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Bible Encyclopedias
Paris, Councils of
Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature
or (Concilium Luteciense, or Parisiense). Several such ecclesiastical synods were held at that city. Some of them are more noteworthy than others. We make room here only for those of special import.
1. The first was held in 360, according to the most common opinion, under Julian the Apostate, who was proclaimed emperor at Paris, in May, 360. St. Hilary had lately arrived in Gaul from Constantinople, and at his entreaty the heretical formulary of Ariminum (A.D. 359) was rejected., Among the fragments which remain to us of St. Hilary, we have a synodicnal letter from the bishops of this council to those of the East, in which they return thanks to God for having delivered them from the Arian heresy, and for having enabled them to learn the real sentiments from the Orientals. They then give an open profession and clear exposition of the doctrine of consubstantiality; they retract all that they had, through ignorance, done at Ariminum and promise to perform whatever the Orientals required of them, to the extent of deposing and excommunicating all in Gaul who should resist. Further, the bishops declared that those who had consented to suppress the word οὐσία, or substance, both at Ariminum and at Nice in Thrace, had been chiefly induced to do so by the false statement made by the Arian party, that the confession of faith which they were called upon to sign had had the sanction of the Oriental bishops, who, as they said, had been the first to introduce the use of this word in all the controversy with the Arians, "And we," they added, "received it, and have always preserved the use of it inviolably; we have used this word ὁμοούσιος to express the true and actual generation of the only Son of God. When we say that he is of one and the same substance, it is only to exclude the idea of creation, adoption, etc. We recognize no likeness worthy of him but that of true God to true God... We revoke all that we have done ill through ignorance and simplicity, and we excommunicate Auxentius, Ursaces, and Valens, Gajus Megasiuts and Justin." About this time several other councils were held in Gaul, by means of St. Hilary, upon the same subject. See Labbe, Conc. 2:821; Baroniusjp. 302, § 229; and Ragi, note 27.
2. Another important council was held at Paris in 557, under king Childebert; the archbishops of Bourges, Rouen, and Bordeaux were present. Ten canons were published. Among these are most important:
1. Against those who detain Church property.
4. Against marriages within the degrees prohibited; forbids to marry a brother's widow or wife's sister.
8. Enacts that the election of the bishop shall be left free to the people and clergy; that no one shall be intruded into a see by the prince, or contrary to the will of the metropolitan and the provincial bishops.
These canons are subscribed by fifteen bishops, among whom were S. Pretextatus of Rouen, Leo of Bordeaux, Germanus of Paris, and Euphronius of Tours. See Labbe, Conc. v. 814.
3. The next Parisian council of importance occurred in 573. Thirty-two bishops (six of whom were metropolitans) attended. It was called to terminate a difference between Chilperic and Sigebert, the two brothers of the king Gontram. Promotus, who had been uncanonically consecrated bishop of Chateaudun by Ogidius of Rheims, was deposed, but was not removed, apparently, until the death of Sigebert, See Labbe, Conc. v. 918.
4. In the spring of 577 a council of the Church was convened at Paris by Chilperic; forty-five bishops were present, who deposed Pretextatus, bishop of Rouen, upon a false accusation of having favored the revolt of Merovee, the king's son, and plotted his death. (Although Pretextatnus was innocent of the charge of conspiracy against the king in favor of Merovee [or Merovig], who was his grandsons he had been guilty of marrying the latter to Brunehilde, the widow of his uncle, which as also alleged against him. Sigebert appears to have used intimidation to induce, the bishops to condemn Pretextatus. The place of his banishment was probably Jersey.) St. Gregory of Tours refused his consent to the act. Pretextatus was banished and Melanius put into his place. See Labbe, Conc. v. 925.
5. In 615 a council was convened under king Clotaire II. This was the most numerously attended of the Gallic councils up to that period. Seventy-nine bishops from all the newly united provinces of Gaul were present. Fifteen canons have been preserved, but others probably were published. Among the most noteworthy enactments are:
1. Declares elections of bishops made without consent of the metropolitan and the bishops of the province, and of the clergy and people of the city, or made by violence, cabal, or bribery, to be null and void.
