Vicarius Filii Dei

Vicarius Filii Dei (Latin: Vicar or Representative of the Son of God) is a phrase first used in the forged
medieval Donation of Constantine to refer to Saint Peter, who is regarded as the first Pope by the Catholic
Church.[1]

Contents
Origins and uses of the phrase
Papal title?
Protestant view
Origins of the controversy
Historical Seventh-day Adventist views
Catholic response
See also
References
Further reading

Origins and uses of the phrase

The earliest known instance of the phrase Vicarius Filii Dei is in the Donation of Constantine, now dated
between the eighth and the ninth centuries AD.

It et cuncto populo Romanae gloriae imperij subiacenti, ut sicut in terris vicarius filii Dei esse
videtur constitutus etiam et pontifices, ...[2][3]

Johann Peter Kirsch states that "many of the recent critical students of the document [i.e. Donation of
Constantine] locate its composition at Rome and attribute the forgery to an ecclesiastic, their chief argument
being an intrinsic one: this false document was composed in favour of the popes and of the Holy Catholic
Roman Church, therefore the Christ Church itself must have had the chief interest in a forgery executed for
a purpose so clearly expressed".[4]

However, it goes on to state, "Grauert, for whom the forger is a Frankish subject, shares the view of
Hergenröther, i.e. the forger had in mind a defence of the new Western Empire from the attacks of the
Eastern Romans. Therefore it was highly important for him to establish the legitimacy of the newly founded
empire, and this purpose was especially aided by all that the document alleges concerning the elevation of
the pope."[4]

Gratian excluded it from his "Decretum"; however, it was later added as "Palea". It was also included in
some collections of Greek canons. As a forgery it currently carries no dogmatic or canonical authority,
although it was previously used as such for hundreds of years in the past.[4]
Papal title?

The Protestant writer Andreas Helwig suggested that Vicarius Filii Dei
was an expansion of the historical title Vicarius Christi, rather than an
official title used by the Popes themselves. His interpretation did not
become common until about the time of the French Revolution.[5]
Some later Protestant figures claimed that Vicarius Filii Dei was an
official title of the Pope, with some saying that this title appeared on the
papal tiara and/or a mitre.

Catholic apologist Patrick Madrid answers the Protestant claims by

noting that Vicarius Filii Dei has never been an official Papal title.
Catholics answer the claims that "Vicarius Filii Dei" is written on the
Papal Tiara by stating that a simple inspection of the more than 20
papal tiaras still in existence—including those in use in 1866 during the
reign of Pope Pius IX when Uriah Smith made his claim—shows that
An example of a papal tiara.
none have this inscription, nor is there any evidence that any of the
earlier papal tiaras destroyed by invading French troops in 1798 had
it.[6]

Protestant view
Many Protestants have the view that Vicarius Filii Dei can be applied to the Bishop of Rome.

Origins of the controversy

The earliest extant record of a Protestant writer on this subject is that of Professor Andreas Helwig in 1612.
In his work Antichristus Romanus he took fifteen titles in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin and computed their
numerical equivalents in those languages, arriving at the number 666 mentioned in the Book of Revelation.
Out of all these titles, he preferred to single out Vicarius Filii Dei, for the reason that it met "all the
conditions which [Cardinal] Bellarmine had thus far demanded." Besides being in Latin, the title was "not
offensive or vile," but rather was "honorable to this very one."

Helwig suggested that the supposed title was an expansion of the historical title Vicarius Christi, rather than
an official title used by the Popes themselves. Additionally, he said nothing about the title appearing on
tiaras or mitres. Helwig's interpretation did not become a common one until about the time of the French
Revolution.[7] Some later Protestant figures directly claimed that Vicarius Filii Dei was an official title of
the Roman Catholic Pope, some claimed that this title appeared on the papal tiara and/or a mitre.

