er in Rome, and after earnest prayer and prolonged discussion,
they declared that the prerogative of infallibility, which is the very
source of Catholic unity, and the very secret of Catholic strength,
resides in the individual Pope who happens, at the time, to occupy the
Papal chair, and that when he speaks _ex cathedra_, his definitions
are infallibly true, and consonant with Catholic revelation, even
before they have been accepted by the hierarchy throughout the world.
But here it must be borne in mind that the Pope speaks _ex cathedra_,
that is to say, infallibly, only when he speaks:--

1. As the Universal Teacher.

2. In the name and with the authority of the Apostles.

3. On a point of Faith or Morals.

4. With the purpose of binding every member of the Church to
accept and believe his decision.

Thus it is clearly seen that from the year 1870 the dogma of _Papal_,
in contra-distinction to _ecclesiastical_ infallibility, has been
defined and raised to an article of faith, the denial of which is
heresy.

The doctrine is at once new and yet not new. It is new in the sense
that up to the time of the Vatican Council it had never been actually
drawn out of the premises that contained it, and set forth before the
faithful in a formal definition. On the other hand, it is not new, but
as old as Christianity, in the sense that it was always contained
implicitly in the deposit of faith. Any body of truth that is living
grows, and unfolds and becomes more clearly understood and more
thoroughly grasped, as time wears on. The entire books of Euclid are
after all but the outcome of a few axioms and accepted definitions.
These axioms help us to build up certain propositions. And one
proposition, when established, leads to another, till at last we seem
to have unearthed statements entirely new and original. Yet, they are
certainly not really new, for had they not been all along contained
implicitly in the few initial facts, it is quite clear they could
never have been evolved from them. _Nemo dat, quod non habet._

Hence Papal Infallibility is not so much a new truth, or an "addition
to the Faith," as some heretics would foolishly try to persuade us,
as a clearer expression and a more exact and detailed presentation of
what was taught from the beginning.

It is here that the well-known historian, Doellinger, who rejected the
definition, proved himself to be not only a proud rebel but also a