Sede Vacante 1378



Letter of Pope Clement VII to someone named a cardinal by Bartholomeo Prignano
(September 24, 1378)

 

Fr. Vliemeprieder, "Ein Brief des Gegenpapstes [sic] Klemens' VII (1378),"  Historisches Jahrbuch 26 (1905), 574-575:

 

Clemens electus episcopus servus servorum Dei dilecto filio [ – – ] .

Cum honorem potissime ecclesiasticum assumere quis non debeat, sed assumptum pocius dimittere, nisi a Deo vocatus fuerit tanquam Aaron, nec entrare in ovile Domini nisi per [h]ostium, alias fur est latro, quod hostium in terris aperire non potest nisi vicarius Jhesu Christi, nosque percepimus quod Bartholomeus olim Baren[sis] archiepiscopus, sedis apostolicae iniustissimus ocupator, ut ipse in malo firmet propositum et plures habeat adherentes, ut secum in precipicium plures trahat, multitudinem creavit anticardinalium, de quorum numero, ut asseritur, tu es unus, discrecionem tuam monemus et exhortamur in DOmino Jhesu Christo, quatenus promocionem, ymo verius dampnacionem seu confusionem tuam huiusmodi non velis aliqualiter acceptare et si de factoforsitan acceptasti, sic de facto dimittere sutdeas indilate.  Quod si feceris, tibi exinde, preter humane laudis preconium, non solum premium eterne retribucionis perveniet, sed favor interim apostolice sedis accrescet, quem tibi, quantum cum Domino poterimus, exhibere proponimus ac tual commoda pro quibus ad nos recurrere cum securitate poteris, favorabiliter promovere.  Si vero contrarium, quod absit, forsitan acceptaveris et verba mea non audiveris cum effectu, dimittere non possemus qui ad tales ausus temerarios reprimendos, prout culpa exegerit, insurgamus.

Dat. Fundis VIII kal. Octobris  [September 24, 1378].

 

 

 

 


Clement VII refers to himself as electus episcopus because he had not yet been crowned.  That took place at Fondi on October 31, 1378.   He had been elected on September 20, 1278.

The anticardinales of Bartholomeo Prignano were created on September 18, 1278.   The number of those named was twenty-nine.  Three refused outright. One, Agapito Colonna, had to be strongly pressured to accept (though his relative, Stefano Colonna, refused).  Two of those who accepted subsequently went over to Clement VII.

 

August 23, 2014 3:46 PM

John Paul Adams, CSUN
john.p.adams@csun.edu

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