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charity of the ancient clergy; accordingly; are said to have been

very great。 They not only maintained almost the whole poor of

every kingdom; but many knights and gentlemen had frequently no

other means of subsistence than by travelling about from

monastery to monastery; under pretence of devotion; but in

reality to enjoy the hospitality of the clergy。 The retainers of

some particular prelates were often as numerous as those of the

greatest lay…lords; and the retainers of all the clergy taken

together were; perhaps; more numerous than those of all the

lay…lords。 There was always much more union among the clergy than

among the lay…lords。 The former were under a regular discipline

and subordination to the papal authority。 The latter were under

no regular discipline or subordination; but almost always equally

jealous of one another; and of the king。 Though the tenants and

retainers of the clergy; therefore; had both together been less

numerous than those of the great lay…lords; and their tenants

were probably much less numerous; yet their union would have

rendered them more formidable。 The hospitality and charity of the

clergy; too; not only gave them the command of a great temporal

force; but increased very much the weight of their spiritual

weapons。 Those virtues procured them the highest respect and

veneration among all the inferior ranks of people; of whom many

were constantly; and almost all occasionally; fed by them。

Everything belonging or related to so popular an order; its

possessions; its privileges; its doctrines; necessarily appeared

sacred in the eyes of the common people; and every violation of

them; whether real or pretended; the highest act of sacrilegious

wickedness and profaneness。 In this state of things; if the

sovereign frequently found it difficult to resist the confederacy

of a few of the great nobility; we cannot wonder that he should

find it still more so to resist the united force of the clergy of

his own dominions; supported by that of the clergy of all the

neighbouring dominions。 In such circumstances the wonder is; not

that he was sometimes obliged to yield; but that he ever was able

to resist。

     The privilege of the clergy in those ancient times (which to

us who live in the present times appear the most absurd); their

total exemption from the secular jurisdiction; for example; or

what in England was called the benefit of the clergy; were the

natural or rather the necessary consequences of this state of

things。 How dangerous must it have been for the sovereign to

attempt to punish a clergyman for any crime whatever; if his own

order were disposed to protect him; and to represent either the

proof as insufficient for convicting so holy a man; or the

punishment as too severe to be inflicted upon one whose person

had been rendered sacred by religion? The sovereign could; in

such circumstances; do no better than leave him to be tried by

the ecclesiastical courts; who; for the honour of their own

order; were interested to restrain; as much as possible; every

member of it from committing enormous crimes; or even from giving

occasion to such gross scandal as might disgust the minds of the

people。

     In the state in which things were through the greater part

of Europe during the tenth; eleventh; twelfth; and thirteenth

centuries; and for some time both before and after that period;

the constitution of the Church of Rome may be considered as the

most formidable combination that ever was formed against the

authority and security of civil government; as well as against

the liberty; reason; and happiness of mankind; which can flourish

only where civil government is able to protect them。 In that

constitution the grossest delusions of superstition were

supported in such a manner by the private interests of so great a

number of people as put them out of all danger from any assault

of human reason: because though human reason might perhaps have

been able to unveil; even to the eyes of the common people; some

of the delusions of superstition; it could never have dissolved

the ties of private interest。 Had this constitution been attacked

by no other enemies but the feeble efforts of human reason; it

must have endured for ever。 But that immense and well…built

fabric; which all the wisdom and virtue of man could never have

shaken; much less have overturned; was by the natural course of

things; first weakened; and afterwards in part destroyed; and is

now likely; in the course of a few centuries more; perhaps; to

crumble into ruins altogether。

     The gradual improvements of arts; manufactures; and

commerce; the same causes which destroyed the power of the great

barons; destroyed in the same manner; through the greater part of

Europe; the whole temporal power of the clergy。 In the produce of

arts; manufactures; and commerce; the clergy; like the great

barons; found something for which they could exchange their rude

produce; and thereby discovered the means of spending their whole

revenues upon their own persons; without giving any considerable

share of them to other people。 Their charity became gradually

less extensive; their hospitality less liberal or less profuse。

Their retainers became consequently less numerous; and by degrees

dwindled away altogether。 The clergy too; like the great barons;

wished to get a better rent from their landed estates; in order

to spend it; in the same manner; upon the gratification of their

own private vanity and folly。 But this increase of rent could be

got only by granting leases to their tenants; who thereby became

in a great measure independent of them。 The ties of interest

which bound the inferior ranks of people to the clergy were in

this manner gradually broken and dissolved。 They were even broken

and dissolved sooner than those which bound the same ranks of

people to the great barons: because the benefices of the church

being; the greater part of them; much smaller than the estates of

the great barons; the possessor of each benefice was much sooner

able to spend the whole of its revenue upon his own person。

During the greater part of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries

the power of the great barons was; through the greater part of

Europe; in full vigour。 But the temporal power of the clergy; the

absolute command which they had once had over the great body of

the people; was very much decayed。 The power of the church was by

that time very nearly reduced through the greater part of Europe

to what arose from her spiritual authority; and even that

spiritual authority was much weakened when it ceased to be

supported by the charity and hospitality of the clergy。 The

inferior ranks of people no longer looked upon that order; as

they had done before; as the comforters of their distress; and

the relievers of their indigence。 On the contrary; they were

provoked and disgusted by the vanity; luxury; and expense of the

richer clergy; who appeared to spend upon their own pleasures

what had always before been regarded as the patrimony of the

poor。

     In this situation of things; the sovereigns in the different

states of Europe endeavoured to recover the influence which they

had once had in the disposal of the great benefices of the

church; by procuring to the deans and chapters of each diocese

the restoration of their ancient right of electing the bishop;

and to the monks of each abbacy that of electing the abbot。 The

re…establishing of this ancient order was the object of several

statutes enacted in England during the course of the fourteenth

century; particularly of what is called the Statute of Provisors;

and of the Pragmatic Sanction established in France in the

fifteenth century。 In order to render the election valid; it was

necessary that the sovereign should both consent to it

beforehand; and afterwards approve of the person elected; and

though the election was still supposed to be free; he had;

however; all the indirect means which his situation necessarily

afforded him of influencing the clergy in his own dominions。

Other regulations of a similar tendency were established in other

parts of Europe。 But the power of the pope in the collation of

the great benefices of the church seems; before the Reformation;

to have been nowhere so effectually and so universally restrained

as in France and England。 The Concordat afterwards; in the

sixteenth century; gave to the kings of France the absolute right

of presenting to all the great; or what are called the

consistorial; benefices of the Gallican Church。

     Since the establishment of the Pragmatic Sanction and of the

Concordat; the clergy of France have in general shown less

respect to the decrees of the papal court than the clergy of any

other Catholic country。 In all the disputes which their sovereign

has had with the pope; they have almost constantly taken party

with the former。 This independency of the clergy of France up

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