Written early 14th
century.
---
On the Beguins, regarding Swearing
Source: Trans.: David Burr. Available @: https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/source/bernardgui-inq.asp
Teaching or instruction on dealing with the cunning and malice of those
who, when required to confess the truth in judicial process, do not wish to do
so.
Since, however, many beguins - those
who call themselves poor brothers of penitence and of the third order of Saint
Francis - want to cover up and conceal their errors with sly cunning, they
refuse to swear that they will tell the truth concerning themselves and their
accomplices, living or dead, even though such is customary and in fact legally
required. Some swear, but want to do so, not simply and absolutely, but under
protest, conditionally and with certain expressed reservations, namely that
they do not intend to swear or obligate themselves through oath to say anything
which will offend God or result in injury or harm to their neighbors. They say,
however, that it offends God when the Roman church, its leaders and its
inquisitors persecute, damn and condemn the beguins, their sect, since they, as
they claim, observe and defend the life of Christ and evangelical poverty.
(That is, they observe it as they understand and exposit it, and that
understanding is clear from what has been said above.) Again, they say it would
offend God if they were to abjure those beliefs which we inquisitors and church
leaders judge to be erroneous and to contain heresy, for they say they are not
such, but are instead in accordance with evangelical truth. Thus they call good
bad and bad good, turning light into darkness and darkness into light.
Again, they say they believe it would
cause their neighbors harm and injury if they reveal their accomplices and
fellow believers to the inquisitors, for that would lead to their neighbors
suffering persecution by the inquisition and sustaining harm. Like a people
blinded, they fail to see that it does not offend God when error is revealed
and truth discovered, or when one on the crooked path of error is brought back
to the straight path of truth and abjures that error. Nor do they see that,
rather than harming their neighbors, it benefits them when the erring are led
back to the way and light of truth, lest they be further corrupted and lest, by
their pestilential contagion, they lead many others astray, like blind leaders
dragging them into the ditch.
Thus, in order to oppose their malice
and cunning, care should be taken during judicial proceedings that they be
forced to swear simply and absolutely, without any conditions or reservations,
that they will tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth concerning
themselves, their accomplices, believers, benefactors, receivers and defenders,
according to the inquisitior's interpretation, without artifice or deceit,
whether they are confessing about themselves or others, whether they are
responding to questions or offering affirmations or denials, throughout the
entire inquiry. Otherwise they will commit perjury and incur its penalty.
And thus one should be cautious lest
they take the oath under condition, with reservation, or under protest; and it
should be explained to them that it is not an offense against God, nor is God
offended as they believe and say, when in judicial process truth is sought
while error and heresy is uncovered. And in all this the judgment of the
inquisitor, not their false opinion, must determine what is to be done. Again,
it should be made plain to them that their neighbors will not be harmed, nor
will they suffer any damage or injury as they say, for it redounds to their
good and to the salvation of their souls when those who are infected and
implicated in error are detected so that they can be corrected and converted
from error to the way of truth, lest they become more corrupted themselves and
infect or corrupt others with their error.
If, however, they pertinaciously
refuse to swear except with the preceding condition and reservation - refuse,
that is, when they are ordered by the court to swear precisely that they will
tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth - then, once their have been
admonished according to canonical procedure, a written sentence of
excommunication should be pronounced against the one who, required to swear,
has refused, unless that person takes the oath immediately or at least within the
time which the presiding judge, through kindness or equity, may have set (even
though when ordered to swear precisely and simply he legally be required to
comply immediately, without any delay). The sentence of excommunication, once
composed, written and promulgated, should be inserted in the process.
If someone incurs a sentence of
excommunication and pertinaciously endures it for several days with his heart
hardened, then he should be called back into judgment and asked if he considers
himself to be excommunicated. If he replies that he does not consider himself
excommunicated, nor does he consider himself bound by the sentence, then it
will be evident that by that very fact he holds the keys of the church in
contempt, and that is one article of error and heresy. Anyone persevering in it
is to be considered a heretic. Thus this response should be inserted in the
process, and the person should be proceeded against as the law requires. He
should be admonished that he should retreat from the aforesaid error and abjure
it or else from that moment on he will be judged a heretic, condemned as such,
and as such will be handed over to the judgment of a secular court.