2. Forbids bishops to appoint their own successors; forbids to appoint another to the see during the lifetime of the actual bishop, except the latter be incapable of managing his Church.
4. Declares that no secular judge may try or condemn any priest, deacon, or other ecclesiastic, without first giving warning to the bishop.
14. Forbids marriage with a brother's widow; and other incestuous marriages.
15. Forbids a Jew to exercise any public office over Christians, and in case of his obtaining such an office, contrary to canon, insists upon his being baptized with all his family.
Most of the other canons refer to the property of the Church and of ecclesiastics. King Clotaire published an edict for the execution of these canons, with some modification however, since he commanded that the bishop elected according to canon 1 should not be consecrated without the leave of the prince. See Labbe, Conc. v. 1649.
6. In November, 825, a council convened, and the bishops who attended addressed a synodal letter to the emperors Louis and Lothaire, in which they declare their approval of the letter of Hadrian to the emperor Constantine and his mother Irene. so far as relates to his rebuke for their audacity and rashness in removing and breaking the images, but his command to adore them (eas adorare) they refuse to approve, styling all such adoration superstitious and sinful; they also declare that in their opinion the testimonies which he had collected from the holy fathers in support of his view, and had inserted in his letter, were very little to the purpose. They further declare that, without approving the acts of the Council of Constantinople in 754, they condemn the second Council of Nicaea, and hold that it was no light error on the part of those who composed it to assert not only that images should be venerated and adored (coli et adorari), and called by the title of holy, but that even some degree of holiness was to be attained through their means (verum etiam sanctimoniiam ab eis se adipisci professi sunt). They declared their adhesion to the Caroline books. See Goldast, In Dec. Imp. de Imag.; Labbe, Conc. 7:1542.
7. Another important synod was held at Paris June 6, 859, under Louis le Debonnaire. It was composed of the four provinces of Rheims, Sens, Tours, and Rouen; twenty-five bishops attended, besides the four metropolitans of the above-mentioned provinces. The council was held in the church of St. Stephen the elder. The acts of the council are divided into three Books of Canons.
Book I relates to ecclesiastical discipline.
Canon
7 Forbids to baptize except at the canonical times, without necessity.
8. Directs that persons baptized in illness, beyond the proper canonical times for baptism, shall not be admitted to holy orders, according to the twelfth canon of Neoceasarea.
16. Declares that all property amassed by bishops and priests after their ordination shall be considered as belonging to their churches, and that their heirs shall have no part of it.
18. Declares that the pastors of the Church ought to possess the property of the Church without being possessed by it, and that in the possession of it they ought to despise it. It condemns also those worldly people who are ever complaining that the Church is too rich.
26. Orders that one or two provincial councils shall be held annually.
27. Is intended as a check upon the chorepiscopi; forbids them to confirm and to perform any other function peculiar to the episcopate.
44. Forbids women to take the veil until thirty days after their husbands death, at which time they were by the emperor's edict free to marry again.
45. Forbids women to touch the sacred vessels, or to give the vestments to the priests; also forbids them to give the holy Eucharist to the people: an abuse which it seems had crept in in some places.
47. Forbids to say mass in private houses, or in gardens and chapels, except when on travel, and in extreme cases when people are very far from a church.
48. Forbids priests to say mass alone.
50. Insists upon the proper observation of Sunday, and directs that a humble supplication should be addressed to the prince, entreating him to stop all pleadings and markets on that day, and to forbid all work.
Book II relates to the duties of princes and lay persons.
Canon 10. Condemns the error of those persons who think that, having been baptized, they must eventually be saved, whatever sins they may commit.
Book III contains a collection of twenty-seven of the foregoing canons, which the bishops forwarded to the emperors Louis and Lothaire, specially requesting the execution of some of the number.
See Labbe, Conc. 7:1590.
8. In the autumn of the year 849 a council convened at Paris, which was composed of twenty-two bishops from the provinces of Tours, Sens, Rheims, and liouen. These prelates addressed a letter to Nomenoi, the duke of Bretagne, concerning his proceedings in the Council of Rennes in the preceding year, on which occasion he had taken for his own use the property of the Church, which, they stated, was the patrimony of the poor. He had driven the lawful occupiers from their sees, and had put mercenaries and thieves in their places; and he had favored the revolt of Lambert, count of Nantes, against king Charles. See Labbe, Conc. 8:58.
