The Bull Cum ex Apostolatus Officio of Paul IV
and the Universal and Peaceful Acceptance of a Pope
Reconciliation with the Dogmatic Fact
and the Infallibility of the Church
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- The Doctrine of the Universal and Peaceful Acceptance of a Pope
- The Bull Cum ex Apostolatus Officio of Paul IV
3.1. Nature and Object of the Bull
3.2. Pertinent Text and Interpretation
- Reconciliation between the Bull and the Universal and Peaceful Acceptance
- Faithful Catholic Perspective
- Conclusion
List of Sources
- Introduction
The question concerns the reconciliation between, on the one hand, the Universal and Peaceful Acceptance (AUP) of a pope by the entire Church, which constitutes an infallible dogmatic fact guaranteeing his legitimacy, and, on the other hand, the bull Cum ex Apostolatus Officio of Pope Paul IV (15 February 1559), which seems to indicate that a heretic prior to his election cannot be pope, even if accepted by “all.” We propose a correct interpretation: the “all” designates the cardinals mentioned earlier in the bull, and a public heretic could not be accepted by the entire Church without implying an impossible failure of the infallible Church.
Let us examine this step by step, setting forth the certain teaching.
- The Doctrine of the Universal and Peaceful Acceptance of a Pope
Catholic doctrine teaches that the universal and peaceful acceptance of a pope by the Church is an infallible dogmatic fact, proving that he is truly pope. This flows from the infallibility of the Church, which cannot adhere to a false shepherd.
Saint Thomas Aquinas, in the Summa Theologica (IIa-IIae, q. 1, a. 10), explains that the Church, assisted by the Holy Ghost, cannot err in matters of faith, including in the recognition of her visible head: “Such unity (of the Church in faith) could not be preserved if a question of faith raised in a matter of faith could not be settled by him who presides over the whole Church, in such a way that the whole Church firmly observes his sentence.”
Pre-1963 theologians, such as Cardinal Billot in his Tractatus de Ecclesia Christi (1927), affirm that this acceptance is an infallible rule because the peaceful and universal acceptance of a pope by the Church is an infallible sign and effect of his legitimate election and true papacy.
Similarly, the theologian Van Noort, in Christ’s Church (1957), specifies that this is a certain teaching, founded on the promise of Christ to Peter (Mt 16:18) and to the Church.
- The Bull Cum ex Apostolatus Officio of Paul IV
3.1. Nature and Object of the Bull
The bull Cum ex Apostolatus Officio of Paul IV is a disciplinary and penal law, not an infallible dogmatic definition. It aims to protect the Church from heretics by declaring null the elevation of such a man.
Many authors hold that certain parts also express underlying doctrinal principles concerning the incompatibility between heresy and jurisdiction. In other words: the automatic nullity belongs to legislation; the underlying theological principle belongs to prior doctrine.
The constitution of Paul IV was modified and then replaced in positive law by Saint Pius V, Gregory XV, Pius X, and finally by the 1917 Code. Consequently, even if one admits the most rigorous interpretation of Paul IV, the proper juridical force of the penal provisions no longer existed in the 20th century.
3.2. Pertinent Text and Interpretation
Here is the exact text of the pertinent paragraph (no. 6), in Latin followed by a faithful French translation:
Latin: “Addentes quod si aliquando prætensus Episcopus, Archiepiscopus, Patriarcha, aut Primas; aut Cardinalis Ecclesiæ Romanæ præfatus, etiam ut præmissum est Legatus, vel etiam Romanus Pontifex ante promotionem vel assumptionem in Cardinalem, vel Romanum Pontificem deviaverit a Fide Catholica, aut in hæresim aliquando inciderit, vel schisma incurrerit, aut suscitaverit, seu commiserit; promotio, seu assumptio de eo etiam in concordia, et de unanimi omnium Cardinalium assensu facta, nulla, irrita, et inanis existat.”