It should be noted, however, that to
prove his malice, so that his error should appear more clearly and the process
against him be justified, another, new sentence of excommunication may be
leveled against him in writing, as against one who is contumacious in a matter
of faith. He is to be considered such because one who pertinaciously refuses to
swear simply and precisely that he will respond concerning those things which
pertain to the faith, and who pertinaciously refuses to abjure clear error and
heresy, is shown to be practicing evasion no less contumaciously than would be
the case if, cited in other circumstances, he stayed away entirely. Once the
sentence is leveled against him he should be informed, and the notice should be
in writing. If the person, having been excommunicated in a matter of faith,
remains so with heart hardened for over a year, then by law he can and should
be condemned as a heretic.
Moreover, witnesses - if they are any
- can be heard against such an individual. He himself can be constrained in
various ways including limitation of food and being held in chains. He can
even, on the recommendation of qualified persons, be put to the question in
order to get at the truth, as the nature of the business at hand and the
condition of the person may require.
The form of the first sentence can be as follows.
Since you, So-and-So of
Such-and-Such-a-Place, were arrested or cited as suspect, reported denounced
accused of holding the errors and erroneous opinions of the Beguins, who call
themselves poor brothers of the third order of Saint Francis - errors which
they hold and teach contrary to right faith, the state of the holy Roman and
universal church, and apostolic authority - and you have been brought before
us, So-and-So the inquisitor, then required and admonished by us several times
according to legal form to swear that you will tell the whole truth and nothing
but the truth both concerning yourself and concerning your accomplices,
believers and benefactors, alive and dead, as it relates to the matter of
heresy and especially the errors and erroneous opinions of certain beguins who
extoll themselves in opposition to the faith, the Roman church, the apostolic
seat and the power of the pope and other leaders of the Roman church, and you
refuse to swear simply and absolutely, but will only do so with certain
conditions, reservations and under protest - conditions, reservations and
protests which are entirely foreign to law and reason - I the aforesaid
inquisitor So-and-So order and admonish you once, twice and thrice, according
to legal form, under pain of excommunication, to swear before us on the gospel
of God in judicial process, simply and absolutely, without condition or
reservation contrary to law and reason, to tell the whole truth and nothing but
the truth concerning yourself and your accomplices, believers, benefactors and
defenders, living or dead. Acting as a witness, tell whatever you know, knew,
saw, believe or believed concerning heresy, and especially concerning the
errors and erroneous or schismatic opinions held by you and other beguins of
the third order of Saint Francis, and concerning anything else pertaining to
the matter of heretical depravity. And out of mercy and grace I give you as a
first term from this hour until the sixth hour of this same day, and as a
second term from the sixth hour until the ninth, and as a third and final term
from the ninth hour until vespers, or until completorium of this day. And
unless by that final time you swear in the manner indicated, the legally
required admonitions having been delivered, by the apostolic authority I bear
through the office of inquisition by this same written document I excommunicate
you and pass sentence of excommunication upon you, and I offer a copy of it to
you should you wish to have it and request it. This sentence was given in
such-a-year, on such-a-day, and in such- a-place, with the following people
present, etc.
The form of the other sentence of excommunication against one who is
contumacious could be as follows:
We, the inquisitor So-and-So, by the
apostolic authority we bear by virtue of the office of inquisition concerning
heretical depravity, order and admonish once, twice and thrice according to
legal form, that you, so-and-so from such-and-such-a-place, swear simply and
precisely to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth about yourself and
your accomplices regarding the errors and erroneous opinions of the beguins of
the third order, and regarding certain other things touching the faith and
relevant to the office of the inquisitor of heretical depravity; again, that
you humbly request the benefit of absolution from the sentence of
excommunication laid on you by us in writing, which you have incurred which
binds you still; and that you return unity with the church, acknowledge your
error and abjure all heresy in our presence, so that, having sworn to observe
the mandates of the church and our demands, you may deserve to be reconciled
with the unity of the church. And we cite you to appear and do all this on the
third day from this present one, assigning you the first day as a first term,
the second as a second, and the third as the third and last. After that point
you will respond concerning the faith and those things of which you are
suspected, denounced, accused, telling the whole truth in judicial process
about whatever you have done or know others to have done against the faith.
