On the Just Punishment of Heretics

Description

sequel of Against All Heresies

De Castro was a Council of Trent father of the Salamanca school.

Heretical Pope Question

bk. 2, ch. 23 "Whether a bishop who has become a heretic is by that very fact deprived of all power of jurisdiction, even if he be the Pope." (ref:52.1-36)
cf. St. Robert Bellermine's clearer, more self-consistent treatment of these questions: De Romano Pontifice , lib. II, cap. 30.

He thinks that Pope Honorius did lapse into heresy (pace St. Robert), as a council condemned him as such.

It's unclear whether he thinks, like John of St. Thomas et al., that a heretic-pope would have to be declared deposed (by Divine law) before he loses authority/jurisdiction (compare points 2 & 5 below), but he does recognize that a heretical pope must be considered vitandus(to be avoided), and he does say that the pope's heresy ipso facto makes him lose the papacy.

1. ref:52.8: Church has not determined whether a heretical bishop ipso facto loses jurisdiction:

every bishop after he has become a heretic is excommunicated. And hence it is also concluded that he is deprived by that very fact of his episcopate, if the Church had inflicted by a perpetual decree this punishment to a heretical bishop. Now the Church has never (that I know of) decreed this until the present time. […] For although there are many holy men, whose testimonies I will cite below, who say that heretics have no honor or dignity, still they did not say this as decreeing a law. For since they were not Supreme Pontiffs, it is certain that they could not make laws which would bind all bishops.

2. ref:52.14: He seems to think the Church would have to declare the heretical pope deposed:

secluding every Divine law about this matter, if this question ought to be decided merely according to human law, a Pope who has become a heretic, although he rightly ought to be deposed due to this, still he is not by that very fact deposed, or by that very fact excommunicated. Because as long as he is the Pope, he cannot be excommunicated, nor bound by any other ecclesiastical censure, since he is above every human law, whereby those censures have their firmness and their strength. But he will be Pope as long as shall be tolerated by the Church. But the Church doubtlessly tolerates him until it is evident that he has been deposed, or rightly ought to be deposed, by Divine law.

3. ref:52.24: Divine law deprives heretic pope of papacy:

this reasoning, which was now made from the notion of the foundation [the pope's faith], urges me very much to think that the Pope, if he becomes a heretic, by that very fact is deprived by Divine law of the Papal dignity.

4. ref:52.29-32: Necessity of pope's faith:

the Pope if he becomes a heretic, could no longer be the Pope: because he is completely inept for that which firstly belongs to him by his office, namely, to confirm the rest in the faith.
[…]
He who has the Catholic faith, if he is uneducated, or vitiated by bad morals, even though he does not exercise his office well, nevertheless he is still the Pope: because he has nothing opposing the Papacy. But he who is a heretic has heresy, which completely opposes the Papacy. For he who is a heretic cannot give to others the true doctrine of the faith: and hence it follows that he who is a heretic, cannot be the Church’s shepherd.
[…]
if the Pope becomes a heretic, he is no longer the Pope: since by heresy he has been separated from the body of the Church by Divine law.
[…]
Only the sin of heresy, however, cuts off the head from the body, and consequently only it deprives the Pope by Divine law of his Papal dignity. […] it is not believable that Christ would want a heretical man to be the shepherd of His sheep, whom He certainly knew is a wolf, lest it be said that He committed the sheep to a wolf (which is an indication of extreme insanity).

5. ref:52.34: Heretical man ipso facto loses jurisdiction

there are very many testimonies of the holy Doctors, which assert that a heretical man has completely no power of jurisdiction in the Church. Firstly in fact, I cite Blessed Thomas, as more recent, who says that the power of jurisdiction “does not remain in heretics and schismatics; and consequently they neither absolve nor excommunicate, nor grant indulgence.” [II-II, q. 39, a. 3.]

6. ref:52.35: He seems to think the pope heretic question is already settled, that the Church has not wanted to legislate what is already binding by Divine law:

the Church has not made any decree up until now, by which it explicitly stated that a heretical Pope is deposed by the law itself, or by which it commanded him to be deposed; which certainly would not have happened except because she understood that the Pope, who would become a heretic, is deprived by Divine law: and hence she did not wish to legislate [which seemingly make Divine law appear to be a human law?]. It certainly ought not to be believed that the Church, which was always very solicitous about making a separation of heretics, lest they could harm others by their association, would not have hitherto decreed anything about a heretical Pope: since he could harm the Church so much the more than all other heretics, the more he has greater power for harming, and the more other Catholics stand in awe of him, whom as one might expect they ought to regard as the teacher of the faith.

