Ancient Facts And Fictions Concerning Churches And Tithes

ithes, particularly, I propose now to speak. In the Decretum of Gratian, several passages, now admitted to be spurious, are cited, as from works of St. Augustine,1 St. Jerome,2 and St. Ambrose,3 to prove the assertion by those Fathers of a canonical obligation to pay tithes. But in the works of two at least of them, St. Augustine4 and St. Jerome,5 there are genuine passages, which,reasoning from the analogy of the Levitical law, and from our Lord's saying, that the righteousness of His disciples ought to exceed that of the Scribes and Pharisees, urge upon Christians the dedication, for religious and charitable purposes, of at least a tithe of their means. Csesarius,1 Archbishop of Arles from A.d. 503 to 544, appears to have been the first writer who more distinctly placed the claim of the Church to tithes on the footing of right. 'Tithes,', he said, 'are not ours, but appointed for the Church' (ecclesice deputatce). 1 Decretum, pars ii., causa xvi., qusest. I, cap. 66 : ' Decima tributa sunt egentium animarum,' etc. And ibid., qusest. 7, cap. 8 : ' Ma/ores nostri,' etc. 2 Ibid., qusest. I, cap. 68 : ' Liberum est clericis decimas monachis concedere,' etc. 3 Ibid., qusest. 2, cap. 5 : 'Nam quiDeo non vult reddere decimas,' etc. And qusest. 7, cap. 4 : 'Fideliter decimas dot,' etc. 4 Sermo 85 (on Matt . xix. 17), Opera, vol. vii., Venice 1802, p. 454. 6 Comm. on Malachi, cap. 3 (Opera, vol. vi., Venice 1768), pp. There is no mention of tithes...