e Jewish manner; for
when the Church forbids meats it does not judge them to be unclean,
as the Jews in the Synagogue thought. So the declaration of Christ
concerning that which goeth into the mouth (Matt. 15:11) is cited here
without a sure and true understanding of it since its intention was to
remove the error of the Jews, who thought that food touched by unwashen
hands becomes unclean, and rendered one eating it unclean, as is
manifest from the context. Nor does the Church bring back to these
observances Moses with his heavy hands. In like manner they do violence
to St. Paul, for 1 Tim. 4:1, 4, he calls that a doctrine of demons that
forbids meats, as the Tatianites, Marcionites and Manichaeans thought
that meats were unclean, as is clear from the words that follow, when
St. Paul adds: "Every creature of God is good." But the church does
not forbid meats on the ground that they are evil or unclean, but as an
easier way to keep God's commandments; therefore the opposite arguments
fail. If they would preach the cross and bodily discipline and fasts,
that in this way the body be reduced to subjection, their doctrine would
be commendable; but their desire that these be free is condemned and
rejected as alien to the faith and discipline of the Church. Nor does
the diversity of rites support them, for this is properly allowed in
regard to particular matters, in order that each individual province
may have its own taste satisfied, as Jerome says; but individual
ecclesiastical rites should be universally observed, and special rites
should be observed each in their own province. Also, they make no
mention of Easter for the Roman pontiffs reduced the Asiatics to a
uniform observance of Easter with the universal Church. In this way
Irenaeus must be understood, for without the loss of faith some vigils
of the apostles were not celebrated with fasting throughout Gaul, which
Germany nevertheless observes in fasts. The princes and cities must also
be admonished to follow the decision of Pope Gregory, for he enjoins
that the custom of each province be observed if it employs nothing
contrary to the Catholic faith, Canon Quoniam, Distinct xii. Hence we
are not ignorant that there is a various observance of dissimilar rites
in unity of faith, which should be observed in every province as it has
been delivered and received from the ancients, without injury, however,
to the universal rites of the entire Catholic Church.

VI. Of Monast