The Irish standard., 1897-07-03
NOT GENUINE, hut bogus, SAYS
REV. EsTHELRED TAUNTON,
AN ENGLISH CATHOLIC PRIEST.
THE ONLY ENGLISH POPE WAS
NICHOLAS DRAKESPEARE.
THE DOCUMENT CRITICALLY EXAMINED.
THE AUTHORITIES FOR THE BULL
ARE UNTRUsTWORTIIY.

THE AUTHORITIES FOR THE BULL
ARE UNTRUsTWoRTMY.
II? is negatively answered by Rev. Eth
elred Taunton In a letter to the Liver
pool Catholic Times, in which he says:
Nicholas Brakespeare, the only Eng
lish Pope, reigned from 1854 to 1859.
When Henry II came to the throne he
found that many Englishmen had dur
ing the past troublesome times been kid
mapped and taken as slaves to Ireland.
Ambitious of conquest, Henry had in
this sufficient excuse for attacking Ire
land. He sent John of Salisbury (John
is the prime authority to Rome to ask
the Popes blessing on the expedition,
which was given In the form Of the fam
GUS Bull. We give the more salient
passages in this instrument:
THE thoughts of your highness are
laudably and prof1tably turned to the
greater glory of your name on earth and
to the increase of eternal happiness in
heaven, when, as Christian prince, you
propose to yourself to extend the borders
of the Church, to announce the truths
of the Christian faith to ignorant and
barbarous nations, and to root out the
weeds of wickedness from the field of the
Lord; and the more effectually to do this
you implore the counsel and favor of the
See Apostolic 1t is beyond all
doubt, as your highness doth also ac-
knowledge, that Ireland and all the Is
lands upon which Christ the Sun of
Justice has shcne, and which have re-
ceived the knowledge of the Christian
faith, are subject to the authority of st.
Peter and of the Most Holy Roman
Church Now, most dear son in
Christ, you have signified to Us your
purpose to enter as island of Ireland to
establish the observance of law among
its people and to eradicate the weeds of
vice, and that you are willing to pay
from every house one penny as tribute to
St. Peter and to preserve the rights of
the Church of that island whole and in
violate. We, therefore, receiving with
due favor your pious and laudable de-
sires, and graciously granting Our con-
sent to your petition, declare that it is
pleasing and acceptable to Us that for
the purpose of enlarging the limits of the
Church, setting bounds to the torrent of
vice, reforming evil manners, planting
the seeds of virtue, and increasing Chris
tian faith, you should enter that island
and carry into effect those things which
belong to the service of God and to the
salvation Of that people; and that the
people of that land should honorably re-
ceive and reverence you as Lord the
rights of the churches being preservd un-
touched and entire, and reserving the
annual tribute of one penny from every
house to st. Peter and the Most Holy Ro-
man Church. II, therefore, you resolve
to carry these designs into execution, let
1t be your study to form that people to
good morals" etc.
The Bull is without date. But 1855
is the date given by John of Salisbury.
about whom word will now be neces-
sary. Born at Salisbury, he went to
the continent in 1887, and, with the ex-
ception of flying visit to England in
1l49, remained in Paris. 1t is not likely
that John, an unknown professor, would
have been used to conduct so delicate
bit of diplomacy at Rome. Again, as
far as we can find out, he first came
across the king in 1859 -four years after
the supposed date of the Bulb, when he
was presented by the chancellor. Tho
mas Beckett, to the king, who was then
at Toulouse. John became secretary to
the chancellor in that year. He had
just finished book called "Polycrati-
GUS" and speaks in it of having been
| three months at Beneventum with the
Pope. But never word about Ireland,
| Indeed, his account Of his visit to Rome
and of the way he was treated by Adrian
are such extravagancies on the very face
that 1t makes us suspicious of his other
statements. A subsequent work the
"Metalogicus," which is scientific work
on the advantages to be obtained from
the study of logic and metaphysics, is the
one which contains the famous Bull
But an examination of the book at once
awakes suspicious. The subject Of the
volume is finished in an orderly way in
the forty-first chapter, and then, all of a
sudden, from philosophical discussion
we get an extra chapter having no refer
ence to the subject Of the book at all
He speaks, among other things, about
his familiarity with the Pope, who insist
ed upon eating of the same plate and
drinking out OF the same vessel with
John of Salisbury. and who also openly
declared that he loved this hitherto un-
known Englishman more than father
and mother! He then goes on to speak
Of the grant of Ireland to Henry II, but