The Right and Duty to Resist a Pope teaching heresy
The Popes, Saints,
Fathers, Doctors and approved theologians of the Roman Catholic Church have
told us through the ages that a pope can be a heretic against the Roman
Catholic faith and attempt to destroy the Church through erroneous doctrines. Such a pope is to be disobeyed and resisted as a matter of duty.
St. Peter’s instruction
The first pope St.
Peter († 67) gave us the general principle of disobedience to, and resistance
of, corrupt hierarchies and their commands when he was forbidden to preach
Christ by the apostate Jews. When there is a conflict between the will of a
religious superior and God, we are to obey God.
“But Peter and the
apostles answering, said: We ought to obey God, rather than men.” (Acts 5:29)
The Doctor Saint Thomas
Aquinas O.P († 1274) used this incident as an indication that all superiors
are to be disobeyed should their commands be against the Will of God.
“It is written: ‘We
ought to obey God rather than men.’ Now sometimes the things commanded by
a superior are against God. Therefore, superiors are not to be obeyed
in all things.” (Summa Theologiae, IIa IIae, Q. 104, A. 5)
The theologian Juan
Cardinal De Torquemada O.P. († 1468) expressly related that Bible passage to
the duty to resist a wayward pontiff.
“Although it clearly
follows from the circumstances that the Pope can err at times, and command
things which must not be done, that we are not to be simply
obedient to him in all things, that does not show that he must not be
obeyed by all when his commands are good. To know in what cases he is to be obeyed
and in what not, it is said in the Acts of the Apostles: 'One ought to
obey God rather than man'; therefore, were the Pope to command
anything against Holy Scripture, or the articles of faith, or the truth of
the Sacraments, or the commands of the natural or divine law, he ought not to
be obeyed, but in such commands, to be passed over.” (Summa de Ecclesia)
So, “superiors are
not to be obeyed in all things”; a “pope can err at times, and command
things which must not be done” and “we are not to be simply obedient
to him in all things.” A pope can command “against Holy Scripture, or
the articles of faith, or the truth of the Sacraments, or the commands of the
natural or divine law” and then “he ought not to be obeyed.”
St. Paul’s example
Pope St. Peter I
himself was publicly resisted to his face by St. Paul because he endangered
the truth of the Gospel.
“But when Cephas
[Peter] was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to
be blamed.” (Galatians 2:11)
The Fathers of the
Church explained that the incident shows us the correctness of resisting
wayward ecclesiastics, even popes. The great Scripture commentator Cornelius
a Lapide († 1637) wrote as follows:
“Superiors may be
admonished by their subordinates in all humility and charity so that truth
may be defended: this is the basis (Galatians 2, 11) on which St.
Augustine, St. Cyprian, St. Gregory, St. Thomas and many others who are
quoted support this opinion. They teach quite unequivocally that St. Peter,
although superior in authority to St. Paul, was admonished by him. St.
Gregory rightly states that, “Peter remained silent so that, being first
in the hierarchy of the Apostles, he might equally be first in humility.”
St. Augustine writes, “By showing that superiors admit that they may be
rebuked by their subordinates, St. Peter gave posterity an example of
saintliness more noteworthy than that given by St. Paul, although the latter
showed, nonetheless, that it is possible for subordinates to have the
boldness to resist their superiors without fear, when in all charity they
speak out in the defence of truth.”“ (Commentary Ad Gal., II, 11.)
So, the Doctor St.
Augustine told us that we should “boldly” resist superiors,
including the Pope, “without fear”, when we are defending the Faith.
St. Thomas Aquinas
wrote that the Scripture passage shows that a pope who errs from the Faith
must be resisted openly and publicly because of the danger which exists for
the Faithful to be corrupted and led into error.
“There being an imminent
danger for the Faith, prelates must be questioned, even publicly, by their
subjects. Thus, St. Paul, who was a subject of St. Peter, questioned him
publicly on account of an imminent danger of scandal in a matter of Faith.