7. ref:53.36: He concludes (last sentence of this §): "the judgment of this case is by Divine law, and ought not to be sought from a man."

Replies to objections: ibid. , ch. 24 "It is replied to the reasons which are objected by those who maintain the contrary opinion." (ref:54.1-30)

He seems to struggle at explaining why Divine law doesn't remove the dignity of the Papacy from an occult heretic.

ref:53.27: Heretics don't necesarily lose membership in the Church‽
Refutation: St. Robert Bellarmine, De Ecclesia Militante ch. 4 (ref:10.1-20), cited in Faghi De membris Ecclesiæ p. 81 (PDF/DjVu p. 40).

I certainly admit and (assuredly by my own judgment) it cannot be denied that a heretic is part of the Church, and its member, and is not altogether separated from her: because even though he does not have the faith, he still has the Baptismal character, whereby he was firstly made a member of the Church, he will always be her member as long as it lasts, as it is supported in the chapter, Veniens.28 But although he is a member of the Church, he still cannot be the head: because since the head is the principal member of the whole body, much more is required for the head, than for the other members. Thus the Pope if he becomes a heretic, will no longer be the head (as before), but the foot: or if there is some other lower or more worthless member.

Other interesting §§:

• ref:8.2 "On the difference between a heretical, erroneous, temerarious, scandalous, and other propositions of a similar character." Cf. Cartechini, S.J. and Cahil, O.P.
• ref:18.2 "Concerning fortune tellers and soothsayers, and other diviners, whether they ought to be called heretics.", ref:20.2 "On sorcerers, whether they ought to be called heretics, and punished as such.", & ref: 21.2 "Whether lamiæ and Striges [witches] ought to be deemed heretics." Cf. Heinrich Institoris, O.P.

Temporal punishments of heretics (cf. Integralism ref:18.43-8 on coercion of the baptized; cf. ref:12.20 on Church confiscation of apostate king's kingdom):

1. "a heretic, from the time of the crime committed, loses all ownership of his goods" (ref:35.2)
2. "privation of all rule over subjects of whatever kind." (ref:36.2)
3. "infamy" (ref:38.2)
4. "That heretics ought to be punished with the penalty of death, whether it be that such a death is inflicted upon them by the sword, or fire, or any other way." (ref:41.2)
5. "the books of heretics ought to be burned." (ref:44.2)

Spiritual punishments of heretics:

1. excommunication (ref:47.2). {He also addresses "Whether a heretic could be excommunicated after death." (ref:48.2).}
2. loss of jurisdiction if he be a bishop (ref:52.2)

Book 3 is on the extrinsic causes of heresy:

1. "lack of preaching God’s word" (ref:58.2)
2. "indiscriminate preaching of God’s word by anyone without any distinction, and without any examination." (ref:59.2)
3. "negligence of the bishops, and of other pastors of the Church" (ref:60.2)
4. "unworthiness of bishops and other priests" (ref:61.2)
5. "translation of Sacred Scripture into the vernacular language" (ref:62.2)
6. "constant and incautious reading of books of heathens" (ref:64.2)

The chief goal of this book is to fight for the Catholic Church, as a son for the honor of his mother, against those who teach the impunity of heretics, and defend it so that it may shown that she has decreed nothing unjust, and she has decreed nothing which is unbecoming a true mother. No one ever has discussed this subject. For even though many Catholic theologians and learned men have written against those men who teach the impunity of heretics, who argue with many and very evident reasons, in favor of the punishment of heretics, that the punishment of heretics is very just, yet none of them has proved that all those punishments, which were decreed by canon and civil law against heretics are just: nor about this matter did any of them ever discuss.

This work is divided into three books. In the first book is discussed about heresies themselves, where it is shown, who they are, and how they ought to be correctly admonished about their heresies, so that if perhaps having acknowledged their error they would want to return to the path of truth, by what benignity and mercy they ought to be received by the Church. Next in the second book it is treated regarding those heretics, who hold so firmly onto their heresies, that they nowise can be torn away from them: one by one the punishments are enumerated, which have been decreed for them by law, which after having been accurately presented, and it is proved herein that they all are very justly inflicted for many and very evident reasons. Finally in the third book some ways are shown by which one can prevent heresies, lest any heretics thereafter arise among Christians, whom the prelates of the Church and rulers of the world cannot leave unpunished without the ignominy of laxity and slothfulness.