1521.

Buckingham's crimes feemed to proceed more from indif- CHA P. cretion than deliberate malice, the people who loved him, XXVIII. expected that the king would grant him a pardon, and afcribed their disappointment to the malice and revenge of the cardinal. The king's own jealousy, however, of all perfons allied to the crown, was, notwithstanding his undoubled title, very remarkable during the whole courfe of his reign; and was alone fufficient to render him implacable against Buckingham. The office of conftable, which this nobleman inherited from the Bohuns, earls of Hereford, was forfeited, and was never after revived by Henry.

CHAP.

!

CHAP.

XXIX.

1521.

Digreffion

concern

CHAP. XXIX.

Digreffion concerning the ecclefiaftical flate.

Origin of the reformation.-Martin Luther. Henry receives the title of Defender of the Faith.--Causes of the progrefs of the reformation. War with France. Invafion of France. War with Scotland. · Parliament. Invafion of France.

A

Italian wars.

-The king of France invades Italy.- Battle of Pavia and captivity of Francis. - Francis recovers his liberty.- Sack of Rome, League with France.

URING fome years, many parts of Europe had been agitated with thofe religious controverfies, which produced the reformation, one of the greatest events in hiftory: But as it was not till this time, that the king of England publickly took part in the quarrel, we had no occafion to give any account of its rife and progrefs. It will now be neceffary to explain these theological difputes; or what is more material, to trace from their origin those abuses, which fo generally diffufed the opinion, that a reformation of the church or ecclefiaftiçal order was become highly expedient, if not abfolutely neceffary. We fhall be better enabled to comprehend the fubject, if we take the matter a little higher, and reflect a moment on the reafons, why there must be an ecclefiaftical order, and a public establishment of religion in every civilized community. The importance of the prefent occafion will, I hope, excufe this fhort digreffion.

MOST of the arts and profeffions in a state are of fuch a nature, that, while they promote the interests of ing the the fociety, they are also useful or agreeable to fome inecclefiaf dividuals; and in that cafe, the conftant rule of the matical flate. giftrate, except, perhaps, on the firft introduction of any art, is, to leave the profeffion to itself, and truft its encouragement to the individuals who reap the benefit of it. The artizans, finding their profits to rife by the favour of their cuftomers, encrease, as much as poffible, their skill and induftry; and as matters are not disturbed

by

by any injudicious tampering, the commodity is always CHA P. fure to be at all times exactly proportioned to the demand. XXIX.

BUT there are alfo fome callings which, though uteful and even neceflary in a ftate, bring no advantage nor 1521 pleasure to any individual; and the fupreme power is obliged to alter its conduct with regard to the retainers of thote profeffions. It must give them public encouragement in order to their fubfiftence; and it must provide against that negligence, to which they will naturally be fubject, either by annexing particular honours to the profeffion, by establishing a long fubordination of ranks and a strict dependance, or by fome other expedient. The perfons, employed in the finances, armies, fleets, and magistracy, are inftances of this order of men.

IT may naturally be thought, at first view, that the ecclefiaftics belong to the first clafs, and that their encouragement, as well as that of lawyers and physicians, may fafely be trufted to the liberality of individuals, who are attached to their doctrines, and who find benefit or confolation from their spiritual miniftry and affiftance. Their induftry and vigilance will, no doubt, be whetted by fuch an additional motive; and their skill in the profeffion, as well as their addrefs in governing the minds of the people, muft receive daily encrease, from their encreafing practice, ftudy, and attention,