9. The next important ecclesiastical synod at Paris was held Oct. 16,1050, in the presence of king Henry I. Many bishops attended. A letter from Beranger was read, which gave great offense to the council, and he was condemned, together with his accomplices-also a book by John Scotus upon the Eucharist, whence the errors which they had condemned were taken. The council declared that if Beranger and his followers would not retract, the whole army of France, with the clergy at their head in their ecclesiastical vestments, would march to find them, wherever they might be, and would besiege them, until they should submit to the Catholic faith, or should be taken in order to be put to death. (See VERCEIL, COUNCIL OF) (1050). See Labbe, Conc. 9:1059.
10. Some time after Easter, 1147, a synod was convened at Paris by pope Eugenius III. Many cardinals and learned men attended it. The errors of Gilbert de Poiree, bishop of Poitiers, upon the subject of the Trinity, were examined; two doctors, Adam of Petit Pont, and Hugo of Champfleuri, attacking him vigorously. He was accused chiefly on the four following grounds:
1. Quod videlicet assereret Divinam Essentiam non esse Deum." (That the Divine Essence was not God.)
2. "Quod proprietates personarum non essent ipse personae." (That the properties of the Divine Persons were not the Persons themselves.)
3. "Quod theologicae persone in nulla preedicarentur propositione." (That the Divine Persons are not an attribute, in any sense.)
4. "Quod Divina Natura non esset incarnata." (That the Divine Nature was not incarnate.)
St. Bernard, who was present, disputed with Gilbert; but the pope, in default of certain evidence, deferred the decision of the question to a council to be held inn the year following. See Labbe, Conc. 10:1105, 1121.
11. A synod was held in 1186. It was an assembly of all the French archbishops, bishops, and chief seigneurs, whom the king, Philip Augustus, desired to exhort his subjects to make the voyage to Jerusalem in defense of the Catholic faith. See Labbe, Conc. 10:1747.
12. In another council, held three years afterwards by the same king, the payment of the Saladine tenth was ordered, i.e. the tenth of everyone's revenue and goods for the succor of the Holy Land. See Labbe, Conc. 10:1763.
13. The next important Parisian council was held in 1201 by Octavian, the pope's legate, assisted by several bishops. Evraud of Nevers, the governor of the district, said to have been one of the Vaudois, was convicted of heresy; and having been carried to Nevers, was there burned. See Labbe, Conc. 11:24.
14. A council was held in 1210, in which the errors of Amauri, lately dead, were condemned, and fourteen of his followers sentenced to be burned. Also Aristotle's Metaphysics, which had been brought to Paris and translated into Latin, shared the same fate; and a decree was published forbidding. the book to be transcribed, read, or kept, under pain of excommunication. — Labbe, Conc. 11:49.
15. In 1213 Robert de Courdon, cardinal and legate, whom the pope had sent into France to preach the Crusade, convened a synod at Paris. Several canons of discipline were published, which are divided into four parts.
Part I refers to the secular clergy, and contains twenty canons.
1. Enjoins modesty of deportment; that the hair be kept cut short; forbids talking in church.
9. Forbids to employ a priest to say mass who is unknown, except he have letters from his own bishop.
13. Forbids the division of benefices and prebends.
14. Forbids the temporary or permanent appointment of rural deans in consideration of money received.
19. Forbids to possess more than one benefice with the cure of souls. Part II relates to the regulars, and contains twenty-seven canons.
1. Forbids to take money from any one entering upon the monastic state. Forbids monks to possess property.
2. Forbids to receive any one into the religious life under eighteen years of age.
3. Enjoins bishops to cause the suspicious little doors found in abbeys or priories to be blocked up.
4 and 5. Exhort to charity and hospitality towards the poor.
9. Forbids monks to wear white leather gloves, fine shoes and stockings, etc., like those used by the laity; to use any other cloth save white or black; and to dine out of the refectory.
Part III relates to nuns, etc., also to abbots, abbesses, etc., and contains twenty-one canons.
3. Forbids nuns to leave their convent in order to visit their relations, except for a very short time; and directs that then they shall have an attendant with them.
