Fourth Lateran Council

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4th Council in Lateran
11. – 30. November 1215
Accepted by

Roman Catholic Church

Convened by Pope Innocent III
Bureau

Pope Innocent III

Attendees 71 patriarchs and metropolitans , 412  bishops , around 900  abbots , priores and envoys
subjects

Cathars and Waldensians ; Doctrine of the trinity ; Transubstantiation , papal primacy , lifestyle and behavior of the clergy, ecclesiastical procedural law, crusade

Documents

71 decrees

The Fourth Lateran Council (also known as the Fourth Lateran Synod ) was the most important council of the Middle Ages . It was made by the bull Vineam Domini Sabaoth of Pope Innocent III. convened on April 19, 1213 and held in November 1215 in the Lateran in Rome . In Catholic church historiography, it has been an ecumenical council since Bellarmin's Disputationes (1586), despite the absence of the Eastern Church .

Innocent III. is considered one of the most important canon lawyers of the Middle Ages. Accordingly, he had a wealth of procedural rules passed at the council. His draft on the financing of the Roman dicasteries was rejected, however, the other canons solemnly confirmed. These were later structured by the glossators , numbered and included in various canon law collections and found the widest reception in the European particular churches, u. a. on provincial synods . Johannes Teutonicus Zemeke is considered the most important and probably one of the earliest commentators on the Fourth Lateran Council .

visit

The council stood out for the number and catchment area of ​​its participants. When the council was announced, not only all bishops and abbots were invited - at most one or two bishops should be allowed to remain in each ecclesiastical province - but also the church and religious chapters , the kings and princes of the Christian world. Innocent III. succeeded in building on the tradition of the ecumenical councils of antiquity in the public consciousness . The participants had been expressly asked in advance to state what topics they would like.

There were 71 patriarchs and metropolitans , including the Latin Patriarchs of Jerusalem and Constantinople , 412 bishops and around 900 abbots and priores . The Patriarchs of Antioch and Alexandria were represented by emissaries, as were the Roman-German King and later Emperor Frederick II , the Emperor of the Latin Empire of Constantinople Henry and the kings of France, England, Aragon, Hungary, Cyprus and Jerusalem. A detailed list of participants includes 71 patriarchs and metropolitans and 401 bishops, but not the abbots and priors.

Although the Eastern Churches in particular had expressly asked for a general council and had also been invited, they stayed away from the council, since after the conquest of Constantinople in the course of the Fourth Crusade in 1204, the relations between the genuinely Eastern churches and the Roman Church became increasingly difficult: “The installation of a Latin patriarch in Constantinople to replace the Greek patriarch and the reorganization of the structure of the areas of responsibility represented the greatest obstacle to unification in the eyes of the Greeks; in the eyes of the Latins, the agreement had already been achieved. "

decisions

Both bishops and accredited lay people enjoyed the right to freedom of expression in the deliberations held in the General Congregations under the presidency of the Pope in the form of judicial proceedings . When the controversy over the succession to the throne led to tumult in the empire, Innocent declared that “the council is known to be set up so that the guilty and the innocent are heard, the poor and the rich, even the devil himself, if he were able to repent . ”However, hardly any details of the course of the meetings have been handed down, only the results were solemnly announced. But indirectly it can be deduced that resolutions with a two-thirds majority were valid and that the Pope was bound by the vote of the majority.

