commanding us to send a report on the recommendation made by the bishop
of these islands, that it is expedient that a brief be procured from
his Holiness, in order that the authority which he granted to the
bishop in the _foro interior_ for twelve years be also granted to
him in the _foro esterior_. [51] Since this concession has been made
by other pontiffs to the religious of the mendicant orders, the claim
made by the bishop has seemed to us both fitting and necessary--as also
that the grant be made for several years more, because eight of the
twelve years have elapsed. Since the orders possess this authority,
it is just that the bishop shall not remain without it, because cases
arise in the _foro esterior_, which, although they should go to the
apostolic see, fail to go, on account of the great difficulty and
length of the journey between here and Rome; and thus penitents might
not secure absolution, or would be unable to fulfil the obligations
that they owe to their consciences. And, if your Majesty be pleased
to order that this brief be obtained, it is our opinion that the same
authority be conferred, _tan in absolvendo quam in dispensando_.