Abridgment of Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book 4 · Chapter 4
CHAP. IIII. Of the ſtate of the old Church, and the maner of gouerning which was in vſe before Poperie.
1 VVHat miniſters ſoeuer the olde Church had, it did diuide them into three ſortes: into Elders, out of which Paſtors and doctors were choſen:Elders. Seniors. Deacons. Readers. Acoluthes. Elders. Elders, which bare rule in puniſhing manners: and Deacons, to whome was committed the charge of the poore, and the deſtribution of almes. Readers and Acoluthes were no names of any certaine offices, as we ſhall afterward ſee.
2 The office of teaching was committed to the Elders. They according to their office did chuſe one in eueryevery citie, to whō they gaue the title of Biſhop:A Biſhop. leſt through equalitie diſcord ſhould ariſe. Yet he had no Lordſhip ouer his fellowes in office: but the Biſhop had that function in the companie of Elders which the Conſull had in the Senate,A ſimilitude. that by his authoritie he might gouerne the whole action,The Elderſhip. & that he might execute that which was decreed by the common counſell. And that was brought in by mans conſent, accordinge to the neceſſitie of the time. In euerie citie they had a colledge of Elders, which were Paſtors and Doctors.Dioceſe. Alſo there was giuen to euerie citie a certaine countrey, which did take Elders thence, & ſhould as it were be accounted into the bodie of that Church. If the countrey were larger vnderunder the biſhopricke,Countrie Biſhops thē they appointed countrey Biſhops, who through the ſame prouince did repreſent the Biſhop.
3 And the Biſhops and Elders were to applie them ſelues to the miniſtration of the word & Sacramentes. Neither do I rehearſe the cuſtome of one age onelyonly: for euen in Gregories time, wherein the Church was now almoſt decayed, it had not bin tollerable for anie Biſhop to abſtaine from preaching*.Epiſt. 24. Hom. in Ezech. 11. Archbiſhop.
4 And wheras euerie prouince had one Archbiſhop among the Biſhops: & whereas in the councell of Nice there were Patriarkes appointed that did appertaine vntounto the preſeruation of diſciplinePatriarches. And if anie thing did happen which could not be diſpatched by a fewe, they referred it vntounto the prouinciall Synode. If the greatneſſe and hardneſſe of the cauſe, did require greater diſcuſſing,Prouincial Synode. the Patriarkes were ioyned with the Synodes, from which they might not appeale but vntounto a generall councell. Neither would they inuent anie forme of gouerning the Church differing from that which God preſcribed in his word.A Generall Counſell.
5 Neither was the order of the deacons other in that time, then vnderunder the Apoſtles. For they receaued the dayly almes of the faithfull, & the yearlie reuenues of the Church, for nouriſhing partlie the miniſters and partlie the poore: but at the appointment of the Biſhop, to whome they gaue an account of their diſtribution yearely.Deacons. Subdeacons were ioyned to the Deacons, that they might vſe their helpe about the poore. Archdeacons were made,Subdeacons. when the great plentie of goodes did require a more exact kinde of diſtribution. And whereas the readinge of the Goſpell was committed to them, as alſo exhortation to prayer,Archdeacons and whereas they miniſtred the cuppe in the Supper: that was done to adorn their office, that they might vnderſtande that they bare a ſpirituall function.
The diuiſion of the church goodes into fower parts6 By this we may gather what vſe there was of the Church goods, and what maner diſtributiō was made therof.
7 At the beginning the adminiſtration was voluntarie: after that there were certaine Canons made which deuided the reuenues of the Church into foure partes:Gelaſius. cap. Pre. 16 queſt. 3 whereof one is aſſigned to the Biſhop and his familie: another to the clergie: the third to the poore: the fourth to the repairing of the Churches.
8 Furthermore that which they beſtowed vponupon adorning holie thinges was verie litle and meane. And if anie neede were that continued alſo wholie to the poore.Glegor. reſer. ca. Mos eſt. 11 queſt 12. Hiſt. Triper. li. 5. So did Cyrillus Biſhop of Ieruſalem* Acatius of Amida*, Exuperius of Theloſa*, & Ambroſe * behaue them ſelues, neither did they ſuffer the poore to be hungrie.*Lib. 11. ca. 16.
