Bellarmine · De Controversiis · On the Sacrament of the Eucharist · Book V: On the Sacrifice of the Mass (First)
Chapter 23: The Same Is Proved from the Consent of the Church
Our translation, from the Latin of the Opera Omnia (Paris: Vivès, 1870–74), vol. IV, De Sacramento Eucharistiae, Book V: On the Sacrifice of the Mass (First Book). The Latin source text is public domain; this English rendering is released with the site. Scripture quotations follow Bellarmine's Vulgate citations, rendered in Douay-Rheims wording where he quotes exactly. Click “Show the Latin” for the original (raw OCR of the scan; scanning errors remain — the scan itself is the authority).
The last reason, and that in my judgment the most efficacious with all those who do not please themselves too much, and whom the smoke of pride has not altogether blinded, is taken from the consent and testimony of the whole Christian Church, Greek, Latin, and Barbarian, which has flourished for a thousand years. For the adversaries confess that the Pontifical Mass, as it now is, is a sacrifice. This Luther has expressly in his first writing against the King of England; Calvin, Book 4 of the Institutes, chapter 18, § 1; and Kemnitz, page 774, and others. But the Mass, as it now is, was completed in the time of Saint Gregory the First, Pope, as Kemnitz confesses, pages 826 and 827, where he disputes on the Canon of the Mass: and it is established that from the time of Saint Gregory nothing was added to the Canon of the Mass. Now Gregory flourished about a thousand years ago; therefore by the testimony of the adversaries the Mass began to be held for a sacrifice in the Church at least a thousand years ago.
But that this opinion was received not in the City of Rome alone, but in the whole world, even the adversaries confess: for therefore Luther, in his book on the Babylonian Captivity, chapter 1: “The Mass,” he says, “is everywhere believed to be a sacrifice which is offered to God. To these are added the sayings of the holy Fathers, so many examples, and so great a usage constantly observed throughout the world.” And below: “Nor let it move,” he says, “that the whole world has the contrary both opinion and usage.” And in the beginning of his book on abrogating the Mass, or rather in the dedicatory letter of that book: “It is a great thing, certainly, to struggle against the custom of so many ages, against the opinion of so great a multitude, and against the authority of so great men.” And a little below he openly says that he is alone against the whole world; for thus he objects to himself: “Dost thou alone know? were all the rest so many? did so great ages know nothing?” So also John Calvin, Book 4 of the Institutes, chapter 18, § 1: “By a most pestilent error Satan blinded almost the whole world, so that it believed the Mass to be a sacrifice and oblation for obtaining the remission of sins.” And a little below: “Let the readers understand that I engage with that opinion with which the Roman Antichrist and his prophets imbued the whole world.” And below, § 18, he says that this opinion, that the Mass is a sacrifice, intoxicated all the kings of the earth and the peoples from the highest to the lowest.
And although the adversaries did not say this, the thing would yet be most certain. For it is established that among the Latins there was always the same Mass, from those who at diverse times expounded it, Isidore, Amalarius, Walafrid, Rupert, Hugh, Innocent III, Bonaventure, and others: and likewise among the Greeks it is most clearly established, from Maximus the Monk, Germanus of Constantinople, Simeon of Thessalonica, and Nicholas Cabasilas; and now at last from the censure of the Orientals on the Augsburg Confession, chapter 13.
From this most certain principle, therefore, and granted by the adversaries, namely that the Mass has been held for a sacrifice for at least a thousand years, in the whole world, it necessarily follows that, if what we teach is not true, first, the whole Church perished, and Christ lost His spouse and His inheritance; for that could not be the Church of Christ which openly served idolatry for so many ages. Secondly, it follows that the prophecies of the prophets, Hosea 2 and others, are false, who foretold that after the coming of Christ idolatry would cease. Thirdly, that the promise of Christ is false, Matthew 16: The gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And of the Angel, Luke 1: Of his kingdom there shall be no end. Fourthly, that the sentence of the Apostle is false, 1 Timothy 3, that the Church is the pillar and ground of truth. Fifthly, that all the Saints, very many of whom in these last ages flourished in life and miracles, were idolaters, impious, and sacrilegious. Sixthly, that God, who revealed to them so many future and less necessary things, yet revealed this most highly necessary mystery to no one at all, however holy a man, before Luther. But if these things are most absurd, and in no way credible, certainly it follows that what we teach with the Catholic Church is true: which indeed the adversaries too would understand, if they were not altogether given up to a reprobate sense. For this consequence they can by no reason deny: The world for a thousand years believed the Mass to be a sacrifice, therefore either the Mass is a sacrifice, or a thousand years ago the faith of Christ ceased to be on earth; the Church perished; idolatry returned; the oracles of the prophets and of Christ Himself were vain.
