we finde the rule chāged in the present Church of Rome therfore we are sure that it cannot bee the true Church that hath chāged the rule of faith by which the true Church was alwaies knowen heeretofore and must bee knowen heereafter And as they haue changed the rule of faith so haue they changed the Iudge of the controuersies of faith For before the Councill of Trent the Church neuer held the Pope to be Iudge of Controuersies of faith Before the same time the Church neuer helde the Pope to bee aboue generall Councils but his authoritie alwayes euen in the greatest ruffe and pride of Popes was yet helde to bee vnder the authoritie of a generall Councill Concerning the iudge of controuersies of Faith the ancient Writers and the writers of the Church of Rome haue written no otherwise then as we write and speake In the Council of Nice Theodoret Lib. 1. cap. 1. declareth how Constantine described the iudge of controuersies of faith In the disputations of things diuine sayth hee the Bishops haue the doctrine of the holy Spirit written For the Euangelicall and Apostolicall bookes and the oracles of the ancient Prophets doe fully instruct vs and therefore let vs take the determination of questions from the wordes of the holy Ghost In which words he declareth first that in diuine Disputations or in Controuersies of Faith wee haue the doctrine of the holy Ghost written then let them tell vs from what spirit the vnwrittē word of Trent proceedeth Secondly he sayth that the writings of the Prophets and Apostles doe fully instruct vs then that writing is the full rule of faith for that which doeth fully instruct vs and not in part is the full rule and not a part thereof Thirdly he saith that all determinations of doubts must be taken from this written word Then hee prooueth vndoubtedly that this written word doeth suffice to ende all controuersies of faith because the words of men may be subiect to errour but the wordes of the holy Ghost are not This is the Catholike determination of the iudge of controuersies in faith which hath beene in all succession preserued vntill the Councill of Trent Optatus an ancient Father holdeth the same way in seeking a iudge for thus he reasoneth against the Donatists Let no Optat. lib. 5. man beleeue you let no man beleeue vs for all we are contentious men Iudges must be sought but if wee take Christians they cannot be helde indifferent for both sides because the trueth is encumbred by contentions Wee must then seeke a iudge without But if he be a Pagan hee cannot vnderstand our mysteries if a Iewe he is an enemy to Christian baptisme Therefore on earth no iudgement will be found for this wee must seeke the Iudge from heauen But what need we knock at heauen seeing wee haue him here in his Gospel Thus Optatus sought a iudge and could find none but Christ speaking in his Gospel in his written word How easie had it beene for Optatus to haue named the Pope if the Pope had then beene esteemed the iudge of controuersies of faith But this is a late inuention not knowen to the ancient fathers Saint Augustine speaketh in like sort This matter Libr. 2. cap. 33. de nupt concupisc saith he writing against the Pelagians requireth a Iudge and therefore let Christ iudge And then hee produceth the words of Christ as the words of the Iudge Hee saith also Let the Apostle iudge with him for in the Apostle Christ speaketh And then he produceth the words of the Apostle as being the words of Christ the Iudge And in another place It is not without great cause that Ad Cresc lib. 2. cap. 31. the Canon of the Scriptures is ordeined with such wholesome vigilance whereunto certaine books of the Prophets and Apostles doe pertaine which wee dare not iudge at all but according to them may we freely iudge of other writings whether they be written by beleeuers or no beleeuers After this till the Councill of Trent the Church helde the same determination still concerning the Iudge of controuersies of faith Indeed there were some Friars and Canonists that flattered the Pope and the Pope was as willing to make vse of their flatterings But these flatterers were reiected as men odious and could neuer finde any credit in the world before the Council of Trent In so much that the Popes themselues and what is it that they durst not doe durst not claime this authoritie before that time Pope Clement the first hath Dist. 37 cap 14. This Pope liued anno 1047. these wordes You must not seeke a strange sense which may be adulterated and inwardly corrupted nor confirme such a sense by the authoritie of Scripture but a man must take the sense of the trueth from the Scriptures themselues seeing that one may haue the full and firme rule of faith and trueth in the Scriptures Thus sayth a Pope