dogmatics

  • The first Canon reports, paraphrases and unfolds the great creed of Nicea and Constantinople using formulations of the so-called Athanasian creed and reacts to points that were controversial at the time. The devil and other demons were originally well created, but then became evil of themselves. The Canon continues to emphasize the need for salvation of the one Church, "in which Jesus Christ is both priest and offering", whose body and blood are contained in the sacrament of the Lord's Supper through an essential transformation of bread and wine . This sacrament can only be brought about by a correctly ( rite ) ordained priest, baptism is possible for children as well as adults , penance is repeatable and eternal bliss not only for those who live without abstinence , but for all people through right faith, good works and good pleasure To attain God. Without expressly mentioning, many of these explanations are directed against the Cathars , who taught an original dualism of good heavenly and evil earthly powers, did not see the Lord's Supper as a sacrament and only gave asexual followers the possibility of salvation.
    The doctrine of the transubstantiation of bread and wine in the sacrament of the Eucharist is still relevant today until the ecumenical discussion of the Roman Catholic Church.
  • The second canon defends the doctrine of the Trinity of Petrus Lombardus against the accusation of Joachim von Fiore († 1202) that Peter wanted to introduce the three divine persons father, son and holy spirit, their common being as a fourth greatness. The explanations on this deal with the possibility and limitations of analogous speech about God. The systematically important statement is made: "There is no such great similarity between the creator and the creature that there is no greater dissimilarity between them." The Canon condemns anyone who adheres to Joachim de Fiore's teaching on this particular point but his monastery in Fiore expressly assumes it, especially since Joachim himself had submitted all his writings to the apostolic chair for approval. In a subsequent clause, without further explanation, a “perversissimum dogma” by Amalrich von Bena († 1206) is condemned, which has not been clearly identified in research to this day.

Heretic persecution

  • The 3rd Canon excommunicates and banishes all heretics who oppose the doctrine of faith outlined above, and hands them over to secular jurisdiction. Suspects are banned and, if they do not prove their innocence within one year, treated like proven heretics. Secular powers that do not participate in the persecution of heresy are in turn excommunicated after a warning. After one year, their vassals and feudal takers are released from their oath of allegiance and the Pope releases their lands for occupation by Christians who are loyal to the Church.
    Those who take part in the crusades against heretics enjoy the same privileges as a Jerusalem driver . On the other hand, whoever adheres to heresies, whoever defends, protects or promotes them, falls prey to excommunication. After one year he loses his legal capacity, is excluded from the succession, judges lose their jurisdiction, clerics lose their offices and benefices as well as their right to donate the sacraments .
    Anyone who preaches as a layperson or as an unsolicited cleric is also expressly threatened with excommunication . Suspicious parishes are to be inspected at least once a year, and persons who keep their life and morals separate from the usual way of dealing with the faithful are denounced to the bishop . Bishops who fail to fulfill this obligation will in turn be removed from office. This prohibition of lay sermons particularly affected the Waldensians, who were again not named .

Church constitution
Only after their oath of obedience to the Roman chair should the eastern patriarchs have the right to grant their suffragans the pallium and to have the cross banner carried before them.
  • The 6th Canon calls upon metropolitans to solemnly hold synods in their territories every year. Even in the run-up to this, research should be carried out to find out whether there is any criminal or improvement situation.
  • The 7th Canon warns the prelates not to allow customary law or appellation when punishing and amending misconduct , except against formal errors .
  • The 8th Canon sets guidelines for the prosecution, reporting and investigation of misconduct by senior and minor officials as well as for defending against unjustified charges.
  • The 9th Canon prescribes that in places with a mixed population, which follow different rites , suitable persons are commissioned to perform the services for the respective ethnic group. However, there can only be one bishop in a place.
  • The 10th Canon calls for bishops who cannot preach themselves to appoint suitable men as coadjutors and to appoint them to cathedral and conventual churches .
  • The 11th Canon recalls the demand for teachers for clergy and poor scholars to be recruited to episcopal churches and other churches with adequate financial resources. Theologians are also to be hired to train priests at metropolitan churches .
  • The 12th Canon demands that every three years in each country a general chapter of all religious should be assembled, who will meanwhile live together in a monastery and discuss and implement current reform concerns with the assistance of two Cistercians . They should also appoint suitable persons to visit the women's convents and regular canons.
  • The 13th Canon forbids the creation of new rules of the order ; Newly founded monasteries must adopt existing rules. Monks may not belong to several monasteries at the same time, an abbot may not preside over several monasteries at the same time.

