Question XL. Who was confessor of the blessed Virgin, if she was confessed?

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Latin (Borgnet)English

p. 78

QUAESTIO XL. Quis fuit confessor B. Virginis, si fuerit confessa?

Quaeritur igitur, si fuerit confessa, quis fuit confessor ejus?

Et videtur, quod beatus Petrus: quia ordo est inter confitentes confessores: ergo cum suprema confitens fuerit beata Virgo, debuit confiteri supremo confessori et dignissimo: hic autem est Papa: ergo debuit confiteri beato Petro, qui fuit Papa.

QUESTION XL. Who was confessor of the blessed Virgin, if she was confessed?

Therefore it is asked, if she was confessed, who was her confessor.

And it seems that it was blessed Peter, because there is an order among those confessing and confessors. Therefore, since the blessed Virgin was the highest one confessing, she ought to have confessed to the highest and most worthy confessor. But this one is the Pope. Therefore she ought to have confessed to blessed Peter, who was Pope.

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Sed contra:

Superior praelatus non debuit se intromittere de administratione sui inferioris, utpote Metropolitanus sui suffraganei, nisi in determinatis casibus: ergo cum beata Virgo esset specialiter beato Joanni commissa, ab ipso debuit recipere sacramenta ¹.

But to the contrary:

A superior prelate ought not to insert himself into the administration of his inferior, as for instance a Metropolitan into that of his suffragan, except in determined cases. Therefore, since the blessed Virgin was specially committed to blessed John, she ought to have received the sacraments from him ¹.

Notes

For the solution of the objections, see below, Question XLIII, § 1 and following. (Pro solutione objectorum, vide infra, Quaest. XLIII, § 1 et seq.) ↩