Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 6.djvu/871

 GREaORY

785

GREGORY

without the exarch's aid. Whatever the theory may refer to the famous letters to the Emperor Phocas on

have been, there is no doubt about the fact that, be- his usurpation, and the allusions in them to the mur-

sides his spiritual jurisdiction, Gregory actually exer- dered Emperor Maurice (Epp., XIII, xxxiv, xli, xlii).

cised no small amount of temporal power. Every kind of judgment has been passed upon

Of Gregory's relations with the Franks there is no Gregory for writing these letters, but the question

need to write at length, as the intercourse he estab- remains a difficult one. Probably the pope's conduct

lished with the Frankish kings practically lapsed at herein was due to two things: first, his ignorance of the

his death, and was not renewed for about a hundred way in which Phocas had reached the throne; and

years. On the other hand he exercised a great in- second, his view that the emperor was God's repre-

fluence on Frankish monasticism, which he did much sentative on earth, and therefore deserving of all

to strengthen and reshape, so that the work done by possible respect in his official capacity, his personal

the monasteries in civilizing the wild Franks may be character not coming into the question at all. It

attributed ultimately to the first monk-pope. should be noted, also, that he avoids any direct flattery

(5) Helalions u-ith the Imperial Government. — The towards the new emperor, merelj' using the exagger-

reign of Gregory the Great marks an epoch in papal his- tory, and this is specially the case in respect of his attitude towards the imperial Govern- ment centred at Constanti- nople. Gregory seems to have looked upon Church and State as co-operating to form a united whole, which acted in two distinct spheres, ecclesias- tical and secular. Over this commonwealth were the pope and the emperor, each su- preme in his own department, care being taken to keep these as far as possible distinct and independent. This latter point was the difficulty. Greg- ory definitely held that it was a duty of the secular ruler to protect the Church and pre- serve the "peace of the faith" (Mor., XXXI, viii), and so he is often found to call in the aid of the secular arm, not merely to suppress schism, heresy, or idolatry, but even to enforce discipline among monks and clergy (Epp., I, l.xxii ; II, xxix ; III, lix ; I V, vii, xxxii : V, xxxii ; VIII, iv; XI, xii,xxxvii; XIII, xxxvi). If the emperor inter- fered in church matters the pope's policy was to acquiesce if possible, unless obedience ■was sinful, according to the principle laid down in

St. Gregory the CiRE.\t kIocus of (jheiit (?), Barberini Palace, Ro

ated phrases of respect then customary, and expressing the high hopes he entertains of the new regime. More- over, his allusions to Maurice refer to the sufferings of the people under his government, and do not reflect on the dead emperor himself. Had the empire been sound instead of in a hopelessly rotten state when Ciregory became pope, it is hard to say how his views might have worked out in practice. As it was, his line of strong independence, his efficiency, and his courage carried all before them, and when he died there was no longer any question as to who was the first power in Italy.

1(5) Missionary Work. — Gregory's zeal for the con- version of the heathen, and in )i;irticular of the Angles, has ill (II mentioned alreadj-, and ilnr.i is no need to dwell at lin,i;ih OR the latter subject, as it has been fully treated imder Augustine ofC.\nter- EUHY, S.M.NT. In justice to the great pope, however, it nuist be added that he lost no opportunity for the exercise of his missionary zeal, mak- ing every effort to root out paganism in Gaul, Donatism

in Africa, and the f^chism of Epp." XI, xxix; ''Quod ipse [sc. imperator] fecerit, si the Three Chapters in North Italy and Istria. In canonicumest, sequimur;si verocanonicumnon est.in his treatment of heretics, schismatics, and pagans his quantum sine peccato nostro, portamus." In taking method was to try every means — persuasions, exhorta-

this line Gregory was undoubtedly influenced by his deep reverence for the emperor, whom he regarded as the representative of God in all things secular, and who must still be treated with all possible respect.

tions, threats — before resorting to force; but, if gentler treatment failed, he had no hesitation, in accordance with the ideas of his age, in resorting to compulsion, and invoking the aid of the secular arm therein. It is

even when he encroached on the borders of the papal curious, therefore, to find him acting as a champion

authority. On his side, although he certainly re- and protector of the Jews. In Epp., I, xlv, he e.x-

garded himself as "superior in place and rank" to the pressly deprecates the compulsory baptism of Jews,

exarch (Epp., II, xlv), Gregory objected strongly to and many instances appear in which he insists on their

the interference of ecclesiastical authorities in matters right to liberty of action, so far as the law permitted,

secular. As supreme guardian of Christian justice, both in civil affairs and in the worship of the syna-

the pope was always ready to intercede for, or protect, gogue (Epp., I, xxxiv; II, vi; VIII, xxv; IX, xxx\-iii,

anyone who suffered unjust treatment (Epp., I, XXXV, cxcv; XIII, xv). He was equally strong, however.

xxxvi, xh-ii, Ux; III, v;V, xxxviii; IX, iv,xlvi,lv,cxiii, clx-xxii; XI, iv), but at the same time he used the utmost tact in approaching the imperial officials. In Epp., I, xxxix a, he explains for the benefit of his Si- cilian agent the precise attitude to be adopted in such matters. Still, in conjunction with all this deference, Gregory retained a spirit of independence which enabled him, when he considered it necessary, to address even the emperor in terms of startling direct- ness. Space makes it impossible to do more than VI.— 50

in preventing the Jews from exceeding the rights granted to them by the imperial law, especially with regard to the o^\'nership b)- them of Christian slaves (Epp., II, vi; III, xxxvii; IV, i.x, .x.xi; VI, xxix; VII, xxi: VIII, xxi; IX, civ, ccxiii, ccxv). We shall pro- bably be right, therefore, in attributing Gregory's protection of the Jews to his respect for law and justice, rather than to any ideas of toleration differing from those current at the tiiue.

(7) Gregory and Monasticism. — Although the first