ORIGIN OF THE INQUISITION AGAINST THE WAL DENSES AND ALBIGENSES, BY POPE INNO CENT III, A. D. 1198

A. D. 1198, Innocent III became pope in the place of Celestine. At his consecration he applied to himself the words which John the Baptist spoke of Christ, "He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice.";

Upon these words Innocent addressed his bridesmen, the cardinals, archbishops and bishops as follows, "And am I not the bridegroom, and every one of you a friend of the bridegroom? Yea, I am the bridegroom; for I have the noble, rich, and highly exalted, yea, the honorable, pure, gracious, and holy Roman church for my bride, who, by the ordinance of God, is the mother of all the faithful, and the supreme mistress over all the churches. She is wiser than Sarah, more prudent than Rebecca, more fruitful than Leah, more agreeable than Rachel, more devout than Anna, purer than Susanna, more valiant than Judith, more beautiful than Edessaea. Many daughters have gathered great riches; but she has excelled them all. I have espoused her sacramentally. This bride has not been wedded to me portionless, but has given me her rich dowry, namely, the fullness of spiritual and of temporal power." Innocent. 3, in Consecra. Ponti f., Serm. 3, page 19.

Pope Innocent III was the first who instituted the office of the inquisition, with ordained inquisitors; to which end he also wrote a letter, in the first year of his popedom, on the first day of April, to the archbishop of Auxitana; in which he greatly complains of the enemies of St. Peter's Shiplet, as he calls it, and then speaks as follows, "We desire that you and your fellow bishops, by your prude4ce, shall guard the more vigorously against this malady (meaning the doctrine of the Waldenses and Albigenses), and oppose it the more strenuously, as you see the more reason to fear that the sound part of the body may become infected by the disease; lest by such contagions, which spread gradually like a cancer, the minds of the faithful become infected by a general corruption., "Therefore we send you brotherly love, and charge you most earnestly by this apostolic letter, that you do your utmost, to exterminate (all) heresy, and to banish from your province all those that are contaminated therewith; and that against them and all those who are contaminated therewith, or have any fellowship with them, or who are openly suspected of having familiar intercourse with them, you do not only exercise all the rigor of church discinline_ without intervention of anneal. but also. if necessary, subdue or punish them by the power of the material sword, by princes or by the people.";

On these words the papistic commentator remarks, in the margin, "Up to this time, no inquisitors had yet been sent or appointed by the pope.";

In the same month, namely on the 21st of April, 1198, twenty days after the writing of the first letter, Pope Innocent III wrote another letter, not only to the above-mentioned Bishop of Auxitana, but also to the archbishops of Aix, Narbonne, Vienne, Arles, Ebredun, Tarragon, Lyons, etc., and at the same time appointed one Reinerius and one Guido as his commissaries or inquisitors, to apprehend those who sought to escape the dominion of the Roman church. The contents of the letter were directed against the Waldenses, and commanded that they should be caught, as little foxes that spoil the vineyards. Finally he commands them to be driven out of the country. E¢ist. de Cretal., lib. 1, pages 56, 57, edit. Colon.

In the following month, namely on the 13th of May, Innocent wrote still another letter for the same purpose; in which he again commanded that the little foxes should be caught, and promises to send the inquisitors, adding, "We pray, admonish, and entreat you all together, in the name of the Lord, and charge you, unto remission of sins, that you receive them (the inquisitors, Reinerius and Guido), kindly, aid them manfully and vigorously, and lend them a helping hand by good counsel and with the deed., "But, as brother Reinerius, for urgent and important matter of the church, has first, by order of the apostolical see, gone to Spain, we will and command nevertheless, that you archbishops and bishops, draw the spiritual sword, when requested so to do by said brother Guido, against the heretics whom he shall name to you; but let the lay power confiscate their goods, and banish them from the country, and thus separate the chaff from the wheat., "Furthermore, to all who in this great difficulty which now threatens the church, shall faithfully and devotedly assist her in maintaining the Christian faith, we grant the same indulgence, pardon, or remission of sins, which we have granted to all those who go on a pilgrimage to St. Peter's or St. Jacob's church. Given at Rome, on the above day, A. D. 1198." Page 98.