Show the Latin (Vives edition, OCR)
CAPUT XXIII. Probatur idem ex consensu Ecclesiae. Sacramentum, et sacrificium, sumi potest. Probatur idem ex consensu Ecclesia. Nam commune est omnibus Sacramentis, ut ab alio dentur, ab alio accipiantur : neque ullus sibi ipse Sacramentum administret. Ita Postrema ratio, caque meo quidem judi- videmus in Baptismo, aliisque Sacramentis cio, efficacissima apud illos omnes, qui non accidere ; nemo enim seipse baptizare sini- nimium sibi placent, quosque superbiae fumus tur, etiamsi extrema adsit necessitas. Pari non omnino excacsevit, sumitur ex consensu latione nemo seipse confirmat, nemo se ct testimonio totius Christianae Ecclesiae, Gra> absolvit, nemo se sacris Ordinibus initiat, ese, Latime, Barbarae, quae ab annis mille nemo se inungit. Eodem igitur modo si Eu- floruit. Nam adversarii fatentur Missam Pon- charistia solummodo Sacramentum esset., tificiam ut nunc est, sacrificium esse. Id lia- (1) Dan. III, 30, 40. LIBER V. 3o6 bent expresse Lutherus in primo scripto con¬ tra Regem Anglise. Calvinus lib. iv. Institut. cap. 18. § I. et Kemnitius pag. 774. et alii. Missa autem, ut nunc est, tempore S. Gre- gorii Papae I. absoluta est, ut Kemnitius fa¬ tetur pagin. 826 et 827. ubi de canone Missae disputat : et constat a tempore S. Gregorii nihil ad Canonem Missae additum esse. Porro Gregorius ante annos circiter mille floruit ; ergo testimonio adversariorum. Missa pro sacrificio haberi coepit in Ecclesia, ab annis ut minimum mille. Fuisse autem hanc sententiam receptam non in sola Urbe Roma, sed in toto orbe ter¬ rarum, fatentur etiam adversarii : nam ideo Lutherus in lib. de captivit. Babyl. cap. 1 : « Missa, inquit, creditur passim esse sacrifi¬ cium, quod offertur Deo. Accedunt his dicta sanctorum Patrum, tot exempla, tantusque usus per orbem constanter observatus. » Et infra : « Nec moveat, inquit, quod totus orbis contrarium et sensum, et usum habet. » Et in principio libri de abroganda Missa, seu potius in epistola dedicatoria ejus libri : <c Magnum est, inquit, certe tot saeculorum consuetudini, tantae multitudinis sensui, tan¬ torumque auctoritati reluctari. » Et paulo infra aperte dicit se esse solum contra orbem terrarum ; sic enim sibi ipse objicit : « Tu solus sapis ? totne erant universi ? tanta sae¬ cula ignoraverunt?» Sic etiam Joan. Calvi¬ nus lib. iv. Institut. cap. 18. § 1 : « Pesti¬ lentissimo, inquit, errore Satan totum pene orbem obcaecavit, ut crederet Missam sa¬ crificium, et oblationem esse ad impetran¬ dum remissionem peccatorum. » Et paulo infra : « Congredi me lectores intelligant cum ea opinione, qua Romanus Anticliristus, et ejus prophetae totum orbem imbuerunt. » Et infra § 18. dicit, hanc sententiam, quod Missa sit sacrificium ; inebriasse jpmnes re¬ ges terrae, et populos a summo usque ad no¬ vissimum. Et quamvis adversarii id non dicerent, res tamen certissima esset. Constat enim apud Latinos semper fuisse eamdem Missam, ex iis, qui diversis temporibus illam exposue¬ runt, Isidoro, Amaiario, Walfrido, Ruperto, Hugone, Innocentio III, Bonaventura, et aliis : et similiter apud Graecos id clarissime con¬ stat, ex Maximo Monacho, Germano Con¬ stantio op oli tano, Simeone Thessalonicensi , et Nicolao Cabasila ; et nunc demum ex cen¬ sura Orientalium ad Confessionem Augusta¬ nam cap. 13. Ex hoc igitur principio certissimo, et ab adversariis concesso, nempe Missam habi¬ tam esse pro sacrificio ab annis ut minimum mille, in toto orbe terrarum, sequitur neces¬ sario, si non est verum quod nos docemus, primo Ecclesiam totam periisse, et Christum sponsam suam , et hsoreditatem amisisse ; non enim Ecclesia Christi esse potuit, qui palam idololatrke tot saeculis servivit. Se¬ cundo sequitur falsa esse vaticinia Prophe¬ tarum Oseae n. et aliorum, qui praedixerunt post Christi adventum idololatriam cessa¬ turam. Tertio falsam Christi promissionem Matth. xvr : Portae inferi non praevalebunt ad¬ versus eam. Et Angeli Lucae i : Regni ejus non erit finis (1). Quarto falsam Apostoli sen¬ tentiam I Tim. m. Ecclesiam esse colum¬ nam , et firmamentum veritatis. Quinto Sanctos omnes, qui plurimi his postremis saeculis vita, et miraculis floruerunt, ido- lolatras, impios, et sacrilegos fuisse. Sexto Deum qui tam multa futura, et minus ne¬ cessaria illis revelavit, hoc tamen mysterium summe necessarium nulli omnino, quamvis sanctissimo viro, ante Lutherum revelasse. Quod si haec absurdissima sunt, et nullo modo credibilia, certe sequitur, ut verum sit quod nos cum Ecclesia Catholica docemus : quod sane etiam adversarii intelligerent, si non omnino in reprobum sensum dati es¬ sent. Istam enim consequentiam nulla ra¬ tione negare possunt : Orbis terrae ab antiis mille credidit Missam esse sacrificium, ergo vel Missa est sacrificium, vel ab annis mille desiit Christi fides esse in terris ; periit Ec¬ clesia; rediit idololatria ; vana fuerunt Pro¬ phetarum, et Christi ipsius oracula.