 5 "[Statutum est quod judices alii non deberent esse, nisi quos ipse qui impetitur elegerit, aut quos consensu suo ejus primates auctoritate hujus sacræ sedis constituerunt; quia indignum est ut externis judicetur qui provinciales et a se electos debet habere judices."] Concil. Britan. Spelman I, 273, no. cxli, [Wilkins I, 110, no. cxliii.] 6 [In the edition of Wilkins this is no. xlix.] And in those which pass under the name of Elfric's canons the four first general councils are reckoned in this order, Nice, Constantinople, Ephesus, and Chalcedon, and are said to be observed as the four Gospels 7. And so far was the church of England from allowing the bishops of Rome to rehear a cause which had been determined in its provincial councils, much less to remove a cause from thence by appeal, that it appears from the council of Clarendon, that there was no appeal from the archbishops but in some cases to the courts of the kings; but on the contrary it was received as a part of the law of England, that no bishop could go out of England without the king's leave, and that the bishop of Rome could send no legate into England but upon the king's particular desire. And this was so manifest, that at the agreement betwixt Henry the First and pope Calixtus at Gisors in France that prelate consented to this as the right of the crown of England. And if the bishop of Rome had no power to call a bishop to Rome, nor send a legate to take cognizance of any matter in England, it will be past a doubt that the aforesaid canons of Sardice were never received in England, at least not in that sense which is pretended to by some men. And as this shows us how steadily the church of England acted up to the council of Nice without suffering any foreign power to break in upon it, so the long controversy about the legatine power will in its proper place lead us to consider when and how these measures came to be changed. But, this being said to show upon what foot the aforesaid council of Cloveshoe proceeded, and to assert the authority of provincial synods, it will be time to ask the reader's pardon for this digression, and return to view the further proceedings of the council of Cloveshoe. 16. But, whilst this council was thus careful to preserve the right and authority of the English church, yet that they 7 ["Pa feower sino as synd to heáldenne, swa swa ba feower Christes béc, on Christes geladunge. These four synods are to be observed, so as the four books of Christ, in Christ's church." Aelfr. c. xxxiii, Thorpe's Ancient Laws &c. P. 447] Concil. Britan. Spelman I, INETT, VOL. I. 581, [Wilkins I, 254. Compare the 8 [See below, II, xiii, 5.] R 747. 747. might give no offence to the bishop and church of Rome, nor omit any thing needful to a just deference and gratitude, this council appointed that in the observance of festivals, the canonical hours of prayer, and the litanies and rogations, the usages of the Roman church should be observed'. And, as a mark of their gratitude and obligation to the see of Rome, they erected festivals to the memory of Gregory the Great and Augustin the first archbishop of Canterbury, and appointed that the name of Augustin should have the next place in their litanies after that of Gregory". Nor were the prelates in the council of Cloveshoe less careful to do right to the trust God had put into their hands than to the authority of the church of England and their gratitude to the church of Rome. And therefore, amongst many excellent advices to the bishops, clergy, and people, the advice of Bede to Egbert was approved, and the clergy were obliged to learn the Creed and the Lord's Prayer in the English tongue, and teach them to the people, and to be able to explain in the English tongue the Offices of Baptism and the Lord's Supper+; and they were particularly required to be constant themselves, and encourage the people to be constant, in their attendance on the communion of the body and blood of Christ; to apply themselves to the study of the holy Scriptures; and, if they had not the knowledge of the Latin, they were required to learn some particular Offices in the English tongue7. A due observance of the Lord'sday was also recommended, and several mistakes concerning alms and penance were rectified 9. 17. Thus ended this council, to which the learned Du Pin thinks fit to give the title of a national council 1, though in proper speaking it seems to be no other than a provincial synod, consisting only of Cuthbert archbishop of Canterbury, who presided in it, and eleven suffragan bishops. And these were, for the kingdom of Kent, Dunnus bishop of Rochester: the bishops of the kingdom of Mercia were five; and these were Totta bishop of Leicester, Witta bishop of Lichfield, Podda bishop of Hereford, Milred bishop of Worcester, and 1 Can. 13, 15, 16. 