Integra firma regula veritatis ex Scripturis Then there were no vnwritten Traditions thought of at that time to be thrust into the rule of faith Secondly he saith that the vnderstanding of the trueth must be sought out of the Scriptures themselues So that hee knew no other Iudge of the controuersies of faith Thus was the doctrine of the Iudge of controuersies maintained vntill the time of the Council of Basill The Councill of Basil doth likewise maintaine the ancient doctrine of the Church concerning this point For thus they say Lex diuina praxis Concil Basil Sess 4. Christi Apostolica Ecclesiae primitiuae vna cum Concilijs Doctoribusque fundantibus se veraciter in eadem pro verissimo indifferente iudice in hoc Basiliensi Concilio admittentur That is The diuine Law or holy Scripture the practise of Christ of his Apostles and of the Primitiue Church together with Councils and Doctours grounding themselues truely thereon shall be admitted for the most true and indifferent Iudge in this Council of Basill We finde by this what was the sense and iudgement of the Church in our fathers dayes for this was done about the yeere of Christ 1440. Then before the Councill of Trent there was no change in these things but there they haue changed all and made a new Church but with such sleights and cunning that it is apparant that it was not religion and conscience which mooued them but ambition and a singular estimation and pride of their owne wit holding such a scorneful conceit of other nations whom they call Tramontani that they presume that they can make all other men fooles This they practised in the Council of Trent and through the simplicitie and ouer-much credulitie which they haue found in some haue partly well confirmed their purpose for there were certaine questions which were determined in that Councill of Trent and yet neuer discussed as namely whether the Popes authoritie be aboue the authoritie of a generall Councill and whether the Pope be the
Constance and of Basill which Councils wee finde to be a body representatiue of a Church which was opposite to the Pope and Court of Rome So that assuredly there was a Church which helde the rule of faith against the Pope and his flatterers In that Church was Luther in that Church were the learned men of these two Councils who proceeded roundly against the Popes authoritie they prooued that the Popes might erre that in many things they did erre they maintained the rule of faith which stood inuiolated in the Church till their dayes they maintained the ancient Iudge of controuersies of faith which before had alwayes beene acknowledged they protested that to giue that authoritie to the Pope which now since that time is giuen and since the Councill of Trent is confirmed to the Pope by these flatterers this say they is to giue an open entrance for Antichrist into the Church to subuert Christian Religion Then at that time the trueth was helde vp in some measure there was then acknowledged an authoritie in the Church aboue the Pope there was a Iudge of generall Councils the same which the Church before receiued and which wee acknowledge there was then no alteratioÌ„ no change made of the rule of faith but since this time all these things are changed in the Councill of Trent This Councill of Trent to giue you some taste of it was neither generall nor free nor lawfull Not generall for these Westerne parts because diuers Kings and Nations protested against it namely the King of England and the French King and would not send their Bishops and Ambassadours to it Many Nations helde it for a priuate conuenticle of a few gathered together against the Church For all England Scotland Ireland all France all Germanie that helde against that Councill will make a farre greater part then all the rest that consented to that Councill It was not free for none were admitted to haue voyce therein but such as should bee bound by an oath of bondage and slauery to the Pope It was not a lawfull Assembly forsomuch as it was neither called by a lawfull authoritie for against the first calling of it the Emperour himselfe dissented and protested against it by his Ambassadour Vergas the Kings also who had interst in these Westerne parts protested against it Neither was the manner of proceeding in that Councill lawfull Gentiletus a French Lawyer prooueth the nullities of that Council For by the Imperiall Constitution it is ordeined that the Decrees which are made against Lawes are not onely vnprofitable but void and to be taken for things not done Cap. Imperiali 25. q. 2. l. non dubium Hee proposeth therefore and prooueth a great number of the nullities of that Councill which make the whole to be void and of no validitie as being done against the Lawes This