n the claims of
their sovereign so far as to withdraw to Venice. And above all, the
Spanish bishops, upheld by the persistency of their King, stood firmly
by the original form of the reformation decree, and finally obtained its
restoration to a very considerable extent. Thus the greater portion of
the decree was at last passed in the penultimate session of the council
(November 11th).

With the exception of Spain, all the powers now made known their consent
to winding up the business of the council without further loss of time.
But Count Luna still immovably resisted the closing of the council
before the express assent of King Philip should have been received; nor
was it till the news--authentic or not--arrived of a serious illness
having befallen the Pope that the fear of the complications which might
arise in the event of his death put an end to further delay.

Summoned in all haste, the fathers met on December 3d for their
five-and-twentieth session, and on this and the following day rapidly
discussed a series of decrees, some of which were by no means devoid of
intrinsic importance. In the doctrinal decrees concerning purgatory and
indulgences, as in those concerning the invocation of saints and the
respect due to their relics and images, it was sought to preclude a
reckless exaggeration or distortion of the doctrines of the Church on
these heads, and a corrupt perversion of the usages connected with them.

Of the disciplinary decrees, the most important and elaborate related to
the religious of both sexes. It contained a clause, inserted on the
motion of Lainez, which the Jesuits afterward interpreted as generally
exempting their society from the operation of this decree. Another
decree enjoined sobriety and moderation in the use of the ecclesiastical
penalty of excommunication. For the rest, all possible expedition was
used in gathering up the threads of the work done or attempted by the
council. The determination of the Index, as well as the revision of
missal, breviary, ritual, and catechism, was remitted to the Pope. Then
the decrees debated in the last session and at its adjourned meeting
were adopted, being subscribed by 234 (or 255?) ecclesiastics; and the
decrees passed in the sessions of the council before its reassembling
under Pope Pius IV were read over again, and thus its continuity
(1545-1563) was established without any use being made of the terms
"approbation" and "confirmation." A decree followed