and they shall proceed officially, either at the petition of our fiscals, or at that of any party who demands it; and in the execution of it great diligence shall be exercised.
“We desire and order that no cathedral church, parish church, monastery, hospital, votive church, or any other pious or religious establishment be erected, founded, or constructed, without our express consent for it, or that of the person who shall exercise our authority; and further, that no archbishopric, bishopric, dignidad, canonry, racion, media-racion, rectorial or simple benefice, or any other ecclesiastical or religious benefice or office, be instituted, or appointment to it be made, without our consent or presentation, or that of the person who shall exercise our authority; and such presentation or consent shall be in writing, in the ordinary manner.
“The archbishoprics and bishoprics shall be appointed by our presentation, made to our very holy father [i.e., the Roman pontiff] who shall be at that time, as has been done hitherto.
“The dignidades, canonries, racions and media-racions of all the cathedral churches of the Indias shall be filled by presentation made by our royal warrant, given by our royal Council of the Indias, and signed by our name, by virtue of which the archbishop or bishop of the church where the said dignidad, canonry, or racion shall be shall grant to him collation and canonical installation, which shall also be in writing, sealed with his seal and signed with his hand. Without the said presentation, title, collation, and canonical installation, in writing, he shall not be given possession of such dignidad, canonry, racion, or media-racion; neither shall he accept the benefits and emoluments of it, under the penalties contained in the laws against those who violate our royal patronage.
“If in any of the cathedral churches of the Yndias there should not be four beneficiaries—at least resident, and appointed by our presentation and warrant and the canonical installation of the prelate—because of the other prebends being vacant, or if appointments to them have been made because the beneficiaries are absent (even though it be for a legitimate reason) for more than eight months, until we present them the prelate shall elect four seculars to fill out the term of those who shall have been appointed as residents, choosing them from the most capable and competent that shall offer, or who can be found, so that they may serve in the choir, the altar, the church, and as curas, if that should be necessary in the said church, in place of the vacant or absent prebendaries, as above stated. He shall assign them an adequate salary, as we have ordered at the account of the vacant or absent prebendaries; and the said provision shall not be permanent, but removable at will [ad nutum], and those appointed shall not occupy the seat of the beneficiary in the choir, nor enter or have a vote in the cabildo. If the cathedral church has four or more beneficiaries, the prelates shall not take it upon themselves to appoint any prebendaries, or to provide a substitute in such post, whether for those that become vacant, or for those whose incumbents may be absent, unless they shall give us notice, so that we may make the presentations or take such measures as may be advisable.
“No prelate, even though he have an authentic relation and information that we have presented any person to a dignidad, canonry, racion, or any other benefice, shall grant him collation or canonical installation, or shall order that he be given possession of it, unless our original warrant of the said presentation be first presented; and our viceroys or audiencias shall not meddle by making them receive such persons without the said presentation.
“After the original warrant of our presentation has been presented, appointment and canonical installation shall be made without any delay; and order will be given to assign to him the emoluments, unless there is some legitimate objection against the person presented, and one which can be proved. If there is no legitimate objection, or if any such be alleged that shall not be proved, and the prelate should delay the appointment, installation, and possession, he shall be obliged to pay to such person the emoluments and incomes, costs, and interests, that shall have been incurred by him.
“It is our desire that, in the presentations that shall be made for dignidades, canonries and prebends in the cathedral churches of the Yndias, lettered men be preferred to those who are not, and those who shall have served in cathedral churches of these same kingdoms and who shall have had most experience in the choir and divine worship, to those who shall not have served in cathedral churches.
“At least in the districts where it can be conveniently done, a graduate jurist in general study shall be presented for a doctoral canonicate, and another lettered theological graduate in general study for another magistral canonicate, who shall have the pulpit with the obligations that doctoral and magistral canons have in these kingdoms.
“Another lettered theologue approved by general study shall be presented to read the lesson of the holy scriptures, and another lettered jurist theologue for the canonicate of penitence, in accordance with the established decrees of the holy council of Trent. The said four canonries shall be of the number of those of the erection of the Church.
“We will and order that all the benefices, whether sinecures or curacies, secular and regular, and the ecclesiastical offices that become vacant, or that, as they are new, must be filled, throughout the realm of the Yndias, in whatever diocese it may be, besides those that are provided in the cathedral churches, as stated above, shall, in order that they may be filled with less delay, and that our royal patronage may be preserved in them, be filled in the following manner:
“When a benefice (whether a sinecure or a curacy), or the administration of any hospital or a sacristy or churchwardenship, or the stewardship of a hospital, or any other benefice or ecclesiastical office, shall become vacant, or when it has to be filled for the first time: the prelate shall order a written proclamation to be posted in the cathedral church, or in the church, hospital, or monastery where such benefice or office is to be filled, with the suitable limit, so that those who desire to compete for it may enter the lists. From all those who thus compete, and from all the others whom the prelate shall believe to be suitable persons for such office or benefice, after having examined them and after having informed himself concerning their morals and ability, he shall choose two persons from them—those whom, in the sight of God and his conscience, he shall judge most suitable for such office or benefice. The nomination of the two thus named shall be presented to our viceroy or to the president of our royal Audiencia; or to the person who, in our name, shall exercise the superior government of the province where such benefice or office shall become vacant or must be filled, so that he may select one from the two appointees. He shall send that selection to the prelate, so that the latter in accordance with it, and by virtue of that presentation, may grant the appointment, collation, and canonical installation—by way of commission and not by perpetual title, but removable at will by the person who shall have presented them in our name, together with the prelate. And should there be no more than one person who desires to compete for such benefice or office, or the prelate shall not find more than one person whom he desires to receive the nomination to it, he shall send the name to our viceroy, president, or governor, as above stated, so that the latter may present him. Then by virtue of such presentation, the prelate shall make the appointment in the form above directed. But it is our desire and will that when the presentation shall be made by us, and we shall expressly state in our presentation that the collation and canonical installation shall be by title and not by commission, those presented by us be always preferred to those presented by our viceroys, presidents, or governors, in the form above mentioned.
“And in the repartimientos and villages of Indians, and in other places where there shall be no benefice or any regulations for electing one, or any form of appointing a secular or religious to administer sacraments and teach the doctrine, providing it in the form above directed, the prelate—after posting a proclamation, so that if there shall be any ecclesiastical or religious person, or any other of good morals and education who may go to teach the doctrine at such village—from those who shall compete, or from other persons whom he shall deem most suitable and fitting, shall elect two, after informing himself of their competency and good character. He shall send the nomination to our viceroy, president, or governor who shall reside in the province, so that the latter may present one of the two thus nominated by the
