lOO

A HISTORY OF BOHEMIAN

LITERATURE

drals, collegiate churches, parish churches, and churches This was directly aimed belonging to naonasteries." at Hub, whose Bethlehem chapel fell under none of the categories mentioned above. The letter or decree ended by instructing the Archbishop to appoint four doctors of theology and two doctors of canon law, under whose advice he was to proceed against those who spread the heretical tenets referred to. The Archbishop was to

oblige all such persons to recant their erroneous opinions, and to deliver up for destruction all MSS. of the works of Wyclifle which they might possess. Should they refuse to do this the Archbishop was not only to deprive them of all benefices that might be in their hands, but he was also to invoke the aid of the " secular arm " against them. The papal decree, for reasons that are not known, only reached Prague in March of the following year, and was made public on the i8th of that month. Hus appealed to Pope Alexander, and again somewhat later to his successor, John XXIII., but both appeals remained without result. While awaiting the papal decision, Hus had, in company with some of his adherents, delivered up about two hundred volumes containing writings of Wycliffe ; they declared that if it were proved that these writings contained matter contrary to the doctrine of the Church, they were prepared publicly to recant such errors. Archbishop Zbynek had, meanwhile, after consulting the doctors of theology and canon law, issued a decree forbidding all preaching except in the places specified by the papal command ; at the same time he ordered that all the copies of Wycliffe's works that had been made over to the ecclesiastical authorities should be