4. Forbids them to dance in the cloisters, or anywhere else; and declares that it is better to dig or plow on Sunday than to dance.
8. Directs that abbesses who fail in their duty shall be suspended; and, if they do not amend, shall be deposed.
9. Directs that abbots, priors, and other superiors who offend in the same manner shall be punished.
11. Directs that they who lead an irregular life shall be deposed.
17. Forbids abbots and priors to threaten or maltreat any who may propose a measure to the chapter for the reformation of the house or of its head.
Part IV relates to the duty of bishops and archbishops.
1. Directs them to keep their hair cut round, so as never to project beyond the mitre; and gives other directions for their proper conversation.
2. Forbids them to hear matins in bed, and to occupy themselves with worldly business and conversation while the holy office is being said.
4. Forbids them to hunt, etc., to wear precious furs, and to play with dice.
5. Directs that they shall cause some good book to be read at the beginning and end of their repasts.
6. Enjoins hospitality and charity.
15. Forbids them to permit duels, or hold courts of justice in cemeteries or holy places.
16. Enjoins the abolition of the Festival of Fools, celebrated every 1st of January.
17. Directs that a synod be held every year. Orders also confirmation, and the correction of disorders in the dioceses.
18. Directs that they shall not permit women to dance in cemeteries or in holy places, nor work to be done on Sundays.
See Labbe, Conc. 11:57.
16. Jan. 28, 1226, another Parisian synod was convened by a papal legate to consider the affairs of England and of the Albigenses. In consequence of the decision, Louis VIII ceased from his pretensions against England, and turned his arms against the Albigenses. The .legate, in the pope's name, excommunicated Raymond, count of Toulouse, with his accomplices, and confirmed to the king and his heirs forever the right to the lands of the said count, as being a condemned heretic. Amauri, count de Montfort, and Guy, his uncle, ceded to the king whatever rights they possessed over the lands in question. On March 20, same year, the king, Louis VIII, convoked another council upon.the. subject of the Albigenses. Raynald, 1:554 (note). See Labbe, Conc. 11:300.
17. A synod was convened in Paris in 1255, by Henry, archbishop of Sens, and five other archbishops, on occasion of the murder of a chanter of the cathedral church of Chartres. In this council the head of the order of preaching friars complained of certain things said and preached by some seculars, doctors in theology, to the prejudice of his order. William de S. Amour and Laurent, both doctors-regent in theology at Paris, being examined upon the subject by the prelates, denied the justice of the charge. Subsequently S. Amour wrote a book, entitled The Perils of the Last Days, in which he attacked the preaching friars without mercy. At last the dispute between the latter and the University of Paris became so warm that St. Louis was obliged to send to Rome to appease it. The pope, however, sided entirely with the friars. See Labbi, Conc. xi, .738.
18. A council was held March 21, 1260, by order of St. Louis, to implore the aid of heaven against the conquests of the Tartars. It was ordered that processions should be made, blasphemy punished, luxury in dress and at table repressed, tournaments prohibited for two years, and all sports whatever put a stop to, except practice with the bow and cross-bow. In the following year, in another council, all these acts were renewed. See Labbe, Conc. 11:793.
19. A synod was held in December, 1281, composed of four archbishops and twenty bishops. Much complaint was made of the conduct of the mendicant order, who persisted in preaching and hearing confession in spite of the bishops, upon pretext of having the pope's privilege for doing so. A bull by Martin IV, bearing date Jan. 10, 1280, was, however, produced, which confirmed the claim of the Franciscan friars; but, nevertheless, with this clause, that those persons who chose to confess to the friars should be bound to confess also once a year, at the least, to their own priest, according to the order of the Council of Lateran; and that the friars should sedulously exhort them to do so. See Doboulay, 3:465.
