By claiming broad authority, as Boniface had done, popes had in effect turned their office into an illegitimate enterprise. What could the congregation of the faithful (congregatio fidelium) do about it? To Ockham, the answer was clear. Because it exists in the temporal realm, the rules of that realm as described by Aristotle must apply. If those appointed to head the Church fail to do their job, then the members of the congregatio have the power to choose a new one—just as they have the power to invest every ruler with his authority over them.