Morale of the clergy

  • The 14th Canon increases penalties for clerics who violate the principle of abstinence .
  • The 15th Canon forbids all clerics from taking part in drinking parties and hunting ; even the possession of dogs and hunting birds is forbidden to them.
  • The 16th Canon prohibits clerics from participating in commercial transactions and public performances by jugglers and actors , dice games and lotteries , and gives detailed dress codes .
  • The 17th Canon complains of exaggerated dinners even of high prelates and threatens their disregard for their liturgical obligations, inattentiveness and improper disruptions in church services with the penalty of suspension .
  • The 18th Canon prohibits clerics from exercising and enforcing blood justice, as well as advising or being present at it. Clerics are not allowed to command mercenaries or riflemen , practice surgery or give their blessings to bloody divine judgments such as water tests or fire tests . Previous bans on single combat remain in effect.
  • The 19th Canon forbids clergymen to store their household items in the church. All equipment on vessels and towels must be kept sparkling clean.
  • The 20th Canon orders that the Eucharist and chrism are kept locked to prevent abuse.

Buses

  • The 21st Canon commands Christians of both sexes from the age of awareness of injustice to confess all of their sins to their own priest at least once a year . This is imprisoned for life in a difficult monastery to keep the confessional secret .
  • The 22nd Canon obliges doctors to urge their patients to look after their souls first , "since many diseases come from sin".

Episcopal elections

  • The 23rd Canon stipulates that episcopal and regular churches should not remain vacant for more than three months . If a chapter fails to appoint a successor within this period, it loses the right to vote this time.
  • The 24th Canon declares only three modes of bishopric elections to be admissible: the decision by majority (maior pars) or predominance (sanior pars) of the votes, the transfer of the decision to an authorized smaller body and the decision by spontaneous agreement . Other regulations include the obligation to publish the election results as soon as possible.
  • The 25th Canon declares elections to bishops by laypeople inadmissible.

Admission to church offices

  • The 26th Canon obliges the bishops to check persons who are to be entrusted with pastoral care tasks, whether they are qualified with regard to their education , their way of life and their age .
  • The 27th Canon obliges the bishops to carefully train their priests.
  • The 28th Canon actually forces clerics who have obtained permission to resign from office to resign.
  • The 29th Canon forbids the accumulation of benefices if more than one of them is bound by an obligation of pastoral care. A cleric may only enjoy a single benefice at one and the same church, even without pastoral care.
  • The 30th Canon calls on the Provincial Synods to admit only suitable and educated people as clergymen.
  • The 31st Canon forbids the adoption of sons of canons, especially illegitimate ones, outside of monasteries in the same churches as their fathers as canons.
  • The 32nd Canon forbids parish patrons who let vicars or altarists fulfill their pastoral care obligations and who - as often happens - only pay one sixteenth of their tithing. Only those who have to worship at a higher-ranking church are allowed to be represented, but must grant their representative a share sufficient to support themselves .

Abuse of visitation funds

  • The 33rd Canon commands that attendance fees ( procurationes ) paid to visiting bishops, archdeacons and papal envoys should only be levied for visits that have actually been carried out and on a modest scale and distributed among as many churches as possible in order to keep the burden low.
  • The 34th Canon prohibits prelates from collecting more money from their subordinates than they then pay out of profit-seeking under the pretext of raising these procurationes .

Ecclesiastical procedural law

  • The 35th Canon prohibits defendants from seeking justice from another judge. Appellation is only possible after a judgment, whereby the judge must be given a reasonable reason for the appeal. This is then examined by the higher court and the dispute is either referred back for a fee or admitted to the higher instance.
  • The 36th Canon is directed against the procrastination of lawsuits and ensures that the actual proceedings can continue even in the event of an appeal against orders and judicial coercive measures .
  • The 37th Canon prohibits the misuse of apostolic letters for summons before a court more than two days away, which can make it impossible for a party who is in the right to obtain their rights due to the high costs. In addition, the Canon prohibits the commercial solicitation of such letters without a mandate from a party, with the aim of buying out potential defendants or offering potential plaintiffs means to harass their opponents.
  • The 38th Canon commands that all processes before ecclesiastical courts be recorded .
  • The 39th Canon states that stolen property can be reclaimed not only from the robber, but also from the person to whom the stolen property was passed on.
  • The 40th Canon declares that goods awarded by a court to a party but not released by the other party will not pass into their possession after one year . The Canon also states that laypeople are not to be called upon as judges on spiritual matters.
  • 41. The Canon explains each canonical as civil regulation invalid whose compliance with a mortal sin would be accompanied; In particular, no prescription is valid if someone was aware that he was in possession of someone else's property.

