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A Minister of the Gospel, (except it be in troublesom times, in case of great necessity, in which he may be Or∣dain'd by Three Ministers, with the Consistory of the place) shall not be admitted to this Holy Office, but by the Provin∣cial Synod, or by the Colloqui; provided it be compos'd of Seven Pastors at the least, which Number not being to be
found in some Colloquies, it shall call in others of the Neighbourhood to accomplish the Number; and him who is to be Ordain'd, shall be presented together with good and sufficient testimonies, not only of Academies, or particular Churches, but also of the Colloqui of the Church in the which he has been most conversant.
There are two chief Heads in this Article, one whereof regards the Number of the Ministers which are to assist at the reception of him who is intended to be admitted into the Holy Ministry; and the other con∣cerns the Testimonies of him who presents himself to be Examined. As for the former of these two Heads, touching the number of Ministers, whose presence is necessary for the Establishing of another, there is no∣thing wiser or more judicious, than what our Disci∣pline does appoint. Whilst the Church doth enjoy Peace, and is at full Liberty, it's very reasonable that the Minister of the Gospel be admitted to this Sacred Office by all the Ministers of the Province, assembled in a Synod, or at least by those which compose the Colloqui or Class where he is to serve, provided they are not under the number of Seven; but in perilous and difficult times, and upon urgent necessity, three are sufficient: It is the Establishment of the first Council of Nice, which explains it self in these Terms, in the 4th of its Canons, It is requisite the Bishop should be established by all the Bishops of the Province; but if that be difficult to be done by reason of some urgent necessity, or by reason of the length of the way, let there be Three As∣sembled to make the Ordination, those which are absent, con∣senting and approving the same by their Letters. I grant
the Cannon speaks properly of the Ordination made by the imposition of hands, as we shall see in what follows; but that don't hinder but that it may be appli'd to the whole vocation; the 19th. Canon of the Council of Antioch of the year 341, saith in effect the same thing.
But in regard of these difficult times whereof menti∣on has been made, during the which three Pastors suffi∣ced for establishing a Minister, the Ecclesiastical History praising the Piety and Zeal of Eusebius Bishop of Samo∣sate, observes of him amongst other things, one action very considerable, which is, that in the time the Arrians persecuted the Catholicks under the Emperor Valens, this holy man knowing there was several Churches de∣stitute of Pastors, He Equipp'd himself in a Soldiers habit, and putting a Miter on his head, * 1.1 he went through Syria, Phoenicia, and Palestine, setling Priests and Deacons, and also Bishops, in the Churches that had need of them.
I say, he established even Bishops, whether it be un∣derstood of Bishops, which had before been advanced to this Dignity, and which he established in the Churches which had need of them, as may be gather'd from Theo∣doret, or other Orthodox persons which he Consecrated, and to whom he gave Ordination at the very time that he assign'd them Churches; and that he setled them in them, as is observ'd by Mr. de Valois in his Notes upon this place, and on the 4th. Chap. of the 5th. Book of Theo∣doret's History; to justifie what I have now said of Eu∣sebius of Samosate, that he established Bishops in the Chur∣ches that wanted them, and at the same time to see sundry instances of Ordinations by the Imposition of hands, of one person only; however it be, the conduct of this Prelate, which was never blamed by any, shews plainly, that in difficult times, and when the preserva∣tion
and safety of the Church requires it, something of the rigor of the Laws and Canons of the Church may be dispenc'd withal, as is observ'd by Synesius Bishop of Ptolomais, in his 67 Epistle, * 1.2 where he makes mention of the Ordination of a Bishop by another single Bishop, in difficult and troublesome times; and I will make ap∣pear on the 8th. Article, several examples of these kinds of Ordinations even in times that were not troublesome, and such as our Discipline designs; in the mean while I observe that Venerable Bede in his Ecclesiastical History of England, writes, that Ithamar Bishop of Rochester, * 1.3 alone of himself, Consecrated two Arch-Bishops of Canter∣bury, one after another successively.
