This week in Christian history: Luis Palau NYC event draws 60,000, Thomas More executed
Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges issued – July 7, 1438
This week marks the anniversary of when the Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges, a decree that sought to limit papal power over church councils, was issued by King Charles VII of France.
The decree was named after the city where a synod met at the behest of Charles VII, and it sought to curb the power of the papacy on church councils, especially those held in France.
“The authority of the general council is superior to that of the pope in all that pertains to the faith, the extirpation of schism, and the reform of the Church in both head and members,” stated the sanction, in part.
“Election is reestablished for ecclesiastical offices, but the king, or the princes of his kingdom, without violating the canonical rules, may make recommendations when elections are to occur in the chapters or the monasteries. … The popes shall not have the right to reserve the collation of benefices, or to bestow any benefice before it becomes vacant.”
The decree was eventually revoked in 1461 by King Louis XI and ultimately replaced by the Concordat of Bologna of 1516, which granted French kings the right to appoint bishops.
