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From the days of Dons Scotus the doctrine of the Immaculate
Conception was received very generally by the universities and
theologians. The Dominicans, feeling themselves called upon to
support the views of St. Thomas, who argued against the Immaculate
Conception as understood in his own time, opposed the common
teaching. The question was brought before the schismatical assembly at
Basle (1439), where it was defined that the Immaculate
Conception of the Blessed Virgin was in harmony with reason and
Scripture, and should be approved and accepted by all Christians.
This teaching was confirmed by several provincial synods in France and
Germany, as well as by many of the universities. Paris and
Cologne, for example, obliged all their members to swear to defend
the doctrine. Sixtus IV bestowed indulgences on those who would
observe the Feast of the Immaculate Conception (1476), but
although favouring the doctrine he forbade the defenders or opponents to
charge each other with heresy (1483). When in the discussions on
Original Sin at the Council of Trent the subject was raised, no
formal decision was given because the Fathers were determined to direct
all their attention to the doctrines that had been rejected by the
Reformers. At the same time the opinion of the Fathers was expressed
clearly enough, since they declared that in their decrees regarding the
universality of Original Sin they did not mean to include the
Immaculate Virgin Mary (V. Sess. 1546). Pius V
condemned a proposition of Baius, in which it was laid down that
Christ alone escaped the guilt of Original Sin, and that the
Blessed Virgin suffered death on account of the guilt she contracted
by her descent from Adam (1567). A Spanish Franciscan,
Francis of Santiago, having claimed that he had a vision in support
of the doctrine, a sharp controversy broke out in Spain, to end which
Philip III besought the Pope to give a definitive decision.
Paul V contented himself, however, with renewing the decrees of
his predecessors Sixtus IV and Pius V forbidding charges of
heresy to be bandied about by the disputants (1616), but in the
following year he forbade any public defence of the theses directed
against the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception. Gregory XV
though unwilling to yield to the request of the Spanish Court for a
formal definition, prohibited either public or private opposition to
the doctrine unless in case of those who had received special
authorisation from the Holy See. Finally in 1661 Alexander
VII in the constitution, "Sollicitudo omnium Ecclesiarum",
explained the true meaning of the doctrine, and forbade any further
opposition to what he declared to be the common and pious belief of the
Church.
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