is that Councill that hath changed the faith of the Church that was held from the Apostles to that time vnchanged they haue brought into the Church the Popes word to match the word of God this was neuer done in the Church before And therefore the reformed Churches holding the ancient rule of faith which the Church had held froÌ„ the Apostles till the Councill of Trent must needes prooue themselues 〈◊〉 stand in the true succession of the Church For the true Church must continue to the end of the world And seeing it cannot coÌ„tinue in them that haue forsaken the Vnitie of the Catholique Church and the rule of faith it must needs be granted that it is coÌ„tinued in them that holde the vnitie with the Catholike Church and the rule of faith Thus then from the Vnitie of the Church we haue prooued that the Church of Rome that now is is not the true Church of Christ because it is not one with the true Church of Christ It holdeth not the Vnitie of that Bodie nor the Vnitie of the Head nor the Vnitie of the Spirit nor the Vnitie of Faith And holding not Vnitie with the Catholique Church it cannot be a church at all The Reformed Churches hold this Vnitie and are thereby prooued to bee one with the Catholike Church froÌ„ this which I haue said diuers trueths do apparantly insue which I will briefly open The consent of the Church which is but one in the fathers and their children is prooued to stand in the fundamentall points of doctrine before the Councill of Trent I say in the fundamentall poynts For diuers errours were crept into the Church before but these errours were such as did not raze the foundation for a Church may stand and bee a true Church though some errours creepe into it But if these errours change the foundation as the errours doe which change the rule of faith which is the foundation of the Church then without doubt it ceaseth to bee a Church The errours which before this time did creepe into the Church did not change the foundation because all men in the Church held the same olde and true foundation in the rule of faith till then The Popes Supremacie as men then vnderstand it was generally embraced But surely this was not a fundamentall errour For we doubt not but many good and godly men were among them and saued though they did acknowledge the Popes Supremacie in such a measure as Saint Bernard and the Councill of Constance and of Basill did acknowledge the same It appeareth hereby also 2 that the true Church of Christ as before I haue declared did stand vp in some â—ort vntill this time of the Councill of Trent For the â—rue Church may be prooued â—y the vnitie with the Catholicke Church and by the â—ule of faith which till then was helde in the Church It appeareth likewise that 3 the reformed Churches are in the succession and continuation of that true ancient and onely Church which stood before the Councill of Trent and shall endure to the end of the world For before that time there were as wee may say two faces of a Church the one of the court of Rome the other of the Church But in the Councill of Trent the Court oâ— Rome preuailed therefore the Church fell off and made a separation from the Court of Rome But the Church though falling away from the Court of Rome continued still the same Church because it helde still the same rule of faith and forsaked not the communion which before it had with the Catholicke Church But the Court of Rome which now calleth it selfe the Church and the onely Catholike Church altered the rule of faith and fell away from the communion of the Catholike Church It appeareth also that our 4 fathers which before vs liued and died in the Church of Rome had all necessarie meanes of saluation because the rule of faith was held then inuiolable And albeit the Friars the Canonists and flatterers of the Pope had corrupted many things in the Church yet the doctrines of the trueth were permitted to be preached according to the
by grace knit to Christ their head as we haue prooued out of the Apostle Therfore that Church whose members are not knit to Christ by grace to the edifying of themselues in loue is no true Church of Christ It will not aduantage them to say that they haue among them some good men who they doubt not are members of Christ though their Church hath communion also with such as haue no inward grace and vertue For the Church of Christ hath no cōmunion with wicked men who liue without inward grace because the communion which the Church hath is called in our Creede Acommunion of Saints The Saints are men sanctified by the Spirit of God washed by the blood of Christ from their sins These Saints haue communiō both with Christ their Head by faith and with and among themselues by loue and charitie This communion is not betweene good and euill between Saints and wicked men but only among the Saints who are cleansed from all sinne by the blood of Christ for so S. Iohn teacheth speaking of this communion of Saints If wee walke in 1. Ioh. 1. 