20. In 1302, April 10, a council convened at Paris to consider how to heal the difference between the king, Philip the Fair, and the pope, Bonifacius VIII. The former in the preceding year had thrown into prison Bernard de Saisset, bishop of Pamiers; upon which the pope wrote to Philip complaining of the act, accompanying the letter with the bull Ausculta Fili, in which he plainly bids him not deceive himself by thinking that he had no superior, and that he was independent of the head of the ecclesiastical hierarchy. Philip assembled his barons with the prelates at Notre Dame, and laid before them his ground of complaint against the pope and his bull, which he caused to be read. Thereupon the barons addressed a letter to the cardinals, in which, in very strong language, they complained of the pope's conduct in pretending to consider the king as his subject, and that he held his temporal authority of him. The prelates were more backward in delivering their opinion, and endeavored to excuse the pope, and to maintain peace. This, however, was not suffered, and they were clearly informed that if any one of them presumed to hold a contrary opinion to that of Philip and his lords, he would be looked upon as the enemy of the sovereign and kingdom. They then addressed to the pope a letter conceived in a much milder strain than that of the barons, in which they implored him to be cautious, and to preserve the ancient union between the Church and State; and, moreover, to revoke the mandamus by which he had cited them to appear at Rome. The answer of the cardinals to the barons was to the effect that the pope had not absolutely declared that the king ought to acknowledge that he held the temporality of him, a statement which the pope himself in his answer to the bishops by no means corroborated. This was not strictly speaking an ecclesiastical council, but a national assembly; two others of the same kind were held in the following year, upon the subject of the differences between the king and the pope. In September, in that year, the latter drew up a bull excommunicating Philip, but on the eve of the very day on which he had intended to publish it he was seized by William de Nogaret, the French general, and though released from confinement almost immediately, he never recovered the mortification and sorrow which this blow inflicted on him, and on Oct. 11, 1303, he died at Rome. See Labbe, Conc. 11:1474.
21. In 1310 Philip de Marigni, archbishop of Sens, convened a synod at Paris to deliberate upon the case of the Templars; after mature consideration, it was decided that some should be merely discharged from their engagement to the order, that others should be sent freely away, after having accomplished the course of penance prescribed; that others should be strictly shut up in prison, many being confined for life; and, lastly, that some, as, for instance, the relapsed, should be given over to the secular arm, after having been degraded by the bishop if in holy orders. All this was accordingly done, and fifty Templars were burned in the fields near the abbey of St. Antony, not one of whom confessed the crimes imputed to them, but on the contrary to the last they maintained the injustice of their sentence. See Labbe Conc. 11:1335.
22. A council was held March 3, 1323; William de Melum, archbishop of Sens, presided. A statute of four articles or canons was published, which was almost word for word identical with that drawn up in the Council of Sens, A.D. 1320, under the same prelate.
Canon
1. Directs that the people shall fast on the eve of the holy sacrament.
2. Directs that an interdict shall be laid upon any place in which a clerk is detained by a secular judge.
4. Of the life, conversation, and dress of clerks. See Labbe, Conc. 11:1711.
23. On March 6, 1346, a council was held, presided, over by the same archbishop, assisted by five bishops. Thirteen canons were published.
1. Complains of the treatment of the clergy by the secular judges, and sets forth that the former were continually imprisoned, put to the torture, and even to death.
10. Directs that beneficed clerks shall employ a part of their revenue in keeping in order and repairing their church and parsonage.
13. Confirms the Bull of John XXII, given May 7,1327, by which the indulgence of the Angelus is given to those who repeat it three times at night.
See Labbe, Conc. 11:1908.
24. A national council was held at Paris in 1395, at which the Latin patriarchs of Alexandria and Jerusalem were present, together with seven archbishops, forty-six bishops, and a large number of abbots, deans, and doctors in theology. The object of the council, convoked by Charles VI, was to consider the best method of putting an end to the schism caused by the rival popes Benedict XIII and Clement VII. The Eastern patriarch, Simon of Alexandria, was unanimously elected to preside. The conclusion arrived at (Feb. 2) by the majority, was that the best means of securing the peace of the Church would be for both claimants to resign their pretensions. The king's uncles, the dukes of Berri and Burgundy, were in consequence sent as ambassadors to Rome to Benedict. See Labbe, Conc. 11:2511, Appendix.
