Excerpt from The Growth of the Temporal Power of the Papacy: A Historical Review With Observations Upon the Council of the Vatican The rapid march of events in connection with the so-called (ecumenical Council might induce me to modify some of the Opinions expressed respecting this remarkable phenomenon; but where the scene changes so unexpectedly from day to day, I have felt it imprudent to postpone the publication for the sake of a more confident exposition of what is, after all, a subsidiary inci dent of my narrative. The question of the Fall of the Papacy is indeed one of the very deepest import; but though it may be precipitated by the event which Pope Pius IX believes ordained of God for its full development and glory, the real causes of its decay have been long in operation, and can neither be eradicated nor greatly aggravated by the foregone conclusions of an assem bly, however august, without freedom of debate or power of administration, and sworn to ratify the decisions of him who alone receives the plenitude of power neither from the Apostles, nor from Councils, but immediately from Christ!' About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.