dation, and thereby bestow his time and labour less profitably for the common cause. That maxim answered admirably, when the end was the advancement of a spiritual kingdom, peace, and truth, and righteousness, the honour of God, and happiness of mankind. He might then well say, that Christ is preached, wheresoever and by whomsoever, I do, and will, rejoice. But the case was quite altered when conversions to a nominal more than real christianity, were made the instru ments of a new sort of conquest, mere engines for extending ecclesiastical dominion. Constantinople could do a good deal in this way, but Rome still more.

I shall mention another excellent piece of papal policy, first introduced by Damasus, near the end of the fourth century, and commonly called the legatine power. The introduction of this practice, and what gave rise to it, I shall give you from our English biographer's history of that pope." Acholius, "bishop of Thessalonica, was the first who enjoyed, under "Damasus, the title of the pope's vicar. He was nominated "to this office, in east Illyricum, on the following occasion: "Illyricum, comprising all ancient Greece, and many pro"vinces on the Danube, whereof Sirmium was the capital, "had, ever since the time of Constantine, belonged to the "western empire. But in the year 379, Dacia and Greece were, by Gracian, disjoined from the more westerly pro"vinces, and added, in favour of Theodosius, to the eastern "empire, being known by the name of east Illyricum, whereof "Thessalonica, the metropolis of Macedon, was the chief "city. The bishops of Rome, as presiding in the metropolis "of the empire, had begun to claim a kind of jurisdiction, or "rather inspection, in ecclesiastical matters, over all the pro"vinces of the western empire; which was the first great step "whereby they ascended to the supremacy, they afterwards. "claimed and established. This Damasus was unwilling to "resign, with respect to Illyricum, even after that country "was dismembered from the western, and added to the eastern "empire. In order, therefore, to maintain his claim, he ap-. "pointed Acholius, bishop of Thessalonica, to act in his

stead; vesting in him the power which he pretended to have "over those provinces. Upon the death of Acholius, he con"ferred the same dignity on his successour Anysius, as did "the following popes on the succeeding bishops of Thessalo"nica; who, by thus supporting the pretensions of Rome, "became the first bishops, and, in a manner, the patriarchs of "east Illyricum, for they are sometimes distinguished with "that title. This, however, was not done without opposition, "the other metropolitans not readily acknowledging for their

"superiour one who, till that time, had been their equal. Sy "ricius, who succeeded Damasus, enlarging the power claim. "ed by his predecessor, decreed, that no bishop should be "ordained in east Illyricum without the consent and approba "tion of the bishop of Thessalonica. But it was some time "before this decree took place. Thus were the bishops of "Thessalonica first appointed vicegerents of the bishops of "Rome, probably in the year 382. The contrivance of Da"masus was notably improved by his successours, who, in "order to extend their authority, conferred the title of their "vicars, and the pretended power annexed to it, on the most "eminent prelates of other provinces and kingdoms, engaging "them thereby to depend upon them, and to promote the 66 authority of their see, to the utter suppression of the ancient rights and liberties both of bishops and synods. This dig "nity was, for the most part, annexed to certain sees, but "sometimes conferred on particular persons. The institution "of vicars was, by succeeding popes, improved into that of "legates; or, to use De Marca's expression, the latter institu"tion was grafted on the former. The legates were vested "with a far greater power than the vicars; or, as pope Leo expresses it, were admitted to a far greater share of his care, "though not to the plenitude of his power. They were sent, "on proper occasions, into all countries, and never failed ex "erting, to the utmost stretch, their boasted power, oppress "ing, in virtue of their paramount authority, the clergy as "well as the people, and extorting from both large sums, to "support the pomp and luxury in which they lived."

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Thus far our historian. Nothing, indeed, could be better calculated, for both extending and securing their authority, than thus engaging all the most eminent prelates in the differ ent countries of christendom, from a principle of ambition, as well as interest, to favour their claims. Rome was already gotten too far, as we have seen, above the episcopal sees of the west, for any of them to think of coping with her, and was, besides, too distant to excite their envy. But it would greatly gratify the covetousness, as well as the pride and vanity, of those bishops whom she was thus pleased to distinguish, to be, by her means, raised considerably above their peers and neigh bours.

