Ecclesiastical Law Quotes
This was a fairly radical constraint on what had been a traditional priestly prerogative throughout the ages. However, the penalty for such a sin and infraction was rather modest—a warning for the first offence, followed by reducing the cleric’s income. There were more serious punishments proscribed for repeated offenses, but typical of most reform efforts a newly prohibited activity carries a very light penalty. For example $20 fines for providing alcohol to a minor was the initial penalty in some states. A then current comparison can be made since elsewhere in this council dueling between Christians was also prohibited. But the penalty for even the first offence was excommunication.
The church attempted to retain its role as the premier Russian religion, and maintain its traditional influence and autonomy. It was not to be.
This detestable accusation completely ignores the fact that when the American Catholic Church had a raft of homosexual priests in the early 21st century, the Pope condemned this in the most uncertain terms. Child homosexual molestation is vehemently condemned by both Catholicism and Islam alike—also by straights and homosexual groups.
While the Visigoths had some very advanced legal principles, this law, quoted in its entirety is typical of the nations that were part of the Catholic world. The church and its doctrines were immune from any possible criticism, explicit or implicit. This is the most formalized and sophisticated compendium of laws of the so-called “barbaric peoples” of Europe. The compilation was in many ways a documentation of the traditional laws of the Visigoths that had evolved over hundreds of years.
William the Conqueror. This is one of the earliest government action separating some church functions from state functions.
Odo of Chatillon-Sur-Marne. Note that the “Divine Right” of monarchy has become a “Devine Command.” Also, that a king was educated (See {591629}) was totally unusual for the times.
This quotation illustrates how the power and mechanism of an established church operated to control ideas and maintain theological monopoly. In this case, no one could sell or rent any facility in the city to a cleric or church of any kind or persuasion without first having the approval of the Bishop who had theological control of that territory. Even Catholic scholars could not rent a room in the city unless their scholarship met with the Bishop’s approval. This was history with which the American Founding were very familiar, and wanted to avoid by adopting the 1st Amendment.
It is this proclamation and others like it that caused many of the American Founding Fathers to include the doctrine of separation of church and state. In this case, and many others, the government actually proscribed and controlled the prayers and the liturgy. See {617532} where the government proscribes the proportion of revenues that must be spent on the poor.
Gregory the Great. “Emoluments” included the income from all lands and other church property, gifts and tithes, and income of any sort. This formula characterized the division of resources for the better part of Christian history. By today’s standard, the proportion for these Bishops (there were those who chose poverty) and his household seems astoundingly high—his income and sustenance was the equal of all the priests in the bishopric. It illustrates the affluence of the bishops who were major forces in their territories. One of the rationales for such an affluent bishop (the assets were not all personal but he had control of them) was that he should be at least the equal of any in the area including kings and nobles for he was to have as much influence as they. It is difficult today to look at modern bishops and realize how their role, power, relative wealth, and influence has changed. Bishops had their own armies, judiciary, accountants, attorneys and were a government unto themselves.