*Lib. ad Nepotia. num.9 Thoſe which were appointed to be as it were the ſeminarie of the Church, were called Clarkes but vnproperlie.*Lib. 2. de offic. cap. 28. Clarkes. To them they commited firſt the charge of opening and ſhuttinge the Church, and they called them doore keepers. After that they called them Acoluthes or followers, which wayted vppon the Biſhop,Acoluthes and did accompanie him, firſt for honours ſake, and ſecondly that none euill ſuſpition might ariſe. Furthermore they had place graunted them to reade in the pulpit,Subdeacons that by litle and litle they might be made knowen to the people, and that they might learne to abide the ſight of the people, leſt being made Elders they ſhould be abaſhed when they came to teach. So they went forward by litle & litle, vntill they were made Subdeacons.
10 Whereas wee ſaide that the firſt and ſecond pointes in the calling of miniſters were,What maner what maner perſons were to be called, and howe they were to be called, the old church did therein followe the rule of the Apoſtles.How. In that which wee ſet downe in the thirde place: namelie by whō they ought to be choſen, they did not alwaies keepe one order. In old time no man was receiued into the companie of clarkes without conſent of the whole multitude*.By whom. But becauſe in thoſe leſſer exerciſes there was no great danger,Cip lib. 5 When they ceaſed from aſking the conſent of the church they began at length to ceaſe from aſking the conſent of the multitude. Afterwarde euen in the reſt of the orders (except the biſhops) the cō mon people left the iudgement to the Biſhop & Elders: ſaue onelie when new Elders were appointed to pariſhes: then it was expedient that the multitude of the place ſhould giuegive their conſent.Orders were geuin at certane appointed times of the yeare. Orders were giuen at certaine times of the yeare, leaſt any ſhould creep in priuily without conſent of the faithfull, or leaſt he ſhould proceed too eaſilie.
11 The people did long keepe their libertie in chooſing Biſhops: hence came theſe ſayings,Biſhops let him be choſen Biſhop, whom the cleargie, multitude, or the greater number ſhal require.Leo primus epiſt 92 cap 2 Cap. 13. Let him be choſen of all, which muſt gouerne all.
12 Obiect. It was eſtabliſhed in the Councell of Laodicia*, that the multitudes ſhould not be ſuffred to chooſe.
An. It was done for good cauſe:Why the people ceaſed to chuſe. for it cōmeth to paſſe ſcarce at anie time, that ſo manie heads agree together in one ſenſe. But there was a good remedy for this dāger. For firſt the clearks alone did chooſe:What order was kept in election. & hauing choſen one, they preſented him to ye Magiſtrate or Senate or chief men. They (after cōſultatiō had) if they thought the electiō iuſt, cōfirmed it: if not, they did chooſe one whō they did better allow.Leo Epiſt. 93. Then he was brought to the multitude, So Leo ſaith, the deſires of the citizens, the teſtimonies of the people, the iudgement of the honorable, the election of the clearkes muſt be waited for.
13 This manner of chooſing was yet of force in Gregories time, and it is likely that it endured long after.
14 The fourth thing followeth, with what rite miniſters were admitted to their office.With what rite The Latins called this, ordination or conſecratiō, the Grecians Cheirotonia or Cheirotheſia. Cheirotonia. CheirotheſiaAnd there is extant the decree of the Nicene councell, that the Metropolitane come together with all the Biſhops of the prouince, to ordaine him which is choſen. If he cannot, let three at leaſt come together: let thoſe which are abſent teſtifie their conſent by letters. They were commaunded to bee preſent therefore, that there might the ſtraighter examinatiō be had of the learning and maners of him which was to be ordeined:None was ordained with out examination. neither was the matter diſpatched without examination.
15 Whereas this was done euerie where without exception, a diuers manner grew in vſe by little and little, that thoſe which were choſen went together to the Metropolitane to require orders: and not long after came in a farre worſe cuſtome,Conſecration of Miniſters that the Biſhops in a manner of all Italie, did fet their conſecration thence. But the rite was laying on of handes.