Page:The Church, by John Huss.pdf/113

Rh theless the holy Roman catholic and apostolic church is by the decisions of no synods set above the other churches." This it proves by the passage already cited, Matt. 16—namely: "Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my church." And a little later it calls this church "the Roman church, the primal seat of the apostle, which has neither spot nor wrinkle." This church, however, cannot be understood to mean the pope with his cardinals and his household, for they alike come and go. Therefore, the Gloss on this text has this to say: "The argument is, that wherever the good are, there is the Roman church." And so the Decretum, 24: 1 [Friedberg 1: 970]: a recta is to be understood. Where the canon on the Roman church speaks in this way: "This is the holy and apostolic mother church of all the churches of Christ, which by God's omnipotent grace is proved never to have erred from the path of apostolic tradition, nor has ever been corrupted by or succumbed to heretical novelties." This, it must here be noted, cannot be understood of any pope or the members of his household, on which point the Gloss also says: "I ask, therefore, of which church do you understand that it cannot err?" But it is certain that the pope can err. See Decretum, Anastasius, 19, and Si papa, 40 [Friedberg, 1: 64, 146]. Therefore, neither the pope himself nor his family is that church of which it is here said, she cannot err. Hence the Gloss says: "The company of the faithful itself is called this church." So also is to be understood St. Jerome's statement, Dist. 25: 1, Hæc est fides [Friedberg 1: 970]: "The Roman church is holy, which always has remained thoroughly unspotted, will in the future by the Lord's providence and the blessed Apostle Peter's care remain without any dent from heretics and abide