25. Another national council was held May 22, 1398; convoked by the same prince. There were present, besides the regular Alexandrian patriarch Simon, the Latin patriarch of Alexandria, eleven archbishops, sixty bishops, and an immense number of abbots, deputies of universities, and others of the clergy. Simon Cramand opened the council. In the second session, held in July, it was a reel that the best way of bringing Benedict to reason was to deprive him not only of the power of collating to benefices, but of the entire exercise of his authority. For this purpose the king published, July 27, his letters patent, entirely suspending the pope's authority in the kingdom: this edict was published at Avignon, where Benedict then was, in September. This suspension lasted until May 30, 1403, when the king revoked it, and promised, in his own name and that of his realm, true obedience to Benedict XIII. See Spicil. 6:157.
26. A national council, composed of clergy from all parts of France, was held in 1406, to take measures for terminating the schism. The council resooled to demand the convocation of a general council, and to withdraw from the obedience of Benedict XIII. The withdrawal was carried into effect on August 7, and the pope was forbidden to take any money out of the country. In the following session, held at St. Martin's, certain theologians and canonists discussed the question, some speaking in favor of Benedict, and others against him; and in the last session, Dec. 20, the king's advocate declared his adhesion to the demand of the university for a general council, and an entire withdrawal from the obedience of Benedict; upon a division both these points were carried. After this, both Benedict XIII and Gregory XII severally promised to renounce the pontificate for the sake of peace, neither of them, however, really purposing to do so; and in 1408, Gregory having created four cardinals, in spite of the opposition of those then existing, the latter withdrew from his obedience; appealing to a general council and to his successor. In answer to this appeal, Benedict published a bull excommunicating all persons whatsoever, even kings and princes, who refused to resort to conference as the means of restoring peace to the Church, etc. This bull was condemned at Paris, and torn up as inimical to the king's majesty. Pedro of Luna was declared to be schismatical, obstinate, and heretical, and every person forbidden to style him any longer either Benedict, pope, or cardinal, or to obey him, etc.
27. A national council was held in 1408, convoked to deliberate upon the government of the Church, and the presentations to benefices: first, The declaration of the favorers and adherents of Pedro of Luna was read; then a great number of articles were drawn up, upon the manner in which the French Church should be governed during the neutrality. These articles come under five principal heads.
1. Concerning the absolution of sins and censures reserved ordinarily for the pope; for these the council permits that recourse be had to the penitentiary of the Holy See (the president of the penitential court at Rome, an office said to have been established by Benedict II in 634); or, if that cannot be, to the ordinary.
2. Concerning dispensations for irregularities, and for marriage. In these cases recourse was to be had to provincial councils.
3. Concerning the administration of justice, for which purpose it was ordered that the archbishops should hold a council yearly with their sumffragans; the monks to do the same.
4. As to appeals, the last court of appeal was declared to be a provincial council.
5. As to presentations to benefices, it was ruled that the election of prelates should be made freely and according to right rule; that the election of bishops should be confirmed by the metropolitan, and those of archbishops by the primate, or by the provincial council. In fact, the provincial council was made the substitute in all those matters which were usually carried to the pope.
It was further resolved that the revenue of all benefices enjoyed by the followers of Pedro of Luna should be seized and put into the king's hands. See Labbe, Conc. 11:2518.
28. A synod convened in 1429, from March 1 to April 23, by call of John de Nanton, archbishop of Sens, who was assisted by the bishops of Chartres, Paris, Meaux, and Troyes, his suffragans; also by the proctors of the bishops of Auxerre and Nevers, and a great number of abbots and other ecclesiastics. Forty regulations, relating to the duties and conduct of ecclesiastics, monks, and regular canons, the celebration of marriage, and the dispensation of banns, were drawn up. The following are the most remarkable;
1. Orders canons and other clerks connected with the churches to celebrate divine service in an edifying, manner, to chant the Psalms reverently, pausing between the verses, so that one side of the choir should not begin before the other had finished.
4. Exhorts the clergy to act as models of piety and correct behavior to the laity; not to be careless in doing their duties, and not to accept any benefice merely for the sake of the income to be derived from it.
8. Excludes from entering the church for three months bishops who raise to the priesthood persons of irregular life and ignorant of the epistles, gospels, and other parts of the holy office.
Other regulations refer to the conduct of curates, and direct them to exhort their parishioners to confession five times a year, viz. at Easter Whitsuntide, the Assumption, All Saints, and Christmas, and also at the beginning of the New Year; others relate to the conduct of abbots, abbesses, priors of the orders of St. Benedict and St. Augustine, prescribing annual chapters, modesty of apparel and gesture, etc.; and forbids money to be exacted from any one entering upon a monastic life.