7 the light as he is in the light wee haue communion one with another and the blood of Iesus Christ his sonne cleanseth vs from all sinne Then this communion is among them that are cleansed by the blood of Christ from all sinne But the members of the Church of Rome which by their owne confession haue no inward grace are not cleansed from all their sinne by his blood And therfore such men cannot say that they haue this communion or any part thereof For vnto such S. Iohn saith in the words immediatly going before If we say that wee haue communion 1 Ioh. 1. 6 with him and walke in darkenesse we lie and do not the truth Now if these be found to be lyars by the testimonie of S. Iohn who say they haue communion with Christ when they walke in darknesse when they haue no inward vertue for such must needs walke in darkenesse who haue no inward light direction then out of doubt the Popish Church as now it standeth can haue no communion with Christ and consequently can be no true Church of Christ The reason is plaine from these principles which are their confession on the one side and the expresse testimonie of Scriptures on the other side The second Vnitie of the Church is the vnitie of the head Christ is the head of his Church And the Church of Christ is knowen by this vnitie for that is the true Church that hath alwayes kept this Head Iesus Christ But the Romish Church hath changed this head seeing they haue the Pope the head of the vniuersall Church Their common answere is That the Pope is Christ his Vicar and the ministeriall head But this answere is but a cloake to couer ignorance For the Church is but one and herein wee haue the confession of the Papists For Cardinall Bellarmine sayth the Libr. 3. cap. 2. de Eccles Church is onely one and not two and of this one Church he maketh the Pope to be the head as being Christs Vicar Now to bolt out the truth we reason thus The Church is one this one onely Church is Christ his bodie Christ his Spouse therefore if the Pope bee Christ his Vicar and the ministeriall head he must by this delegacie gouerne the same Church vnder Christ which is his body his Spouse For if Christ gouerne one Church and the Pope another then the Pope cannot be Christ his Vicar because hee gouerneth not the same vnder Christ for hee must bee Vicar to him whose Church hee doeth gouerne But the Pope doeth not gouerne the same Church vnder Christ but another Assembly For Christ is the head of his owne body of his owne members that is of Saints of true beleeuers of such as receiue inward grace vertue from the head and by that grace grow vp to the edification of themselues in loue as the Apostle teacheth But the Pope by the common confession of Papistes is head of such a Church whose mēbers haue no inward grace or vertue in them but onely the externall profession of the Romish faith acknowledging that the Pope is their head and gouernour For without this acknowledgment that the Pope is the head of the Church and Christ his Vicar on earth no profession of faith can make a man a member of that Church whatsoeuer faith he professe he is not receiued as a member in that Church vnlesse hee professe this faith of the Papall authoritie And if he professe this though there be in him no inward grace no vertue yet he is taken to be a true member of that Church By this it appeareth that the Pope doeth not gouerne the same Church vnder Christ whereof Christ is the head For Christ is not the head of wicked profane liuers that are without inward grace without vertue the deuill is their head Saint Austin sayth Lib. 3. cap. 37. de doctrina Christiana truely Diabolus est caput impiorum qui sunt eius quodammodo corpus ituri cumillo in supplicio aeterni ignis sicut Christus est caput Ecclesiae quae est corpus eius futurum cum illo in regno gloria sempiterna that is The deuil is the head of wicked men who are after a sort his body and shall goe with him into his kingdom and euerlasting fire euen as Christ is the head of the Church which is his body and shall be with him in his kingdom and euerlasting glory Whereupon it followeth that if the Pope bee the ministeriall head of a Church that Church consisting of wicked men that liue without inward grace or vertue as themselues confesse and the deuill being the head of all such as S. Augustine proueth It followeth I say that the Pope is by this found to be the Vicar of the deuill and the ministeriall head of the deuill ruling an assembly whereof the deuil is the head and not Christ This conclusion though it seeme to derogate much from the assumed title of his Holinesse yet considering the former premisses no man of learning and vnderstanding can iustly denie Then the Church of Rome is fallen away from this communion with the Head Christ Iesus because it is certaine that they who haue no inward grace and vertue haue no cōmunion with this head The third vnitie of the Church is the vnitie of the Spirit The whole Church is gouerned and directed by the same Spirit And therefore the Apostle speaking of the giftes which God giueth for the edificatiō of the Church sayth All these worketh that 1. Cor. 12. 