Otherwise, if you have failed by completorium of that day to do each and every
one of the aforementioned things, all of which you are legally required to do,
by the apostolic authority held by us through the office of inquisition, we lay
on you the bond of excommunication as one contumacious in matters of faith,
because you are evasive and contemptuously refuse to be obedient in these
things, and we declare to you that, if you pertinaciously endure this
excommunication for a year, we will proceed against you as a heretic. And we
offer to you a copy of the excommunication now be placed upon you, should you
wish to have it and request it from us. This sentence was given in such-a-year,
on such-a- day, and in such-a-place, with the following people present, etc.
Advice concerning the guile and deceit of those who, not wanting to
reply clearly and lucidly, do so ambiguously and obscurely.
There are some malicious and crafty
people among the beguins who, in order to veil the truth, shield their
accomplices and prevent their error and falsity from being discovered, respond
so ambiguously, obscurely, generally and confusingly to questions that the
clear truth cannot be gathered from their replies. Thus, asked what they believe
about some statement or statements proposed to them, they reply, "I
believe about this what the holy church of God believes," and they do not
wish to speak more explicitly or respond in any other way. In this case, to
exclude the ruse they use (or rather abuse) in referring in this way to the
church of God, they should diligently, subtly and perspicaciously be asked what
they mean by "the church of God," whether they mean the church of God
as they understand it; for, as is clear from the errors presented above, they
use the phrase "church of God" misleadingly. For they say they
themselves and their accomplices are the church of God or are of the church of
God. But those who believe differently than they and persecute them they do not
consider to be the church of God or part of it.
In such matters industry and skill is
necessary on the inquisitor's part. Moreover, such people should be forced or
compelled to respond clearly and explicitly concerning what has heretofore been
said generally, equivocally or confusingly, through sentence of
excommunication, as is described in the preceding section.
---
Inquisitorial technique Regarding Swearing
Source: Trans.: H. C. Lea. Available
@: https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/source/heresy2.asp
I. Will you then swear that you have never learned anything contrary to
the faith which we hold to be true?
A. (Growing pale) If I ought to swear, I will willingly swear.
I. I don't ask whether you ought, but whether you will swear.
A. If you order me to swear, I will swear.
I. I don't force you to swear, because as you believe oaths to be
unlawful, you will transfer the sin to me who forced you; but if you will
swear, I will hear it.
A. Why should I swear if you do not order me to?
I. So that you may remove the suspicion of being a heretic.
A. Sir, I do not know how unless you teach me.
I. If I had to swear, I would raise my hand and spread my fingers and say,
"So help me God, I have never learned heresy or believed what is contrary
to the true faith."
Then trembling as if he cannot repeat
the form, he will stumble along as though speaking for himself or for another,
so that there is not an absolute form of oath and yet he may be thought to have
sworn. If the words are there, they are so turned around that he does not swear
and yet appears to have sworn. Or he converts the oath into a form of prayer,
as "God help me that I am not a heretic or the like"; and when asked
whether he had sworn, he will say: "Did you not hear me swear?" [And
when further hard pressed he will appeal, saying] "Sir, if I have done
amiss in aught, I will willingly bear the penance, only help me to avoid the
infamy of which I am accused though malice and without fault of mine." But
a vigorous inquisitor must not allow himself to be worked upon in this way, but
proceed firmly till he make these people confess their error, or at least
publicly abjure heresy, so that if they are subsequently found to have sworn
falsely, he can without further hearing, abandon them to the secular arm".
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