Differentiation from secular jurisprudence

  • The 42nd Canon prohibits clergy from intervening in their jurisdiction to the detriment of secular courts .
  • The 43rd Canon forbids lay people to take an oath of allegiance from clerics to whom they have no worldly access .
  • The 44th Canon forbids the alienation of church property under the pressure of secular legislation without the consent of the church.
  • Canon 45 declares that anyone who kills, maimed, or causes a clergy shall lose their right of patronage ; Likewise, bailiffs lose their bailiwick, feudal takers their fiefdom, vice domini their vitztumamt, benefice their benefice . Their heirs are to remain excluded from the clergy until the fourth generation.
  • The 46th Canon exempts clergy from city duties and taxes. Bishops who freely want to make church resources available for the common good may only do so with papal consent.

excommunication

  • The 47th Canon orders that excommunication be imposed only after a previous warning and before witnesses. After unsuccessful humble request to withdraw an unlawfully imposed excommunication, a higher local complaint can be lodged. Both unjust impositions and unjustified protests against a lawful excommunication result in an obligation to pay damages .
  • The 48th Canon regulates requests for bias against judges who pronounce excommunication and is directed against the abuse of this legal remedy .
  • The 49th Canon threatens anyone who pronounces or revokes an excommunication out of greed - especially in areas where a fee is due for absolution - with the penalty of repayment of the extorted sum in double the amount.

Marriage regulations

  • The 50th Canon relaxes certain impediments in distant intermarriage and between children from a second marriage with the blood relatives of the first man. Consanguinity is now only an obstacle to marriage up to the fourth degree.
  • 51. The Canon prohibits secret marriages and calls for a public levy .
  • The 52nd Canon regulates the admissibility of witnesses to prove the degree of kinship .

Church tithe

  • The 53rd Canon prohibits tenth subject goods for the purpose of evasion of the tithe to members of other rite churches to lend, applies to the no tithe.
  • The 54th Canon commands tithing to the Church before all other secular taxes and duties.
  • The 55th Canon commands monasteries to continue paying tithing from lands bought, endowed, or donated to those churches that were previously entitled to tithing. An amicable balance of interests is encouraged.

Privileges and legal capacity of religious

  • The 56th Canon defines the scope of papal privileges for members of the order to receive a church burial despite interdicts of their churches and to celebrate a single service in banned cities, castles or villages.
  • The 57th Canon extends the latter privilege to bishops and allows them to celebrate services in a low voice without ringing bells to the exclusion of expressly banned persons with closed doors.
  • The 59th Canon prohibits members of the Order from giving guarantees or borrowing money without the approval of their abbot and the majority of the Convention , and otherwise absolves the Convention from liability .

Episcopal competencies

Various abuses

  • The 62nd canon opposes abuses in relics , collecting alms and giving indulgences . Holy relics may no longer be displayed and offered for sale without a reliquary , and newly found relics may not be venerated without papal approval. Alms collectors are obliged to live a modest way of life and must limit themselves in their proclamation to the content of their concession letter, for which a form is provided. Bishops cannot extend indulgences beyond a year. They must also not allow “the believers to be deceived with fantastic stories or forged documents, as is usually the case in many places out of gainfulness”.

simony

  • The 63rd Canon forbids both the solicitation and payment of money for episcopal ordinations , abbot benedictions, and the ordination of clergy, and condemns the justification of such abuse as an old custom .
  • The 64th Canon penalizes religious women with lifelong heavy penance who accept sisters into their convent for money. The same is said to apply to monks and regular canons.
  • The 65th Canon forbids bishops from making unlawful pecuniary claims against pastors when entering a new parish , against knights or clerics when entering monasteries and for their burial in a monastery or church.
  • The 66th Canon forbids all claims for money for funerals, weddings and the administration of other sacraments .

Jews

  • The 67th Canon forbids Jews "serious and excessive usury [...] with which they exhaust the wealth of Christians in a short time".
  • Canon 68 mandates Jews (and Muslims) to dress differently so that Christian and Jewish (and Muslim) men and women “do not mistakenly get involved”. They are not allowed to appear in public on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday .
  • The 69th Canon prohibits the delegation of public office to Jews (and Gentiles ), which would give them authority over Christians.
  • The 70th Canon prohibits baptized Jews from adhering to their religious customs.