Some Protestants view the Pope as the Antichrist. This view was common at the time of Helwig and is still
part of the confession of faith of some Protestant churches, such as those within Confessional
Lutheranism.[8]

Historical Seventh-day Adventist views

In 1866, Uriah Smith was the first to propose the interpretation to the Seventh-day Adventist Church.[9][10]
In The United States in the Light of Prophecy, he wrote: "The pope wears upon his pontifical crown in
jeweled letters, this title: 'Vicarius Filii Dei', 'Viceregent of the Son of God'; the numerical value of which
title is just six hundred and sixty-six. The most plausible supposition we have ever seen on this point is that
here we find the number in question. It is the number of the beast,
the papacy; it is the number of his name, for he adopts it as his
distinctive title; it is the number of a man, for he who bears it is the
'man of sin'."[11]

Uriah Smith maintained his interpretation in the various editions of

Thoughts on Daniel and the Revelation, which was influential in
the church.[9]

In November 1948, Le Roy Froom, a Seventh-day Adventist

ministerial leader, editor of the church's Ministry, and a church
historian, wrote an article to correct the mistaken use of some of
the denomination's evangelists who continued to claim that the
Latin words "Vicarius Filii Dei" were written on a papal tiara.

Each pope, like any other sovereign, has his own

tiara, which is the papal crown. There is, therefore, no
one tiara that is worn by the full succession of papal
pontiffs. Moreover, personal examination of these
various tiaras, by different men back through the The papal tiara given to Pope Pius
IX by Queen Isabella II of Spain in
years, and a scrutiny of the pictures of many more,
the 1850s.
have failed to disclose one engraved with the
The tiara contains no writing.
inscription Vicarius Filii Dei ... As heralds of truth, we
are to proclaim the truth truthfully. No fabrication
should ever becloud our presentation of truth. The
present truth of the threefold message [the Three
Angels' Messages of Revelation 14] is so
overwhelming in its logical appeal, and so inescapable
in its claims, that it needs no dubious evidence or
illustration to support it.[12]

Froom continues in the article stating that a leading evangelist took photos of several tiaras in a trip to the
Vatican and then, failing to find a tiara with the inscribed words, proceeded to add the words himself for
use in his evangelistic preaching. The evangelist then tried to include the image in a book on Bible
prophecy that he was publishing in one of the church's leading publishing houses in the United States.
However, the image was rejected by the publishing house and by the General Conference for being
misleading. However, some Adventist evangelists continue to make this claim. Froom concludes his 1948
article with the following words: "Truth does not need fabrication to aid or support it. Its very nature
precludes any manipulation or duplicity. We cannot afford to be party to any fraud. The reflex action upon
our own souls should be a sufficient deterrent. We must never use a quotation or a picture merely because it
sounds or looks impressive. We must honor the truth, and meticulously observe the principle of honesty in
the handling of evidence under all circumstances."[12]

Catholic response

Catholic apologist Patrick Madrid answers the Protestant claims by claiming that "Vicarius Filii Dei" has
never been an official Papal title. He also argue that even if it were a Papal title, that would not be sufficient
to associate the Pope with the number of the Beast, as, for example, the name of Ellen Gould White can
also be similarly manipulated to get the same number (ELLen GoVLD VVhIte
50+50+5+50+500+5+5+1=666). He answers the claims that "Vicarius Filii Dei" is not written on Papal
Tiara by stating that merely looking at any of the more than 20 papal tiaras still in existence—including
those in use in 1866 during the reign of Pope Pius IX when Uriah Smith made his claim—plainly shows
that not even one of them has any such inscription, nor is there any evidence that any of the earlier papal
tiaras destroyed by invading French troops in 1798 had any such inscription either.[6]

Adventists Samuele Bacchiocchi responded to those claims, by pointing out that "interpreting 666 on the
basis of the numerical values of the letters of names can give absurd results". He also notes the Donation of
Constantine was considered as true to the point "this forged document was used by 10 popes over a period
of six centuries to assert, not only their ecclesiastical supremacy over all the churches, but also their political
sovereignty over what became known the Papal States, which included most of Italy." He also states the
title "Vicarius Filii Dei" was considered as an official title of the pope.[13]

