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To remedy these serious inconveniencies and to prevent a recurrence thereof, Clement 8th, by the constitution, Quæcumque, &c., of the 7th of December, 1604, made several rules for establishing Confraternities, and confers upon them a right to the privileges and Indulgences granted by the Holy See.

He at first complains at length of the number of abuses in this respect; afterwards he decrees as follows:

1. He wishes that notwithstanding every concession made by his predecessors or by himself, the Superiors of all religious Orders or Institutions whatever, would not establish more than one Confraternity or Congregation in their Churches or in any other Church, he ordains, that even for this it is necessary to have the written authority of the Bishop of the place, specifying the pious exercises or works of christian charity which the members intend to perform.

2. The Arch-confraternities or general associations cannot affiliate more than one Confraternity or Sodality in each city, town, or village, which ought at first to be established. by Apostolic authority, or by the authority of the Ordinary, and not to be united to any

other Order or religious Institute, or Arch-confraternity or Association.

3. This Confraternity or Sodality thus erected or affiliated, shall be entitled only to the favours, privileges, and Indulgences specially or expressly granted to the original or Archconfraternity, and not the favours which have been conferred upon the latter by any extension or communication whatever.

4. The statutes or rules of the Arch-confraternities and general Association, or Sodalities, cannot be adopted by particular Confraternities and Sodalities without the consent of the Bishop, who will previously examine them in order to approve or modify them according as times and circumstances may require : besides he will retain the privilege of revising and modifying them again, if he thinks fit.

5. The Indulgences peculiar to each Confraternity ought to be authenticated by the Bishop and should not be published without such authentication. If there were question of a new Confraternity, not known in the Church, or of a special concession of Indulgences granted to an association already in existence, the Bishop would require to see the rescript, and would give express permission to publish the Indulgences contained therein.

But when there is question of Confraternities known every where, after the Bishop permits the establishment of one in a church or parish of his Diocess, he thereby permits that the Indulgence attached to the Arch-confraternity, and communicated, be announced to the brethren. Their authenticity is public, there is no necessity of any other promulgation.

6. Orders and religious institutions, archconfraternities and congregations, which affiliate to themselves other confraternities and sodalities, must follow exactly the fourmula of affiliation approved by the Pope, for otherwise they cannot communicate the favours and privileges which they themselves possess. Paul 5th, by his constitution, "quæ Salubritor," of the 23rd of December, 1610, confirming this regulation of Clement 8th, prescribed under pain of nullity, that the formula which he had approved should be always observed.

7. Confraternities or sodalities of the same kind, that is, such as are legitimately aggregated to a religious order or institution, to an Arch-confraternity or general association, can only be partakers of the privileges, Indulgences, and special favours which the original Institution enjoys; so that the directors of

particular confraternities should confine themselves to the announcement of these favours and advantages to the people, always taking the precaution that the Ordinary acknowledge their authenticity, and permit their publication in his Diocess.

8. The aid given under the title of alms, should be remitted to the Directors of the Confraternities they can only be received according to the rule prescribed by the Bishop of the place, and expended only in repairing and ornamenting the churches of the parent or affiliated orders, so as to make it evident that a person enjoining such a sodality was not influenced by interested and selfish motives, but from higher considerations.

It is forbidden to expose in the churches or oratories, plates, tables, or boxes for the purpose of collecting the offerings of the faithful in the name of Confraternities.

9. No Priest, regular or secular, can hear the confessions of members of confraternities, in virtue of the privileges which these associations possess, unless he be approved at Rome by the Vicar of his Holiness for the city, and elsewhere by the Ordinary of the place.

10. The same Pope ordained by the same

constitution, that all existing Confraternities of Sodalities under what title soever, should take out fresh letters of affiliation to the religious orders or institutes, Arch-confraternities or congregations to which they belonged, according to the form approved of by him, and this within the space of one year, if they were in Europe, and two years, if they were in any other part of the world, under pain of being deprived of all the privileges, favours, or Indulgences which they enjoyed.

11. The letters of affiliation should be forwarded without remuneration, though spontaneously offered.

12. If the superiors or directors of confraternities acted contrary to this rule, or any of these already stated, the associations which they would thus establish would be null and deprived of all privileges, and they themselves would incur the severest canonical punishment.

Such is the substance of the Bull of Clement the 8th, it is at present in force, and serves as a rule wherever the Pope does not abrogate any part thereof by a particular Indult: the Bishops themselves, having obtained authority to establish confraternities in the churches or chapels of their Diocess ought to be guided by

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