BUT if we confider the matter more closely, we shall find, that this interested diligence of the clergy is what every wife legiflator will study to prevent; because in every religion, except the true, it is highly pernicious, and it has even a natural tendency to pervert the true, by infusing into it a strong mixture of fuperftition, folly and delufion. Each ghoftly practitioner, in order to render himself more precious and facred in the eyes of his retainers, must infpire them with the most violent abhorrence against all other fects, and continually endeavour, by fome novelty, to excite the languid devotion of his audience. No regard will be paid to truth, morals, or decency in the doctrines inculcated. Every tenet will be adopted that beft fuits the diforderly affections of the human frame. Cuftomers will be drawn to each conventicle by new industry and address in practifing on the paffions and credulity of the populace. And in the end, the civil magiftrate will find, that he has paid dearly for his pretended frugality, in faving a fettled foundation for

the

1

CHA P. the priests; and that in reality the most decent and adXXIX. vantageous compofition, which he can make with the

fpiritual guides, is to bribe their indolence, by affixing 1521. ftated falaries to their profeffion, and rendering it fuperfluous for them to be farther active, than merely to preferve their flock from ftraying in queft of new paftures. And in this manner ecclefiaftical establishments, though commonly they arose at first from religious views, prove in the end advantageous to the political interefts of fociety.

BUT we may observe, that few ecclefiaftical establishments have beeen fixed upon a worse foundation than that of the church of Rome, or have been attended with circumstances more hurtful to the peace and happiness of mankind.

THE large revenues, privileges, immunities, and powers of the clergy rendered them formidable to the civil magiftrate, and armed with too extenfive authority an order of men, who always adhere closely together, and who never want a plaufible pretence for their encroachments and ufurpations. The higher dignities of the church ferved, indeed, to the fupport of gentry and nobility; but by the eftablishments of monafteries, many of the loweft vulgar were taken from the ufeful arts, and maintained in thofe receptacles of floth and ignorance. The fupreme head of the church was a foreign potentate, guided by interefts, always different, fometimes contrary to thofe of the community. And as the hierarchy was neceffarily folicitous to preferve an unity of faith, rites and ceremonies, all liberty of thought ran a manifeft rifque of being extinguifhed; and violent perferations, or what was worse, a ftupid and abject credulity, took place every where.

To encrease these evils, the church, though the pof feffed large revenues, was not contented with her acquifitions, but retained a power of pra&tifing farther on the ignorance of mankind. She even beftowed on each individual priest a power of enriching himself by the voluntary oblations of the faithful, and left him ftill a powerful motive for diligence and induftry in his calling. And thus, that church, though an expenfive and burthenfome eftablishment, was liable to many of the inconveniencies, which belong to an order of priests, trufted entirely to their own art and invention for attaining a fubfiftence.

THE

THE advantages, attending the Romish hierarchy, CHA P. were but a small compenfation for its inconveniencies, XXIX. The ecclefiaftical privileges, during barbarous times, had ferved as a cheque to the defpotifm of kings. The union of all the western churches under the fupreme pontiff facilitated the intercourse of nations, and tended to bind all the parts of Europe into a clofe connection with each other. And the pomp and fplendor of worship, which belonged to fo opulent an establishment, contributed in fome refpects, to the encouragement of the fine arts, and began to diffuse a general elegance of taste, by uniting it with religion.

IT will easily be conceived, that, though the balance of evil prevailed in the Romish church, this was not the chief reason, which produced the reformation. A concurrence of incidents must have contributed to forward that great work.

LEO the tenth, by his generous and enterprizing tem- Origin of per, had very much exhaufted his treasury, and was the refor obliged to make ufe of every invention, which might mation. yield money, in order to fupport his projects, pleasures, and liberalities. The fcheme of felling indulgences was fuggefted to him, as an expedient which had often ferved in former times to draw money from the christian world, and make devout people willing contributors to the grandeur and riches of the court of Rome. The church, it was fuppofed, was poffeffed of a great flock of merit, as being entitled to all the good works of the faints, beyond what were employed in their own juftification and even to the merits of Chrift himself, which were infinite and unbounded: And from this unexhaufted treafury, the pope might retail particular portions, and by that traffic acquire money, to be employed in pious purpofes, the refifting the Turk, or fubduing fchifmatics, When the money came into his treafury, the greatest part of it was ufually diverted to other purposes A,

It is commonly believed, that Leo, from the pence tration of his genius, and his familiarity with antient literature, was fully acquainted with the ridicule and fallacy of the doctrines, which, as fupreme pontiff, he was obliged by his intereft to promote: And it is the lefs wonder, therefore, that he employed for his profit thofe pi

A Father Paul, Sleidan.

ous