And, as the Glossa of St. Augustine puts it (Ad Galatas 2.14), 'St. Peter
himself gave the example to those who govern so that if sometimes they stray
from the right way, they will not reject a correction as unworthy even if it
comes from their subjects.” (Summa Theologiae, IIa IIae, Q. 33, A. 4)
He also commented on it
as follows:
“The reprehension
was just and useful, and the reason for it was not light: there was a
danger for the preservation of Gospel truth. […] The way it took place
was appropriate, since it was public and manifest. For this reason,
St. Paul writes: 'I spoke to Cephas,' that is, Peter, 'before
everyone,' since the simulation practiced by St. Peter was fraught
with danger to everyone.” (Super Epistulas S. Pauli, Ad Galatas, 2, 11-14
(Taurini/ Rome: Marietti, 1953), lec. III, nn. 83f.)
That is how a heretical
pope and his errors are to be resisted: “boldly”, “without fear”,
“publicly” and “before everyone”, because he is a “danger to
everyone”. That is the teaching of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church.
The instruction of the
popes
Various popes have also
told us that popes can err from the Faith and should then be resisted.
Pope Innocent III (†
1216) stated that a pope can “wither away into heresy” and “not
believe” the Faith.
“The pope should not
flatter himself about his power, nor should he rashly glory in his honour and
high estate, because the less he is judged by man, the more he is judged by
God. Still the less can the Roman Pontiff glory, because he can be judged by
men, or rather, can be shown to be already judged, if for example he
should wither away into heresy, because “he who does not believe
is already judged.” (St. John 3:18) In such a case it should be said of
him: ‘If salt should lose its savour, it is good for nothing but to be
cast out and trampled under foot by men.’” (Sermo 4)
Pope Adrian VI († 1523)
stated that “it is beyond question” that a pope can “err in matters
touching the Faith”, he can “teach heresy” in decrees. He also
stated “many Roman Pontiffs were heretics”.
“If by the Roman Church
you mean its head or pontiff, it is beyond question that he can err even
in matters touching the faith. He does this when he teaches heresy
by his own judgement or decretal. In truth, many Roman pontiffs
were heretics. The last of them was Pope John XXII († 1334).” (Quaest. in
IV Sent.; quoted in Viollet, Papal Infallibility and the Syllabus,
1908).*
(* According to the
1907 Catholic Encyclopedia, this work was published in 1512 from the notes of
his student and without his supervision, but as it saw “many editions” it
would appear that the pope did not repudiate the passage as not his own, in a
work attributed to him.)
Venerable Pope Pius IX
(† 1878) recognised the danger that a future pope would be a heretic and “teach
contrary to the Catholic Faith”, and he instructed, “do not follow
him.”
“If a future pope
teaches anything contrary to the Catholic Faith, do not follow him.”
(Letter to Bishop Brizen)
Pope Adrian II († 872)
admitted that papal heresy “renders lawful the resistance of subordinates
to their superiors, and their rejection of the latter's pernicious teachings.”
“We read that the Roman
Pontiff has always possessed authority to pass judgment on the heads of all
the Churches (i.e., the patriarchs and bishops), but nowhere do we read that
he has been the subject of judgment by others. It is true that Honorius was
posthumously anathematised by the Eastern churches, but it must be borne in
mind that he had been accused of heresy, the only offence which renders
lawful the resistance of subordinates to their superiors, and their rejection
of the latter's pernicious teachings”.
However, I must
disagree with Pope Adrian when he said that heresy was the only
offence that justified resistance: the Saints and Doctors have informed us
otherwise, as we shall see.
Further, Pope Honorius
I († 638) was not merely “accused of heresy” or “anathematised by
the Eastern Churches”: he was anathematised as a heretic by the
ecumenical Council of III Constantinople, whose Acts were confirmed by Pope
Leo II († 683).
“We foresaw that,
together with them, also Honorius, before Pope of Old Rome, is cast out of
the Holy Catholic Church of God and anathematized, for we have found by his
writings sent to [the heretic] Sergius, that he followed the thinking of
the latter in everything, and continued his impious principles. [...] To
Sergius, the heretic, anathema! To Cyrus, the heretic, anathema! To
Honorius, the heretic, anathema!”