4 Can. 10. 2 Can. 17. 5 Can. 22, [23.] 7 Can. 27. 8 Can. 14. [Du Pin, Eccles. Hist. Cent. viii, p. 127.] Alwight bishop of Sidnacester or Lindsey, for so this bishop 747is wrote by Malmesbury, though in the editions of the Council he is wrote bishop of Lindisfarne, and doubtless by a mistake, for Kinewulf was at this time bishop of Lindisfarne 2. The western English had two bishops present in this council; these were Hunferdus bishop of Winchester and Hirwald bishop of Sherborn. The East-Angles had only one bishop present here, and this was Heardulf bishop of Dummoc and Helmham 3. The East and South-Saxons had but two bishops; and these were Egwulf bishop of London and Sicga bishop of Selsey, both present in this council: which ended much to the honour of the English nation, giving a very remarkable instance of their care to preserve their rights. Egbert was at this time archbishop of York, but was not present in this council, nor any other bishop north of Humber, though there were at this time no less than four bishops within the kingdom of Northumberland, comprehending the bishop of Candida Casa now Whithern in Scotland. Ethelwald king of the Mercians and many of his nobility were present at this council, and many of the lower clergy. No sooner was this council finished, but the archbishop caused a copy of it to be despatched away to Boniface archbishop of Mentz. Nor was this council only sensible of that prelate's designs to raise the bishops of Rome to an authority the canons of the church had denied them, but he had the mortification to find great opposition from the French and German bishops: some of whom, seeing into the bottom of his design, refused to receive palls from Rome; and this after Boniface had sent thither and obtained the grant thereof; and the rest were generally uneasy under his le 2 [In the heading or introduction to the Council, both Spelman and Wilkins make the mistake; but in the actual record of the council, as printed by them both, bishop Alwig is rightly styled "Lindissæ provincia". Spelman I, 242, 245; Wilkins I, 94. Confusion of the two titles is very frequent, the inhabit ants or families of Lindsey, Lindisfaras, being called in Latin Lindisfari.] 3 [The name of Heardulf does not occur in the lists of the bishops of either see of the East-Angles. 4 Zachar. Epist., Concil. Labbe 747. gatine power. And (which was still a greater mortification) Boniface himself was so sensible of the corruption of the court he served, and complained thereof to pope Zachary in terms so reproachful, that he fell under the displeasure of that prelate for it 5. But it was not long before God put an end to his life and troubles, and in such a manner as ought to cover his memory from the reproach his misplaced zeal too justly deserved for it pleased God to suffer him to be martyred for the sake of Christ in the year 754o, as he was discharging the offices of his holy function in Friesland. CHAPTER XII. AB ANNO 753 AD ANNUM 792. 1. Dispute betwixt the emperor Philippicus and Constantine bishop of Rome: the occasion and effects thereof. 2. First rise of the controversy about images: occasion thereof. Italy thereby withdrawn from obedience to the emperor. 3. Baronius quarrels the Greek historians for their account of that controversy: the reasons thereof examined. The French called into Italy by the bishop of Rome. Pepin with his army conquers Lombardy. 4. Pepin gives Rome and its dependencies to the bishops thereof. 5. The French boast the greatness of the bishops of Rome is owing to them the ground thereof. The reasons of this digression. 6. Donation of Pepin thought to have given occasion to the pretended donation of Constantine the Great. Folly and impudence of that pretended grant. The ill returns to the French of their favours to the bishops of Rome. 7. Cuthbert archbishop of Canterbury dies. Egbert archbishop of York dies. His character. 8. Offa divides the province of Canterbury; sets up an archbishop's seat at Lichfield; gets a pall from Rome to colour his proceedings. 9. Confusions in our history as to the time when this archbishopric was erected and the persons who enjoyed that title. Bishops of Worcester, Hereford, Leicester, Sidnacester, Helmham, and Dummoc, made suffragans to the archbishop of Lichfield. 10. Council of Calcuith: the occasions and circumstances thereof. Division of the province of Canterbury said to be confirmed in this council. Legates of the bishop of Rome present at this council: occasion of their coming inquired into. VI, 1504, [Mansi XII, 324.] Baron. 5 Zachar. Epist. ibid. 6 [Rather, in the year 755. See Pagi on Baron. Annal. an. 755, xv —xvii.] |