Translation: “Adding that if ever a pretended bishop, archbishop, patriarch or primate; or the aforesaid cardinal of the Roman Church, even, as has been said, legate, or even the Roman pontiff, before his promotion or elevation to the cardinalate or to the Roman pontificate, has deviated from the Catholic Faith, or has fallen into some heresy, or has incurred, stirred up or committed a schism; his promotion or elevation, even if carried out in concord and with the unanimous assent of all the cardinals, is null, invalid and without value.”
It must be noted with precision that the “unanimi omnium Cardinalium assensu” (unanimous assent of all the cardinals) explicitly refers to the cardinals, mentioned in the immediate context of the bull. This is not a reference to the entire Church. The bull treats of a cardinalatial election, not of the post-electoral acceptance by the universal ecclesiastical body.
The same paragraph §6 of the bull uses the word “all” a second time. It must be understood in context: it concerns the body of cardinals and not the entire Church, clergy and faithful in all corners of the world.
- Reconciliation between the Bull and the Universal and Peaceful Acceptance
The reconciliation is logical and certain: the AUP concerns acceptance by the entire Church (bishops, clergy and faithful), which is infallible and cannot adhere to a public heretic, because that would contradict the indefectibility of the Church (promised by Christ).
Saint Robert Bellarmine, in De Romano Pontifice (Book II, chapter 30, pre-1963 edition), teaches that if a pope were to fall into public heresy after his election, he would lose the office ipso facto, but that a notorious heretic before election could not be accepted peacefully by the Church, because the Church cannot err in recognizing her shepherd.
Cardinal Louis Billot teaches (De Ecclesia Christi, 5th ed., Rome, Typis Pontificiae Universitatis Gregorianae, 1927, vol. I, thesis XXIX, p. 609): “id saltem necessario admittendum: pacificam universalis Ecclesiae adhaesionem fore semper infallibile signum legitimitatis personae Pontificis, adeoque et existentiae omnium conditionum quæ ad ipsam legitimitatem requiruntur.”
Translation: “… this must necessarily be admitted, that the adhesion of the universal Church is always an infallible sign of the legitimacy of the person of the Pontiff and of the existence of all the conditions required for that legitimacy.”
Thus, the case of a public heretic accepted by all members of the Church is impossible by divine law, because the Church, assisted by the Holy Ghost, cannot become heretical. The bull of Paul IV, by targeting the cardinals, provides for a limited scenario in which a vitiated election could occur, but the infallible AUP prevents it from imposing itself on the entire Church.
- Faithful Catholic Perspective
From the faithful Catholic perspective, and as it is certain that the See of Peter has been vacant since the public heresy of Paul VI in Lumen Gentium in 1964, this confirms that the post-1963 occupants are not true popes, because their “acceptance” is neither universal nor peaceful among true Catholics, and rests upon prior or manifest heresies.
This explanation is founded upon the certain teaching of the Church; if some aspect belongs to a probable theological opinion (such as the precise application to historical cases), it is presented as such, but the basic doctrine is sure.
- Conclusion
Catholic doctrine, set forth with certainty in this study, demonstrates that the bull of Paul IV, as a disciplinary measure targeting the cardinals, does not contradict the infallibility of the dogmatic fact of the Universal and Peaceful Acceptance, which guarantees the legitimacy of a pope by the adhesion of the entire Church. This reconciliation rests upon Thomistic logic and the divine assistance promised to the Church, excluding any possibility of collective error in the recognition of her shepherd. Thus, the certain teaching affirms the indefectibility of the Church in the face of heresy, confirming the vacancy of the Apostolic See since 1964.
List of Sources
– Saint Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, IIa-IIae, q. 1, a. 10 (pre-1963 edition).
– Cardinal Louis Billot, Tractatus de Ecclesia Christi, Rome, 1927.
– Gérard Van Noort, Christ’s Church, Westminster, Maryland, 1957.
– Pope Paul IV, Bull Cum ex Apostolatus Officio, 15 February 1559 (Latin text and faithful translation).
– Saint Robert Bellarmine, De Romano Pontifice, Book II, chapter 30 (pre-1963 edition).
– Holy Scripture, Gospel according to Saint Matthew, 16:18.