So we see that popes
have told us that a pope can “wither away into heresy” and “not
believe” the Faith; that “it is beyond question” that a pope can “err
in matters touching the Faith”, he can “teach heresy” in decrees;
that “many Roman Pontiffs were heretics”; that a pope may be a heretic
and “teach […] contrary to the Catholic Faith”, in which case we are
to follow the instruction “do not follow him”; and that papal heresy “renders
lawful the resistance of subordinates to their superiors, and their rejection
of the latter's pernicious teachings.”
TradCatKnight Exclusive: The Resistance
The teaching of the
saints and theologians
The Saints and
theologians have told us the same thing through the ages: we must not obey
but rather resist wayward pontiffs and their corrupt hierarchies.
The first Doctor of the
Church, St. Athanasius († 373), told us that “Catholics faithful to
Tradition” can be “reduced to a handful”. He wrote during the
Arian crisis, when the global episcopacy defected to Arianism and Pope
Liberius († 366) went into heresy, signed a heretical Arian creed and
invalidly excommunicated St. Athanasius, as did the heretical bishops of the
East.
“Even if Catholics
faithful to Tradition are reduced to a handful, they are the ones who
are the true Church of Jesus Christ.” (Epistle to the Catholics)
St. Vincent of Lerins
(† 445) is the Father of the Church most associated with the defence of
unchanging doctrinal tradition. It is the subject of his main treatise, the Commonitory.
He foresaw that if the whole Church should go into heresy we must keep to the
traditional Faith handed down from the Fathers.
“What then should a
Catholic do if some portion of the Church detaches itself from communion of
the universal Faith? What choice can he make if some new contagion attempts
to poison, no longer a small part of the Church, but the whole Church at
once? Then his great concern will be to attach himself to antiquity which can
no longer be led astray by any lying novelty.” (Commonitory)
A general corruption of
the hierarchy has been foreseen and has happened before and the Saints have
told us how we are to respond: we are to keep to the traditional, true
Catholic Faith which has been handed down from the Fathers and to reject the
“lying novelties” of the pope and the hierarchy.
The theologian
Sylvester Prieras, O.P. († 1523) discussed the resistance of a corrupt pope
at some length. He asked, “What should be done in cases where the pope destroys
the Church by his evil actions?” and “What should be done if the
pope wishes unreasonably to abolish the laws of church or state?” His
answer was as follows:
“He would certainly be
in sin, and it would be unlawful to allow him to act in such a fashion,
and likewise to obey him in matters which are evil; on the contrary, there
is a duty to oppose him while administering a courteous rebuke.
“Thus, were he to wish
to distribute the Church's wealth, or Peter's Patrimony among his own
relatives; were he to wish to destroy the church or to commit an act
of similar magnitude, there would be a duty to prevent him, and likewise
an obligation to oppose him and resist him. The reason being that he does
not possess power in order to destroy, and thus it follows that if he is so
doing it is lawful to oppose him.”
“It is clear from the
preceding that, if the pope by his commands, orders or by his actions is
destroying the church, he may be resisted and the fulfilment of his
commands prevented. The right of open resistance to prelates’
abuse of authority stems also from natural law.” (Dialogus de Potestate
Papae)
It would be “unlawful
to allow him to act in such a fashion”, without any resistance, and “likewise
to obey him.” There is “a duty to prevent him, and likewise an
obligation to oppose him and resist him.” As he has papal power only to
build up the Church and not to destroy it, it is “lawful to oppose him.”
He is to be “resisted and the fulfilment of his commands prevented.” “Open
resistance” is a right and a duty.
The theologian Tommaso
Cardinal de Vio Gaetani Cajetan O.P. († 1534) declared: “It is imperative
to resist a pope who is openly destroying the Church.” (De
Comparata Auctoritate Papae et Concilio). Such a pope must be
resisted, his policies opposed and prevented and true Catholic Faith and
practice maintained. Resistance must be established and advanced.
The canonist and
theologian, Fr. Francisco de Victoria, O.P. († 1546) told us the same.
