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To: Claud
1913 Catholic Encyclopedia

The condemnation of Pope Honorius was retained in the lessons of the Breviary for 28 June (St. Leo II) until the eighteenth century. Difficulties made themselves felt when, after the Great Western Schism, papal infallibility began to be doubted. Protestantism and Gallicanism made vigorous attacks on the unfortunate pope, and at the time of the Vatican Council Honorius figured in every pamphlet and every speech on ecclesiastical subjects. The question has not only been debated in numerous monographs, but is treated by the historians and the theologians, as well as by the professed controversialists.

*Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose

Those with a protestant mindset still use Honorius as a battering ram to try and destroy Christian unity and attack the Living Magisterium

10 posted on 05/16/2006 10:55:39 AM PDT by bornacatholic (Pope Paul VI. "Use of the old Ordo Missae is in no way left to the choice of priests or people.")
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To: bornacatholic
Those with a protestant mindset still use Honorius as a battering ram to try and destroy Christian unity and attack the Living Magisterium

Of course that's true, but it's also true that Honorius came the closest a Pope has ever come to teaching error, so it is an instructive historical case on how far the Pope can go in being, well, wrong.

11 posted on 05/16/2006 11:19:29 AM PDT by Claud
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To: bornacatholic
Let's looks at the acts of the Sixth Ecumenical Council, let them speak for themselves. I gotta love how Ultramontane apologists tapdance around the problem of Pope Honorius.

Facts are Pope Honorius explicitly taught that Christ had one will. "Wherefore we acknowledge one Will of our Lord Jesus Christ, for evidently it was our nature and not the sin in it which was assumed by the Godhead, that is to say, the nature which was created before sin, not the nature which was vitiated by sin."

Extracts from the Acts of the Third Council of Constantinople...

"We have brought out no new method of speech, but have taught whatever we have received from the holy Ecumenical Synods, and from the holy approved Fathers, as well as from the archbishops of this imperial city, to wit: Sergius, Paul, Pyrrhus, and Peter, as also from Honorius who was Pope of Old Rome, and from Cyrus who was Pope of Alexandria, that is to say with reference to will and operation, and so we have believed, and so we believe, so we preach; and further we are ready to stand by, and defend this faith...

THE SENTENCE AGAINST THE MONOTHELITES SESSION XIII (L. and C., Concilia, Tom. VI., col. 943.)

The holy council said: After we had reconsidered, according to our promise which we had made to your highness, the doctrinal letters of Sergius, at one time patriarch of this royal god-protected city to Cyrus, who was then bishop of Phasis and to Honorius some time Pope of Old Rome, as well as the letter of the latter to the same Sergius, we find that these documents are quite foreign to the apostolic dogmas, to the declarations of the holy Councils, and to all the accepted Fathers, and that they follow the false teachings of the heretics; therefore we entirely reject them, and execrate them as hurtful to the soul. But the names of those men whose doctrines we execrate must also be thrust forth from the holy Church of God, namely, that of Sergius some time bishop of this God-preserved royal city who was the first to write on this impious doctrine; also that of Cyrus of Alexandria, of Pyrrhus, Paul, and Peter, who died bishops of this God-preserved city, and were like-minded with them; and that of Theodore sometime bishop of Pharan, all of whom the most holy and thrice blessed Agatho, Pope of Old Rome, in his suggestion to our most pious and God-preserved lord and mighty Emperor, rejected, because they were minded contrary to our orthodox faith, all of whom we define are to be subjected to anathema. And with these we define that there shall be expelled from the holy Church of God and anathematized Honorius who was some time Pope of Old Rome, because of what we found written by him to Sergius, that in all respects he followed his view and confirmed his impious doctrines. We have also examined the synodal letter of Sophronius of holy memory, some time Patriarch of the Holy City of Christ our God, Jerusalem, and have found it in accordance with the true faith and with the Apostolic teachings, and with those of the holy approved Fathers. Therefore we have received it as orthodox and as salutary to the holy Catholic and Apostolic Church, and have decreed that it is right that his name be inserted in the diptychs of the Holy Churches.

Many years to Agatho, Pope of Rome! Many years to George, Patriarch of Constantinople! Many years to Theophanus, Patriarch of Antioch! Many years to the orthodox council! Many years to the orthodox Senate!

To Theodore of Pharan, the heretic, anathema!
To Sergius, the heretic, anathema!
To Cyrus, the heretic, anathema!
To Honorius, the heretic, anathema!
To Pyrthus, the heretic, anathema!

Those with an Ultramontane mindset deliberately try to erase the memory of this accursed pope as part of their effort to raise the pope to near god-like status. Pope Honorius is a testament to the fallibility of the ordinary papal magisterium.

If the pope is above reapproach and his teachings cannot be questioned, logically the Sixth Ecumenical Council, confirmed by Pope Agatho has to be dropped from the list of Catholic ecumenical councils. It's too inconvenient.

Even if Pope Honorius was not a formal heretic, it shows that a pope can err in the actions of his office.

Are you of the opinion that the pope is "God on Earth"?

12 posted on 05/16/2006 11:24:47 AM PDT by pravknight (Christos Regnat, Christos Imperat, Christos Vincit)
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