11. one and the selfe-same Spirit And of the members of the Church that are gouerned by the selfesame Spirit he sayth a litle after the former words For by one Spirit we are all baptized 1. Cor. 12. 13. into one body In which words it is euident that to be a member of the Church the Apostle doeth not
hic populus decipi vult decipiatur in nomine diaboli that is Seeing this people will needes be deceiued let them be deceiued in the name of the deuill and so gaue them the Popes blessing Thus doe the Popish teachers come to saue soules making the people blind keeping them in blindnesse and then profanely scoffing at that blindnesse which themselues procured But S. Chrysostome and the ancient godly Fathers dealt farre otherwise with the people alwayes exhorting them to reade the Scriptures And Chrysostome in the same place doeth with great reason and eloquence both pull off this vaile of ignorance which the Papists labour to cast ouer the eyes of the people and doeth very effectually descry the fraude and imposture of such teachers as these Popish teachers are For sayth Chrysostome would it not be thought a very absurd thing if in borrowing and lending of money a man should trust him that brought him money and not tell it after him how is it then that this is thought so absurd not to tell money after another and shall we in things o◠the greatest weight simply follow the sentence of othe◠men without examination seeing we haue such an exac◠rule of holy Scripture Chrysostome prooueth that the learned Papists are couseners an◠the simple Papists sottish lik◠them that will not see their money tolde This is the reason that in stead of golde and siluer they receiue copper and brasse The damage redoundeth to the destruction of their soules and therefore they ought to haue a greater care and foresight lest in the matters concerning their soules they bee abused by such as dare change the rule of Faith delighting in the ignorance of the simple and profanely scoffing the ignorance which themselues haue caused This thing the simple people ought more carefully to looke to more exactly to preuent then any damage that can grow in their worldly estate Cyrillus Bishop of Alexandria Lib. de recta fide ad regni saith It is necessary for vs to follow the holy Scriptures and from their prescript in no manner of thing must we depart Tertullian saith The rule of Faith Lib. de velandis virgini is instituted by Christ and it is one and the same which none may change which none may reforme Then whether the Papists wil call it an Alteration or a Reformation of the rule of faith which in Trent they haue done it is vtterly denied that the Church may either alter or reforme that rule S. Hillarie saith The presumption or Lib. ad Constan August frailtie or errour of some hee speaketh there against the Arrians but his wordes doe no lesse touch the Papistes hath either fraudulently confessed or impudently transgressed the vnchāgeable cōstitution of Apostolike doctrine So he calleth the rule of faith Indemutabilem Constitutionem Apostolicae doctrinae S. Hierome saith The Church Lib. 1. in Mich. c. ◠of Christ which dwelleth well possessing the Churches spread ouer the whole world is ioyned together in the vnitie of the spirit and hath cities of the Lawe and Prophets of the Gospel and Apostles and goeth not out of her boundes that is out of the holy Scriptures Thus he calleth the holy Scriptures the bounds and limits of the Church out of which limits the Church of Christ neuer goeth but the Church of Rome is gone out of these bounds S. Augustine Libr. de bon vidutat cap. 1. saith The holy Scripture hath fixed a rule for our doctrine lest we might dare to be wiser thē we ought I omit many for breuity S. Gregory saith In the volume of the Scriptures are conteined In Ezek. all things which doe teach vs all things that edifie And again All our munitiō is cōtained in the holy Writ To these Ancients agree the writers of the Church of Rome Peter Lombard saith Lib. 1. dist 1. Matters of faith must be demonstrated according to the authorities of holy Scriptures T. Aquinas In 1. ad sim c. 6. saith The doctrine of the prophets and