I now proceed to the second Head of this Article, which concerns the Testimonies those are to produce, who are to be Consecrated to the Holy Ministry. Pastors be∣ing to be an example to their flock in word and conversa∣tion, it is very fitting there should be good testimonies of their Life and Doctrine, before they are established in this Divine Office; insomuch as St. Paul desires, that they may have a good report of those which are with∣out, fearing lest they should fall into shame, and the snare of the Devil; therefore the Church has ever used after this manner, admitting unto this trust only those which had good and sufficient testimonies, as well for their capacity, as for their good Conduct; it is whereunto amounted the proof St. Clement, Disciple of the Apostles, and Tertullian, have already made mention; thence it is, St. Cyprian will, * 1.4 That the Pastor be established in the presence of all the people, who perfectly know the life of each person, and that have narrowly observ'd his conversation, to the end that having discover'd his vertues, or vices, the Or∣dination made by the consent and approbation of all, may be just and legitimate. * 1.5 And elswhere, he saith to the people,
That he is wont to advise with them, when he is about to Or∣dain any Clerk, to the end they may examin and try altoge∣ther, the life and good qualities of each one.
Saint Basil complaining of the relaxation of Discipline, * 1.6 and the slighting of the Canons, which in time might occasion great confusions in the Church, he saith, That the ancient custom of Christians was carefully to search and to make very strict inquiry into the life and conversation of those who were admitted into the Ministry, to find out if they were Slanderers, Drunkards, Fighters, if they car∣ry'd themselves soberly, and if they could walk stedfastly in the ways of Sanctification, without which no one shall see God. Moreover this custom appear'd so good and holy to him, that he will absolutely have the use of it reviv'd through∣out all his Diocess; that he will have the Church purg'd of all those that were enter'd into it by any other man∣ner, as being unworthy to serve in it, and that for the future none should be admitted but those which were first duly examin'd, and accounted worthy the Employ∣ments intended for them.
I will not here repeat what I alledged of the fourth Council of Carthage upon the first Article; I will only say, that in the third Tome of the Library of the Fa∣thers, and in the Pandect of the Cannons Printed at Ox∣ford of late years, there is a Canonical Epistle of Theo∣philus Bishop of Alexandria, the sixth Canon of which treats of Ordinations, wherein he desires, the Election and consent of the Clergy, the examination of the Bishop, and the testimony of the people.
In the Book of Sacraments of Gregory the first, * 1.7 the Bishop is to signifie to the People the Names of those which are to be chosen, to the end that if any there pre∣sent know any thing that might hinder the Ordination, they might declare it freely, and with a safe conscience;
thence it is that Leo the first, desires in these Occasions, the testimony of the People, as he explains himself in his 89 Epistle. And Pope Eugenius II. in a Synod assem∣bled at Rome about the year of our Lord 826, and which is to be seen in the second part of the Roman Collection of Holstenius Printed at Rome 1642, I say, with the Synod, prescribes in the very terms of the Apostle, * 1.8 the manner of Ordination; that is to say, that he re∣quires that he which desires to receive it, may be adorn'd with the Qualities recommended by St. Paul, and that he may be acceptable to all the world by his good Works.
The Emperor Alexander Severus, so highly approv'd this use and practise, as also the publishing which was made of those which were to be admitted into the Mini∣stry of the Church, whereof I shall speak on the tenth Article, * 1.9 that he would have it be put in practice in esta∣blishing Governours of Provinces of the Empire, and other Magistrates.
The Fathers of the first Council of Nice, in the Letter they wrote to the Church of Alexandria, and which has been transmitted to us by Socrates and Theodoret, these Fathers term this, * 1.10 Offering to the People the Names of those which were to be advanced to any Dignity in the Church. St. Chrysostome in the 18th. Homily upon the 2 Epist. to the Corinthians, Establishes and confirms this custom by the Example of the Apostles, which us'd the same when Mathias was to be chosen, and also by that of the Seven Deacons. Something of the same kind is to be seen in 61 and 76 Epistles of Synesius, according to which Ni∣cetas in the Life of St. Ignatius Patriarch of Constantino∣ple, in the IX Century, which is contain'd in the Pre∣liminaries of the eighth Council of Constantinople, which the Latins hold for Oecumenical, but is rejected by the
Greeks: * 1.11 Nicetas observes, that several were named to sill the vacant Chair, and that St. Ignatius was preferred before the rest.
Theodoret. Lab. 4. c. 13.
P. 20. Edit. Par. 1631.
Lib. 3. Cap. 20.
Ep. 67. ult. Edit.
Id. Ep. 33.
T. 3. Ep. 181. Paris 1638.
P. 236. Pa∣ris 1642.
Cap. 1.
Aelius Lampri. in Alex. Sev.
L. 1. c. 9.
Tom. 6. Concil. pa. 872.