“According to natural
law, violence may lawfully be opposed by violence. Now, through the acts
permitted and the orders of the kind under discussion, the Pope does commit
violence, because he is acting contrary to what is lawful. It therefore
follows that it is lawful to oppose him publicly. Cajetan draws
attention to the fact that this should not be interpreted as meaning that
anybody whosoever can judge the Pope, or assume authority over
him, but rather that it is lawful to defend oneself even against him. Every
person, in fact, has the right to oppose an unjust action in order to
prevent, if he is able, its being carried out, and thus he defends
himself.” (Obras, pp. 486-7)
All of the Faithful
have the right to oppose the actions of a corrupt pope and to try to prevent
his harmful policies from being carried out. It is “lawful to oppose him
publicly.”
The Resistance Makes Mainstream News
The theologian,
Francisco Suarez S.J. († 1617), said likewise.
“If the pope gives an
order contrary to right customs, he should not be obeyed; if he
attempts to do something manifestly opposed to justice and the common good,
it will be lawful to resist him; if he attacks by force, by force he
can be repelled, with a moderation appropriate to a just defence.” (De Fide,
Disp. X, Sec. VI, N. 16)
The Doctor of the
Church, St. Robert Bellarmine, S.J. († 1621), wrote a treatise on the Papacy
which was used as a basis for the definition of the limits of papal
infallibility which was made at Vatican I. He wrote as follows:
“Just as it is lawful
to resist the pope that attacks the body, it is also lawful to resist
the one who attacks souls or who disturbs civil order, or, above all, who
attempts to destroy the Church. I say that it is lawful to resist
him by not doing what he orders and preventing his will from being
executed.” (De Romano Pontifice, Lib. II, Ch. 29)
A pope “who attempts
to destroy the Church” is not to be obeyed but “it is lawful to resist
him by not doing what he orders and preventing his will from being executed.”
Council Vatican I
(1870) defined that a pope has no power or right to come out with new doctrines
or to change the Faith which has been handed down from the Apostles but only
to maintain and preach it.
“For the Holy Ghost was
promised to the successors of Peter not so that they might, by His
revelation, make known some new doctrine, but that, by His assistance, they
might religiously guard and faithfully expound the revelation or Deposit of
Faith transmitted by the Apostles.” (Pastor Aeternus, cap. 4)
A pope has the right to
do nothing but to maintain the true Catholic Faith, exactly as it has been
received. If he attempts to do otherwise, he is to be denounced and opposed
along with all the doctrinal innovations he attempts to impose on the
Faithful.
Summary
and recap of perennial teaching
We have seen that
tradition instructs us that the global episcopate can fall away from the
Faith and that true Catholics can be reduced to a handful. Popes can defect
from the Faith and “teach” heresy in their decrees. They can destroy the
Church with their acts. Then we must not obey but must openly resist the pope
and the hierarchy and try to stop their policies from being implemented.
To recap:
Pope St. Peter I
instructed us that we must obey God rather than men when there is a conflict
between the two. The Doctors and theologians of the Church emphasised this by
telling us “superiors are not to be obeyed in all things”; a “pope
can err at times, and command things which must not be done”; and “we
are not to be simply obedient to him in all things.” A pope can command “against
Holy Scripture, or the articles of faith, or the truth of the Sacraments, or
the commands of the natural or divine law”, and then “he ought not to
be obeyed.”
Further, St. Paul
publicly resisted Pope St. Peter to his face because he was endangering the
Faith. The Fathers and Doctors of the Church emphasised that we should “boldly”
resist superiors, including the Pope, “without fear”, when we are
defending the Faith; a pope who errs from the Faith must be resisted openly
and publicly because of the danger which exists for the Faithful to be
corrupted and led into error.
Popes have told us that
a pope can “wither away into heresy” and “not believe” the
Faith; that “it is beyond question” that a pope can “err in matters
touching the Faith”, he can “teach heresy” in decrees; and that “many
Roman Pontiffs were heretics”; that a pope may be a heretic and “teach
[…] contrary to the Catholic Faith”, in which case we are to follow the
instruction, “do not follow him”; and that papal heresy “renders
lawful the resistance of subordinates to their superiors, and their rejection
of the latter's pernicious teachings.”
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Please, what's your source of the "Letter to Bishop Brizen"? Can you show it entirely, in order to see it on its context? Thanks
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