Apostles is called Canonicall because it is the rule of our vnderstanding and therefore no man ought to teach otherwise The same might be proued out of others but this may suffice From all which I conclude that the doctrine of the Scriptures hath euer bin held to be the rule of faith which must rule the Church in teaching For these men presume that they deale with simple men that may not examine their doctrines and therefore they bid the people take doctrines at their hands and seeke no further And they tell vs that the rule of faith is that which the Church teacheth These be mad fellowes that presume so much vpō the simplicity of others for the rule of faith is a rule that ruleth the Church for deceiuers may come into the Church The Scripture hath warned vs of deceiuers that such shall come Antichrist with his deceiuing Priests shall come Now lest these deceiuers should abuse vs with false doctrines which they may call the doctrines of the Church the rule of faith is fixed to rule them and all other The ancient Fathers were all ruled by this rule we are ruled by the same rule onely these that haue changed the rule refuse to be ruled by this rule They tell vs that their doctrine must bee the rule to vs but they tell vs not what should rule their doctrine Now here is the point which we entreat learned and vnlearned to consider who seeke out the true Church and are desirous to find it and therein to rest The Church is knowen by the careful keeping of the true faith that is the true Church which from the Apostles in all successions hath held the true faith the true faith is knowen by the rule of faith the rule is the same in all ages This rule hath beene helde inuiolable from the Apostles times downeward in the Greeke Church in the Latine Church euen in the Church of Rome vntill the Councill of Trent And in the Councill of Trent we find this rule changed For whereas before the Church helde this rule alwayes to bee the Propheticall and Apostolicall doctrine conteined in the holy Scriptures now they haue made the rule to bee Scriptures and vnwritten Traditions These vnwritten Traditions they call the word of God as well as Scriptures and thus haue they made a word of God of their owne inuention By this meanes they magnifie the Popes authoritie and haue turned the Supremacie into a Godhead and will not vnderstand that they worship Antichrist in the Church For these Traditions are the Popes word as the Scripture is Gods word And they blush not to teach that the word of the Pope is the word of God And thus haue they set vp in the church another God and another word of God And what can Antichrist doe more then this Then in seeking the true Church wee must follow the rule we follow the same rule that all the fathers followed and because
rule of faith which prooued that our fathers liuing and dying in Popery before the Councill of Trent had the meanes to be saued which meanes are now taken away by these that are now in the Church of Rome because they haue altered the rule of faith which conteineth the meanes to saluation Now where they come with their declamations and tell vs of the diuisions that we haue among our selues some Lutherans some Zwinglians c. and that we can haue no Church because we haue not vnitie in the faith and these diuisions shew the breach of vnitie I answere that there may be some disagreement in some points of Religion and the sides disagreeing may â—oth holde the true Church so long as these disagreements be not in matters fundamentall and that they who so disagree notwithstanding â—ll their disagreement holde one and the same rule of faith We say that betweene Lutheâ—ans and Zwinglians as these â—all them the same rule of â—aith is helde and acknowledged without alteration And therfore both these sides may belong to one and the same Church because they holde one and the fame rule of faith with the Catholike Church with the Fathers and with the Church of Rome before the Trent Councill But if they can proue that there are some sects which doe not fully and entirely holde this rule of faith then will wee disclaime coÌ„munion with them as wee doe with Anabaptists with Zwinkfeldians with Papists for the same causeâ— And therefore when our aduersaries speake or write oâ— the Church they must leauâ— boyes play in making idle declamations let them speakâ— plainely and soundly to these points and declare the vnitiâ— of the Church and open thâ— rule of faith wherein the truâ— Church hath alwayes had â—nitie and will alwayes holdâ— to the end of the world The should make conscience of their writings not to deceiue the simple with idle discourses of by-points They discourse of antiquitie vniuersalitie and consent wordes in shew making for them as they suppose