Call to the crusade

  • The 71st Canon calls for the crusade ( Crusade of Damiette ) to the Holy Land , which is to start on June 1, 1217 from Brindisi or Messina . Priests and other clerics in the Christian army should expressly admonish God-fearing behavior, moderation and unity and should receive their income for three years on the way. Prelates should admonish defaulting believers who have committed to participate in the crusade to implement it and, if necessary, threaten them with excommunication and interdicts from their countries.
The Pope announced that he would provide 30,000 pounds from his own budget for the crusaders and to bear the cost of the crossing from Rome, as well as provide 3,000 marks of silver from donations. In the next three years, clerics are to pay 5% of their income to support the crusade, the Pope himself and the cardinals 10% of their income. Crusaders who have taken out loans are absolved of their oath to pay the usury , and their creditors are required to repay the interest. Jews are said to be compelled by secular power to remit interest and until then be banned from fellowship with Christians. For the repayment of the actual debt, the crusaders are to be granted favorable conditions.
At home there is a three-year tournament ban and at least four years of general peace throughout the Christian world. Furthermore, a four-year embargo on ships, weapons and technology is imposed on the Saracens .
With sincere repentance and verbal confession, forgiveness of their sins is promised not only to all those who go to war in person, but also to all who equip fighters, who provide ships or have ships built.

In addition to the formal canons , resolutions were also passed on subjects that would be regarded as secular or purely political today, but that were considered relevant to a council at that time. In the last session on November 30th, the Pope announced the council's verdict on the controversy for the throne in the Holy Roman Empire : Friedrich II was recognized, Otto von Braunschweig rejected. The English barons who had rebelled against King John Ohneland were given the anathema . Count Raimund of Toulouse was removed from office as a supporter of the Cathars, and his county passed to Simon von Montfort , the most fierce persecutor of the Cathars .

sources

  • Conciliorum Oecumenicorum Decreta , curantibus Josepho Alberigo et aliis. 3. Edition. Bologna 1973, pp. 227-271.
  • Edition of the council resolutions in Latin / German in: Josef Wohlmuth (Ed.): Decrees of the ecumenical councils. Volume 2: Councils of the Middle Ages. Paderborn et al. 2000, pp. 227-271.

literature

  • G. Alberigo , A. Duval (Eds.): Les Conciles œcuméniques . 2 volumes: L'Histoire and Les Décrets. (= Collection Le magistère de l'Église ). Editions de Cerf, Paris 1994, ISBN 2-204-04446-6 and ISBN 2-204-05011-3 .
  • Raymonde Foreville: Lateran I – IV. (= History of the Ecumenical Councils. Volume 6). Matthias Grünewald Verlag, Mainz 1970 (translation of the French original, Paris 1965)
  • Nicola Ciola - Antionio Sabetta - Pierluigi Sguazzardo (edd.): Il concilio lateranense a 800 anni della sua celebrazione . Lateran Univ. Press, Città del Vaticano 2016.

Web links

Remarks

  1. ↑ Alberto Melloni: The seven "papal councils" of the Middle Ages. In: Giuseppe Alberigo (ed.): History of the Councils. From the Nicaenum to the Vaticanum II. Wiesbaden 1998, pp. 197-231, here p. 215.
  2. ↑ Raymonde Foreville: Lateran I-IV . (= History of the Ecumenical Councils, Volume 6). Matthias Grünewald Verlag, Mainz 1970, p. 294.
  3. ↑ Achille Luchaire: Un document retrouvé . In: Le Journal des sçavans , 1905 nouv. sér. A3, pp. 557-568. Online at gallica .
  4. ↑ Raymonde Foreville: Lateran I-IV . (= History of the Ecumenical Councils, Volume 6). Matthias Grünewald Verlag, Mainz 1970, p. 304.
  5. ↑ Raymonde Foreville: Lateran I-IV . (= History of the Ecumenical Councils, Volume 6). Matthias Grünewald Verlag, Mainz 1970, p. 321.
  6. ↑ Raymonde Foreville: Lateran I-IV . (= History of the Ecumenical Councils, Volume 6). Matthias Grünewald Verlag, Mainz 1970, p. 319.