for if it be not, he will, by that means alone, be fafe from all the confequences of the excommunication; which being unjuft, cannot poffibly fubfift, according to one of our maxims, laid down in another part of this discourse, and which we fhall more and more confirm hereafter.

Now the confequence of all this is, that 'tis not an article of faith to believe that every excommunication is valid, because it makes a great noise, before it has pafs'd the touchstone of a fevere examination; fince, as I have faid elsewhere, excommunication being only the effect of human judgment, and by confequence fubject to fallacy and delufion, if the judge has actually given into fuch delufion, it would be a wicked thing to fuppofe that God would approve of the mistake of oppreffing one who is guilty only in appearance. Therefore, to prevent fuch delufion, 'tis not only lawful to examine, but also an appeal is allowable to make this examination in order, and canonically, as the true touchftone, that can fhew us the truth or falfhood of such sen

tences.

CHAP

M 4

CHA P. X.

Whether a fecular prince has a lawful right to receive the clergy's tenths, and to order what is useful to the state, with respect to the eftates and perfons of ecclefiaftics? Before I proceed to the particular exami

nation of the clergy's tenths, I would have us make fome general reflections upon the right that fecular princes have to exact the tenths of the eftates of their lay-fubjects, and to impofe on them taxes, gabels, fubfidies, tolls, &c. And before we enter into these confiderations, we ought to inquire how far a fubject is oblig'd in confcience to obey his prince, and whether he fins by disobedience. The firft precept of the fecond table of the decalogue is to honour our father and mother. Now ther is not a catholic expofitor upon earth, but, by the words father and mother, understands and includes the fpiritual and temporal nobility in fuch a fense, that a man is oblig'd, by the divine law, to honour his legal father, that is to fay, his prince, or his prelate, as much as his carmal father, from whom he derives his birth; unlefs it should be objected, that the ten commandments are not univerfal, and that he, who

who has not a father by blood alive, is only oblig'd to the obfervation of nine. But there is no body who has not either a father, or fuperior, in fome fenfe or other: In this cafe, every patient is inferior to his phyfician, every layman to his mafter; and even a prince, who has no fuperior in humanis, has his fuperior among the ecclefiaftics. In fhort, the Pope, who has no fuperior in dignity, has his fuperior in fome fpecial cafes, when, as a finner, he makes confeffion to another, who, during his function, is more a Pope than himself. Our Lord Chrift alfo, as man, had parents, on whom he depended, who were confequently his fuperiors; and when the virgin Mary found him, after tedious fearch, the faid unto him, Son, why haft thou thus dealt with us? behold thy father and I have fought thee forrowing. She did not fpeak this by way of hyperbole, for fhe very well knew the divinity of her fon, both by the revelation of the angel, and the inspiration of the Holy Ghoft; but fhe spoke after this manner, because Jofeph was his father by adoption, as God was by nature; moreover, the Evangelift adds, he was subject unto them. Formerly, a father by adoption had fuch authority over his adopted fon, that he had a right to punish him, when he offended, as much as if he had been his own natural fon. Therefore this neceffity of fubjection, or subordination, from which no perfon whatsoever is exempt, forms a kind of hierarchy, which

leads

leads us to the apprehenfion and acknowledgment of the neceffity of a first principal of all things that are in the world. Thus Dionyfius the Areopagite, before he was enlightned by faith, faid as much as it was poffible for man, guided by natural reafon alone, to' fay, Caufa caufarum miferere mei! i. e. O cause of caufes have mercy on me! Afterwards, when he had the good fortune to be inftructed by St. Paul, with whom he difputed, he profefs'd chriftianity, became the apoftle of the Gauls, and was esteem'd one of the chief faints of the catholic Church.

It was therefore neceffary to make this digreffion, to fhew that every body, from the loweft, even to the higheft, has a fuperior in fome fense or other; a confideration, which, by endless progreffion, brings us to the pillars of that divine Hercules, where is the non plus ultra of fuperiority and grandeur. Now, fince every one has fuperiors, and that he is oblig'd to obey thofe fuperiors by the express command of God, it follows, by confequence, that every one ought, by virtue of the fame divine command, to pay obedience to his prince. Fear thou the Lord and the king, fays Solomon; where, tho' he places the king in the fecond rank, he feems to mean, that the obligation of obedience to God and the king is in fome fort equal. This is what I think all are agreed in; but if I fhould go about to extend the obligation of fearing and honouring to

that

that of contributing, I apprehend that I fhould meet with some who would not be fo ready to give into my opinion: Yet they are fynonymous terms in the law of God. 'Tis faid in the Proverbs, Honour the Lord with thy fubftance; which fort of honour confifts in paying tribute or impofts; for to honour another with one's fubftance, can mean nothing else than giving him a part thereof.

To pafs from the text to the explication of it. We fay, that a prince is oblig'd, by divine authority, to defend his dominions, to protect his fubjects, to procure them provifions, to guard them against contagions, malefactors, and public enemies, and to do them fo many other offices, that a great man, who perfectly knew the heavy weight of government, faid, if ever he should happen to find a crown in his way, he would not fo much as ftoop to take it up from the ground. This being the cafe, 'tis but reasonable that the prince fhould be rewarded for all his fatigue, and that for this end, he fhould have the means in his own hands for obliging his fubjects to grant him a supply towards his expences; which means are taxes, tenths, and various forts of impofts, which he has the power of raifing. 'Tis well known that the treasury resembles the spleen, which is nourifh'd with a part of the aliment of the other members, and which, while it is in a certain state of mediocrity, preferves the body in health. Therefore 'tis equal

ly