in truth against them They tell vs that the Religion which now is professed in Rome is that Religion which conuerted ENGLAND first to the true Faith They tell vs that wee can haue no true Church because we haue so many diuisions among vs and many such like discourses as these and very proper declamations which when wee reade we haue reason to suspect that they who write thus either are men of no learning and vnderstanding or else write things against their owne consciences to holde simple soules still in errour whom they haue once bewitched with these silly sleights and shewes They presume of ignorant soules and seeke to maintaine ignorance in the people for without grosse and in a maner wilfull ignorance none can bee deceiued in these things That which I haue spoken of the Catholicke Church is agreeable to that Article of our Faith I beleeue the holy Catholicke Church the communion of Saints Which words doe prooue that the Church of Rome as now it stands cannot bee the Catholique Church nor haue communion with it The Papists in deliuering the notes or markes of the Church make long discourses of other markes and are afraid to speake of these true markes conteined in our Creede First the Church is holy When these men speake of the holinesse of the Church they tell vs of a holines which is in the Sacraments which thing wee denie not but wee deny that the Sacraments make men holy without faith They tell vs also of the holy Martyrs that haue beene in the Church before that the Church is made holy by them This indeede prooueth the holinesse of them that haue liued and died in the faith and for the faith but this wil not make the Church after them to be holy The present Church is holy not by the holinesse of them that haue liued before but by the holinesse of them that liue in it The Church is holy because it consists of Saints of members who are holy these members are holy both by imputed sanctification from Christ the head who for their sakes did sanctifie himselfe as hee saith For their sakes I sanctifie Ioh. 17. 19 my selfe that they also might be sanctified through the trueth and also by inherent holinesse for the Apostle teacheth that the whole Church and euery member thereof receiueth increase of the body from the head So that men may not so grossely flatter themselues as the Papists doe thinking that they may be the Church and yet liue without holinesse They who haue no part in holinesse haue no part in the Church for the Church is holy Saint Iohn saith Euery man that hath 1. Ioh. 3. 3 this hope in him purgeth himselfe euen as he is pure And againe If wee say that wee haue 1. Ioh. 1. 6 fellowship with him and walke in darkenesse we lie and doe not the trueth And therefore the Church of Rome seeking a title of holinesse without holinesse of life so falling away from true holinesse is assuredly fallen away also from being a Church It is called CATHOLIKE because it hath beene spread in all places and hath beene and shall be at all times In which respect it is distinguished froÌ„ the Church of the Iewes which was but in one nation and for a certaine time The Church of Rome was alwayes helde by the Ancients to differ froÌ„ the Catholicke Church though it was euer helde to be a part of the Catholike Church but that it differed from the Catholike as a particular from the vniuersall the ancient writers neuer made doubt S. Hierome writing of one that confounded the orders of the Church preferring a Deacon before a Priest which confusion was practised then in the Church of Rome prooueth that this was but a particular disorder suffred in the Church of Rome against the order of the Catholike Church spread ouer the world And therefore he declareth that though in respect of particular assemblies there was one Church of Rome another of France another of Britaine c. yet all agree in one Church and the authoritie of the Catholicke Church is greater then the authoritie of any part though it be Rome it selfe And therefore he sayth Si authoritas quaeritur orbis maior est vrbe meaning the authoritie of the Catholicke Church spred ouer the world is greater then the authoritie of the Church of Rome being as then it was reputed but the Church of one Citie Wherby he prooueth plainely that the Church of Rome was not the Catholike Church Saint Augustine writing to the same purpose obserueth that in his time one Vrbicus a Romane beganne to spread newe doctrines concerning fasting namely that fasting did wash away errors and sinnes that in fasting there was merit that men were compelled to sinne who tooke a breakefast that the kingdome of heauen was not in meat and drinke but in fasting and such like nouelties which Saint Austin August Epist 86. refuteth and sayth that this Vrbicus did