Regulation 25. Forbids barbers, and other persons in trade, and merchants to exercise their calling on Sundays and festivals.
32 and 33. Forbid the celebration of marriages out of the parish church, and too great laxity in dispensations of banns.
See Labbe, Conc. 12:392.
29. An important synod, sometimes called the Council of Sens, was held in 1528, from Feb. 3 to Oct. 9, in the church of the Great Augustines. Cardinal Antoine du Prat, archbishop of Sens and chancellor of France, presided. He was assisted by seven bishops, viz. the bishops of Chartres, Auxerre, Meaux, Paris, Orleans, Novers, and Troyes. The objects of the council were chiefly to condemn the errors of Luther, and to reform the discipline of the Church. Sixteen decrees were published relating to the faith, and forty upon discipline. Among the first the following are the principal:
1. Declares that the Church Catholic is one, and cannot err.
2. That it is visible.
3. That the Church is represented by an oecumenical council, which has universal authority in determining questions of faith, etc.
4. That to the Church it belongs to determine the authenticity of the canonical books, and to settle the sense of Holy Scripture.
5. That the apostolical traditions are certain and necessary, and to be firmly believed.
6. That the constitutions and customs of the Church are to be submitted to with respect, and her rule of conduct to be obeyed.
7. That seasons of fasting and abstinence are to be observed under pain of anathema.
8. That the celibacy of the clergy being ordered by the Latin Church, having been always practiced and enjoined by the second Council of Carthage, as a law ordained in the apostolical times; they who teach the contrary are to be treated as heretics.
9. That monastic vows are not at variance with Christian liberty, and are to be kept.
10. That they who take from the number of sacraments, and who deny their efficacy to confer grace, are to be treated as heretics. This decree treats of each sacrament in detail.
11. That the necessity of the sacrifice of the mass is supported by several passages of Holy Scripture, especially by Luke 22. That this holocaust, this victim for sin, this continual sacrifice, is the "pure offering" of which the prophet Malachi speaks.
12. After refuting the opinions of Luther upon the subjects of purgatory and of prayer for the dead, this decree goes on to state that, after baptism, the guilt of sin being remitted, there still remains the temporal penalty to be paid, so that sinners may yet be compelled to expiate their faults in the under world, and that it is a salutary custom to offer the holy sacrifice for the dead.
13. Concerning the worship of saints, they declare it to be firmly established in the Church that the saints hear our prayers, that they are alive to our sorrows, and feel Joy in seeing us happy; and that Holy Scripture proves this.
14. Declares that it is not idolatry to venerate imaged; that the intention is to honor them whom they represent, and remind us of and make us imitate their holy actions.
15. That man's free-will does not exclude grace; that the latter is not irresistible; that God does predestinate his and choose us, but that he will glorify those only who make their calling and election sure by good works.
16. That faith in no wise excludes works, especially those of charity; and that men are not justified by faith only. Then follows a list containing thirty-nine errors maintained by the heretics of the time. Of the forty decrees on discipline the following may be noticed:
3-9. Relate to persons to be admitted to holy orders or to any benefices, and enact that they who are admitted to holy orders without being properly qualified are to be suspended until they are sufficiently instructed.
By canon 11 curates are compelled to residence, and to instruct their parishioners.
In 16 care is directed to be taken with the psalmody, and all profane tunes upon church-organs were to be scrupulously avoided.
33. Forbids printing the Holy Scriptures and works of the fathers without the consent of the diocesan.
34. Orders all persons to bring all books in their possession relating to faith or morals to their bishop for examination.
36. Of proper persons to be-licensed to preach. See Labbe, Conc. 14:432.
30. March 13, 1612, a council convened, and was presided over by cardinal du Peron, archbishop of Sens. The book of Edmund Ricker concerning the ecclesiastical power was condemned. See Labbe, Conc. 15:1628.
These files are public domain.
McClintock, John. Strong, James. Entry for 'Paris, Councils of'. Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/tce/p/paris-councils-of.html. Harper & Brothers. New York. 1870.
