to Correspond with the Number of the Virtues Themselves
Dedication
Balthasar Alvarus of the College of Coimbra to the Readers on behalf of the Author
[Of this Treatise On Faith, Hope, and Charity, only the following Disputations are included in these Selections: Disputation XVIII of On Faith and Disputation XIII of On Charity.]
DISPUTATION XVIII: ON THE MEANS WHICH MAY BE USED FOR THE CONVERSION AND COERCION OF UNBELIEVERS WHO ARE NOT APOSTATES
[INTRODUCTION]
In approaching this subject certain fundamental facts and principles are briefly mentioned, 837.
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I. Has the Church the Power and Right of Preaching the Gospel to All Unbelievers Everywhere?
Power and right of preaching distinguished, 838; First proposition: Church has lawful power to preach Catholic faith everywhere, 839; This power resides in all believers, 840; Second proposition: the Church has a right and a special authority to preach the faith, 840–841; Reason for this authority, 841; Third proposition: The Church has the right to protect its preachers and punish those who hinder preaching, 842; Power of preaching rests in pastors, who delegate it to selected preachers, 843; This refers to public preaching, 844; Supremacy of the Pope in this connexion, 845; His duty of defending the right of preaching, 846; He may entrust this duty to Christian kings, and for this purpose may distribute among them the realms of unbelievers, 847–848; Suárez disapproves of advance military aggression to insure that preaching may be carried on in peace and security, 848–849; Only after peaceful attempts to preach are resisted may force be used, 849–850.
II. Is It Permissible for the Church and Christian Princes to Force These Unbelievers to Give Ear to the Faith?
The first or affirmative opinion on this question supported by four arguments, 850–851; Negative opinion, 851–853; An intermediate opinion is approved, 853; Christian princes may force their own infidel subjects to hear the faith, 853–855; Limitations on this proposition by Báñez, 855–856; Not permissible to coerce unbelieving non-subjects to hear the faith, 856; Answers to the four arguments relating to first opinion, 857–858; The use of coercion if a pagan ruler, or his people, or both are unwilling to permit preaching of the Gospel, 858–859.
III. After a Sufficient Presentation of the Gospel, Is It Allowable to Use Force to Compel Belief on the Part of Those Infidels Who Have Been Sufficiently Instructed?
The first or affirmative opinion on this question, with several arguments, 859–861; A second opinion (supported by arguments) that the Church and Christian princes may compel acceptance of faith by those temporally subject to them, 861–863; The true opinion that unbelievers who are not apostates, whether subjects or not, may not be coerced to embrace the faith, 863; Proofs that the Church has no lawful power over such unbelievers, 864–866; Church may not exercise compulsion even upon pagans temporally subject to it in order that they shall embrace the
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faith, 866; Indirect coercion to compel acceptance of faith not intrinsically evil, 867–868; Reason in support of this proposition, 868; Conditions under which indirect coercion may be used, 868–869; To whom direct coercion to faith may be applied, 869–870; Answer to arguments in support of first opinion, 870–871; Answers to arguments in favour of second opinion, 871.
IV. May Unbelievers Be Forced to Abandon Those of Their Errors and False Rites Which Are Contrary Not Only to Faith but Also to Reason?
Two kinds of unbelief are distinguished, 872; Whether unbelievers may be forced to abandon errors which are contrary to natural understanding, 872; The first opinion (accompanied by arguments) that compulsion may be used even against non-subjects, 873–874; The second and true opinion that unbelievers who are not subjects cannot be forced to change errors and rites, 874; Rejection of arguments supporting first opinion, 875–876; Infidels subject to a Christian prince may be forced to profess worship of God and to cease from errors, 877; Proofs of this doctrine and corollaries drawn therefrom, 877–880; Whether rites of unbelievers should be tolerated in Christian kingdoms, 880; Such rites, if not opposed to natural reason, are to be tolerated, 881; Why and to what extent Jews are permitted to celebrate their rites in Christian states, 882–883.
V. May the Unbelievers in Question Be Deprived of All Superior Power Which They Hold over Christians, That Is to Say, over the Faithful?
The power referred to in this question may be of four kinds, 883–884; Suárez rejects an affirmative answer to the question, 884; First proposition that unbelieving princes may not be deprived of their jurisdiction over Christian subjects simply on ground of unbelief, 884–885; Proof on the basis of invalidity of opposing arguments, 885–887; Second proposition that the Church may indirectly deprive non-Christian princes of their power over believers, 887–888; Freeing of Christians from power of non-Christian prince by change of their domicile, 888; Or by depriving unbelieving prince of sovereignty—a method to be employed with caution, 889; Conditions justifying the use of this method, 889–890; The nature of this indirect power over non-Christian princes, 890; Third proposition concerning the dominion of infidel masters over Christian slaves, 891–893; Fourth proposition that infidel officials under Christian
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king may be deprived of jurisdiction over Christians, 893–894; Fifth proposition that Christians may not be slaves of unbelievers who are subjects of Christian states, 894–896; Sixth proposition that the Church can prohibit Christians from acting as servants of unbelievers, 896; Status of baptized son of unbeliever, 896.
VI. Whether Every Other Form of Communication between Christians and Unbelievers Is or May Be Prohibited
Three kinds of communication between Christians and unbelievers, 897; Communication in the works of unbelief forbidden by natural law, 897; Rules on this point, 898; Communication of unbelievers with believers in works of the Christian religion is at times prohibited, 899; Whether it is permissible to debate with unbelievers on sacred matters, 900; Communication in secular affairs is not inherently evil or forbidden, 900–901; May be forbidden by ecclesiastical law, 901; Various restrictions on relations with Jews, 902–906; Whether these restrictions are applicable also to Mohammedans and other pagans, 906–907.
DISPUTATION XIII: ON WAR
On Charity: To the Gentle Reader
[INTRODUCTION]
I. Is War Intrinsically Evil?
Two erroneous beliefs, 911; First conclusion that war is not intrinsically evil or forbidden to Christians, 911–914; Second conclusion that defensive war is permitted and sometimes prescribed, 914; Third conclusion that even aggressive war may at times be right and necessary, 914–915; Definitions of defensive and aggressive war, 915; Fourth conclusion concerning necessary conditions for waging war justly, 916.
II. Who Has the Legitimate Power of Declaring War?
First conclusion that a sovereign prince or state has power to declare war, 917–918; Second conclusion that an inferior prince or imperfect state requires authorization from superior to declare war, 918; Suárez discusses certain limitations and exceptions to this conclusion, 918–920; Supreme jurisdiction a characteristic of perfect state, 920; But Christian kings are amenable to the indirect power of the Pope, 920–921;