Add to this, that not only the ambitious views of individuals served to promote the schemes of Rome, but the general am bition of the clerical order greatly forwarded her views. The western empire soon came to be divided into a number of in dependent states and kingdoms. Now in the form into which the church had been moulded before the division, a foundation

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had been laid for incessant interferings and bickerings, in every country, between the secular powers and the ecclesiastical. In these interferings, the principal advantage of the latter arose from the union that subsisted among the churches of different countries, as members of one great polity. And even this connexion, (however possible it might have been to preserve it for the single purpose of promoting piety and virtue) it was absolutely impossible to preserve, for the purpose of spiritual dominion, unless they were united under a common head. The republican form of any kind, democratical oraristocratical,could never answer in such a situation of affairs. Not are only commonwealths slower in their operations than the exigencies of such a state would admit, but they can do nothing without the authority of a legislative council; and this it would be in the power of a few temporal princes totally to obstruct, either by preventing them from assembling, or by dispersing them when assembled. And from any state, or king dom, it would be in the power of the chief magistrate to prevent a deputation being sent. The monarchical form, therefore, supported by the prejudices and superstition of the people, was the only adequate means both of preserving and of extending the high privileges, honours, titles, and immunities, claimed universally by the sacred order, and which they most strenuously contended for, as the quintessence of christianity, the sum of all that the Son of God had purchased for mankind. This could not fail to induce them to put themselves under the protection of the only bishop in the west, who was both able and willing to support their bold pretensions.

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I must likewise add, however unlikely, that the ambition of secular princes concurred in the establishment and exaltation of the hierarchy. Nothing can be more evident, than that it was the interest of the princes of christendom, and their people, to combine against it. But though this was the general and most lasting interest of all the states of Europe, what was, or at least was conceived to be, the immediate interest of a particular prince, or state, might be to favour the hierarchy. Let it be observed, that the European monarchs were almost incessantly at war with one another. Neighbour and enemy, when spoken of states and kingdoms, were, and to this day too much are, terms almost synonymous. The pope, therefore, could not make even the most daring attempt against any prince, or kingdom, which would not be powerfully backed by the most strenuous endeavours of some other prince, or kingdom, whose present designs the pope's at tempts would tend to forward.

If England was the object of papal resentment, if the enraged ecclesiarch had fulminated an excommunication, or in terdict, against the kingdom, or issued a bull deposing the king, and loosing his subjects from their oaths and allegiance, (for all these spiritual machines were brought into use one af ter another) France was ready to take advantage of the general confusion thereby raised in England, and to invade the kingdom with an armed force. The more to encourage the French monarch to act this part, the pontiff might be prevailed on (and this hath actually happened) to assign to him the kingdom of which he had pretended to divest the owner. A man may afford to give what never belonged to him. But if the owner found it necessary to make submissions to the priest, the latter was never at a loss to find a pretext for recalling the grant he had made, and re-establishing the degraded monarch. In like manner, when France was the object of the pontiff's vengeance, England was equally disposed to be subservient to his views. Nay, he had the address, oftener than once, to arm an unnatural son against his father. Such was the situation of affairs all Europe over. Those transactions, which always terminated in the advancement of papal power, could not fail, at last, to raise the mitre above the crown. Every one of the princes, I may say, did, in his turn, for the gratifying of a present passion, and the attaining of an immediate object, blindly lend his assistance, in exalting a potentate, who came, in process of time, to tread on all their necks, and treat both kings and emperours, who had foolishly given their strength and power to him, as his vassals and

slaves.

It were endless to take notice of all the expedients, which Rome, after she had advanced so far, as to be esteemed in the west the visible head of the church universal, and vested with a certain paramount, though indefinite authority, over the whole devised, and easily executed, both for confirming and extending her enormous power. It is true, she never was absolute in the east; and, from about the middle of the ninth century, these two parts of christendom were in a state of total separation. But that became a matter of less consequence to her every day. The eastern, which may be said to have been the only enlightened, and far the most valuable part of the empire, in the days of Constantine, was daily declining, whilst the western part was growing daily more considerable. In the eastern empire, one part after another became a prey to Turks and Saracens,-Egypt, Barbary, Syria, Asia, and at length Greece, Macedonia, and Thrace. The only part of the western empire that not only was, but still continues to be,

subjected to the depredations of these barbarians, is proconsular and west Africa. Whereas, in the western, and northern parts of Europe, there were, at the same time, springing up some of the most powerful and polished, and, I may now add, the most enlightened monarchies and states, with which the world has ever been acquainted. The very calamities of the east, particularly the destruction of the eastern empire, the last poor remains of Roman greatness, and the taking of Constantinople by the Turks, left the western patriarch totally without a rival, and christendom without a vestige of the primitive equality and independence of its pastors.

When Rome had every thing, in a manner, at her disposal, it was easy to see that all canons, in regard to discipline, and decrees, in relation to doctrine, would point invariably to the support of this power. Hence the convenient doctrines of transubstantiation, purgatory, prayers and masses for the dead, auricular confession, the virtue of sacerdotal absolution. Hence the canons extending so immensely the forbidden degrees of marriage, the peculiar power in the popes of dispensing with these, and other canons, the power of canonization, the celibacy of the clergy, the supererogatory merits of the saints, indulgences, and many others.

There is indeed one right that has been claimed, and sucess fully exerted, by Rome, which, as being a most important spring in this great and complex machine of the hierarchy, will deserve a more particular notice. I mean, the pope's pretended title to grant exemptions to whomsoever he pleases, from subjection to their ordinary ecclesiastical superiours. But this I shall reserve for the subject of another lecture,