See also
Chronogram
Vicar of Jesus Christ

References
1. "St. Peter" (http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=5358). Saints and Angels.
Catholic Online. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
2. "Donation of Constantine" (http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/donation.html).
www.thelatinlibrary.com.
3. "A COPY OF THE DONATION OF THE EMPEROR COSTANTINE I (306-337) TO POPE
SYLVESTER I (314-335)" (https://web.archive.org/web/20110507013626/http://asv.vatican.v
a/en/visit/p_nob/doc_don_costantino.htm). May 7, 2011. Archived from the original (http://as
v.vatican.va/en/visit/p_nob/doc_don_costantino.htm) on 2011-05-07.
4. Kirsch, Johann Peter. "Donation of Constantine (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05118a.ht
m)". The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 5. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909.
Retrieved 1 November 2017.
5. Le Roy Edwin Froom (1948). Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers, vol. 2 (http://documents.adventi
starchives.org/Books/PFOF1948-V02.pdf) (PDF), pp. 605–608. Review and Herald.
Compare Ibid., p. 649; vol. 3 (http://documents.adventistarchives.org/Books/PFOF1946-V03.
pdf) (PDF), pp. 228, 242.
6. Patrick Madrid. "Pope Fiction (https://web.archive.org/web/20110518172256/http://www.env
oymagazine.com/backissues/2.2/mar_apr98_coverstory.html)". Envoy magazine,
March/April 1998
7. See Leroy Edwin Froom, Prophetic Faith of Our Fathers, vol. 2, pp. 605-608. Compare Ibid.,
p. 649; vol. 3, pp. 228, 242.
8. A Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope (http://bookofconcord.org/treatise.php), a
Lutheran Confession in the Book of Concord
9. Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, 223
10. Smith, Uriah (1866). "The Two-Horned Beast - A Review of H. E. Carver" (https://documents.
adventistarchives.org/Periodicals/RH/RH18661120-V28-25.pdf) (PDF). Review and Herald.
11. Uriah Smith, The United States in the Light of Prophecy. Battle Creek, Michigan: Seventh-
day Adventist Publishing Association (1884), 4th edition, p.224.
12. "The Query Column: Dubious Pictures of the Tiara (http://documents.adventistarchives.org/P
eriodicals/MIN/MIN19481101-V21-11.pdf)". Ministry, vol. 10, no. 21. p.35. November, 1948]
13. "THE MARK AND NUMBER OF THE BEAST (https://web.archive.org/web/2011051817225
6/http://www.envoymagazine.com/backissues/2.2/mar_apr98_coverstory.html)", Samuele
Bacchiocchi, Ph. D., ENDTIME ISSUES NEWSLETTER No. 139

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed.
(1913). "Donation of Constantine". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

Further reading
Bruinsma, Reinder. (1994). Seventh-day Adventist Attitudes Toward Roman Catholicism
1844–1965, Berrien Springs, Michigan. ISBN 1-883925-04-5.
Heim, Bruno (1978). Heraldry in the Catholic Church: Its Origins, Customs and Laws,
Gerrards Cross, Eng.: Van Duren. ISBN 0-905715-05-5.
Noonan, James-Charles. (1996). The Church Visible: The Ceremonial Life and Protocol of
the Roman Catholic Church, New York: Viking. ISBN 0-670-86745-4.
Smith, Uriah (1881). Thoughts, Critical and Practical on the Book of Revelation, Battle
Creek, Mich.
Froom, Le Roy (1948). "Dubious Pictures of the Tiara." The Ministry, vol.10, no.21.
November, 1948.
Smithe, Jefferson (1902). Roman Catholic Ritual, London.

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